Page 96 of Knot So Fast
The entire fucking pack is here, crowded into the entryway of his suite like some kind of intervention.
Kieran leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, looking at me with those dark eyes that have always seen too much. Dex standing slightly apart, probably analyzing every micro-expression for later dissection. Caspian near the kitchen, ever the pragmatist, already calculating how to manage this situation.
And then there's Luke.
That fucking Beta.
Personal hatred floods through me at the sight of him.
The roommate who won't let me into their apartment. The one who's been playing guardian and gatekeeper, keeping me at arm's length from my own woman. A goddamn nuisance who thinks he has any right to?—
"How did you even get through?" Lachlan asks, pulling my attention back to him.
I smirk, letting my natural arrogance shine through.
"C'mon. We're basically identical aside from the slightly blonde difference in our hair." I shrug, adjusting my grip on the flowers. "So. Technology is shit anyway."
Lachlan rolls his eyes—a gesture so familiar it makes my chest ache with something I refuse to name. His gaze drops to the bouquet in my arms, and his expression hardens.
"If you think giving her flowers because of her grand win after you were flaunted to the world surrounded by Omegas is going to solve anything, it's not."
Now it's my turn to roll my eyes.
"Auren understands our circumstances."
The words are barely out of my mouth when Lachlan's entire demeanor shifts. He steps forward, closing the distance between us until we're standing face to face, mirror images separated by choices and chances and a year of carefully maintained distance.
"Well, we have to change that," he says, his voice low and controlled in that way that means he's seconds from losing his shit. "Because she may not remember us, but now that she's going to be our Omega in this competition, there's no more non-exclusive bullshit."
The possessiveness in his tone makes my hackles rise.
"Who the fuck made you leader?"
His laugh is sharp and humorless.
"Well, of course I'm the leader. This is my pack." He steps even closer, and I can smell the lingering traces of Auren on his skin, making my jaw clench. "Last time I checked, my dear brother made his decision to go with that group of backstabbing bastards, and where did that get you?"
The reminder of my failed attempt at independence, at creating something separate from his shadow, hits exactly where he intended. I hold my tongue, knowing that anything I say will only make this worse.
But my silence seems to frustrate him more than any argument would.
Lachlan takes a deep breath, letting it out slowly before stepping even closer, close enough that I can see the barely controlled fury in his eyes—eyes that are exactly like mine, windows to a soul that's somehow both familiar and foreign.
He drops his voice to barely above a whisper, but every word lands like a physical blow.
"You think I'm going to forget that you had a whole fucking year to fuck her? Love her? To cherish her like she should be, and instead you play a game of yo-yo-the-Omega with someone as talented, beautiful, and fierce as Auren?"
Each word is precise, calculated to hurt.And it works.Because he's right. I had her to myself for a year and I fucked it up with my inability to commit, my need to maintain some kind of twisted independence even when every fiber of my being screamed to claim her properly.
"And now you're getting antsy because she suddenly is fine with the idea of us being her pack?"
When I don't say anything—can't say anything without admitting truths I'm not ready to face—he smirks. It's dangerous and predatory and exactly the expression I've seen him wear before destroying opponents on the track.
But now it's directed at me, his twin, his blood, his biggest disappointment.
I know that look.
It's the one he flaunts when he knows he can ruin anyone who sees it. But having it projected back at me means my older brother—older by four fucking minutes—won't back down from whatever he's plotting.
