Page 74 of Love Me Knot, Part One (Knotty Omegas #1)

DAPHNE

Dez takes us past Sparrow’s Peak, another hookup spot a block from Topsy Turvy, driving to an overlook five minutes away. Honestly, anywhere secluded sounds good right now so I can get my hands on my alpha. When I say that, all I get is a pointed, “Behave.”

Rude.

Finally, we park and my breath catches. Fir trees insulate us from the outside world despite the glow of Seaport below. There’s nothing up here but nature, the city I’ve grown to love and the man who’s making it hard not to love him too.

I’m glad Dez didn’t shower before seeing me.

The car fills with clear hits of that deep, earthy floral that makes my knees shake.

Of Pack Morgan, he’s been the most aware and the quickest to give space, even when I’m not sure I want it.

I can tell it’s a defense mechanism and for a while I was patient, but the look in his eyes when he saw me at the house will haunt me forever.

Yearning. Straight, unaltered longing.

He needs to be around me more, and he’s punishing both of us for something I didn’t do. So, yeah. I’m done with letting him get away with it.

“You can’t look at me like that,” he groans, shifting in his seat.

“Why not?” My eyes latch onto his lap, where his cock is slowly tenting athletic shorts. Fire bursts in my veins when he palms it. Huh, not sure I’m hungry for food, anymore.

“Because I’m not fucking you right now.”

“Even if I beg?”

He runs a hand down his face. “Play a game with me.”

Oh, fuck yeah. “Always.”

That perfect face swivels my direction, moonlight brushing over his strong nose and angular jaw like a lover’s caress. “Finish the date and when it’s over, I’ll give you what you want.”

“To clarify, that means you’ll fuck me, right?”

“Yes, Daphne.” Dez laughs, and the sound warms my body. Not sexually, although he’s hot as fuck when he loosens up, but with affection. Maybe something deeper. I love making this alpha smile. It feels like the sky just handed me my own personal star.

He leans over the console and thumbs my bottom lip. “Give me an hour and I’ll do whatever you want in the nest.”

Dangerous words. I dart my tongue out for the smallest taste of him and fuck, that was a bad idea. Now that I’ve got him in my mouth, I’m not sure I want to wait.

“Be good,” he rasps, even as he leans in closer. My breath goes ragged as our chests brush, only for him to snag the bags off the footboard.

“ Boooooo. ”

Dez gifts me another perfect laugh in response. “Come on, little muse. Eat with me.”

I’d rather be dinner, but I buck up when he circles the car and opens my door. After stealing the ice cream, he holds out a hand. It’s the easiest thing I’ve ever done to take it.

Dez’s palm is so warm, and I savor the contact as he helps me slip onto the hood. For a minute, he just stares, gaze hot and heavy. The wind’s blowing just enough that I don’t get the full effect of his scent, but the craving is enough to make me regret my agreement to wait.

We’re poised on the edge of a cliff, and I don’t just mean physically. Dez’s will alone has kept us apart, and I plan to unravel it like my favorite candy tonight. Damn the consequences when every part of me knows I could happily keep this alpha.

In fact, maybe that’s just what we need. A little nip, a lifetime bond. Bada bing, bada boom, we’re stuck together insecurities be damned.

Shaking out of the fog, I force my omega brain to take a backseat. There will be no biting right now. Settle down.

By the time Dez sits beside me, I’m back in control. My only complaint is the food he carefully places between us. I should be cradled against his side, not the fucking fries.

I’m still glaring when I take my first bite of the burger.

Flavors explode on my tongue, and I know this is going to be a comfort meal from now on.

We chat as we eat, keeping things relatively light.

Dez tells me about the latest design they’re working on, and I update him on Nymph’s progress.

He sags with relief when I tell him I’ve finally gotten the all clear to go back.

When I took the pack on a tour of the shop the day after the whole we’re your landlords debacle, they were less than thrilled.

None of them wanted to make me feel bad or step on my toes, but there was a lot still out of code.

Shit I hadn’t taken time to look at yet.

With their list of concerns, I rang the renovation team I’d hired to gut the interior and made it clear that if they didn’t fix shit immediately, I was going to ruin their fucking lives.

The call—and the threat of an investigation into their business practices—got the reno company moving, but this time, I hired an inspector to follow along and make sure things actually got done.

It sucks that the company felt comfortable being so underhanded with me just because I didn’t have a pack, but I don’t need alphas to sort things out for me.

Just to support me while I take care of it myself.

Despite yet another shitshow, I haven’t been idle.

I spent my time working on storage systems for the back rooms, ordering mannequins and toys, and working with local employees on schedules.

I’ve also been searching for Taylorson and digging into Father’s affairs to find someone I can coerce into looking for the contract for me.

Hell, I asked Maverick if he knows any thieves, but all I got was a stern look and the usual, “I know nothing.”

Still, it’s better than crying on my couch every day.

When we’ve moved onto ice cream, I snuggle into Dez’s side. An omega only has so much patience before she needs to touch her alpha.

Being in his arms is like nothing else. Nate’s an octopus when he cuddles, wrapping his whole body around me so I can’t escape, but Dez just holds me steady. Keeps me balanced and level. This man won’t let anything happen to me; I just know it.

We stare at the city in front of us, talking about things we one day hope to make enough to buy—his most coveted art supplies and my dream sewing machine—when I realize this is the perfect time to ask him something I’ve been wondering for a while.

“I’m going to have some of your sketches framed to display around the store. Is there anything I need to do to keep them safe?” Dez jerks back, and I scramble to keep him from toppling off the car. “What the hell?”

“Sorry, I just…you don’t have to do that.”

He’s so sure of himself until something triggers him and then I see the wounded man beneath everything else. The alpha who gave everything and got nothing but heartache in return. I don’t need to know his story to know he deserved better.

Moving the remaining garbage to the roof, I fold him around me as best I can. “I love the drawings, Dez. I want them everywhere.”

Pulling the newest sheet out of my pocket, I flash it at him, satisfied to watch the breath explode from his chest. “I can’t believe you kept that with you.”

“My alpha made it for me as a courting gift. Why wouldn’t I?” When he freezes, I wonder if I’ve misread the situation. “They are courting gifts, right?”

Dez shudders, squeezing me tighter. “Yeah, little muse. They’re part of your courting present.”

“Only part of it?” I’m not sure I can handle more. This man is devastating. I don’t know how to guard myself from the way he wages war.

“Do you want more?”

“No.”

He brushes a wayward curl out of my face carefully. “Well, you’re getting it, anyway.”

“You don’t have to do that,” I say as he tips my head back onto his shoulder.

Peppering kisses across my throat, my cheek and finally my lips, Dez softens one touch at a time. “I want to show you how much you mean to me, Daphne.”

We’re silent for a long while, enjoying the night sounds and the city spread below us before he nuzzles into his favorite place on my neck. “I have an art show in a few months. Will you go as my date?”

The air goes still, the critters around us quiet. There’s nothing but his words wrapping themselves around my heart.

“You want me there?”

“Of course. I need the muse for my centerpiece.” He shows me a picture on his phone that I know doesn’t do justice for the painting itself.

This is so much more than his sketches. It’s vibrant, full of longing that tightens my throat. I see his devotion in every stroke. The way he treats each little freckle, crease and curve of my body like it’s a masterpiece of its own.

I’ve never felt more beautiful or more laid bare.

“Is this how you see me?” My voice cracks, and Dez frowns.

“If you’re not comfortable with people seeing it, I won’t put it up for display, but?—”

“No!” I interrupt, twisting so he gets a firsthand view of me, happy tears and all. “I love it. I just don’t want you to be embarrassed with me there. I mean, I know bringing a date is unprofessional, so it’s okay if you’d rather go alone.”

Dez stills, almost eerily so. “Why would bringing my omega to my event be unprofessional?”

“Is it not?”

He waits a moment, then absolutely crushes me to his chest. His face falls in the hollow of my neck, to the place he finds the most comfort.

I feel the rumble of his growl more than I hear it and when he eventually pulls away, gone is the relaxed, teasing man from earlier.

“Bringing you with me would enhance the night, little muse, not ruin it. Did your exes use that as an excuse?”

“Yes.”

“Baby.” My heart aches at how soft Dez’s voice is now, the way he clings to me like he never wants to let go.

“They used that as an excuse to keep you isolated. Probably because it meant fewer witnesses seeing how you were treated. Less support when you needed it. They weren’t embarrassed of you; they just knew they weren’t treating you right. ”