Page 90 of Knot Heirs: Serenity's Reign

"I am not some stereotype," she thought fiercely. "I don't need an alpha to feel secure."

Yet the steady beat of his heart against her back created a rhythm that seemed to synchronize with her own. Her eyelids grew heavy again, the combination of dawn's early hour and his soothing presence lulling her back toward sleep.

"Just a few more minutes," she decided, "then I'll deal with this intrusion."

She allowed her eyes to close, just for a moment. Lucian shifted in his sleep, his face nestling into the curve of her neck, breath warm against her skin. The gesture was unconsciously possessive, and she should have hated it.

She didn't.

The complexity of her response troubled her even as consciousness began to slip away again. She was Serenity Vale, heir to an empire built on blood and ambition. She'd spent her life cultivating independence, building armor against the world's expectations of an omega. And yet here she was, finding inexplicable comfort in the arms of an alpha she barely knew and certainly didn't trust.

Her last coherent thought before sleep reclaimed her was that this—this unplanned intimacy—complicated an already impossible situation. But maybe, just for these stolen moments before reality intruded, she could allow herself this small surrender.

The second awakeningcame with the full light of morning streaming through the windows. Serenity stirred, gradually becoming aware that Lucian's arm still encircled her waist, though his breathing had changed. He was awake now, watching her with those penetrating amber eyes.

"Good morning," he said, his voice a low rumble that she could feel vibrating through his chest where it pressed against her back.

Serenity stiffened, fully conscious now and acutely aware of their position. "Care to explain why you're in my bed?" she asked, her tone impressively level despite the chaotic swirl of her emotions.

Lucian's lips curved into that infuriating half-smile. "You were restless. Nightmares, I think. I heard you from the hallway."

She narrowed her eyes, not bothering to hide her skepticism. "So naturally, you decided the solution was to climb into bed with me rather than, I don't know, knocking?"

"Would you have let me in if I had?" he countered, making no move to release her from his embrace.

"No."

"Then I made the right choice." His tone held no apology, just that assured certainty that both irritated and fascinated her. "Your distress was affecting the entire wing. Alpha instinct. When an omega in our..." he paused, selecting his word carefully, "...protection is in distress, we respond."

Serenity pushed against his chest, creating space between them. "I don't recall agreeing to anything that gives you the right to invade my personal space, instinct or not."

To her surprise, he released her immediately, raising his hands in a gesture of surrender before sitting up against the headboard. The movement caused the sheet to pool around his waist, revealing a torso sculpted with lean muscle. He was still fully clothed in what appeared to be silk pajama bottoms and a fitted t-shirt—small mercies.

"Fair enough," he conceded. "Though you seemed comfortable enough a moment ago."

Heat crept up her neck, and she hated the involuntary reaction. "I was asleep."

"And remarkably peaceful, once I joined you." There was something almost gentle in his observation, a softness at odds with the calculating businessman she'd come to know.

Serenity ran a hand through her tangled brown hair, gathering her composure like armor. "Let's get something straight. This arrangement between us—between all of us—istemporary and practical. I appreciate the protection you three are offering, but boundaries matter to me."

Lucian regarded her thoughtfully, his amber eyes missing nothing. "Boundaries are constructions, Serenity. Useful in certain contexts, limiting in others. But I'll respect yours, for now."

"For now?" she repeated, incredulous.

"Until you decide to change them." The confidence in his tone should have been offensive, but instead sent an unwelcome shiver down her spine.

She swung her legs over the side of the bed, putting physical distance between them. "Has anyone ever told you that you're insufferably arrogant?"

"Frequently," he replied with a laugh that transformed his features, making him look younger, almost carefree. "Usually right before they realize I'm also right."

Despite herself, Serenity felt her lips twitch. His self-awareness made his arrogance somehow less grating. "Get out of my room, Lucian. I need to shower and change."

"As you wish." He rose from the bed with fluid grace. "Though the invitation to join you is open, should you reconsider."

"Out," she repeated, pointing to the door.

He moved toward it, pausing at the threshold. "Breakfast in thirty minutes. Darius is something of a culinary enthusiast—you won't want to miss it."

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