Page 92 of Knot His Reality

“He’ll be fine,” Tessa says with an eye roll.

Then there’s nothing left to do except open the door.

I ignore the shaking of my hand as I reach for the doorknob and turn it. Stepping inside, my eyes find Lorenzo where Bree said he’d be.

“Hi, Remington. Thank you for meeting with me.” Lorenzo’s smile is brittle as I choose to sit at the opposite end of the table. He’s pale as he tries to hide the way his hands shake. “I won’t take up much of your time, I promise.”

“I’m not really sure why you wanted to see me in the first place.”

He nods slowly. “Because I want to thank you.”

“Thank me?” I jerk back, confused by his words. “What the hell could you have to thank me for?”

He grimaces. “I wouldn’t have been in a good place to become one of your alphas, so part of me is glad I fucked up so early in the show. As I’m sure they told you, I was in a diabetic coma. The reason for that is that I’m an idiot. I won’t go into the reasons because they don’t matter, but I started using anabolic steroids a few years ago. I don’t know how much you know about them, but they really fuck up your body.

“One of the major symptoms is insomnia. I found a doctor that was willing to ignore my steroid use and prescribe me sleeping pills. I’m never supposed to drink with them, but the insomnia has been getting worse. Alcohol can be terrible for diabetics. It can cause a spike in blood sugar and then a crash. That’s what happened the night I fell into the coma. Between the booze and the sleeping pill, the alarm for my blood sugar didn’t wake me up. Because I’ve been taking such bad care of myself, it sent me into a coma.”

I shake my head as I take in everything he just told me. “Steroids can wreck your body, Lorenzo. You need to come off them immediately. If you’ve been using them for years, there’s no telling how much damage has been done.”

“Yeah, I know. I didn’t really have a choice but to stop taking them in the hospital. They put me through a detox once I woke up. Now, I just have to deal with the withdrawal symptoms.”

“I still don’t understand why you want to thank me,” I say after a few moments.

“Right.” He scoffs. “I was an asshole when I met you, something I realized pretty quickly. Who the fuck talks about fucking other people when meeting someone for the first time? It’s not an excuse, but abusing steroids like I did has changed my personality in ways I don’t like. The reason I was having such a hard time sleeping is because I couldn’t help thinking about how disappointed everyone in my life would be with me. How disappointed in myself I was over how I treated you.”

Lorenzo glances at his hand. “While I wish I didn’t have to go through everything I did, it’s for the best, and it’s because of you.”

“I didn’t do anything,” I argue, and he smiles.

“We’ll just have to agree to disagree on that. I just wanted to let you know how sorry I am for how I acted. When I get home, I’ll get the help I need. I didn’t really get a chance to get to know you, but I can tell you’re a good guy. I hope you find your perfect pack.” He pushes to his feet and heads to the door without another word or glance back at me.

Even after I hear someone slip inside with me, I stare at the table as I try to wrap my head around this whole situation. Lorenzo didn’t need to tell me anything. He wanted to make himself feel better about how he acted. He could’ve just gone home and left me alone. There was absolutely no reason for him to seek me out.

“Remington?” Finn speaks quietly as he sits in the chair beside me. “Are you okay?”

I consider it for a moment before shaking my head. “No, I’m not. The only reason he came here was to make himself feel better, and that’s fucked up. I’m glad he’s okay because he’s a fucking human being, but I didn’t need to know anything about what he told me. I don’t care that he had a drug problem or that he doesn’t take care of himself. Acting like he wants to thank me. What an asshole.”

Finn chuckles. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“No. Fuck him. I’m not going to spend another minute thinking about that damn selfish alphahole. But thank you for checking on me, Finn.” I soften my words at the end.

He doesn’t question me, just nods and pushes to his feet. “Enjoy the rest of your day. I’ll see you this evening.”

Then he leaves, and I realize just how hungry I am. I guess I’m heading out back to eat breakfast at least. Hopefully, I can convince the others to watch a movie or something today.

“This is beautiful,” Brooke says with a sigh, leaning back as she grins at me. “I didn’t even know they did carriage rides.”

“Neither did I until I asked.” Reaching over, I take her hand in mine and twine our hands together.

After a peaceful day spent in the theater yesterday, watching a movie marathon of Reginald’s movies and a quiet day today spent reading by the pool, I was really excited about my date with Brooke tonight. We had dinner at a small intimate Thai restaurant where we just talked as we ate, but this is the best part of the date.

We’re sitting in the back of a horse-drawn carriage with blankets on our laps to combat the cooler night air as we ride around Rancho Mirage. Usually, they’re used to give tours, but I just wanted to enjoy some time alone with Brooke. The driver let me know he can stop anywhere we’d like. We just have to let him know.

“Even with the sounds of the cars, it feels like we’re in a whole different world. Like we’re separate from where we came from.” She giggles. “That doesn’t make any sense, does it?”

“It makes perfect sense,” I tell her. “It’s like we’re here, but we’re not.”

She nods slowly, eyes never leaving mine. “Yeah. That.”

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