Page 81 of Knot a Thief

The words tumble out of him now, as if a dam has broken. “An alpha whose nose twitched when he could smell the scent of his omega.”

Shocked, I say, “Lily’s mother wasn’t your scent match?”

He stares at me, shaking his head. “No, but she was enough. Though, it’s a pity she never believed me when I told her. And she was prepared to leave Lily behind. Left me behind.”

I stand, stunned, as the pieces start to fall into place—his coldness, his distrust.

“You think I’ll do the same,” I say softly, realization dawning. “I see.” I nod my head lightly with understanding. “You want to keep me at arm’s length for Lily’s sake? She’s perfect, and I’ll understand if you want me to step back a little.”

“Do you want to?”

“No, but I’ll do it for your sake. I’m only here for a short while. I don’t want her upset when I leave. I'll let her spend more time with her nanny.”

Silas nods. First there’s pain in his eyes, but it quickly turns to defiance. “Just like that?” He clicks his fingers. “You can switch on and off that easily.”

“No,” I gasp out. “It’ll break my heart to not see her, but I don’t want to break hers.”

“Then don’t leave.”

“What?”

“Stay here. Be her mom.”

I open my mouth to respond, but Lily’s eager shout interrupts us. “Daddy! Ava! Look what I found!”

As we turn to look at the beaming child as she runs along the beach, there’s a twist in my gut that makes me want to double over.

I want to reassure Silas, to tell him I’d never hurt Lily.

But the truth is, I can’t.

I want to escape.

I want my life back.

Am I going to break Lily’s heart when that happens?

“You owe me?”

I glare at him. “Why do you keep saying that?”

“Look,” Lily yells. I turn to her and smile as she holds out a handful of pebbles, drops them at my feet and skips away again.

“Garrett Jameson.”

I shiver as the name rolls off his tongue.

I twist to Silas and stare at him.

My head tilts as I take in his features more carefully than ever before.

The gray eyes that looked a shade of silver before. The sharp jaw and the perfectly kissable lips. His upper face then was covered in a masquerade mask.

And then I remember the lady he was with.

The moment our eyes meet, a connection sparks in the air. My head shakes in disbelief, my mind unable to comprehend what he’s trying to tell me. “I’m not your scent match.”

“You were.”

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