Page 1 of Knot a Good Idea

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APRIL

“April?”

I flinch so hard I bang the top of my head on the underside of the counter. “Shit!” I hiss under my breath, grimacing.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” Devyn squeaks behind me as I kneel on the café floor. “I didn’t mean to scare you!”

“You didn’t,” I mutter, even though adrenaline courses through me. My head throbs, and I move out from under the counter, the fallen receipt in my hand as I stand.

Despite what I said, my friend and employeedidscare the hell out of me.

“Are you hurt? You’re not bleeding, are you?” Devyn’s wide eyes are mournful. “I wasn’t thinking, I shouldn’t have snuck up on you?—”

“Devyn. Stop. I’m fine,” I say, lightly touching the top of my head. I check my hand, and thankfully, there’s no blood. “It’s not a big deal.”

But Devyn’s sweet Omega scent is still soured. “I’m sorry,” she says again. “I shouldn’t have snuck up on you, I didn’t mean to?—”

“Devyn. It’s fine,” I mutter, frustrated by the pity in her eyes. “It’s my fault, not yours.”

But she worries her lip and her delicate brow is pulled into a frown all on my behalf.

I hate it.

It’s been six months of my friends and coworkers walking on eggshells around me.

“What the hell was that noise?” Skylar enters the stockroom, then eyes me. “Everything okay, April?”

“Fine,” I huff, crumpling the receipt in my hand. I refuse to look at my best friend, unable to see one more ounce of sympathy in her eyes. “I just hit my head. No big deal.”

“It’s my fault,” Devyn pouts, the lilt of her light voice grating to my ears.

“No. It’sno one’sfault,” I snap. “It’s just something that happened.”

Skylar looks to me, then back at Devyn, frowning. “Devyn, let me handle this,” she says softly. “Go help out front.”

I swallow. I don’t need to be handled.

There’s nothingtohandle.

If there’s a problem, I should be the one solving it, not Skylar or Devyn.

“Hey.” My best friend grabs her iced coffee off the stockroom shelf and takes a sip. “How hard did you hit your head?”

“I mean, I wasn’t hit by a car, if that’s what you’re asking,” I deadpan, and she laughs so hard she chokes on her coffee.

“You asshole,” she chuckles. “I had a concussion.”

“And Idon’t. But Devyn decided it’s her job to be a mother hen to me even though I’m ten years older than her.”

Skylar sighs. “She doesn’t know what we went through. She doesn’tget it. She’s trying her best.”

“I know her intentions are good it’s just…frustrating.”

She leans against the shelf, eyeing me warily. “What do you mean?”

“She treats me like I’m made of glass,” I mutter. “Like she’s scared to come up to me and say the wrong thing.”

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