Page 20 of Knot All Is Lost: Part 1

Rafael took a deep breath through his nose no doubt drowning in Cambrie’s sweet sugary scent as he calmed down his urges. “No Cambrie, I’m the one who should apologize. I never should have said something like that to you and it wasn’t how it sounded. While I know we’ve said this often, no one in this pack will lift a hand against you. Forgive me for even having you think that could be an option. I’m incredibly out of practice having a woman around, let alone an Omega whose scent is so pleasing to me.”

“You think I smell good?” she asked, blinking at the man.

I had to bite back a groan. This woman had no idea what she was doing to us Alphas. Her scent was so intoxicating I wanted to shove my face into the crook of her neck and lick her skin to see if she tasted just as sweet. When visions of marking her started to fill my head I clamped a hand on Spencer’s leg needing to ground myself. This wasn’t the time or the place for such thoughts. Cambrie had a long way to go before we could even broach marking her as ours. Then there was the small matter of the CoF and how they would react if I sidestepped the rules.

Spencer placed his hand over mine, intertwined our fingers, and gave me a questioning look. I let the physical need I was feeling show in my gaze as I looked at him, warning him of what was happening tonight. He smirked and gave me a sassy wink letting me know he was more than happy to help me with my issue.

“Yes Little One, your perfume is one that I enjoy. It speaks to my Alpha nature and pushes me to take care of you in a more demanding fashion than I normally would,” Rafael answered in an incredibly diplomatic way. “Come, let’s get you settled in a room. Ah yes, Marius asked if you were still hungry, was the soup enough, or would you like something more?”

“I think I’ll be fine until tomorrow. I don’t want you to make something just for me,” Cambrie countered.

Bodhi stood and stretched his arm above his head with a yawn. “Then it’s a good thing I haven’t eaten yet. How about I just double what I was going to make and I’ll share it with you?”

Cambrie shifted from foot to foot as she thought about his offer. “If it isn’t going to be too much trouble?”

“Nah, I always make too much as it is. Normally I pawn it off on Oscar but now I have someone else who can help me out,” Bodhi explained, stuffing his hands into his low slung baggy jeans.

Everything about that man was the persona of a careless musician. His shaggy hair he constantly swished out of his face, the vintage band tee, and the holey jeans he simply added more patches to. The one thing Bodhi never could be was wasteful. He’d learned how to rub two pennies together and make it last a week. Not once had he made too much food he couldn’t eat, and if that was the case he’d force himself to finish it. Waste wasn’t tolerated. There was always something you could do with it.

What he was doing for Cambrie showed me just how much we’d managed to rub off on the guy. He wouldn’t let her go hungry or make it seem like she was putting us out. The man was a genius, and I couldn’t be more thankful there was one person in this house that understood what Cambrie needed in a way none of us from well off backgrounds, who’d never struggled in life, could.

“Now we have that settled,” Spencer said, pulling his hand from mine to stand and clap his hands together. “Let’s have a house tour, you’ll need to know where you can find us in case you need something.”

Swooping by, Spencer grabbed Cambrie’s hand and charged up the stairs with her all but dragging along in his excitement.

“One of us needs to go with them,” Rafael pointed out.

Nixon stood and raised his hand. “I’m on it. I’ll try to keep him from overwhelming the poor thing.” Quickly he jogged up the stairs after them. “Spencer, stop yanking her about like that, remember her feet.”

I frowned, hearing him yell that down the hall, looking to Rafael for answers. “When she jumped out of the car she didn’t have any shoes on. They got cut up pretty badly but we cleaned them up and made sure they were bandaged before having her put on shoes. The little thing doesn’t seem to be bothered by them at all. It’s like the pain isn’t bad enough for her to care, which worries me more than anything.”

Oscar waved for our attention. “Tell me we’re going to find her father and make him pay. What he’s done to her is worthy of the death penalty, and you know it.”

“Oscar you know it isn’t that simple. If I go to the police with this information, then I have to disclose that we have her here. I know she isn’t going to stay hidden for long but I’d like the chance to come up with some kind of reasoning for why she needs to remain with us,” I explained. “While I’m part of the CoF, I’m not the deciding vote, there are three other senior members to contend with. My plan is to do some research into the matter and find a way to prove what I’ve been saying. An Omega who chooses their pack will have a better quality of life, leading to better chances of breeding.”

“You want us to breed her?! She’s just turned legal age, Marius. How could you even think of such a plan? There has to be another way.” Oscar said, all but growling at the idea.

I walked up to my friend resting a hand on his shoulder. “That isn’t what I meant. You know I’ve been fighting for the placement of Omegas to be done away with. It isn’t healthy for them and a large majority of them won’t come into heat because they don’t feel safe or cared for. What I’d like to try is saying this is an experiment since we are drawn to her and she is clearly drawn to us. If I can show them that allowing nature to take its course will do more good, they might let her stay and eventually help other Omegas in the future.”

Oscar crossed his arms and gave me an uncertain look like he wasn’t sure he agreed.

“What would you suggest instead? I’m open to all ideas if you have any,” I shot back. “None of us want to see her forced to be with another pack just because they are next in line. I promised her I would do whatever it took to keep her safe, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do.”

My old friend ran a hand through his hair and nodded. “I don’t have any ideas either. I’m sorry I’m being an ass. I’ve never been around an Omega before, and the urge to rip out her father’s throat is all I can think about.”

Hearing this my brow shot up. Oscar is one of the most loving and merciful people I know. He even chose to forgive his own family, who cast him aside for something he couldn’t change. “Trust me, I understand what you’re feeling. It’s wild isn’t it when your Alpha instincts show themselves in unexpected ways. Even though my sister was an Omega, I didn’t get much time around her before she was sent off. This is somewhat new to me too.”

Bodhi backed out of the kitchen with a tray that had two bowls of tomato soup, and grilled cheese sandwiches. He caught us staring and shrugged. “She needs something light, right? I had a late lunch so I’m not super hungry. This will hit the spot. Besides, I’m not letting her suffer just because none of us eat like normal people at the same time or place. That girl’s had enough of a person controlling her life, seems fair she can change ours instead.” Pausing, he tossed his head to get his hair out of his face. “That being said, I’m making breakfast tomorrow at eight. She won’t eat if one of us has to make it for just her which means we will be implementing family meals. If you can’t make it, then you have to make your own food.”

Having made his point he headed upstairs leaving us to figure out what magic Cambrie had to get that type of reaction out of Bodhi. The only person he wanted to spend time with typically was Oscar. While we all got along, none of us had found a way to connect with him the same way. It seemed just having an Omega in the house created changes in the pack for the better.

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