Page 51 of Knot Made to Break: Part One

“What’s not to like? A beautiful woman who cooks as well as Gordon Ramsey?” he winked at me playfully before sobering. “Truly. This is delicious. Thanks for cooking.”

“You don’t have to keep thanking me.”

He raised an eyebrow at me sardonically. “I think I’ve said the same thing to you a time or two.”

“Fair enough.” I smirked before shoveling another small bite into my mouth. I hummed in happiness. “But honestly, it’s the least I can do after everything you and your brothers have done for me.”

An unhappy rumble that bordered on a growl resonated in Gio’s chest. Setting down his utensils, he placed his hand over mine, stilling my movements. “Kitania, look at me.”

I lifted my gaze to his, my breath catching at the intensity I found there.

“We didn’t save you expecting anything in return,” he said firmly. “We did it because it was the right thing to do. Because none of us could stand by and watch an innocent Omega suffer. Our mother was an Omega. So is my sister. We may be assholes in most aspects of our lives, but we value women. Our plan was always to rescue you and give you your life back. Finding out you’re our scent match? It changed things.” He squeezed my hand. “It’s a fucking gift that we found you. Every single one of us wants to take care of you and make you smile. We bought you clothing because you needed it, and our Alpha sides are brutish bastards who wanted to prove to you we could provide for you.” Gio shook his head slightly. “Nothing we’ve done was for personal gain. There is no debt that you owe. No trouble youneed to atone for through actions or apologies. We do it because we…” he trailed off, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed.

My heart threatened to beat out of my chest. “Because you what?” I whispered.

His grip on my hand tightened. “I was going to say we do it because we care about you, but it’s more than that. So much more.” His eyes dropped to my lips before meeting my gaze again, molten heat simmering there.

I fought the urge to lean into him, to close the scant distance between us, to give in to the desires that had plagued me since we met.

Instead, I interlaced our fingers. “I care about you, too.”

twenty

KITANIA

The sun hadlong since dipped below the horizon when I padded into the living room, my bare feet silent against the cool hardwood floors. After dinner, I’d changed into one of my new pajama sets—a sea green cotton ensemble that was as soft as a cloud. It was so damn comfortable I couldn’t resist putting it on, but the shorts barely covered my thighs, and the cami’s thin straps left my shoulders exposed. I tugged at the hem self-consciously, hyper-aware of how much skin I was showing—and the discolored bruises that were still fading.

As I ventured deeper into the room, my eyes darted around, taking in my surroundings. Gio was sprawled in the center of the giant couch, looking like a dark prince ruling over his kingdom. His attention was on the cards he shuffled effortlessly in his hands before dealing them out on the coffee table.

A flash of something teal drew my gaze, and my breath caught in my throat. Scattered in various piles across the couches and chairs were some of the new blankets and pillowsthe guys had bought for me, just waiting to be curled up with. My heart squeezed, warmth spreading through my chest at their thoughtfulness.

I beelined for the coziest looking one, something primal in me demanding fleecy comfort.

Gio’s head lifted at my approach, his hands stilling over the cards spread across the coffee table. His hazel eyes locked onto mine, sending a delicious shiver down my spine.

“What are you up to?” I asked quietly as I reached for the throw.

“Just messin’ around.” That deep voice rumbled through the room like quiet, rolling thunder. “Not playing anything specific.”

It was on the tip of my tongue to ask Giovanni if I could join him, but at the last moment, I changed my mind. Instead of asking, I simply cocooned myself in my blanket and stole the seat next to him, knowing that his answer would’ve been yes. Always yes.

I curled up, then dared a peek at Gio. A rare smirk graced his lips, and his eyes shone with pride. That look was as effective as a murmured ‘good girl’ and my heart stuttered before it restarted, pumping wildly.

It was unfair how this man, this Alpha, could steal the air from my lungs while simultaneously making me feel like I could finally breathe again.

“So… um… What’s your favorite card game?” I asked, desperate to fill the charged silence.

“Poker.” His gaze fixated on me, never wavering.

“Do you play often?”

“We usually host a monthly game and invite a few of the guys. I smoked ‘em all last month. Won a fortune.”

I bit my lip, studying the harsh lines of his face. It was challenging to ignore the desire to trail a finger down the straight line of his nose or over the sharp cut of his stubble-covered jaw. Giovanni was strikingly handsome in that rugged, could-kill-you-with-a-single-look kind of way. I ached to run my hands over his buzzed hair just to know what it felt like against my skin.

Something in his eyes heated, as if he knew the direction of my thoughts. And maybe he did. Maybe he was learning to read me just as I was learning to read him, deciphering his expressions and what they meant—like that tiny twitch at the corner of his mouth that preceded a smirk as he watched me watching him.

“Will you teach me?” The words tumbled out before I could think better about what I was doing.

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