Page 6 of Knot the One They Want

"It's not," he snaps, cutting me off. "Just... wait for the others."

As if on cue, the door swings open and Cole and Lake spill into the room, looking a bit disheveled themselves. They've been running, no doubt trying to make it here on time.

Lake's golden hair is tousled, falling in waves around his angular face. His honey colored are wide and haunted, a testament to the pain he carries within. Cole, with his short raven-black hair and piercing gray eyes, hovers protectively at his twin's side.

"Sorry," Lake says, slightly breathless. "I got caught up in a painting."

Of course he did. Lake is never without a paintbrush in his hand these days, losing himself in the swirl of colors on the canvas. It's his way of coping with the pain, I suppose.

We all have our methods.

Cole's lips twist into a scowl, his chiseled features hardening. He, on the other hand, looks like he came straight from the gym, athletic tape still wrapped around his massive fists. "What's going on?" he asks, his gaze darting between Damien and me.

Damien squares his shoulders, as if steeling himself for our reaction. One he knows won't be positive. "My father just informed me that he went to meet an omega."

I arch a brow. "I didn't realize your father was in the market for a mate," I say wryly.

Damien shoots me a withering look, his blue eyes flashing. "Not for him, you idiot. For us."

Silence descends on the room, heavy and thick. Lake's eyes widen, a flicker of panic in their depths. Cole's hand grips his brother's shoulder, his lip curling in a silent snarl.

"That's bullshit," Lake growls, his voice low and dangerous. "We're not ready for another omega. Not after..."

He doesn't say her name, but we all know who he means. Daria's betrayal hit us all hard, but none more so than Lake.He almost didn't survive the severing of the mating bond, his sensitive artist's soul shattered by her abandonment.

"I agree," I say, my tone measured. "It's too soon. We need more time to heal."

Damien runs a hand through his dark hair, frustration rolling off him in waves. "You don't think I know that? I told the old man as much, but he's insistent that we at least meet this omega. He thinks it's the best way for us to ‘move on.’"

Cole scoffs, his sculpted features twisting into a sneer. "Move on? Lake barely survived the last mating mark. And now he wants us to just replace Daria like she never existed?"

Lake flinches at the mention of her name, his face paling. Cole notices and immediately softens, turning to his twin.

"Hey, look at me," he mutters, his voice gentler than I've ever heard it as his grip on Lake's shoulder tightens. "No one is going to force us into anything, okay?"

Lake nods, but I can tell he's not sure. Neither am I, for that matter.

Society lets alphas get away with nearly anythingexceptnot having an omega past a certain age. And the twins are the youngest of us at twenty-five. Well past the point even the most nefarious playboy alpha is expected to settle down and take an omega.

Especially since we formed our pack earlier than most.

Damien watches the exchange with a grim expression. "Look, just because we have to meet this omega doesn't mean we're taking her as a mate. We're just going to have to scare her off," he says, his tone resolute. "Make my father regret ever suggesting this in the first place. That'll put an end to the bullshit once and for all."

Here we go.

I can practically see the gears turning in Damien's head, no doubt concocting some elaborate scheme to send this poor, unsuspecting omega running for the hills.

It's notherfault she's being thrown into the lion's den. But then again, it wasn't Daria's fault, either.

And look how that turned out.

I sigh, already resigned to my role in this farce if only because I can't in good conscience submit an innocent omega to our bullshit. "So what's the plan?"

Damien's lips curve into a humorless smile, the expression not quite reaching his eyes. "We're going to make an impression. A bad one. And if that doesn't work and they try to force her on us, we'll give her a taste of what life with the Blackwood pack is really like. And trust me, it's not the fairy tale my father is no doubt spinning."

I exchange a glance with the twins, seeing my own wariness reflected back at me in their complementary but not quite matching features. We've been down this road before, and it nearly destroyed us. Now, someone else is being dragged into it. But what choice do we have?

Our pack is hanging by a thread, and if this is what it takes to keep us from unraveling completely, to get our families to take some of the pressure off… then so be it.

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