Page 80 of Knot Made to Break: Part Two

We could take shifts running it with her, keeping her safe while she did what she loved.

But I kept those thoughts to myself for now, simply enjoying the way she melted against me, her scent mixing with mine in the late autumn air. It was different now, with an added note that would tell other Alphas she was claimed. Taken.Mine.

Fuck, I was a lucky bastard.

I watched her, drinking in the sight of her, wondering how the hell I’d gotten so lucky. Her dark hair caught the sunlight, bringing out the blue and purple hues. I wanted to run my fingers through it, to pull her close and breathe her in until her scent filled my lungs.

Possessive? Maybe. But the way Kit nestled into my side told me she didn’t mind at all.

She wanted me to forget. Thought if she walked away fast enough from that storefront, I’d let the dream fade, just like she was trying so desperately to do.

But there was a flaw in her logic.

I was her Alpha. And I rememberedeverythingabout her.

The way she chewed the inside of her cheek when she was nervous. The way her fingers fluttered at her sides when she was imagining something. The way she looked at beautiful things like they belonged to someone else.

And there wasn’t a single chance in hell I’d forget something that made my Omega’s eyes light up like stars burning in a midnight sky.

thirty

KITANIA

Walkingthrough the doors of the OMA had my stomach twisting into knots. It was funny how each office looked almost exactly the same. The one in Silver City bore an uncanny resemblance to the one in my hometown of Kipper Valley—the very campus I’d been kidnapped from.

The sign, the colors, the decor, right down to the smell of the lobby, were so similar it was startling.

I hadn’t expected to have such a visceral reaction to the similarities, but PTSD liked to rear its ugly head at the most inopportune times, surprising you with triggers you didn’t even know you had.

My palms went clammy, my legs weak, and my body released a burst of adrenaline into my bloodstream that made me feel shaky while my heart pounded like a bass drum against my sternum.

Luckily, this time, I wasn’t alone. This time, I was wrapped in my Alphas’ scents, their claim marks fresh on my neck, and thewarmth of their bodies surrounding me on all sides. Dimitri’s large hand pressed reassuringly against the small of my back, and I straightened my shoulders, drawing from his strength.

I wasn’t just Kitania Marlowe anymore—I was Kitania Cristenello now. And that made all the difference in the world.

“You okay, little Omega?” D’s deep voice rumbled close to my ear, warming my skin.

I leaned into his touch, needing all the comfort I could get. “I’m fine. Just... memories.”

His jaw tightened almost imperceptibly, and I knew his mind had wandered in the same direction mine had. How I’d suffered before him and his brothers had found me, rescued me, claimed me.

“We’ve got you. No one here would dare hurt you. They know what it means to cross a Cristenello,” he promised, the threat in his voice clear.

The receptionist called my name, eyes widening when all four of my Alphas moved with me. I felt the reflexive smile tug at my lips as Gio placed a possessive hand on my hip, while Tommy smiled at the flustered woman. Marco hung back, scanning the room with practiced vigilance, but his gaze returned to me every few seconds as if to reassure himself I was still there.

The paperwork was a formality—nothing more. The Cristenello name carried weight in this city, and my situation was... unusual, to say the least. As one of the Omegas who’d been stolen and sold in an underground trafficking ring before being found and rescued—thanks to my Alphas who had assisted the OMA and the FBI to help recover as many of us as possible—the OMA had granted me special privileges. Like not having to go through the whole scent binder process to find a match or follow all the protocols of an official courting period. My Alphas didn’t answer to the rules of others, and instead of arguing over semantics, Chaddrick Hurst, the director of the agency, hadsimply asked that we come into the office to finalize the official documents that marked us as a unified pack. And officially change my status on the Omega Registry to ‘bonded.’

“We’ll handle this,” Dimitri told me after I’d signed my name on the final form. “Why don’t you go get something from the café with Julia? She’s been dying to see you again. Said something about there being too much testosterone in this family and needing ‘girl time.’”

I giggled. “She really said that?”

Gio nodded, his face softening at the mention of his sister. “She practically broke our phones with all her calls when she heard we’d finally bonded. Been bitching that we’ve been hogging you.”

“Unless you’d rather stay,” Tommas added, his green eyes watchful. His dimples flashed as he smiled. “But fair warning—if you stick around for the processing part, you’ll be bored to tears.”

“Why don’t I walk you there?” Marco offered. “But I’ll hang back across the quad so you ladies can have your space to visit.”

The thought of temporary separation made my chest tighten, but I pushed past it. I was safe now. And the idea of seeing Julia again was too tempting to pass up. We were family now, after all. Sisters.

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