Page 24 of Knot Gonna Lie (Syzygy Omegaverse #1)

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

LUCA

The transport to Syzygy Station’s observation level carried us through layers of my own deception, each ascending tier another reminder of the distance I’d placed between truth and the life I was building.

Through the transparent walls, stars wheeled in their eternal dance—indifferent witnesses to the small deceptions of those who traveled between them.

I need to tell Eli.

My brother, my partner, the one person who’d trusted me to handle the business while he remained planetside. How did you explain stealing someone’s identity—even family—to claim an omega? How did you justify rewriting destiny with borrowed credentials?

The restaurant Toasty had recommended perched at the station’s crown like a jewel set against infinity. Crystal fixtures cast prismatic light through the space, fragmenting rainbows across white tablecloths and gleaming silverware.

The cosmos stretched in all directions—a reminder of how small our choices seemed against such vastness, yet how immense they felt when they shaped a life.

I guided Elara through the entrance, my hand at the small of her back—a touch that still sent electricity through our bond. She wore an emerald dress that complemented the vest I’d chosen this morning, our unconscious matching another sign of the connection growing between us.

“It’s magnificent,” she breathed, emerald eyes wide as they drank in the elegant space.

Not as beautiful as you, I thought but didn’t say. Too much, too soon. I’d just claimed her last night…skipping past the courtship phase. But first, I need to make this right. Need to tell Eli before—

It would be foolish to mistake the mark on her neck for love—but that didn’t mean I wasn’t open to falling for her.

How could I resist her?

I wanted to move forward like we were courting—despite the urgency of her approaching heat that had pushed us together too fast. More than anything, I wanted the chance to know her. To understand who she was beneath the surface.

The wonder in her voice tightened something in my chest. After years confined to the station’s inner corridors, even a small luxury felt like freedom to her. And I wanted to give her more—every experience she’d been denied. Every joy the galaxy had to offer.

But first, I need to make this right. Need to tell Eli before—

“Your table is ready,” the ma?tre d’ announced, offering a practiced smile and holding a glowing vidtablet like a tray.

Seth and Jaxom flanked us as the ma?tre d’ led us to our table—a corner booth with unobstructed views of the star field.

My pack settled in, still adjusting to new dynamics and learning how to move around each other with our clan’s new omega present.

Seth slid in beside Elara, close enough that their shoulders might brush but maintaining the respectful distance of one who understood boundaries.

Jaxom sat beside them, already pulling up his tablet to explain the menu’s more exotic offerings.

I settled on the other side of my omega, positioning myself where I could watch the room while keeping her within protective reach.

Ingrained instincts. An alpha always positioned himself between his omega and potential threats—even in supposedly neutral territory.

“I’ve never seen a menu like this,” Elara admitted, fingers tracing unfamiliar words with endearing uncertainty. “What’s ‘molecular gastronomy’?”

“Marketing.” Seth sighed. “And an excuse to charge patients more for less.”

“Fancy term for playing with your food,” Jaxom explained, his natural enthusiasm breaking through professional reserve. “They transform ingredients into new forms—gels that melt on your tongue, spheres that burst with concentrated flavor, foams that carry essence without substance.”

“The station only served synthetic proteins.” Her nose wrinkled at the memory. “Everything tasted vaguely the same after a while. Gray nutrition, Quinn used to call it. It just became a dull routine to remain healthy.”

“Probably to get omegas in and out of the station as fast as possible.” Seth frowned, eyes on his vidtablet. “To push them toward The Den just to escape the monotony…maybe even before they’re ready to be claimed.”

“Then we’ll order several dishes to share. Multiple courses if we have to.” I signaled the server, decision made. I wanted to watch her discover every flavor, every texture she’d been denied. “You should experience everything.”

The warmth that bloomed in her eyes made my chest tight. Every smile felt like a gift I’d stolen—because I had. If Eli knew what I’d done, would he see betrayal or desperation? Would he understand that some chances only came once?

Focus on now, I told myself. I’ll call him tomorrow. Explain everything. He’ll understand—he must understand. Consequences be damned.

“Tell me about your favorite foods from Earth,” Seth prompted gently. “Before the station. What did you miss most about food from home?”

Elara’s expression went distant, chasing memories.

“My mother made this soup when the weather turned cold—chicken and dumplings. Nothing sophisticated, just…pure comfort. The kitchen would steam with it, and the whole house would smell like sage and black pepper…” She trailed off, longing written across her features as she stared off into the distance.

“We’ll find a recipe,” I promised, catching her hand beneath the table. “Recreate it for you.”

“You cook?” Skepticism and delight mingled in her tone.

“Abysmally,” I admitted, earning a laugh that loosened the knot of tension in my shoulders. “But Seth has hidden culinary talents.”

“Someone has to keep you all from living on ration bars and stubbornness,” Seth protested, color rising in his cheeks.

The courses arrived in waves—each plate a miniature masterpiece, rich in color and careful composition. But the real pleasure wasn’t the food. It was watching Elara discover it.

Her eyes widened at the pop of citrus spheres, surprise giving way to delight. She laughed when a delicate foam melted into unexpected sweetness. And the soft, unconscious sounds she made—pure, honest enjoyment—stirred something deep in me. Made my alpha instincts hum with satisfaction.

We ordered too much but I didn’t care. I wanted her to taste everything. Watching her savor each bite had become my new obsession.

She is mine to provide for. Mine to protect. Mine to cherish.

Through our bond, I felt her contentment settle, wrapping around us like a quiet kind of comfort. This wasn’t the desperation of heat—it was choice. A steady, moment-by-moment effort to build something real from the ground up.

“You’re staring,” she murmured, not looking up from her plate where she was dissecting a flower made entirely of crystallized fruit.

“Can you blame me?”

Pink bloomed across her cheeks. Through our bond, I felt her pleasure at being watched, wanted, cherished. So different from the desperate need of heat—this was choosing, moment by moment, to build something real. “I suppose not. Though I hardly think watching me eat is that fascinating.”

“Everything about you fascinates me.”

Too much honesty, perhaps, but the words had escaped before wisdom could cage them. Seth made a soft sound—amusement or secondhand embarrassment—while Jaxom suddenly became very interested in his wine glass.

But Elara just smiled—that quiet, unreadable look that made me want to know exactly what she was thinking.

I just wanted to keep that smile on her face—whatever it took.

Soon, we’d return to the ship—now that I’d secured our departure clearance—and make our way to paradise.

“This is perfection,” Elara sighed, savoring something the server had called stellar honey —crystallized into sharp-edged star shards, each one catching the light like fractured glass, golden and glinting with warmth.

It melted on the tongue with slow, lingering sweetness, as if the sun itself had been distilled into candy. “Thank you for this. For everything.”

“You never need to thank me for providing what should have always been yours.”

“Still.” She caught my hand, lacing our fingers together with slow, deliberate intimacy. “I’m grateful. For this chance. For you. For all of you.”

Her gaze included Seth and Jaxom, drawing them into the circle of her gratitude. My clan. My family. Built on a foundation of trust—slowly earned over the years we’ve shared.

Hopefully, it was strong enough not to crack under the weight of the deception I’d caused.

Tomorrow, I promised myself again. I’ll make everything clear tomorrow.

The meal wound toward its conclusion in waves of comfortable contentment.

Jaxom regaled us with stories of his first attempts at inventory management—somehow making shipping manifests sound like adventure tales.

He earned plenty of questions and comments from Elara, who listened with genuine interest—laughing at his missteps, leaning in when he described close calls on his future hedges.

Seth chimed in with quiet observations that sparked unexpected laughter, his dry humor sliding between Jaxom’s dramatics with perfect timing.

He added, almost offhandedly, that Jaxom’s risky bets on obscure supplies had unintentionally accelerated his own research—forcing innovation through necessity.

And Elara…our omega glowed with the simple joy of belonging, as if she’d been starved for this kind of easy companionship her entire life.

As if she was truly ready for a clan—for a pack.

I was so lost in watching her—the way candlelight caught gold threads in her hair surrounded by the restaurant’s gentle ambiance—that I almost missed the shift in atmosphere.

“Alpha.” Jaxom’s tone sliced through my reverie, sharp with warning. “Incoming problem.”