Page 3 of Knot Beneath the Mistletoe

Mine soon,that smile says.All mine.

The car disappears around the corner, but the cold remains. I'm grinding my teeth.

Asshole!

"Come inside," Lily says quickly. "Both of you. I'll make tea."

The bakery's warmth wraps around me as Lily puts on the kettle. Hannah perches on a stool while I move to the sink and wash my hands vigorously with disinfectant soap and hot water. Then, I dry them and return to my abandoned cookies, methodically rolling the dough into balls and coating them with cinnamon sugar. The motions are automatic and soothing. Aunt Eve taught me this recipe the day she found out my parents kicked me out.

"Ruby." Hannah's voice is gentle. "Talk to us. Did Marcus pay you another visit? What did he say this time?"

I lift my gaze, staring at the sisters who always have my back. "Nothing new. He just reminded me that very soon, none of this will matter. The bar will be his."

"There has to be a way—" Lily starts.

"There isn't." I move by the counter covered in flour. "I've checked every legal angle. Eve's will is clear. I have to be mated and married to an Alpha by Christmas Eve, or everything goes to Marcus. The bar. The building. Her apartment. All of it.”

"It's barbaric," Lily murmurs, her lips downturning. "Making mating a condition of inheritance."

Hannah sighs heavily, her shoulder rigid. "I hate him so much. And your aunt shouldn't have put you in this situation."

"She thought she was helping." The tears finally spill over. "She worried about me being alone. Wanted to make sure whoever I chose would be committed enough to share the business, so I can't even marry anyone, then divorce them later because they automatically get half of the bar and apartment, as in my aunt's will. But she didn't know Marcus would..."

Would what? Transform from the cousin who once shared my crayons into an Alpha determined to put me in myproper place? Use his connections to drive away any potential mates? Make it clear that norealAlpha would want a defective Omega in her mid-twenties who hasn't experienced her heat, who ran a bar instead of a home, who couldn't even handle Christmas without breaking down.

The kettle whistles. Lily pours three mugs of Eve's special chai blend. The spices fill the air, mixing with cookie scent.

"We did something," Hannah says finally, glancing over at Lily, who's nodding. "It's what we wanted to talk to you about. It's something you might hate us for, but I hope you don't."

"Please don't hate us," Lily pleads.

That tone never means anything good. I narrow my eyes, slightly scared.

"What kind of something?"

Lily takes a small sip, holding my gaze, and the longer she drags it out, the worse I know it's going to be. "We arranged some Alphas for you to meet. Three of them until the deadline."

The mug slips from my hands, shattering on the floor. Tea splashes my legs, but I barely feel it. My chest tightens as a phantom ribbon constricts my throat.

"No." The word comes out choked. "No dates. No Alphas. No?—"

"Ruby, breathe." Lily's at my side instantly, helping calm my racing heart. "Deep breaths."

"You don't understand." I grip the counter, knuckles white. "I tried dating, remember? Six disasters in two months. One Alpha actually lectured me about how Omegas shouldn't own businesses. Another just wanted tohelpby buying the bar himself. And the last one..." I shudder. "Let's just say Marcus made sure he understood what happens to Alphas who touch his property."

"These are different," Hannah insists. "We vetted them personally. They're not under Marcus's influence."

"You're both bakers, not matchmakers!" I retort, maybe harsher than I intended, but I'm freaking out internally. I've only had bad experiences with Alphas, not to mention I keep remembering how my father brutally treated my Omega mom and how she never fought back. I don't want to end up that way…

"We're your friends, and I'm watching you lose yourself in fear," Lily says.

"I'm not afraid!" The words echo off steel appliances. Chonky's jar almost rattles on its shelf. "I'm practical. The bar is all I have. Eve's memories are all I have. I can't risk?—"

"Risk what? Being happy? Having a real mate instead of just surviving?" Hanna interrupts.

My hands shake as I try to clean up the broken mug. A sharp edge catches my already injured hand, and I wince.

"Ruby." Hannah crouches beside me, also gathering ceramic shards. "Let us help you."

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