Page 45 of Knot Their Valentine

I was incorrect. “Come on, just one date? We missed our last opportunity. We'll pay!” Jack begs.

“I think the Omega said no,” a deep, growly voice says from behind Jack and his pack mates.

My heart rate immediately kicks up, and I take a deep breath, hoping to catch the scent. From behind the other Alphas, I see Caelum glaring at Jack’s head.

I bite my lip between my teeth, nibbling the sensitive flesh.

Did they come here looking for me?

“Finally,” Quin murmurs as he makes his way around the other pack to my side. “We followed your scent, but it took us forever to find you. You can come back to the apartment now, your mother and Marissa have left.”

“I don't remember asking you on a date, Caelum. Harlow can speak for herself,” Jack grumbles, crossing his arms over his chest.

I think he's trying to look intimidating, but he's a few inches shorter than the other Alphas, so it doesn't appear to be very effective.

“She did. She said no.” Cae matches the other Alpha's aggressive stance. Lachlan has apparently had enough, though, because he marches right through the middle of the other pack, picks me up, and tosses me over his shoulder.

“Problem solved,” he grunts, patting my ass. Then he stomps right out of that bookstore, not bothering with another word to the other men.

Pushing off his back, I lift enough to see that Quin is grinning, and I can't help but giggle. Once we're outside, I tug on Lach's shirt.

“You can put me down. I'll walk now,” I say. Lachlan’s hand moves up my thigh to squeeze my ass.

“I don't know. I think I like this position,” he teases, giving my ass another firm pat before helping me slide back down to my feet.

We pause on the sidewalk, staring at each other for a moment as Cae and Quin move to either side of us.

“So, what happened?” I ask.

“I told our moms they fucked up. That there's no way you would've wanted a pack without Quin. That all three of us want you for you, not because of your gender. And not because of their influence.” Cae shrugs, his cheeks turning slightly pink, like he's feeling shy…

“Well, maybe their influence did have something to do with it, though. My mother did orchestrate me living with you after all,” I mumble.

“She might think she did, but that was on me, Fireball. Your mom was no more a part of it than these two.” His cocky smile returns as my jaw hangs open.

“You?” I ask.

“Of course. Once I realized you were back in town, I knew I needed to make a move quickly. I've known our moms’ feelings for a while now. I didn't want their opinions to spoil anything for us. I'm sorry you had to find out the way that you did.”

“Well, fuck…”

“Let us take you home now, Harlow,” Quin says from beside me, taking my hand in his. I look up into his stunning brown eyes, his scent soothing me with hardly any effort.

I simply nod.

“Take me home.”

Chapter Thirteen

Once Quin unlocks the front door and pushes it open for me to walk in before him, I step inside and gasp. It's clear that the guys took their time to get the apartment ready before they came looking for me.

The entryway glows with warm light from the pink and white lanterns that hang from the ceiling. It looks beautiful in here.

It takes me a moment to see the pink rose petals that they've scattered throughout the apartment. They're in the kitchen on the counters, all across the living room floor and couch.

In the middle of the living room, where the coffee table used to be, is now a massive pile of nesting materials. They're all folded neatly, set to the side, but the intention is clear.

As I make my way further into the apartment, I see that the trail of petals leads down the hallway and splits off between my door and Lachlan’s.

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