Page 35 of Knot Mine

After a few more rings, and us both staring at the device in silence, he snatches it up and takes it out onto the patio decking. I don’t bother trying to listen in, I tell myself it’s because I don’t really care. I just want this weekend over with, so I can go home and make that appointment with Zion. Placing my hands on the counter, I exhale slowly, trying to calm my erratic heart rate and ignore the slightly slick feeling between my ass cheeks. I couldn’t put it off any longer.

I can’t be in heat yet, I’ve taken so many suppressants that if I swallow anymore, I’m going to run out before the end of the weekend. Rubbing my neck near my bite mark, my skin feels like it’s on fire. Was that causing the unstable heat symptoms? My warped half-bond?

Squirming a little, I try to get comfortable. Pushing down on my half hard cock with the heel of my hand. I try to ease some of the pressure but it only makes it worse. What I need is an alpha to fill me. To stretch me. To cover me with pheromones. Over my trousers, I give myself a gentle tug, jumping guiltily when I hear Zale coming back inside the cabin.

“So…she says they’re not going to be here today. There’s been a delay.” His smile is tight, forced as he comes back into the kitchen. He runs a hand through his already ruffled hair, it looks like he’s been tugging on it. “Evans was arrested last night for fighting in a bar and they’re still holding him. They’ve delayed the flight, but the pilot said they can only get flight clearance for tomorrow now.”

“Oh.” I don’t really know what else to say. It doesn’t surprise me. Evans was also an alpha from the football team, but unlike Zale, he’s basically a giant ball of unpredictable energy. He liked to shoulder barge me occasionally in the corridors whenever Millie wasn’t around.

Have you ever been shoulder barged by a linebacker?

Zero out of ten, do not recommend.

“Yeah.” He shrugs awkwardly. “So, I guess it’s just me and you again for another night.”

Shit. I knew this weekend was going to suck, but why was the world conspiring to keep me away from my tentacle, anime and snacks? All I wanted was to ride out this pre-heat haze in comfort, fucked and fed. I didn’t even care about my birthday. Did the universe hate me?

Turning, I put the tray of marinated chicken in the oven and set the timer. The back of my neck prickles, like I’m being watched but when I turn back, Zale is glued to his phone. I bet the group chat is going crazy with all the drama from Evans’ arrest.

He coughs awkwardly, “How about after lunch we take a look at the project again? We might as well get it finished while we’re both here.”

“Sure,” I say with a shrug. I mean, it’s not like I’ve got anything better to do until someone else arrives to babysit the surprisingly needy jock.

Chapter Fourteen

Zale

It’s not like I was particularly eager to work on our project, more than I didn’t know what else I could offer to make him spend time with me. Once again, Millie‘s call interrupted what felt like a moment between us. And while I was worried about Evans, I also knew that his parents had enough pull and power that he wouldn’t be sitting in a cell for long. It would be just another one of his drunken antics that we’d laugh about in a couple of weeks from now.

I realized what a shitty person this whole situation was turning me into when Millie said the flight was delayed, and all I could think about was the extra time it bought me. Time where I didn’t have to confront our crumbling relationship. Time where I could try to understand Shiloh a little bit more. What made him tick? What thread wove the tapestry of his being?

It also gave me the chance to pry a little into his private life. Everyone knew the rumors surrounding him, but he didn’t quite match the vibes. He wasn’t outgoing enough to be falling in and out of bed with every alpha or beta who looked his way. Shiloh was closed off as they came. He was like a maximum-security prison, with barbed wire scarecrows out the front for good measure.

Which made me curious about his roommate Bell. Maybe the rumor had it wrong, and it was omega lovers he preferred. After all, every time I saw the two of them around campus, they always looked very close and Bell was constantly putting their hands on Shiloh at every opportunity.

But then again, Bell was always seen with various partners. It wouldn’t entirely surprise me if they had an open or casual relationship, perhaps?

I couldn’t imagine being in a casual relationship with Shiloh because if he was mine, then he was mine. I would own every inch of him, and make sure everyone else knew it too. Shaking my head, I reign in my alpha impulses.

While Shiloh goes to grab his laptop from his bedroom, I go get mine and my notes, using the time to collect myself. This morning was a real eye-opener.

For one, I was now 100% sure that I was attracted to Shiloh. There was no denying that twisted fact any longer. Seeing his pale soft skin, flushed and rosy with need, had hit me like a slap to the face or punch to the gut. I had a visceral reaction to seeing him naked and covering the sheets in cum.

While it might not have been my knot that made him come, I wanted it to be. It had taken everything in me just to remain rooted to the spot. If he hadn’t been embarrassed and strong enough to put those boundaries in place by asking me to leave, then I would have been naked and in that bed with him quicker than you could snap your fingers. That’s how deep I was under this spell.

When he eventually came downstairs, the awkwardness between us morphed into teasing and I saw a glimpse of the real Shiloh beneath the prickly exterior. He was an armadillo, hiding all the soft fleshy bits underneath the hard armor that he built up trying to protect himself from people like Sadie and people likeme who just stood by and let it happen. I should’ve intervened or said something sooner.

When we’re back in the lounge, I pull out the firelighters and get the fire going again. Shiloh chuckles, trying to dissuade me by using the perfectly logical argument that it’s daylight and we don’t need the fire. Clearly, he underestimates the draw of lighting a fire. With my pyromaniac side soothed, I spread my notes out on the coffee table.

“You’re really making yourself at home, aren’t you.” He watches me with amusement as he stands with his arms crossed. Today he was wearing a burgundy jumper and a pair of black sweatpants. His hair is half tied up, and for the first time, I notice that his ears are pierced with little hoops and gold stars. He has one small hoop on the right side, and one on the right followed by two stars on the left, running up the lobe. There’s a large plaster on his neck, almost where a Claiming bite might go if he were an omega. He’s not bothered with his pretend glasses and in all honesty, the relaxed look works for him.

“I might have to use my trust fund and sell a kidney or two to buy this place from your parents,” I tease as he finally takes a seat on the thick cream rug and places his laptop down on the coffee table.

“Shame you won’t be able to enjoy it.” He scoffs, looking up at me with intense green eyes, flecked through with gold. “Y’know, since you’ll be dead. Kidneys are kind of vital.”

I get up and grab a couple of bags of chips and a pack of Twizzlers from the snack cupboard, placing them down near our work. “Hmmm what else can I sell? How much is my spleen worth?”

“Offer the whole package.” He shrugs, the corner of his mouth lifting into the ghost of a smile. He may pretend to find me exasperating, but there were times when he liked it. I know he did. “The ‘alpha experience’. I’m sure a few older, lonelieromegas or betas might pay a pretty penny to spend the night with you.”

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