Page 97 of Knot All is Forgiven

We lay there, tangled in each other's arms, for longer than it takes for his knot to deflate. We stay there past dinner and through the night, eventually falling asleep wrapped around one another after Simon insists he still needs to atone for his sins at the altar between my thighs.

Several times.

Chapter thirty-seven

The original Alphamatic locationis gorgeous, with loads of natural lighting and massive exercise rooms with glass walls lining the back of the facility. The camera crew is setting up for Cyrus' ad shoot, chatting with Nolan Sloane as they determine the best locations.

My eyes are trained on the men's locker room, where I know Cyrus is getting ready with our all-male hair and makeup crew. We didn't want the gym to shut down for the day and certainly didn't want to take up floor space, so the locker room made the most sense.

I feel like I'm going to crawl out of my skin. Usually, I don't supervise shoots like this, but I couldn't stay away. Lanie waspissed I made her stay behind at the office, but the last thing I wanted was her breathing down my neck too.

"Oh, hello," a soft voice says beside me. It takes me off guard and I startle, narrowing my eyes at the woman beside me.

She's tiny, with blonde hair that hits her shoulders, a heart-shaped face, and hands propped up on a massively pregnant stomach. It only takes a moment for me to recognize her.

"Nora Summers," I say with a smile. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, it's Sloane, now. Nolan is one of my Alphas." Almost like he heard her, the handsome Alpha looks in our direction, beaming. "We have met before, haven't we?"

"I was the supervisor on an ad campaign you were on years ago." Embarrassment clogs my throat. Now that I know what Nora went through as the Perfect Omega, I'm ashamed I was even a tiny part of it.

Her face lights up with a broad smile. "That's right! So, I am not wrong to assume this is your campaign as well? Most people do not visit our gym in pencil skirts."

My black skirt and green blouse look out of place among the athletic wear. Heavily pregnant, Nora wears sneakers, leggings, and a flowy yellow tank top and looks perfectly put together.

"You're not wrong. I don't normally supervise shoots, but…" My face heats. I don't know this woman, and I almost admitted that I couldn't keep away from Cyrus.

"Oh, you should know my Alpha told me about what happened between you and Cyrus. I mean, as much as he knows." She shrugs and points at a bench before strolling over. When I sit beside her, she continues. "So he is your Alpha, then?"

"He is," I admit, taking the claw clip out of my hair so I can use it as a curtain for my insecurities. "Sort of."

"Ooh, I sense a story." The delicate Omega turns sideways to give me her undivided attention, and I'm struck by how easy it is to be around her.

"We have a similar genome," I blurt out, like a psychopath.

"Oh." Her face drops, and it's obvious I've made her uncomfortable. "I'm… not sure what to say to that."

"Fuck, well. Okay, so I presented as an Omega at thirty-two. But I knew I was an Omega, but it was like I was trapped. Anyways, my doctor ran my genome and found that it was very similar to yours, so there shouldn't have been anything keeping me from presenting, but then he found a gene, and there is a theory-"

"Wow, sweetie, breathe," she coos, touching my arm. "Take a deep breath and then try again, okay?"

I take a moment to calm myself before laughing awkwardly. "Sorry about that. But there is a theory that the gene I had suppressed my Omega until I found my scent match, and then that activated it. My doctor turned out to be my scent match."

"Oh! What a wonderful surprise. I bet you were just thrilled."

The sound of weights clanging around us draws my attention, and across the room, I see Cyrus holding a dumbbell and staring down a camera.

He looks intense, with his eyes smoldering and jaw set tight. I'm not sure if he's pissed or if this is just a look for him, but I'm a little ashamed to admit it works for me. His chest is bare, a soft smattering of dark curly hair covering his torso, and he's got a pair of red Alphamatic branded shorts hanging deliciously low on his hips.

I rip my eyes away from the distractingly attractive Alpha and turn back to Nora.

"I was thrilled. However, the presentation was a mess, and I ended up in the hospital, and well…"

And not for the first time recently, I unload the whole Stargazer story on a stranger. Nora listens closely, asking questions and reaching out to put her hand over mine whenever I get choked up.

"And now you don't know if you're ready to forgive?" she asks quietly.

"Yes. No. I'm not sure. What if I forgive too soon?"

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