Page 23 of Knot So Fast
She smirks, and the expression is so perfectly her that it takes my breath away.
"Whatever, Dude."
"A thank you would be nice," I counter, trying to keep the conversation light even though being this close to her is killing me. "I did just save you from government harassment."
She considers this for a moment, then shrugs.
"You're right."
Without warning, she walks up to me, making me go completely still as she rises up on her tiptoes to get in my face. We're close enough now that I can smell her familiar scent—vanilla and something uniquely her that makes my head spin.
"Thanks, Cross," she says softly, her breath warm against my skin.
I realize I'm holding my breath, and suddenly this feels like the most intense déjà vu I've ever experienced.
The same interaction, the same positioning, the same electric tension crackling between us.
"Thanks, Cross," she whispered, rising up on her tiptoes to press her lips against mine in a kiss that tasted like victory and vanilla chapstick.
We'd just finished our first race together, both of us covered in sweat and high on adrenaline.
"For what?" I asked against her mouth, my hands automatically going to her waist to pull her closer.
"For not going easy on me," she said with that same smirk she's wearing now. "For making me work for it."
"Wouldn't dream of it," I murmured before kissing her again, deeper this time, tasting the joy and fire that made her impossible to resist.
The memory is gone with the wind, so vivid and real that for a moment I forget where we are.
Forget that she doesn't remember any of it, that to her I'm just some guy from the hospital who happens to know important people.
An alarm starts blaring from her phone, breaking the spell and pulling me back to the present. She frowns as she checks the screen, her expression shifting to one of concern.
"Shit, I've got to ditch," she says, backing away from me reluctantly. "There's some kind of alert going out. All unmated Omegas need to return to their residences immediately."
Luke appears at her side, his protective instincts clearly activated by the alarm.
"I'll go with you. We can run back together."
"I'll follow," I say without thinking, the words coming out before my brain can stop them.
Both of them look at me with confusion, Luke's expression bordering on suspicious.
"If you go alone and another guard stops you, it'll be a penalty," I explain, which isn't entirely untrue. "Having an Alpha escort reduces the risk of additional harassment."
Auren looks like she wants to argue—probably hates the idea of needing protection—but I don't leave room for debate. I'm already moving, falling into step beside them as we head toward the path that leads off the track.
"How do you even know where we're going?" she asks, jogging to keep up with my longer stride.
I look back at her, taking in the way the morning light catches in her hair, the determined set of her jaw, the confusion in those beautiful eyes that used to look at me like I hung the moon.
"I know a lot more about you, Auren, than you remember," I say quietly.
It's all I allow myself to say, all I can risk revealing without opening a can of worms that could destroy the fragile peace we've all been trying to maintain. But as I turn back toward the path that leads to her luxury apartment building—the one I helped her find after she was released from the hospital, the one I've driven past more times than I care to admit—I can feel her staring at me.
Luke remains silent beside her, but I can sense his protective tension, the way he's evaluating me as a potential threat to the woman he clearly cares about.
He doesn't know the full story, doesn't understand the complicated history between all of us, but his instincts are good.
