Page 78 of Knot Unwanted: Part One

“I know.” We’re both staring at the floor now. “Fate?”

Jax scoffs. “You know I don’t believe in that bullshit.”

“Yeah.” Because me neither.

But how the hell else am I supposed to make sense of this?

Chapter 24

Hailey

The blanket beneath my fingers is impossibly soft. I can’t stop running my hands over it, marveling at how different it feels from the threadbare sheets at the Academy. Everything in Finn’s nest seems designed for comfort—plush pillows, fleece throws, even what looks like hand-knitted quilts arranged in careful layers around us.

It’s like lying on a cloud infused with the most calming scents in the universe.

I should feel trapped, sitting cross-legged in an unfamiliar omega’s nest while three alphas prowl somewhere below. Should be terrified. But there’s something about Finn that makes the world seem focused on just this one room.

He’s arranging pillows now, movements delicate as he creates what looks like a proper sleeping area along one wall. My gaze shifts to my hands. His are so much bigger than mine, but he handles each item with such care, such gentleness. Like they’re precious things that might break if he’s too rough.

“You’ll want the purple one,” he says suddenly, making me jump. When I look up, he’s watching me with those strange gray eyes. “For sleeping. It’s the softest.”

I realize I’m still stroking the blanket in my lap. Heat floods my cheeks and I snatch my hand back. “Oh! I…I wasn’t…I mean, I don’t need…”

“Yes, you do.” His voice is firm but kind. Like everything else about him. “You’re staying here, so you need proper bedding.”

“But this is yournest,” I whisper. “I can’t…”

“Our nest…” He must see the utter shock that makes my face go slack and his eyes widen a fraction—probably because of what he just said. “For now, at least.” He says it so casually, like it’s the most natural thing in the world to share his sanctuary with a stranger. “At least until you decide what you want to do next.”

The lump in my throat makes it hard to speak. I watch him tuck another pillow into place, trying to understand how he can move with such grace. He’s slender, lacking the muscular bulk of an alpha, but even kneeling, he towers over me, his lean frame making me feel small in comparison.

There’s something…delicate about Finn. Something in the way he holds himself. There’s something else, too. Something I didn’t notice yesterday. The way he moves like he’s aware of every part of his frame.

Just like I do of mine.

“I shouldn’t be here,” I whisper, more to myself than him. “I’m intruding.”

He pauses in his arranging to look at me, head tilted slightly. “Do you feel unsafe here?”

“No!” The force of my answer surprises us both. I duck my head, studying my hands. “No, I…I feel…I don’t know how I feel.”

“That’s okay, too.” There’s a smile in his voice that makes my chest constrict. “You don’t have to know everything right now.”

When I dare to glance up, he’s focused on his task again, carefully arranging what looks like a reading nook in one corner, based on the books he’s balancing on a shelf set in the wall there. The morning light streaming through the window catches in his hair,turning the honey-gold strands into a soft halo of warmth around his face.He’s beautiful. The thought hits me so suddenly it steals my breath. I’ve never seen an omega like him—all lean and masculine wrapped around something inherently soft. Gentle.

I realize I’m staring again when he quirks an eyebrow at me. “See something interesting?”

“You’re beautiful.” The words slip out before I can stop them. Horror floods through me immediately after. We don’t say things like that. Omegas don’t…we’re not supposed to…

But Finn just blinks at me, genuine surprise crossing his features. “I…what?”

“I’m sorry!” I scramble to fix my mistake, heart pounding. “I shouldn’t have said it out loud. I…”

“Hey, no, it’s okay.” He sits back on his heels, studying me with an expression I can’t read. “I’m just not used to…I mean, I’m not exactly…” He gestures vaguely at himself, like he can’t quite believe I meant it.

“But you are,” I insist with a whisper, unable to stop now that I’ve started. “I’ve never seen anyone like you.”

A blush creeps up his neck, staining his cheeks pink. It’s oddly endearing on him. “Oh,” he says faintly. Then again, “Oh,” like he’s just realizing I actually mean it.

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