Page 61 of Their Knotty Pack (Starbrook City Omegaverse #3)

Bethany

" T here." I take a step back, admiring the giant bow I managed to secure to the piano my parents paid to have shipped to us. Our "pack bonding" present, they called it. Even though we haven't all bonded yet.

That will change soon, though.

My heart pounds in my chest as I look over the black upright piano that now takes up the wall to the left as you walk into the farmhouse—right next to the kitchen door.

We can move it to a different room if he wants to, but for now it'll be the very first thing he sees when he walks in.

The color of the piano perfectly matches the floating shelves that Kieran made me, which are now anchored in the wall opposite of us.

The piano had belonged to dad's parents, and he only took it for sentimental value—nobody in our family knew how to play.

Well, I can play Twinkle Twinkle Little Star .

"You think that's centered?" Hunter asks from behind me, looking at the piano with a studious eye.

I step back, so I'm shoulder to shoulder with him. There's a photo of Miles and me on the wall above the piano, and it looks pretty centered.

"I think so," I tell him, lifting my chin to meet his eyes as I smile.

"I think so too," he grins back, and then his arm wraps around my shoulders. "I meant to thank you for my photo, too. The one you left on my desk."

We haven't had a kiss like the one we shared the night he took me to the station, and it's like I can still feel it tingling on my lips. "We need to take one of all six of us." I try to sound as unaffected as possible despite the blush on my cheeks.

"Maybe we can take one in front of the new piano," he suggests lightly. "I can't wait to see Brody's face when he walks in. When are they supposed to be back?"

It's Saturday, which means we're all off work today.

I convinced Brody that Miles needed to be taken to NestingCo.

for some items for his impending heat, and oh, look at that, I don't feel well enough to join.

Damien and Kieran, having never been to a nesting item store before, were curious and went with them.

Which just left Hunter and I to handle the piano delivery.

"Um…" I check my phone for the time. "Miles texted ten minutes ago that they were headed back so…like five minutes?"

He nods once, but his arm doesn't move from my shoulders, and we stand there for a moment, staring at the piano.

"Hunter?" My voice breaks the silence. There's something I've been meaning to ask him, ever since Miles' heat spike happened the other day.

"Hm?"

"What will happen…if Miles' heat comes, and you two aren't there yet?" I want to be sensitive to him, but also…Miles needs to know if Hunter doesn't plan on being there.

He lets out a sigh, running a hand through his hair. "Honestly, Bethany, I don't know. I'm so, so close to being there with both of you…I half wonder if the heat pheromones will do the rest of the work."

"So…" I bite my lip, turning to look at him.

He looks at me, tugging my bottom lip free. "I'll be there in whatever capacity I can. Whether that means I'm making sure everyone stays fed and hydrated—"

"Including Cal?" I have no idea why I ask that.

"Including Cal," he smiles, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, "So watering the plants, feeding the pack, providing a knot…" he swallows roughly, "I'll do whatever I'm capable of. Even though I did want our first time together to be…"

"Special?" I volunteer helpfully.

"Yes, special." He smiles softly at me, and damn, what I wouldn't do to bottle that smile up and keep it with me wherever I go.

"Anything with you will be special, Hunter," my voice is almost a whisper, "anything we—"

The sound of car doors shutting outside has my mouth snapping shut, and then I'm doing a last minute check of the piano, making sure the bow is properly in place. Should I sit on it? Do a pose of some kind? Fuck, should I be naked for this?

What? I shake my head, confused at the turn my thoughts just took. Of course I shouldn't be naked. I nervously grab Hunter's hand right as the front door is pushed open, and even though nobody appears in the doorway and we catch what appears to be the middle of an argument.

"Omegas first, sprite," I can hear Brody say, "it's literally my business name, just let me be a gentleman and have you go first."

"For fucks sake," Miles mutters. "Do we have to do this the hard way?"

There's a light scuffle and muffled laughter as Brody is finally pushed through the front door, by Miles, Kieran and Damien laughing behind them. "You think a single male omega on his own never took any sort of ass-kicking classes? I work out for a reason, hotshot."

Brody is so focused on roughhousing with Miles, that it's not until a giggle bursts out of me that his attention whips to Hunter and I, and t hen, finally, the piano.

Hunter gently detangles his fingers from mine as he takes a step towards the couches, letting it be clear that this action… this gift, was my doing.

"I…" He swallows roughly, looking between me and the piano. "What is this?"

"Surprise!" I throw my hands up as he slowly walks up to the piano, like he can't quite believe his eyes.

"It's not new, but it was my grandad's, and my parents had it for years, but nobody in my family knows how to play.

" Then I just keep on rambling as he stares at me, his eyes wide.

"I mean, I can do like, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and Hot Cross Buns, which is hardly considered 'playing'—"

I'm cut off from my rambling with a hand in my hair and lips against mine. His other hand comes down to grip my waist as he pulls me closer to him. Soft lips move against mine, his tongue exploring my mouth as he full on dips me down low like we're in some kind of movie.

I'm vaguely aware of the way Miles and Damien are whistling, but it's all background noise until he pulls away, pressing one last, soft kiss to my lips and pressing his forehead against mine.

"You did this for me?" Brody asks, breathless.

I nod, still being held in a dip.

"You know," he chuckles, finally lifting me upright, "I'm supposed to be one courting you. Not the other way around."

"What can I say?" My chest heaves. "I'm a forward thinking omega."

He grins, pressing a kiss to my forehead. "That you are." Then he turns to the piano, running his hands over the smooth, shiny surface. "It's beautiful. You said it belonged to your grandad?"

I can't help but smile as I watch him sit on the bench. "Yeah. My parents shipped it to us."

"And I distracted you," Miles says proudly, and Kieran throws an arm over his shoulder.

"Yes, yes you did. Speaking of distractions…we should probably unload the fruits of your distraction from the car."

The four of them go to the car to unload whatever the hell Miles convinced them he needs, and Brody reaches a hand out to me. "Sit with me?" He asks, his eyes full of hope.

I nod, moving to grab his hand, and settle on the bench next to him.

"Do you need sheet music…?" My question becomes null and void as his hands start moving across the keys, a beautiful haunting melody echoing in the room.

Slow, but deliberate, I swear that I've heard it before, but I couldn't say from where. I glance at him to see his eyes are closed.

He's playing from memory, and it's…gorgeous.

"Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata," Damien says quietly from next to me, having just come in from outside. "The third movement. A rather impressive and showy display of talent."

Brody's keystrokes falter as he looks at Damien, and I give the beta a dirty look for interrupting my private show. "Do you know a lot of classical?"

"Just enough to not be considered a barbarian," Damien smirks before glancing over his shoulder.

I follow his line of sight, only to see Miles cuddled into Hunter's side on the couch.

Hunter looks down at Miles, warmth shining in his eyes as he runs a hand through the omega's hair.

Miles looks like he's about to fall asleep.

Kieran has flopped onto one of the arm chairs, his arm thrown over his eyes.

"I think you should play some more," I stage-whisper to Brody, who looks down at me with a quiet smile.

"Oh! Rush E, if you really want to show off." Damien winks, before sitting down on the other couch and propping his feet up.

"What's Rush E?" I ask, my nose wrinkling.

"Only one of the most technically complicated and fast tempo songs I've ever tried to learn.

Apparently playing from beginning to end is ph ysically impossible.

" Brody laughs, before stretching his fingers out in front of him.

"I suppose I can give it a shot. This is the first time I've played piano in a little over a year though, so I might mess up a few times. "

The song starts out simple enough, but quickly picks up pace, his hands flying across the keys so quickly I can't keep track of them.

"Oh my gods, how are you doing that?" Miles is next to us now, his eyes intent on Brody's hands. "No wonder you made nymph come apart so hard."

I choke on a laugh, slapping a hand over my mouth as Brody's shoulders start to shake. I don't even know the song but I can tell that he's missing notes, too distracted by laughing at Miles to play properly. We all break out into laughter, Brody leaning into my side as his chest rumbles.

Miles goes back to the couch, cackling like a maniac, and Brody and I catch our breath, my head on his shoulder.

"Will you…will you play another one for me?" I ask, my eyes trained on his hands still resting on the keys. I've determined that I can watch Brody play for hours and never grow tired of it.

He nods softly. "This one…" he says, leaning in close, "makes me think of you."

Then his fingers start moving over the keys again, and a feeling of…something takes over me. Sad…but not. Happy…but not? Longing and a sense of peace, maybe? My heart pounds, and it almost feels like I want to start crying at the amount of emotion that's being stirred within me.

The song…it has me in a chokehold. The notes, light and seemingly effortless flow through me. "What…what is this?" I ask on a choked whisper, my eyes searching Brody's face.

"I wrote it," he admits softly.

"When?"

"Right now."

"I don't understand…why does it make me want to cry, but I'm not sad?"

"The beginning of this song came to me the first time the first time we kissed," his voice is calm and steady, "the moment my lips found yours, I felt like…like I was finally coming home. That's when the first riff filled my mind. I wasn't ever able to get it out on an instrument…until just now."

I can identify the emotion then, for what it is. The feeling that the song strikes in me.

Love.

Pure, untainted love, promises of new beginnings, and protection.

"Brody?" I whisper, second guessing myself. What if I'm wrong?

"What is it, beautiful?" The song continues to flow around me, the notes caressing my skin making my heart feel…lighter.

"Do you…love me?"

He doesn't even hesitate. "Of course I do."

Then, his hands clamber to a stop because I'm turning, throwing my leg over his lap so I straddle him.

Taking his face in my hands, I kiss him. I pour every emotion, every feeling, every kernel of affection I have for him into that kiss. Then he's standing, the piano bench scooting across the floor as he holds me to him.

"I love you too, Brody Benson." I murmur against his lips, and he groans, taking my mouth again before pulling himself away and calling over his shoulder.

"We'll be taking a brief intermission."

I giggle into his kiss as he takes me again, getting up the stairs as fast as he can without tripping and breaking bones.

When we come together, it's nothing like the claiming of the first time we had sex, or even just a few days ago in the frenzy of Miles' heat spike.

No, Brody takes his time, and loves me thoroughly .