Page 105 of Knot the One They Want

But as I stare at Daria, at the woman who once held my heart in her hands and crushed it beneath her heel, I feel... nothing.

No longing, no desire, no lingering attachment.

Only a cold, simmering rage and a bone-deep fear.

Fear that she'll destroy the fragile peace we've built in our pack. That she'll shatter the trust Evie has placed in me, in us. That she'll ruin everything we've worked so hard to repair.

Why the fuck is she here?

"Damien?" Evie's voice, soft and uncertain, breaks through the buzzing in my head. "What's wrong? Who is that?"

I tear my gaze away from Daria to look down at my omega, at the confusion and concern etched into her beautiful face. My heart clenches, a wave of protectiveness surging through me.

I won't let Daria hurt her.

I won't let anyone hurt her ever again.

Lake is the one who answers, his voice strained and slightly shaky. "That's Daria," he says. "Our... our former omega."

CHAPTER 43

EVIE

My heart pounds in my chest as Lake's words sink in.

Daria.

Their former omega.

The woman they once rejected me for, the ghost that's haunted our relationship from the beginning. And now she's here, in the flesh, looking like she just stepped off a runway.

I'm reeling, a toxic cocktail of emotions churning in my gut. Annoyance at her audacity to show up here, on what should have been my night. Fear of what her presence might mean for my fragile happiness. And a deep, gnawing insecurity that threatens to consume me.

"What the hell does she want?" Cole mutters, his jaw clenched tight.

The others murmur in agreement, their bodies tense as coiled springs. But I barely hear them over the roaring in my ears. My gaze is locked on Daria as she saunters toward us, her hips swaying with practiced grace.

"Hi, boys," she purrs, her eyes fixed on Damien. "Miss me?"

The gallery has gone deathly silent, every eye trained on our little drama. It's clear from the hushed whispers and pointedstares that everyone knows exactly who Daria is. They're all waiting with bated breath to see what the alphas will do.

And I'm terrified. Terrified that this is it, that all their promises to me will crumble in the face of their first love's return. Only this time, I'm marked. If they reject me now, it won't just break my heart—it'll shatter my very soul.

Daria's gaze finally lands on me, her perfect nose wrinkling slightly as she gives me a dismissive once-over. I fight the urge to shrink back, to hide behind my alphas like the insecure little omega she clearly thinks I am.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Damien growls, his voice low and dangerous.

Daria's face crumples, hurt flooding her delicate features. But there's something off about it, a falseness that makes my skin crawl. "I... I just wanted to talk," she says, her voice trembling. "Can't we do that? For old times' sake?"

Her eyes flick to me again, cold and calculating beneath the show of vulnerability.

"Alone," she adds pointedly.

Asher steps forward, placing himself between Daria and me like a living shield. "Evie is our omega," he says firmly. "She's not going anywhere."

A flicker of annoyance crosses Daria's face before she schools her expression back into a pout. "Please," she whimpers. "I made a mistake. I want to come back."

Cole barks out a harsh laugh. "What, the barista you hooked up with didn't turn out to be Prince Charming after all?"

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