Page 48 of Knot My Only Fan

Stanton blames me for letting her slip away, for not being there when she woke. For leaving her to sleep. He thinks I did it on purpose because of my father. I’ve tried to tell him it was a mistake. I tried—but he doesn’t care.

And maybe he’s right. Maybe I could have done more.

“I never believed we had a bond until her.” I set the glass down with a shaky hand, unable to meet Stanton’s intense stare any longer.

The weight of his anger these past weeks is suffocating, making it hard to breathe. But I know that deep down, beneath all the hurt and resentment, there’s still a chance we can be friends. “I called you that night, nobody else. I wanted you to share her with me.”

“And now she’s gone. You did something wrong, Lucas. She deleted all access to you. I should never have left you alone with her.”

“Your mother died that night,” I grunt.

He lowers his face to stare at the floor before pushing his hands through his hair.

“I’m sorry.” I know Stanton is still grieving his mother. How can he not?

I also know the hatred he feels for me right now is consuming him from the inside out. I can see it in the way his hands tremble slightly, the way his jaw clenches and unclenches, as if trying to contain the storm raging within him. But what he doesn’t understand is that I’m grieving too, in my own way.

“I miss her, Lucas,” he admits quietly, his voice raw with unspoken grief. “I miss her so much it hurts.”

“She was your mom. You’re entitled to feel the way you are.”

“I miss my mom. But I miss Scarlett…”

“You knew her for hours. You probably can’t remember what she looks like.”

“I felt her, and her perfume caused my body to sing like nobody ever has before. I know if she wasn’t so deep in her heat, she’d realize I had the same scent.” Stanton looks up at me, a flicker of something unreadable crossing his face.

I could argue that Scarlett is mine, but he’s not ready to hear that today.

“I never wanted this to happen,” I say roughly, hoping my words will reach the part of Stanton that still considers me a friend. “I never wanted to lose her, or for her to come between us.”

“She was ours.” His words are soft as he looks up at me, his eyes meeting mine for the first time since the tension began to build in the room. There’s a flicker of something in his gaze, not only hurt and anger, but there’s a need there. A need only an omega can provide.

I swallow. I feel the same way.

“But she’s gone now,” he says, his voice rough with emotion. “And we’re left picking up the pieces of what we briefly had and let slip through our fingers.”

“I’m still looking for her. I know she’s the one, Stanton. But…”

He interrupts. “And your father? How are you going to deal with him?” His jaw clenches and there’s a tightness around his eyes.

Despite the tension hanging in the air, I refuse to let our friendship wither away. “She’s the one, Stanton. She bit me in her heat.”

His shoulders slump, a gasp of air expels from his lips. “You told me, but if she was the one, you’d feel her through the bond. And you don’t.”

Taking a deep breath, I meet Stanton’s gaze head-on. “I know when she’s upset.”

“You told me you never felt her.”

“I lied.” Because I wanted her for myself.

“You think she’s your omega?”

“I know she is, but it’s over, Stanton. What I was about to tell you earlier is she never wanted to be an omega. After her heat was over, she was getting a beta implant.”

My shoulders feel heavy when Stanton presses his face into his hands.

Chapter 16

---