Page 7 of Knot Happening

Not Declan, though. He’s calming and almost soothing to my instincts. He puts me at ease in a way I never thought I’d experience again. Which means I need to be very careful not to get close to this man.

But hell. Now that I’ve gotten the tiniest glimpse of some positive attention, I already know I’ll get easily sucked into his orbit.

I’m on suppressants. I won’t go into heat, and even though they don’t entirely curb my natural instincts or prevent me from feeling arousal at all, they will dampen those reactions. Stop me from getting so lost in lust and desire that I jump into this Alpha’s arms, and climb him like a tree until he knots me.

I’m not that desperate.

“Have a good day, Declan.” I pull my hand away, and this time, I don’t stop at the sound of his voice.

“See you soon, Tatum.” His words are that low honey rumble again, leaving me feeling like he just caressed my core with his vow.

I ignore the annoying ache in my chest reminding me I’m sad and alone, and that I’ve been sad and alone ever since I lost my best friend, as I search for something in my budget to wear.

Walking along the aisles, the price tags have my anxiety rising. Most of the silk and lace garments that catch my eye cost way more money than I have, and I need to make it stretch as far as possible. Biting my lip, I notice a section of the store that has obviously been marked down. It takes half an hour, but I finally pick an outfit and head to check out.

Everything I grabbed was half off. I wanted to grab more, but the twenty dollars in my pocket isn’t going to stretch that far. As it is, the outfit, platform heels, and sparkly tights I picked out might go over the limit.

I greet the girl behind the counter, smiling at her as if that will somehow make the total sway my way. “Hi!” I read her tag, and add, “Stacy.”

Stacy gives me a cringy sort of smile back and wordlessly checks me out. She looks me up and down like she can’t understand why I’m buying these items. Her own outfit consists of a black blazer with a red bustier and tight black jeans. That level of glam must be needed to work here. Or maybe she always dresses like this? How nice would it be to work somewhere that allows you to be yourself?

“Job interview,” I explain with a huffy half laugh.

When she rings up the total, and then zeros out the register, I frown. But seeing as I can’t think of anything worse thanquestioning the way someone does their own job, I keep my mouth shut, right up until she hands me three bags.

She’s turning away from the register and lifting her cell phone when I find my voice.

“Sorry, I don’t want to be a bother, but I didn’t pay for these.” I frown, and she shrugs, not even looking up at me as she blows a bubble with her gum.

“Declan took care of it. You’re good to go,” she says after it’s clear I’m not going to leave until she explains.

She picks up her iced coffee, takes a sip, and keeps her eyes trained on her phone. I have nothing to say to that, and I don’t want to argue, so I nod. “Okay then.”

Chapter Four

Declan

I watch her on the security cameras. Tatum. She’s beautiful.

She’s an Omega, that's clear, but her scent was muted. She must use dampeners, like I do. I do it out of necessity. Can’t have my employees reacting to my scent…trying to appease me.

I have unusually high access to Omegas. Unmated Omegas. I’ve met or been exposed to thousands of scents over the years.

But that vanilla and blueberry scent snuck up on me. Trickled into my system slowly, and the longer I was in her orbit, the longer I wanted to remain there. To strip her bare before me so I can dig out every secret her body is trying to keep. Images of laying her across my desk at Haze, and teasing her with that unholy pink vibrator latched themselves to my mind.

My pack doesn’t want an Omega. My twin has a few too many screws loose. Likes to put himself in danger, and my younger brother is on a celibacy kick that I don’t fully understand. Something to do with his first love, I’m sure.

As the pack lead, I could ask them to meet her. Force them to give her consideration. Or I could keep her to myself. Have somefun, get her out of my system. Possibly ride my rut out with her, if she’s willing.

I shake my head as she sifts through the clearance section. My phone beeps with a text, pulling my eyes away from Tatum just for a second.

Trev: Be there in fifteen.

I smirk. If she tries to leave before he arrives, I’ll stop her. My attention returns to the screen. I switch camera views so I can zoom in on her face. She nibbles her lip, her frown deepening with every glimpse of the price tags.

I don’t like that. I couldn’t get a clear read on her because of her muted scent. She seemed confident and sassy, but as I watch her…I frown. Hmm.

Her shoulders drop, and she curls in on herself the longer she looks through the racks of clothes. Finally, she settles on a dress. Then she heads for the shoes.

---