Page 57 of Knot your Good Girl

“You’ll make someone very happy one day,” she says. “When you lose that chip on your shoulder.”

I playfully growl and then lean in to bite her shoulder.

She quivers against me. “Don’t do that.”

“What are you afraid of, Holly?”

“Not afraid... But I can’t lose control. Alphas differ from omegas. An omegas perfume is gorgeous to all alphas, yet not all alphas smell delicious to an omega.”

“And me? I mean, how do I smell to you?” I ask again.

She takes a sip of her wine as she watches two dolphins frolicking in the slash of light the sun is casting over the water.

“You smell good.”

I tickle her sides. “Just good?”

She turns and smiles. “Your scent is amazing.”

I tilt my head and ask, “What is it? The smell.”

She gives a small shake of her head. “You know that I can’t tell you.”

“Can’t?”

“My sister warned me about alphas. There are alphas who are devious. Informing the omega that her perfume is the same as she tells him she can smell him. Letting her know she is scent matched. It’s what most omegas want, and hearing that lowers her guard. Allowing her to be claimed when she’s in her heat... or any other time, I suspect.”

“Your sister is wise,” I muse.

She turns and looks at me, her lips upturn slightly. Finally she mutters, “Yeah?” I observe the look she gives. “So I now believe in actions before words.”

“I agree with the sentiment. I want my omega to love me before my scent.”

She exhales before taking another breath, her pupils dilating the tiniest bit.

“For someone who believes in scent matching, you look doubtful,” I challenge her to deny what she is pushing across.

She shrugs her shoulders. “I don’t know. Honestly, scent matching wasn’tmything. My parents believe in scent compatibility, because that’s my parents. They fell in love, despite only being scent compatible. But my sister always argued against it. She thought scent compatibility is one thing, but scent matching is something beautiful, something most omegas and alphas won’t get the gift of. And that makes it special.”

“Are your parents still happy together?” I ask.

“Oh, yeah. One of the reasons I decided not to join them on vacation. They needed a break together.”

I nod. “Which provides a good reason for omegas and alphas to fall in love the same ways betas do. Because they love them and aren’t lured by a scent.”

She stares out at the ocean again as we sit in the sky lounge on the aft deck. “I don’t know. I think my sister had a point. We have scents for a reason and that’s what makes our eventual bond so special. I never believed it until my sister pushed it on me.”

I sigh. “Not falling in love?”

“Of course. That too.”

“Do you miss your parents? It’s unusual for omegas to leave home,” I say. “Is your sister still at home?”

“Yeah... I miss everyone.” Her voice carries away in the breeze.

“I can take you to Mexico after we’ve spent Christmas with my family,” I offer.

She laughs. “I do like this new version of you,” she says in a cheerful tone. “But after Christmas, we only have three days left.”

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