Page 170 of Knot Happening Again

To Rhys, Troy, Mace and Maddox.

My inner alpha wants to be jealous, irrationally. And I am, but mostly all I feel is... relief. She's safe now, protected. Loved. Everything I should have given her years ago.

Rhys is the first to look up when I come in.

"Hey," he says cautiously. "How'd it go with the PR team?"

I grunt, not trusting myself to speak without snapping. Maddox's eyes widen slightly, but he doesn't push.

"That bad, huh?" Rhys gives me a sympathetic grimace and offers me a beer I take only a swig of. I must look like a mess if he's offering alcohol.

"I'm dealing with it," I tell him.

"In or out of prison?" Troy asks, always the one to break the ice.

"Har fucking har," I mutter, taking a swig of my drink. "The journalist backed off the idea of pressing charges when Maddox pointed out that little scandal he had last year at a rut bar that he really doesn't want his wife being reminded of. So far, that's more than those assholes at the Right Image have managed."

"Right. Well, uh.. Ophelia's heat broke a few hours ago," Mace announces. "She's been asking for you."

My heart skips a beat. "She has?"

Maddox nods, a small smile tugging at his lips. "Yeah. She's upstairs in her nest if you want to see her."

I hesitate, torn between the desperate need to see her and the fear of what I'll find. I don't want her getting the wrong idea if my alpha instincts make me react less than perfectly to the sight of her other marks. "Of course I do. I guess she wants to announce it herself."

She seems to enjoy torturing me, and I can't say I blame her, but the little minx may be disappointed to know that more than anything, I'm happy for her. All of them.

The others exchange a knowing look.

"It wasn't planned or we would have given you a heads up," Mace offers.

"Don't. No reason to," I tell him. "This is the way it should have been from the beginning. I'm happy for all of you."

And I mean it. Even if they're now close to her in a way I might never be, I'm glad she has them. Glad they can give her what I couldn't.

"Leon." Rhys's voice is gentle but firm. "Go talk to her."

I nod, swallowing hard as I head for the stairs. Each step feels like I'm climbing a mountain, my legs heavy.

I pause outside her door, raising my hand to knock. Before I can, her voice drifts through the wood.

"Come in, Leon."

I push the door open slowly, drinking in the sight of her. Ophelia's curled up in a nest of blankets and pillows, her raven hair a tangled halo around her face.

She looks... softer somehow.

More at peace than I've ever seen her.

My eyes are drawn to the fresh mating marks on her neck, a vivid reminder of what I've lost. What I threw away.

"How are you feeling?" I ask, hovering awkwardly in the doorway.

Ophelia stretches, catlike, before sitting up. "Better. Clearer." She pats the edge of the bed. "You can come closer, you know. I don't bite."

I move to sit beside her, careful to keep some distance between us. "I'm glad you're feeling better. I know your heats have been... difficult."

She snorts. "That's an understatement." Her blue eyes search my face, and I fight the urge to look away. "How are you doing with all of this?"

---