Page 106 of Knot Made to Break: Part One

We stayed that way, the sounds of the city below mingling with the bubbling of the water. Her breathing slowed, and I wondered if she’d drifted to sleep. Stroking her hair, I let my thoughts wander.

I’d never given much thought to finding an Omega before, but now that she was here, there was no going back. Kitania filled the parts of my life I hadn’t even realized were missing, and there wasn’t a version of my future that didn’t include having her at my side.

This—holding her, feeling her soft warmth against me—I wanted this for eternity. Not just the physical closeness, but the peace, the quiet contentment that came with knowing she was safe in my arms.

“Kit,” I murmured. “About tonight… I’m sorry I worried you.”

She shifted slightly, looking up at me with those big, expressive eyes. “You don’t have to apologize. I know there will be times when you have things to take care of and can’t check in as often as I’d like. I just… I worry. I wish…” Biting that lower lip again, she trailed off.

“What do you wish for, Kitten?”

“I just… I need to know what’s going on, Dimitri. When you disappear, I imagine the worst. I wish I couldfeelthat you were alright,” she rambled in a rush.

Was she…. was she hinting at bonding? We hadn’t talked about the physical act, not in so many words, but this womanwasmine. It was only a matter of time until she bore my mark—the perfect silvery crescent scar from the shape of my teeth. I eyed the spot high on her throat where I planned to bite her, a place everyone would see and know she was taken.

“Trust me, I want that too,” I promised. “When your heat comes, we’d like to make this official, Kitten.”

Her eyes sparkled with unshed tears. “Yes. So,somuch, yes.”

Goddamn.I pulled her against me, careful not to crush her too tightly. I swooped down and captured her mouth, dominating her lips, her tongue, to my will. The urge to spread those pretty thighs, line myself up, and thrust knot deep into her wet heat had my cock aching.

Down, boy.

The vision I had of doing just that didn’t help, especially with her wriggling in my lap. I wanted everything with this woman. But I could wait.

When Kit leaned away, breathless and flushed, her gaze flicked back and forth between my eyes. “I was worried about something else, too.” The admission almost made me smile, because I was pretty damn sure I knew what she was going to say.

I hummed in understanding, waiting, letting her lead.

“I… I had sex with Marco.” The confession rushed free, guilt coating every word.

“Did you enjoy it?”

“I—” She blinked, the pink in her cheeks deepening, “Yes.” The truth was nothing but a wisp of air, a tendril of sound, barely formed.

“Does being intimate with my brother change how you feel about me? Or Gio or Tommy, for that matter?”

Kit’s eyes widened; that guilt replaced instantly with a look of shock. “Of course not!”

“Are you planning to make Marco a part of your pack?”

“I—” Kit shook her head, not in denial, but in confusion. Her brows furrowed. “Yes. But Dimitri—”

The line of my finger pressed over her lips, stopping her mid-sentence. “I know it’s customary for the lead Alpha to have his Omega first, but I’ve never been a man to put unnecessary stock in traditions or ceremonies. Relationships are meant to progress naturally, and as our Omega, you’re the one in charge, Kit. You could fuck Marco a hundred times before you ever let me into your bed, and I’d still be here, loving you. Waiting. Because you’re worth it, Kit. You’re it for me.”

A small, delicate gasp, and then my Omega was shifting, straddling me, her hands cupping my face as my hand fell unapologetically to her ass. I kneaded a handful, then suppressed a groan, realizing that touching all that bare skin was doing nothing to help my insatiable hard-on.

“Dimitri Cristenello… Did you just tell me you love me?”

Fuck.

Ihadjust told her that, hadn’t I? The words had slipped out so naturally, like they’d been waiting in the wings all along, ready to take center stage. But now that they were out there, hanging in the air between us, I couldn’t take them back.

Nor did I want to.

I looked into her eyes, searching for… hell, I didn’t even know what I was searching for. Reassurance? Acceptance? The same unspoken feelings staring back at me? Whatever it was, I found it.

“Yeah,” I said, my voice rough with emotion. “I did.”

---