Page 22 of Knot My Luck

I frown at the text, a little thrown by the question.

No. Why?

The next message is cryptic, even by Lorcan’s standards:

Come up to the suite alone. Let yourself in quietly.

I stare at the screen, trying to make sense of it. What the hell’s going on in that room? And why would I need to keep it from Cathal? The thought of sneaking around doesn’t sit well with me, especially when I can’t be sure of anything. But, then again, if Lorcan’s asking, there must be a reason.

I glance back at Cathal, still pacing, eyes scanning the crowd. He looks like he’s about to go mad.

I shove the phone back in my pocket and make my decision. I’ll do whatever I can to get him through this – just this once.

“Alright, I’ll go,” I mutter to myself, just as I turn towards the lift that will lead me up to the suite.

I make my way along the corridor, my footsteps quiet as I try to figure out what the hell is going on with Lorcan. There’s a pit in my stomach. I don’t like being kept in the dark, especially when it involves Cathal, but whatever this is, it’s clearly something that requires subtlety – and right now, I’m all about keeping things under wraps.

When I get to the suite, I don’t even knock. Lorcan’s instructions were clear, and I don’t want to make any noise that could give anything away.

I step into the lounge area of the suite, the door clicking shut behind me with a soft thud. As soon as I cross the threshold, the unmistakable scent of an omega fills my senses – syrupy sweet, intoxicating. But there’s something else in the mix. Sex. It hangs thick in the air, curling around me like smoke, suffocating, overwhelming.

I freeze, eyebrows raised.

Lorcan’s sitting on the couch, his hands rubbing his face, looking like he’s been dragged through the mud. His eyes flick up to me, but there’s an urgency behind them, a tension I’ve never seen in him before. I glance around, still trying to make sense of the scent.

“What the hell is going on, Lorcan? You’ve been missing for hours!” My voice is sharp, demanding, because this? This is not like him. Something is off.

Lorcan shifts, like he’s about to stand but then hesitates, his fingers curling into the fabric of the couch as he stares at the floor. He doesn’t look at me, his jaw tightening.

Shit. Something’s really wrong. My frustration gives way to concern, but still I don’t make a move to go to him.

“I...I met her,” he finally says, his voice low, almost strained. “I met my scent match. And, Tadhg, she’s in heat. Or experiencing a heat spike, so the real thing is coming. I didn’t expect it, and it’s hit her hard. It’s thrown everything out of balance. I…I don’t know what to do.”

I blink, his words sinking in slowly, but I can’t make sense of them at first.

I know Lorcan’s always been a little obsessed with the idea of finding his scent match, but I never expected him to have such a visceral reaction. And this...it’s more than I anticipated.

“So, you brought her here?” I ask, my tone cooler now. I don’t know why, but I’m not sure how I feel about this. The last thing I expected was to walk into a suite full of omega scent and sex – especially after all the tension between me and my brother and being back home and around Devlin once more. The history we all share is too much, and now this?

I don’t want an omega. I want Devlin. Even if she’s a beta, I don’t care. I never did. If I can love another alpha, I can love a beta. It doesn’t matter to me, never has. But now Lorcan’s gone and scent matched someone and I just have to…be okay with it?

Lorcan nods, running a hand through his hair again. “Yeah, I did. I didn’t know how to control it, Tadhg. She was…I don’t even know what happened. I couldn’t leave her, not like this. She’s asleep now, but I need to go handle the speech. I don’t want to leave her alone. I didn’t know who else to ask.”

I raise an eyebrow. “So, you want me to stay? To babysit your omega while you go give your speech?”

We’re pack, sure. But there’s no guarantee that just because he’s found his scent match that she’ll be mine too. Because I’ve always justknownthat mine and Cathal’s match would be Devlin.Ifshe were an omega.

He looks at me with a mixture of desperation and frustration. “Please. Just…stay. I need to handle this, and I need you to make sure she’s okay. Please, Tadhg, just keep an ear out. I’ve left a t-shirt with her so she’ll still have my scent when she wakes. She’s not in full heat yet, so it should be fine. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

I don’t have time to process what he’s saying before he’s standing, almost stumbling over his own feet. He grabs for his jacket, hastily pulling it on as he heads toward the door. “I’ll be back in an hour, tops. Just…please. Don’t let her wake up alone.”

And just like that, he’s gone, the door closing softly behind him, leaving me alone in the lounge, the air thick with the weight of what’s just happened. I take a deep breath, trying to steady my racing thoughts, but all I can smell is that intoxicating omega scent. It’s overpowering, sweet but sharp, something I can’t quite place with a closed door and Lorcan’s scent in the air too. I lean back against the couch, trying to push past the tension in my body.

It’s hard to think straight with the heat of it still lingering in the room, thick in the air, so I move and step through the balcony doors to clear my head and take a seat outside.

I close my eyes, trying to regain my focus.

I didn’t expect any of this.

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