Page 61 of Knot Giving Up 2

What the hell were we thinking?! We never should have come here.

Meggie smells like a freshly baked pie straight out of the oven. There’s an undertone to her scent, almost like she’s been topped with vanilla ice cream and served up on a platter. It wouldn’t be as bad if she was bonded, but an unbonded omega, perfuming on the verge of going into heat. Fuck!

I’m a few tables over, hiding behind a newspaper like some kind of spy from a black and white movie, but the moment I smell Meggie, I’m pushing through the crowded cafe tables to get to her.

Just as I’m closing in, I spot Declan, gun drawn, charging across the street with three French police officers—all alphas—stopping traffic to get to us. Knox sees them too, curses, and bolts. I’m close enough to trip him, so he loses his balance and knocks into a table. It tips and crashes, landing him on his ass just long enough for Declan to reach us and cuff him.

I give the DEA agent one curt nod, which he returns before I charge after Oz and my omega. Good thing Oz had the wherewithal to get her out of there fast. He’s running full speed down the sidewalk with her in his arms bridal style.

As I chase them, I worry Declan might send one of the other men after us to arrest Meggie, but to my relief there are no pounding footsteps behind me, and when I look back, Declan and his men are all occupied with Knox who isn’t going down without a fight.

The second we come in view of the van, the door flies open and Ellis is reaching for Meggie. Oz hands her off while he climbs into the car. I swing in a beat after them and slam the door shut. “Go!”

McQuinn peels out into traffic, Nils in the passenger seat next to him. Dante, Ellis, and Meggie are in the back. And Oz and I sit in the middle.

“You okay?” I ask, twisting to look at Meggie.

Her brows are adorably pinched, and there’s a slight sheen of sweat on her forehead. She pinches her lips and nods.

“Words, omega,” Dante says.

“I’m okay. I still feel clear-headed, not like before, but I don’t… I don’t know how long that’ll be true.” Her head drops as she wrings her hands in her lap. "We left the pills. In all the commotion—"

"It's okay, sunshine." Ellis puts his arm around her and pulls her into his side, kissing her temple.

Nils turns so he can see us from the front seat. “I did some quick research while you were meeting with Knox. It looks like there’s no way to stop it now that it’s started, anyway, but we might be able to speed it up.”

“And how do we do that, Dr. Hart?” Meggie snaps.

I wince. Meggie can be assertive, but there’s a bite to her tone that isn’t usually there.

“I’ll play doctor,” Oz grins, trying to break the rising tension. “Get you in some stirrups…”

A wave of buttery green apple aroma fills the van, and I’m hard before my brain can even process the smell.

“Shut the fuck up, Oz,” Ellis snaps.

Meggie’s hand in his, he uses his other hand to adjust his pants around his erection, an action Meggie notices. Licking her lips, her scent intensifies.

We’re fucked.

“We need a plan.” I’m their pack alpha. I need control over this situation. “Nils, how do we speed this up?”

“Knot her. A lot. There are no conclusive studies, but a lot of anecdotal evidence that the more knots an omega takes during heat, the faster the fever will break.”

“Knot the hell out of her. Got it,” McQuinn says. “This is a plan I can get behind.”

As excited as that thought makes me, there’s no way we can take care of her in the Olympic Village, and we all know it. We’ll have to find somewhere else. “So we go back to our rooms, pack up our things, and—”

“She can't go anywhere like this,” Oz says. “She smells like walking sex! We’re gonna send the whole Olympic Village into a rut if they get a whiff of her.”

The thought has me growling. Dante, too.

“Meggie stays in the van.” Dante’s words are terse.

“Should we roll the windows down?” McQuinn asks from the front, catching my gaze in the rearview mirror. “It’s pretty hot today.”

That’s an understatement in more ways than one.

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