Page 129 of Knot Unwanted: Part One

“—let me help?—”

“Just go!” Finn’s voice breaks on the word. “Please, Stone. Just…just go freshen up and get the car. I need…I need to think.”

A long silence follows. Then the sound of a door opening and closing.

I remain frozen by the garden wall, unsure what to do. Go inside? Stay out here? My body feels strange, hot and achy in ways I don’t understand. The memory of Stone and Finn kissing keeps replaying in my mind, making the ache worse. The sight of Stone’s large hand fisting Finn’s shaft…

The back door opens and Finn appears, his face drawn with worry. When he sees me still standing there, something complicated crosses his features—guilt, concern, something else I can’t name.

“Hailey,” he says softly, and his voice is gentle despite the tension I can see in his shoulders. “Why don’t you come inside? We should…we should talk.”

I follow him into the house, not sure if I even should.

The kitchen is warm after the garden’s chill, and it doesn’t help the burning under my skin. Finn moves to the sink, washing dirt from his hands with extreme focus.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper again, wringing my hands. “I didn’t mean to…to ruin things. It was just so nice to see…” Gods, I’m a pervert. But I’m telling the truth. It really was nice to see Finn and Stone be so swept up in each other they forgot I was even there. Seeing Finn with his alpha didn’t make me jealous. It just…

It just made me want.

Made me want so, so badly.

Finn’s shoulders tense. “You didn’t ruin anything, sunshine.This isn’t your fault. None of this is your fault.” He turns, drying his hands on a towel. “I’m the one who should be apologizing. I should have been more careful. More aware.” He sighs again. “Let’s go clean up.”

He lets me use the bathroom first and when I emerge from the steamy room, there are fresh new clothes waiting for me to choose from. I choose a grey flannel shirt and gray sweats, mind swirling as I listen to the shower running behind the door as Finn gets clean, too.

When he finally exits, he’s already wearing clean jeans and he smiles at me briefly before moving over to his wardrobe where he grabs a t-shirt with a single daisy printed in the center.

He runs a brush through his hair, helps me to pull mine into a ponytail, but all the while I can see the strain around his eyes, the way his hands tremble slightly. Whatever is happening to me is affecting him too—making him doubt himself, question his actions.

“I liked watching you,” I whisper, then immediately want to die of embarrassment. “I mean—you looked happy. With him. Like you belonged.”

Finn’s goes still. “Hailey…”

“I’ve never seen alphas be gentle before,” I push on, needing him to understand. “Never seen them look at anyone the way Stone looks at you. Like you’re precious. Important.”

“Stop,” he whispers, but there are tears gathering in his eyes again. “Please.”

“Why? Because it hurts?” The last thing I want to do is hurt Finn. Not Finn. In a matter of days, he’s become invaluable to me.

Finn’s throat works as he swallows. “It’s complicated.” He adjusts my ponytail one final time. “Come on, we should head down. Stone’s probably waiting.”

We make our way downstairs and through the kitchen to the front drive. A sleek black high-end car idles in the driveway, with Stone leaning against the passenger door. He’s changed into dark jeans and a fitted grey Henley that makes his broad shoulders lookeven more impressive. His chestnut hair is still damp from his shower, falling across his forehead in a way that softens his strong jaw and stern expression.

“I’m not sure about this,” he says as we approach. “Taking her into public right now…”

Finn is already shaking his head, reaching for a canvas bag I hadn’t noticed before. “We don’t have a choice. She needs things.” He starts pulling items from the bag. “Here, sunshine. This will help.”

He holds up a small bottle with a spray nozzle. “Scent blocker. Very potent stuff—it’ll mask your natural scent completely.” He demonstrates by spraying it on his own wrist. “See? Nothing.”

I hold still as he applies it carefully, explaining as he goes. “Around your neck, behind your ears, inside your elbows—anywhere your scent glands are active. It lasts about four hours.”

“Which should be plenty of time,” Stone adds, checking his watch.

Next, Finn pulls out a pair of oversized sunglasses. “Your eyes are… distinctive. These will help you blend in better.” He settles them carefully on my face, then pulls out a silk scarf in soft blues and greys. “And this is just an extra precaution.”

His fingers are gentle as he arranges the scarf around my head, tucking in loose strands of hair. “There. Perfect.”

“Oh yeah, she looks totally inconspicuous now,” Stone drawls. “The sunglasses and headscarf combo isn’t suspicious at all.”

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