Page 56 of Knot a Good Idea

He shrugs, avoiding my gaze. “I needed some air. I don’t do well in crowded spaces all the time,” he murmurs.

He almost sounds embarrassed, and it makes my heart hurt.

“That makes two of us, then,” I admit. “Sometimes I get panicky and have to step away for a moment.”

Liam turns to me and smiles slightly. “Has it always been like that for you?”

His subtle eucalyptus scents mixes with the garden perfectly. It makes me brave.

“Not until recently,” I say. “What about you?”

“Always,” he says. “It’s…frustrating.”

“It is.”

I find myself taking a step closer to him before I can stop myself. He towers over me with his kind, green eyes.

There’s a gentle strength behind Liam. A sweetness that’s so hard to find in people.

“I really want to kiss you,” he whispers. “But I shouldn’t.”

He really shouldn’t. He doesn’t know the real me.

“We have a contract,” I breathe, even as I part my lips.

He swallows. “I know. It doesn’t mean I don’t want to.”

His eyes fall to my mouth.

The sounds of conversation carry down the corridor and out into the garden.

People will be coming out soon.

But my inner Omega is desperate to come out, desperate to believe that someone could truly see her and want her after everything she’s been through.

Liam doesn’t look at me like I’m broken.

He looks at me like I’meverything.

It’s only for a second. I stand on my tiptoes and press my lips to Liam’s, knowing full well the consequences of my actions.

I thought I surprised him, but he was expecting it. His lips are soft and full against mine as he deepens the kiss, cupping my face in his hands.

When he pulls away slightly, I pant against his mouth.

“That wasn’t a good idea,” I breathe, and he smiles.

“No, it wasn’t,” he agrees. “We should do it again.”

I grin and wrap my arms around his neck as our lips meet.

His scent is everywhere as he groans into my mouth, the minty taste of his tongue swarming my senses. My cunt flutters as he licks into my mouth.

“You’re so beautiful,” he rasps when he brings his mouth to my neck. “So fucking beautiful, and smart, and lovely?—”

I gasp as his tongue licks against the sensitive skin of my mating gland, the sensation shooting a spark to my clit.

I clamp my hand over my mouth to stiffen a moan.

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