Page 33 of The Knotty Omega

“All good, I hope?” His slight Italian accent has me clenching my thighs.

“Oh yes, but I do want to know the story of why you won’t go mini golfing.”

Archie snorts next to me and Mattie raises his eyebrow at him over my head, “It seems you really have been a naughty puppy, haven’t you?”

Holy shit. Did I justslick? I definitely don’t get dom energy from him, but there’ssomething.

“So Cady, how was your pack meeting last night?” Archie quickly changes the subject.

My scent must turn sour because a second later, I have all four alpha’s surrounding me, purring. Matteo lifts my chin with his finger. “What happened,tesoro mio?”

I shake my head. There’s no point in getting into it now. “It was nothing. Brennan handled it.”

“If there was something for Brennan to handle, then it was not nothing,” Titus growls.

“It was just,...” I trail off, shaking my head as I step out of Mattie and Archie’s embrace, needing space to get my thoughts out and turn to face them. I’m not used to being around so many alpha scents at once, and given the fact that they’re all my scent matches, the effect is nearly intoxicating.

Titus and Ollie look downright murderous, while Archie looks scared. Simon’s brow is furrowed in concern, and Mattie’s face is carefully neutral.

“The first thing they did was get pissy about the TruBond pill I had taken. Then, it took them a full ten or so minutes for even the ‘nicest’ one to realize they hadn’t asked me my name. Then one of them told me I was basically already theirs because I was well past my prime for an unbonded omega, and when I tried to leave…” I swallow, looking down, “one of them grabbed my arm, and Brennan stepped in and took care of the asshole.” The previously purring alphas all growl in anger on my behalf.

“But, something good came out of it!” I say quickly, lifting up my hands in a placating gesture. “I made a friend. Brennan brought his omega, Wren, over to my apartment for a girls night and played bodyguard outside my door while I vented to Wren and my best friend, Hannah.”

“I still don’t like it,” Titus mutters, still scowling. “Do you have their pack name?”

“No,” I shake my head. “Just like I didn’t get your name, and you didn’t get mine. But both Brennan and I reported their behavior to the OMS and they emailed me this morning saying it would be handled.”

“They take vetting their alphas very seriously,” Simon says, nodding. “They have a zero tolerance policy. If they put their hands on you, it’s likely they’ll be blacklisted from the OMS database.”

“Great, just one more thing they can blame me for.” I sigh, and Archie catches my hand, concern furrowing his brow.

“What do you mean?”

Another sigh leaves me. “Apparently…they used to have an omega who wrote into the Knotty Omega for advice. And as a result of that advice, she…left them.” I don’t feel bad about that. They don’t deserve an omega with how they treated me after barely knowing me for five minutes.

“I’m going to be contacting the OMS for that pack name,” Titus tells me, his voice serious. “I need to have my people look into them.”

“I doubt they’ll give it to you,” Archie says, looking between the two of us. “Its all anonymous for a reason. But if it’s for Cady’s safety, I’m sure my sister will be more than willing to tell me.”

We make it back to the parking lot of the restaurant we started in, the mood more lighthearted than it was back in the park. And then I realize…

“Shit,” I curse, frustrated with myself.

“What is it, Tink?” Ollie is at my side in an instant, looking at me with concern in his normally jovial eyes.

“I just realized, I sent Brennan home, but he was my ride. It’s fine, I can get a rideshare.”

The pack starts to protest, saying how I shouldn’t go alone, but Simon, surprisingly, jumps in and puts a hand on my shoulder. “We don’t have enough seats in our car for us all to fit, I’ll take the rideshare with her and then make my way back to the pack house.”

I hate the idea of leaving them even for a moment. This scent match shit must be some kind of voodoo because I swear I’m half in love with them already. Ollie’s joy for life and his ability to make me laugh, Titus’ protective nature. Simon’s quiet, careful consideration for everyone around him, Matteo’s strong, calm presence. Archie doesn’t count because I’ve been in love with him for a year already.

Regardless of how much it tears me up inside though, I order the ride back to my house, determined to take this newfound relationship one day at a time.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

“Oh my god!” Cady’s scent turns acrid as hand flies up to cover mouth when we approach her apartment.

Thank goodness I insisted on walking her up to her door. The one that’s currently hanging off its hinges.

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