Page 50 of Tied in Knots
She sees me staring and looks down. “I didn’t go noseying,” she says, “I just tidied up. Lindsey came to sweep up the glass. I hope that’s okay?”
“You didn’t need to do that. I would’ve tidied it later,” I say carefully.
She shrugs. “I’m used to cleaning up the mess,” she says, cautiously. “I want to apologise and get this out in the open and out of the way. I’m really sorry for what happened with Benjamin. It wasn’t intentional, but just something that happened unexpectedly.”
“So I hear,” I growl under my breath.
“I know I’ve disappointed you and hurt you, and the level of disrespect makes me feel disgusted with myself. I will accept whatever punishment you want to give me. I’m truly sorry, Sebastian. I hope you can forgive me in time.”
I stare at her completely dumbfounded. Her hands are clasped in front of her, her eyes lowered in a contrite pose that is completely genuine. The fact that she came in here, owned up to her mistake before I’d even said anything and then asked for my forgiveness, has staggered me and completely turned the tables around. I feel like an absolute dick for being angry with her in the first place.
“You have nothing to apologise for,” I say slowly. “Ben is the one responsible for letting you down. He is your protector, and he didn’t do that.”
“Please don’t place all the blame on him. It was both of us,” she says, shaking her head. “I don’t want to come between you two. I would hate myself if you stayed angry with him over this.”
“I gave him a direct order,” I state, trying to justify why I’m still so angry. But it turns out that I’m not even angry with her. Not at all. “You were vulnerable, and he took advantage of you.” I wait to see her response.
“No,” she says vehemently. “That isn’t what happened. He didn’t take advantage of me. He asked me to tell him to stop and I didn’t. This is more on me than on him. I should’ve been stronger. I’m sorry, I should’ve…”
“Faith, stop. I’m not angry with you. Ben is still in the doghouse, but you have nothing to apologise for.” To make it clear to her that I’m telling the truth, I go to her and cup her face. I can’t resist running my thumb over her full red lips.
“Please don’t be angry with him,” she whispers, her cornflower eyes looking up at me, pleading with me.
Jesus. How can I stay mad with anyone when she asks me and looks up at me like that? She has shown balls that I’ve never seen on a woman before by admitting point blank what she did instead of trying to blame Ben or twist it somehow into not her fault. I guess that shows the type of women I’ve been dealing with in the past.
Those not worth it.
Faith is worth it and so much more. She is perfection.
“Do you regret what you did?” I ask as a test to see what she’ll say.
“No,” she says instantly. “I’m sorry about what we did because it hurt you and disrespected you, but I don’t regret it. If anything, I’m glad it happened. It made me realise a few things.”
She passed that with flying colours. I gave her an out and she didn’t take it. She stuck to her guns, and I think I’ve just fallen in love with her. She has more strength than she knows.
“What things?” I ask lightly.
Her eyes fill with a wicked sense of desire that sends a bolt of lust straight to my cock. “I know I want you all in my nest when my heat hits tomorrow.”
I raise an eyebrow and give her a curious look. “Oh?”
She nods, biting her lower lip and looking down again, an adorable blush tinging her cheeks. “My raw instinct is telling me that we all belong together. I don’t have enough experience to know any better than to just listen to it. Iwantto, no, Ineedto trust what I feel. Is that okay?”
She’s asking me if it’s okay to rut her during her heat?
Fuuuuuuck’s sake.
I groan, the restraint of not touching her killing me.
“More than okay,” I murmur. “I won’t claim you though, Faith. Not this time. You haven’t been with us long enough to make that decision with a clear head. Know that none of us will attempt to do something you aren’t ready for yet. We will treasure you and keep you safe.”
She smiles up at me. It’s slow, sexy and she has no idea the effect it has on me. “Deal.”
I return her smile, and deep down I know she is my mate. I can feel that I’m on the verge of a rut and so soon after the last one, that can mean only one thing.
She is ours.
Fully and completely, and I can’t wait until she is ready to be claimed.
