Page 16 of Knot Your Average Beta

She’s quiet for so long that I tip my head back to look up at her. She’s so short that even on my knees, my chin reaches her sternum. Her brow is furrowed as she looks at me, fingers still stroking, stroking, stroking through my hair. Finally she nods. “Okay. I’ll come home with you. I’ll meet your pack, but I’m not moving in.” A low growl rumbles out of me. “Not yet,” she concedes and the growl stutters out. “It’s a lot, you know? I just need a little time to… come to terms with this.”

Ethan kisses her temple. “Of course, sweetheart. Let’s go to your house and grab a bag. You can come stay with us for the weekend. We’ll take you home on Sunday.”

Another growl pulls out of me, but they both ignore me. Sadie nods. “Okay, but um… My house is kind of far.”

Ethan grins at her. “Oh, I know. Kilrose Lake.”

Sadie’s mouth drops open. “How did you know?”

I chuckle, pressing a kiss to the spot between her breasts while Ethan holds up his phone. “Its amazing what you can find on the internet these days.”

“Especially when you can hack your way into anything.” I push to my feet and cup Sadie’s cheek. “We’ll put some security in place to keep you better protected, both online and in the real world.”

Our girl hums and leans into my palm, making my heart go all kinds of soft. She’s already getting more comfortable, letting us in. “Does that mean I’m going to have a bodyguard? Someone to follow me around all the time?”

“If you do,” I say, stepping closer. “It’ll be one of us. One of your pack. We wouldn’t trust your safety to anyone else.”

Sadie’s gray eyes run over me, a flicker of confusion in their depths before it’s gone. She steps away from me even as she mutters, “I believe you.”

Sadie’s house is a hundred miles outside of town, up a windy road and surrounded by trees on three sides and a lake on the other. It’s picturesque, truly. And I can imagine it’s even prettier during the day.

We pull up in front of a cute little cabin with a wide front porch. I can’t make out much, but it looks to be two stories with cedar shingle siding. “Wait here,” I say before pushing open the door and stepping out. Predictably, my omega doesn’t listen, following me out and moving to stand at my side.

“What are those lights?” I ask, pointing to a glimmer through the trees.

“What? Oh, that’s Sylvie’s house. And over there,” she points in the other direction, and the lights glowing in the distance. “Is Sorrel’s. They’re my neighbors… my best friends.”

I glance at Ethan, who nods and pulls out his phone and starts typing, running checks on both of them. Can’t be too careful with our omega’s safety. I place my hand on the small of Sadie’s back and usher her up the front steps to the door.

She pulls out her key and glances over her shoulder at Ethan. “You won’t get a signal up here unless you connect to the Wi-Fi.”

“I did,” he says, shrugging, eyes not moving from the screen.

“What? How? We’re all password protected up here.”

He smirks. “Hacker. Remember, heartbreaker? You couldn’t keep me out if you tried. And unfortunately, your password of LiamCordova4Eva is not that strong.”

I arch a brow, looking down at a flushing Sadie. “Liam Cordova? Really?”

“He’s certifiably hot,” she mutters before pushing open her door.

I’ve never been jealous of a celebrity. Not once, especially not a pretty boy omega actor, but knowing Sadie thinks he’s attractive is enough to make me feel a little unhinged. Which is probably why I growl out, “only one lock, omega?”

I don’t miss the shiver that works its way over her skin, even as she kicks off her boots with a groan. “I don’t need more than that, Luca. This is Kilrose Lake. Population: six hundred and thirty-seven. I’m perfectly safe up here.”

Yeah, we’ll see about that. If she really is coming back here on Sunday, I have a lot of changes to get made. “Go pack,” I order, already looking around, counting windows and doors, figuring out where the security cameras are going to go.

Sadie huffs, but doesn’t argue, climbing up the staircase on one side of the big open concept room to the loft above. The light flickers on and I catch sight of a light blue bedspread before I move through the house. The unmistakable beta scent of cucumber and mint permeates every surface, soft and delicate. Unobtrusive. Nothing like the cherry pie à la mode Sadie smells like now.

The couch has only two throw pillows on it, and a single blanket draped over the back of it. Nothing in this house makes me think an omega lives here. There isn’t room for a nest. The lack of soft, cozy items. The beta scent. If it weren’t for the pictures of her on the mantle, I would think Sadie didn’t live here at all.

“Maddox is going to be pissed,” Ethan says quietly, making sure his voice doesn’t travel.

I look over at him. “He’ll get over it.” When our beta arches his brows, I smirk and shake my head. “He would have bitten her too if he was buried knot deep in her pussy and she was begging for it.”

There’s a brief twist of guilt and regret in my stomach that I know Ethan sees. But it’s too fucking late to go back on it now. Even with Sadie’s side of the bond closed, I can feel it beating strong in my chest. I don’t think it’s going anywhere, even if part of me wishes it would, so I could have a chance to do it right.

There’s another larger part of me that is so fucking proud that I claimed my omega.

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