Page 59 of Knot My Luck

Tadhg nods, understanding in the silent agreement between us. We’re going to follow her. Keep her close, but keep a distance.

I watch her move, her posture tense as she hurries away from us. I can feel my chest tighten, the helplessness of the moment weighing on me. She’s slipping, and I don’t know how to stop it.

But I won’t give up on her.

The night air is crisp, carrying the scent of damp earth and faint saltwater from the brackish river. We’ve been watching her from a distance for what feels like forever, giving her the space she seems to need, though it takes everything in me not to go to her sooner. She’s curled in on herself on a low stone wall by the riverside, shoulders shaking from silent sobs. Each one feels like a blade in my chest.

I glance at Tadhg. His expression is tight with worry, his hands flexing at his sides as if he’s fighting the urge to reach for her. He catches my look and exhales sharply. “She’s stopped crying,” he whispers.

I nod. “It’s time.”

We move towards her slowly, careful not to startle her. She doesn’t look up at first, her fingers curled into her sleeves, knees drawn up to her chest. But when we reach her, she tenses, her breath catching.

Before she can pull away, I sink down beside her, wrapping an arm around her trembling frame, pulling her into the warmth of my body. Tadhg sits on her other side, his solid presence a steadying force. We cage her in, offering our warmth, our strength – hopeful she won’t fight it.

For a moment, none of us speak. There’s nothing to say that wouldn’t sound empty in the wake of whatever storm has torn through her tonight. Instead, we just hold her, letting her sink into the quiet comfort we can offer her, the tension in her body slowly beginning to ebb.

Tadhg lets out a quiet growl of disapproval, a sound like thunder rolling through the calm, and nudges her leg with his. “You’re not wearing shoes,” he chastises gently, his voice thick with concern. “Your feet must be freezing.”

She lets out a shaky breath, a sound that might’ve been a laugh if it weren’t so brittle. “Didn’t think about it.”

I curse under my breath, the heat of my frustration barely contained. “Of course you didn’t.”

Before she can argue, I shift, scooping her into my arms, cradling her against me. She lets out a startled gasp, her hands flying to my shoulders, but she doesn’t push me away. Instead, she melts against me, pressing her face into my neck, inhaling the steady, comforting scent of me. The scent of her distress lingers, but beneath it, I catch the familiar trace of ours – of mine, of Tadhg’s – lingering in her.

I brush my lips against her temple, the action soft but possessive, murmuring against her skin, “Next time you run off, wear shoes, a stór.”

Her breath shudders, something small and tired in it, but she doesn’t pull away. She accepts it, the warmth, the quiet control we offer her.

Tadhg steps closer, his fingers grazing her cheek, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear with a gentleness that speaks of care, of ownership. “You scared us, Clover,” he admits softly, his voice raw, the deep rumble of it like a purr vibrating beneath his words.

“I scared myself,” she says, her voice barely audible, yet it trembles with truth.

I don’t know who moves first – if it’s her or me – but suddenly, my mouth is on hers, claiming what’s mine. She doesn’t hesitate, kissing me back like she needs it to anchor her, her hands tightening in my shirt.

When I pull away, her eyes flick to Tadhg. He watches her for a second, searching, and then she’s reaching for him too. The shift is subtle, but I feel it. My body hums with awareness as I watch her move into his arms. Their kiss is slower, softer, but there’s something raw in the way he cups her face, as if he’s afraid she might slip through his fingers. The heat between us feels like it’s building, even as I’m caught in the depths of this moment.

I can’t look away, watching them as Tadhg’s lips claim hers. There's a flicker of something wild in me, a heat that coils tighter in my gut the longer I stare. It’s not jealousy – it’s something far deeper, something primal. Seeing them together again, seeing themlike this, feels right. It pulls at me, makes me ache with need, with wanting to be a part of it, to complete what’s unfolding between us. A low growl rumbles in my chest, the force of it caught somewhere between hunger and approval.

By the time they part, I know there’s no stopping the inevitable. The tension between us has been stretching thinner and thinner, and now it finally snaps. The air is thick with it, the crackle of need undeniable.

Tadhg turns to me, a question in his gaze. I don’t answer with words. I reach for him, pulling him into me. Our mouths crash together, the kiss fierce and desperate, but somehow, stillperfect. It’s messy, urgent, the taste of Devlin still lingering on his lips, sharp and familiar, but more than that, it’s the heat of her body pressed between us. It bleeds into my shirt, her scent, her skin, all of it stirring something inside me that I didn’t know was there, that I didn’t know could burn this hot.

When we finally break apart, I can feel the weight of her gaze, the wide, dark eyes watching us, her lips parted, as if she can’t quite believe what she’s seeing. But I know – I know it’s real. All of it. And it’sours.

The moment is still thick between us when a slow, mocking clap shatters it.

“Well, well, well,” a voice drawls from the shadows. “Would you look at that? No wonder the horny little omega ran off.”

I step in front of Tadhg and Devlin instinctively as we turn. A group of three alphas stands just beyond the pool of light cast by a nearby streetlamp. At the front is Podraig, the same bastard from the wedding. The sneering alpha who hit on Devlin that night, who thought he had some claim to her and wouldn’t take no for an answer. The two beside him could be anyone, but I get the feeling they’repack.

I shift again, moving Devlin further behind me, Tadhg stepping in close on her other side.

Podraig’s smirk deepens. “I was wondering why she looked so miserable at that reception,” he continues, voice dripping with faux sympathy. “Poor thing’s got a pair of alphas who’d rather fuck around with each other than take care of her.”

A low growl builds in my throat. Tadhg stiffens beside me, and Devlin’s fingers dig into my back.

The other alpha scoffs. “You can see the bond marks on her, but it don’t mean a thing. She’s unclaimed in any way thatmatters.” His eyes rake over Devlin, predatory and cruel. “She deserves real alphas. Not—” he makes a vague, dismissive gesture at Tadhg and me, “—whatever the fuck this is.”

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