Page 35 of Knot Your Business

I’ll grab you at 8.

Alright. See you Monday.

Jasper blows out a breath and pushes off of me, but he doesn’t drop my hand. I grab his chin and turn him toward me, kissing him before he can pull too far away.

Someone makes a gagging sound. Jasper laughs and kisses me again.

“You guys going out tonight?” Mason asks as I pull away from Jasper.

“Not tonight. It’s been a long week,” my lover says, not hiding his exhaustion.

The others fade out soon after that, murmuring goodnights and offering quick hugs. It’s a bit anti-climactic since it’s our second-to-last weekend, but Jasper and I just aren’t feeling up to faking it for everyone else’s sake tonight. The walk to the car is quiet. Jasper tucks his cello into the back seat of the Alfa Romeo before sliding into the passenger seat.

As we head onto the highway, I say, “You’re with me tonight.”

He snaps his eyes to me. “What if he’s home?”

I shake my head. “I don’t give a fuck. He can have you in the morning. You’re with me tonight.”

VIOLET

There’s a hard knock at the door. Nerves flare in my belly, and I have to swallow twice to try to move the lump that’s seemingly taken up permanent residence in my throat. I brush down the Lana Del Rey shirt and adjust the way my fishnets sit on my thighs. I’ve traded out my preferred shorts for a simple black skirt, part of me hopeful that Rylan might want to do something other than kiss tonight. And skirts are better for that if we’re in tight quarters.

Also, my ass looks fucking amazing in this set-up, so that’s a bonus.

“Violet, he’s here,” Faedra says from the shared living room of our dorm.

I run my hands through my hair, shaking it out a bit, and close my bedroom door, trying to lean into the same etiquette training that got me through the matching gala without punching any of the reporters. Faedra’s leaning against the kitchenette counter, picking apart a salad she must have grabbed from one of the dining halls before they closed for the night. Her phone is perched just next to the bowl, the screen dark, and her fingers tap against her thigh in one of her subtle nervous habits.

Rylan leans against the closed front door, his hands in his pockets, his dark hair several inches shorter than when I’d seen him on Friday. He’s wearing the same Snow Patrol hoodie as he had been on the video call. His eyes skate over me, the slow perusal warming my chest, and I can feel the blush color my cheeks. As I approach, the citrus scent of him hits me, and my thighs clench. What’s it like being able to walk wherever you want and not worry if you’re scenting?

At least I get to enjoy the benefits of it.

He pushes off the door when I catch his gaze, holding one hand out to me. This time, when I take his hand, he doesn’t pull me closer to mark me with his scent. Was that a bad sign? Alphas always wanted to mark what they viewed as theirs.

“You’ll call me if that party downstairs gets out of hand, right?” I ask Faedra.

She raises an eyebrow and crosses her arms. “Absolutely not. I’m more than capable of doing my job. You’re supposed to be having fun tonight.”

Damn her for being so confident right now. She gives me one of her looks, the one that says she knows what I was trying to subtly imply, and that she isn’t going to give me the benefit of her friendship at the moment. So what if I wanted an escape hatch for tonight?

I let Rylan guide me out of the dorm. This time, he cuts toward one of the parking lots. It’s late enough that most people have moved off of the main pathways around campus, opting for going out or staying in for the night. The sun’s dipped below the horizon, the last rays starting to disappear, and the street lights are already on around the campus.

“If you want to leave, just let me know. Grab my arm and squeeze twice if you don’t want to make a big deal of it.” Rylan’s voice blends into the evening.

I glance over at him, trying to gauge how he’s feeling tonight compared to Friday. He seems more tired today, though I’m not honestly sure how I can even tell. Maybe there’s something subtle about his scent that I’m noticing without being able to actually notice it. Instincts are fucking weird sometimes.

“Didn’t expect safe words for a night out at a bar with your friends,” I say, opting for humor to see what he does.

He smirks, his hold tightening on mine for a moment. “First of all, they’re Jasper’s friends, not mine. They’re simply my coworkers.” I ignore the quick slice of pain over his easy, happy use of Jasper’s name. He purses his lips. “Don’t tell Huntley I said that.”

“I have no idea who that is,” I say.

He chuckles. “You will soon.” He pulls a key fob from his pocket as we near the curb. One of the cars flashes its lights, though it doesn’t make any noise. “Second, they’re a lot. All the time. And fuck knows one of them will manage to say something that will piss you off. Secretly, my money is on Liz since she’s been out of her mind since the paperwork was delivered after rehearsal Wednesday. But, really, it could be any of them. Just making sure you have a way to get out of it without making them realize they’ve overstepped.”

I nod. Should I be happy he’s thinking about this so much? That he’s worried about how I’m going to respond to trying to integrate with his circle of people?

Probably. But in reality, it’s just making the nerves grow worse in my belly.

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