Page 76 of Knot That Serious

Raj chatted about work for a moment as she cleared the first slice of toast. “You’ve got a little…” he motioned to his lips.

“Oh my god,” Eli said, wiping her chin, but only spreading the syrup across her mouth, making a bigger mess. “Oh my god,” she cried more emphatically. This couldn’t be happening. She was embarrassing herself in front of this sinfully hot alpha.

He chuckled, and the sound was deep and warm and even though Eli had just finished a heat, she even felt a little tingle at the sound.

“So, are you going to tell me what had you so upset?”

Eli’s gaze flicked from her plate to Raj, and she swallowed sharply.

“Uhm, do I have to?” she asked petulantly.

“Of course not,” he answered. “But if you’d like to talk it out, I’m here.”

“It’s kind of… messy,” she admitted.

“I like messy,” he offered with a soft smile.

“Okay, you asked for it,” she prefaced, and cut another piece of her toast.

Hopefully she wouldn’t scare off the alpha while she was at it.

15. Scheming and Dreaming

Raj

Raj listened dutifully as Eli finally began opening up. His heart seized in sympathy at the barely concealed emotion in her tone.

While she talked, she plowed through all eight pieces of French toast, as well as the half-container of syrup she’d dumped onto it.

Impressive.

“So, let me get this straight,” Raj interjected, and lifted his fist up, fingers closed into his palm.

“You and this Jack character are best friends, business partners, and roommates, who’ve known each other basically your entire lives,” he recapped, and lifted his pinky finger.

Eli nodded through a bite, and he resisted the urge to grin at her round cheeks.

He lifted his ring finger. “You experienced your very first heat… together. Along with Jack’s newest boy toy, uh, Beckam?”

“Beckett,” she corrected, pointing her fork at him. “And I don’t think he’s just a boy toy. It feels pretty serious between them.”

He lifted his middle finger and watched Eli’s gaze narrow at his hand.

“It awakened a bunch of feelings you weren’t ready for.”

Eli winced and nodded, so Raj lifted his forefinger.

“You don’t think Jack feels the same way because…”

“Because I heard him tell Beckett he didn’t want things to change. So, we’re friends. Nothing more.”

Reluctantly, Raj lifted his thumb. “And finally, you argued at the bakery because he could tell something was off, and you yelled at him for it.”

Eli glared down at her toast, speared a bite like it had done the yelling. “Yep.”

With all five fingers lifted, Raj hummed before letting his hand fall to the table, curling it back around his cooling mug of coffee.

“It does sound complicated,” he hedged.

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