Page 144 of Knot Like Other Girls

Troy pouts dramatically. "You never let me drive anymore."

"The last time you drove, you took a corner so fast that Savva spilled coffee all over his favorite shirt," I remind him. "And then Savva spent the next three hours explaining in excruciating detail why Burberry should never be subjected to being near you."

"It was silk blend," Savva says with a weary sigh.

"My point exactly," I say, pocketing the keys. "Besides, you can navigate. You know where this diner is more than we do."

Troy grins. "Yeah, that's fair."

Before any of us can say anything else, light footsteps sound in the hallway. We all turn toward the doorway, five alphas instantly alert.

And then she's there.

Bella stands in the entrance to the kitchen, a vision that stops all of us in our tracks. She's wearing a simple sundress in a soft green that brings out the color of her eyes. Her dark hair fallsin loose waves around her shoulders, catching the morning light that streams through the windows.

But it's not her appearance alone that holds us captivated. It's her. The way she carries herself, with a quiet confidence that wasn't there before. The way her scent has shifted, sweeter now with the beginning stages of her heat but still distinctly Bella. The way she looks at us, her pack, with open affection in her eyes.

"Sorry I took so long," she says, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth. "I couldn't find my hairbrush."

None of us reply immediately. We're too busy drinking her in, our alpha instincts roaring to life at the sight of our omega. My hands curl into fists at my sides, nails biting into my palms as I exercise the iron control that's been my hallmark for as long as I can remember.

Cole recovers first. "More than worth the wait," he says, his voice rougher than usual.

A blush spreads across Bella's cheeks at the compliment, making her even more beautiful. "Thank you."

I clear my throat, forcing my brain back into gear. "You look… amazing."

Her smile widens. I melt. "Thanks. Are we ready to go?"

"Just waiting on you, little omega," Liam says hoarsely, swallowing hard. "Car's ready when you are."

"Great!" She steps fully into the kitchen, and I catch a stronger wave of her caramel coffee scent, underscored now by the honeyed notes of approaching heat. "I'm starving."

"Then you're in for a treat," Troy says, recovering his usual exuberance. "Mabel's pancakes are the eighth wonder of the world. I would fight a bear for her blueberry syrup."

Bella laughs, the sound light and musical. "No bear fighting necessary, I hope."

"With Troy, you never know," Savva comments dryly, but there's a softness in his expression as he looks at Bella that I've rarely seen from our second most reserved packmate.

I observe the interactions, cataloging the subtle changes in my pack. The way they orbit around Bella like planets around a sun. The way their scents shift when she's near, becoming more potent, more alert. The way they unconsciously position themselves to form a protective circle around her.

And I realize, with a clarity that's almost startling, that we're already hers. Completely, irrevocably hers. Whether she chooses to take us as her mates or not—whether she decides that a pack of broken, dangerous alphas is worthy of her—we are already bound to her by something stronger than law or tradition.

It should terrify me, this vulnerability. This weakness that could be exploited by our enemies. But as I watch Bella move through the kitchen, touching Troy's arm as he tells her a joke, smiling up at Liam as he offers to carry her bag, accepting a travel mug of coffee from Cole with a look of such gratitude you'd think he'd handed her diamonds instead of caffeine... I can't bring myself to stress about a damn thing.

"Roman?" Her voice pulls me from my thoughts. "Everything okay?"

I realize I've been staring at her, silent and still, while the others have started moving toward the door. "Yes," I say, my voice coming out deeper than I intended. "Everything's fine."

She tilts her head slightly, studying me with those perceptive green eyes. "You sure? You looked lost in thought."

"Just planning our route," I lie smoothly. "Town's about forty minutes from here."

She doesn't look entirely convinced, but she doesn't press the issue. "Well, I'm ready when you are."

I nod and move toward the door, keys in hand. "Let's go, then."

As we file out of the cabin, I find myself at the back of the group, watching as my packmates escort Bella down the steps toward the waiting SUV. The morning air is crisp, carrying the scent of pine and lake water and the lingering petrichor from last night's rain.

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