Page 32 of Knotty Pumpkin

My heart hammers in my chest as I fight against his hold, the small breath I manage tainted by the arousal coating his putrid scent. Panic fills me as he nips at my throat and I begin to kick erratically, trying to escape him and stop the burning in my lungs from lack of air.

The relief is short-lived as I feel his weight lift off my back. I lift my head, gulping in a lungful of air before he presses my head back down, my scream for help muffled before it even leaves my mouth.

A hand comes under my waist, lifting my hips from the bed and spreading my thighs wide, presenting me to him. I try to kick at him, but his knees press into the backs of mine, locking me in place.

No. No. No. This can’t be happening again.

“You’re going to slick for me, Omega. And then I’m going to fuck this pretty pussy while you choke on your refusal. This will be your first lesson.” The press of his hard cock against my core has bile rising in my throat, and my whole-body tensing.

“There’ll be many more if you don’t submit to me. You’ve just been through a heat, haven’t you Omega? I smelt it coming at the festival. Such a pity you ran from me. We could have saved months of this. I could have marked you already and we wouldn’t need to play this game. It won’t be long, and I’ll bite that pretty throat of yours, show the world your mine. You’ll want me then, whether you like it or not”

His grip on my head loosens as his own monologue increases his arousal. No idea that he’s just given me exactly what I came here for. I twist my head slightly so I can take slow, gentle breaths. At the same time, I let my body go limp, making him catch my weight.

“Fucking weak bitch.” Luke curses, dropping me to the mattress. “You weren’t always like this. Where’s the smart, sassy omega who crashed on my couch after a night out? Where’s the girl who laughed at my jokes and flirted over breakfast? There’ll be none of this shit when you’re mine.”

And there it is. This madman is obsessed with me because I was kind to him. I went to him one night when Icouldn’t find my way home. I stayed for breakfast the next day, when I woke because it felt rude not to, And I laughed at one joke he told. Singular. One joke. According to him, that made me his. He doesn’t even fucking seem to like me.

He’s a predator. An alpha who thinks he’s above me in the pecking order. Who thinks what he wants should be his. But he’s wrong.

I will not let him touch me again.

There’s a pounding in my ears as I wait for him to climb off of me, biding my time.

“What the fuck?” he says, his weight lifting off mine and the mattress dipping at the end.

The pounding sounds again and I hear his footsteps as he steps away from the bed, toward the bedroom door.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

Moving faster than I ever have, I roll off of the bed, darting to the bedside table and yanking the lamp into both hands, wielding it like a bat. The cord pulls from the outlet with a sizzle just as Luke spins to face me, his face red and contorted with rage as he bares his teeth.

“I should have known this was a trap, you fucking whore,” he snarls as he stalks towards me.

Planting my feet, I hold my ground, waiting for the right moment. I’ll only get one chance at this. If I miss,he’ll hurt me, maybe even kill me. He’s backed into a corner now. What has he got to lose?

“Are those the alphas you allowed to sully your body and join your heat? Filthy slut.”

The sound of wood splintering and the shouts of multiple men come from the direction of the front door.

“Saylor! We’re coming!” Noah’s voice shouts through the door, causing Luke to turn his head and glance back.

Seizing my chance, I strike, leaping forward and swinging the lamp with all the strength I can muster. It collides with the side of his head with a sickening, wet crunch. The light bulb shattered, shards of glass hitting the hardwood floors and bouncing away in every direction.

Luke falls like the sack of shit he is, a thin trail of blood oozing from the wound on the left side of his temple.

Relief floods through me, my legs suddenly feeling like jelly. My vision blurs, fading to black as emotion overwhelms me and I drop. The last thing I feel is a set of strong arms beneath me, breaking my fall, and a tender kiss pressing to my forehead.

The combined scents of rich, decadent latte and toasted marshmallows reaches me just as my consciousness drifts away.

Chapter Twenty

Carrying Saylor through the front door, Noah heads down the hallway, taking her straight to her nest. She looks back at me, smiling sleepily as I blow her a kiss and head back into the garage.

I’d sat with Saylor while she gave Hudson her statement and the paramedics had checked her over. Noah had been hard at work, throwing all of her possessions into the trunk, sans furniture, or any item thatLuke had touched.

We’ll get her anything she needs. Anything she desires.

Grabbing a box from the trunk in one hand and slinging a bag over the opposite shoulder, I take her things inside, straight to the nest. She’s welcome to claim any room in the house, but this nest will be her space now. I can’t imagine any other omega ever using it.

---