Page 48 of Love Me Knot, Part One (Knotty Omegas #1)

NATE

Daph hasn’t come back to our house since the disastrous dinner and even though I understand why, I want her in our space.

Blankets on our couch, scent in the air while we’re snuggled up on the massive couch for a movie, a chat, a nap.

I want her stealing shirts from the laundry instead of the overnight bag I bring over.

I want my omega to feel at home, but I know that takes time. For now, I’m happy she lets me climb into her nest every night so I can cuddle my girl as we sleep. It’s the best rest I’ve had in ten years.

After work’s done, I head directly to Daph’s, ready to pick her up and steal her away for some fun.

Only the downstairs is empty. So is her sewing room.

For a moment, there’s panic, until I remember she spent all of dinner last night talking about how excited she was to try a new design for the storefront. While I cleaned up, she disappeared into her sewing room. Of course, I followed, but didn’t last long.

“You’re too much of a distraction in here, all big and muscly and hot.”

“You think I’m hot?”

She kicked me out after that. Not wanting to go to bed without her, I waited for her to be done, but it took too long. When I finally couldn’t stand the separation anymore, I found Daph passed out in front of her sewing machine, arms spread over the table and foot off the pedal.

All that to say, it’s not a surprise to find her asleep in the nest, one sock dangling and a blanket tossed absently over her hips. Pretty little omega.

She wakes the moment I climb onto the mattress, smiling gently as I snuggle into her side.

Kissing her shoulders, her arms, her cheeks.

She bats me away with limp hands then gives me the most perfect view.

Body stretching, shirt rising to show a stripe of her soft belly, the one usually hidden by her silky sleep tank.

Her breasts rise with a deep inhale, and I want to bury my face in them or between the lush thighs she’s still hiding.

“You’re so fucking perfect,” I whisper, fingers following the path of Daphne’s curves until she shivers. “Missed you today.”

Her lips twitch, a soft smile just for me as she seeks my warmth blindly. “Missed you too.”

I can’t help but cup the back of her neck, holding her close even though I know she’s going to be annoyed. “Time to wake up.”

“No,” Daph groans.

“Please? I have a surprise.”

She stiffens, and I feel the excitement she’s trying to hide. My research says omegas love presents. While I’ve been going a little overboard making sure she has everything she could want to nest with, I know firsthand that the best gift is time.

Time with the people you love. Memories to cherish when they’re gone. A past shared between two souls.

I want to give Daph that, so I slip out of bed, ignoring her little growl while I gather the things I set out earlier.

A skirt she loves and lined leggings to keep her warm in the cool evening.

An emerald long-sleeve shirt I can’t wait to see against her hair and socks that’ll keep her feet cozy even in sneakers.

“Nate,” she whines when I whip the blanket off her sleep warm body.

It fades into a purr as I wrap my hands around the band of her shorts, slowly dragging them off her thighs. The honey trap of that skin is too tempting to avoid, so I kiss her gently, trying so hard to ignore her arousal even as the heavy sugar scent of it creeps closer.

I want to fuck her again, but our first time, we were strangers with a connection. Next time I take her, I want my omega to know exactly who’s making her break.

“What’re you doing?” Daphne’s chest heaves as I slip her legs into the skirt one at a time.

“Getting you dressed.”

She leans up on her elbows, bleary eyes pointed my way even as her body shifts restlessly. “I can do that myself.”

“I know. Let me do it anyway.”

Waiting to see if she’ll argue is torture. I’m so fucking close to her pussy that it’s all I can smell. My dick hurts in my jeans, desperate to be inside her again, but I hold still, waiting for Daph to come to me.

Her eyes soften, and she runs a warm hand through my hair. “Okay.”

I swear, I’ll never make her regret trusting me.

I can’t do the leggings yet, can’t be that close to her cunt and not do something about it. So, I go for her top instead, trying to calm myself down. The silk tank smells like her and the second I get it off her body, it’s against my face. God daaaaaamn.

My purr rumbles through me, making Daphne gasp. I want to hear it again as I?—

Not the time.

Doesn’t stop me from rubbing the fabric across shirt and down to my tented pants before tossing it into the nearby hamper too.

“Nate Morgan!” Daphne looks scandalized and so turned on. High cheeks flushed, eyes a little glassy. Fuck, she’s so pretty.

“Not sorry.” My hands look obscenely large as I run them slowly up her sides, her ribs until my fingers caress the underside of her naked breast. I wait a beat, then another and when Daphne doesn’t tell me to stop, I palm them both, groaning.

Her nipples peak beneath my thumb and I’m so fucking desperate to lick them I can’t stop staring.

“Do you want to wear a bra, or am I going to hold them like this all night?”

She struggles to control herself, each pant sending her chest right back into my grasp. “While that’s tempting, I’m not about to catch a public indecency charge.”

As if I’d let her go to jail.

It’s hell letting her go, hell all over when I slide the pretty pale blue up her arms. Because black satin panties cover Daphne’s pussy, and the one thing I know about my girl is that her lingerie always matches.

It’s my favorite part of watching her get dressed in the morning. My own little striptease.

And today I get a hand’s on view.

“Stop looking at me like that,” Daph whispers.

“Like what?” I ask absently, eyes rooted between her thighs.

“Like you want to eat me.”

“I do, kitten. I really fucking do.”

She blushes from head to nipple, that pretty pink flush a reminder of having her under me. Thighs over my shoulder, hips lifting to meet my mouth. Yeah, eating sounds pretty good right now.

Daphne’s perfume flows between us, coating me in her scent. Her need. The only thing that stops me is the plan.

After sleeping with her for days, I knew it would be difficult to not touch, but this is beyond expectation. My hands shake and my mouth fucking waters at how close she is.

I could have Daphne crying my name if I moved a few more inches.

“Do you want me to do it?” I ask, trying and failing to swallow my whimper as I motion toward her panties.

She bites her lip, looking down her body at me with so much fucking desire. Then those lithe fingers grip the sides of that black fabric, sliding it down thick thighs.

Every day I’ve been here, I’ve woken painfully hard with her ass in my lap, but seeing her nearly naked, hair spread out in our nest…holy shit, I’m going to die.

I’m distracted, tracing a group of freckles on her hip and enjoying the way she shivers. “If you’re taking me out tonight, I need panties, Nate.”

“Right.” It’s nothing to pull the old ones down the slope of her legs, carefully tucking them into my pocket. I slip the new pair on as gracefully as I can, but when Daph lifts her ass to help me, I get a face full of cotton candy.

I’m not a fucking saint. I chase her body, though I keep my tongue to myself. She sighs when I press my stubbled cheek to the lace barely covering her and for a second neither of us move. Balanced on the precipice of something great. Something profound.

Something that will have to wait.

It absolutely destroys me to back away, but I do, ignoring Daphne’s pout as I help her sit up. It fades when I carry her downstairs, putting her shoes and socks on before draping one of my zip ups over her shoulders.

Watching my omega burrow into my scent while wearing the outfit I chose, helping her dress even if she doesn’t need it, is so fucking satisfying to my instincts. I purr the entire way to the car.

“Where are we going?” She finally asks as I’m pulling out of the drive, and I marvel that she waited this long.

“Someplace my family used to take me. That okay?”

“Of course.” She smiles, twisting our hands together. “I think I’ll go anywhere with you, Nate.”

“Go karts?” Daphne raises a brow, hand cradling her rounded belly after too much food.

A local drive-thru sells insane waffle concoctions, and as soon as she mentioned it, I knew it was a perfect addition to our plans. But the sight of her hand there is doing some serious shit to my brain, throwing it into a constant loop of get her pregnant, make it real.

Thank fuck for birth control. Maybe we should see if there’s some I can take to. Doubling up seems kind of necessary when my brain is all breeding kink all the time.

“My parents brought me here a lot. Especially as a teen.”

“Why?” Grabbing Daph’s other palm, I bring it up for a kiss as we walk through the gates. There’s an arcade inside with laser tag and even a zipline. Outside is mostly the karts, but they’ve got putt-putt and some water games, too.

“Puberty’s hard on everyone, but it’s worse for alphas.

The hormones settle in fast, even if we don’t present for a few years, and the changes are startling.

Hard to control. For some, it’s just irritability, but I had a mean temper.

My dad realized I was struggling and brought me here as an outlet. ”

Daph’s face creases in concern as I buy us enough tickets to ride the go karts until close. With an absent thank you, she pulls me out of line and wraps her arms around me. “Why not boxing or something?”

“I was already too big. If I boxed with kids my age, it would’ve ended badly. This way, I could get my aggression out and have fun at the same time.”