Page 10 of Knot Our Mistake (Knot Ours #1)

CHAPTER

TEN

LEO

It was a crime to tamper with suppressants. I knew it, and yet even having that knowledge, it didn't stop me a week later from starting the journey to get what I wanted, and what I wanted was to keep the omega.

It was an innocent act at first; I tossed out a single pill, flushing it away from her supply.

But once I started, it was like a disease consuming my mind.

I couldn't stop. Each day that passed, she'd take a pill and I'd toss a pill, and two weeks after that, her supply had diminished to nearly nothing.

Though I wasn't going to point that out to her. She'd realize it soon enough.

Unfortunately, I hadn't realized how soon that would be.

"Your eggs, my princess," Bran announced two weeks later, as he served the omega.

"Thank you, kind sir," she mirrored his drama, and the fool ate it up. I couldn't blame him. I would have too.

"Why am I not getting served eggs like I'm a princess?" James grumbled, a rare joke from him had the room growing silent and turning toward him. "What? I like eggs."

"I can call you princess," I said lowly, and James's eyes burned as he stared me down.

The omega cleared her throat as she swallowed. "These are good, Bran."

"Only the best for our omega."

"She's not ours," James sighed.

I didn't get it. Why the fuck couldn't she be?

She was here. She liked us. We liked her.

I was tired of skirting around flirting and trying not to touch her when she had curves that begged to have my hands and lips on them.

When my mouth yearned to taste hers. When she was made for us in every damn way possible.

Why was the alpha so fucking blind to this?

I loved him. I loved Bran too. But damn it, our love could include one more, and why the hell shouldn't it?

We're good people, excluding the felony of my tampering with suppressants. We deserve happiness.

With each time he said those words, I swear her confidence fell more and more. I wanted to shout that she could be ours, but instead I kept that thought inside. "She's been here almost a month now."

A long, tortuous month where I was in a constant state of arousal that Bran and James never seemed to sate in the darkness of night.

James glared. "What's your point, delta?"

"My point is, she could stay. She fits in well. She helps out tremendously. And I know how much you love that sweet little kitten."

"I hate that kitten." He somehow failed to deny everything else. I could point out that he did in fact adore that cat and I've personally seen him seek it out to pet it, and caught it sleeping in his lap more than once, but it was no use angering the alpha this early in the morning.

"I think," the omega swallowed hard as she pushed her plate away, "that I should be going soon."

All our heads whipped toward her, echoing each other, "What?"

"I-" She shifted in her seat. "I think I should be going soon.

I-" An exhale of breath as she gathered herself.

"It seems the pharmacy had made an error with my supply of suppressants.

I should have had another month's worth, but this morning, I seem to have less than a week. I – I don't know how I missed it."

Guilt flooded me. I hadn't meant to drive her away, only bring our alpha to his senses and drive him to let us keep her.

"We will get more," James offered before anyone else could speak.

"It's...complicated."

"Uncomplicate it for us," Bran leaned over the table, ready to hang on to every word our omega spoke.

“I'm allergic to the common suppressant used. The compound I use needs to be specially made. It can take two weeks to get it."

"How many days do we have?" I questioned like I didn't already know the answer to it.

"Five."

"Fuck," James cursed as he stood up, his fist pounding on the table. "How long after?"

"Could be weeks. Could be days," she whimpered, her eyes down as she looked at her hands.

"We can't just let her be out in the world like that. She could get hurt. Someone could take her against her will. We owe it to her to prevent that from happening," I stated.

"But if she-"

"Alpha," I barked, daring him to finish his statement. He may be in charge of this unit, but I refused to let him hurt her while she was sitting in front of us. "Why don't we talk about this as a unit, after breakfast?"

"I agree," Bran subtly cast his vote on the subject before turning his attention back to the omega. "Let me know the compound, and I'll make some calls. We might be able to get it rushed."

"I'm- I'm sorry," she sniffed, and I hated that she thought this was her fault when it was mine. I shouldn't have let compulsion win, but damn if the temptation of owning her wasn't hard to resist.

"Darling, none of this is your fault," I promised.

"I just-"

"I said none of this is your fault and that's final. Understand?"

She nodded her head, but still the way she acted the rest of breakfast was testimony of just how much she believed me.

Hours later, when we were sure our omega had gone to sleep, we plopped down on our shared pallet, no one wanting to talk as silence consumed the air around us. But it was my fault, I had to come clean, I had to admit I'm the reason we were in this mess...I just... Fuck.

"I need to confess something, but I need you to promise to keep calm, alpha," I finally worked out.

"When something starts with that statement, I already know that I'll break any promise I make. Spit it out, delta."

"I-It..." fuck. "It was my fault."

"What was your fault?" His tone took on a hard edge, and I had no doubt he knew exactly what I was about to confess to; he just needed me to say the words so he could let loose his fury. And admittedly, I deserve it. I deserve any repercussions from my actions, even if I'm not sorry about them.

"At first, it was only one, and I didn't think it would make that much of a difference.

It was a drive, and I couldn't stop it. Every time I looked at her, all I could think about is kids and family and the tiniest boots, and I know it's ridiculous because she wasn't supposed to stay, but I wanted her to.

I wanted her to stay with us," I confessed.

"Say the words," he growled, using so much power behind his demand that the words spilled from my mouth before I could even think of what I was saying.

"I flushed her suppressant down the toilet every day, making it slowly decrease."

The alpha's roar was so loud, it shook the building we resided in, and I knew for a fact that if Sophia was sleeping, he would have woken her up. "You what?"

I didn't bother repeating myself; he knew exactly what I did. If he hadn't heard me, the rage that rolled off him wouldn't have been so thick. I kept my eyes low, willing to submit to my alpha, and do any repentance required to get back in his good graces again.

"You knew where I stood on this topic," his words were low, but still just as powerful.

"I know."

"And you defied me?" he seethed.

Before I could further admit how royally I fucked up, Bran cut in, "Two to one."

The alpha's head swung to Bran. "WHAT?"

"Vote," Bran looked around nervously, looking anywhere but at our alpha. "I agree with Leo. I don't want her going anywhere. I like having her here. She fits perfectly, and you would know that if you didn't spend so much time ignoring her."

"You can't vote on something as important as an omega," James scoffed.

"I- I believe we just did," I pointed out and closed my eyes, expecting his fury to snap in punishment.

Instead, his voice lowered, defeated in spirit, though his anger still simmered. He reached out, his fingers grabbing the root of my hair as he tilted my head back, forcing me to meet his eyes. "Am I not enough for you? Our family we created, is it not enough?"

"It's everything." And that wasn't a lie. I didn't exist without the two of them. I breathed them, lived them, loved them.

"But not enough," the disappointment he radiated shattered me, but I couldn't lie. Not now. Not when we already were so raw with the truth and troubles I've caused.

"Not enough."

For once, in all the time I've known James, he lowered his eyes, looking to the ground. His silence was weighted. It was torture without a single touch. It felt like my own personal demise.

When he raised his eyes again, his Adam's apple bobbed before he spoke again. "I'll give you what you want, Delta. I'll let her stay for now. But I may never forgive you for this betrayal."

And before I could question him more, ask what I could do to make it up to him, to the unit, he used his grip on my hair to pull me to my knees in front of him.

His free hand worked his cock free, stroking it in front of me, and I knew I was about to be punished, knew whatever he had in mind wouldn't be filled with love and care that usually accompanies any of our couplings, but that didn't stop my mouth from watering and craving what the alpha could take from me.