Page 8 of Knotting else Matters

“Something on your mind?” His voice was calm, almost too calm, but I caught the faintest hint of amusement in his eyes.

“Not at all,” I replied, dripping with sarcasm. “I just wanted to apologize... for, you know, that whole thing. Super classy of me. In my defense, I’m an absolute menace without caffeine.”

Adrian didn’t respond immediately, and I didn’t dare look at him again. The knot in my stomach twisted tighter, a sickening reminder of just how quickly my mouth could dig me into a hole. And in a town like this, with a pack like this, holes were easy to fall into and almost impossible to crawl out of.

He stepped in—way too close—his presence crashing into mine like a wall of heat and shadow. The warmth rolled off him in waves, and for the first time since this chaotic morning started, I didn’t have a snarky comeback locked and loaded. His dark, stormy eyes roamed over my face, lingering just long enough to send a shiver down my spine that had nothing to do with the chilly morning air.

“For someone who yells loud and proud about not giving a damn about pack hierarchy,” he murmured, voice low and cutting like a blade just shy of drawing blood, “you sure changed your tune the second you found out who I was.”

My mouth opened, but no sound came out. Words—my usual weapon of choice—had apparently staged a dramatic walkout. The silence hung between us for just a beat too long.

“Changed my attitude?” I scoffed, forcing a grin to drown out the hammering of my heart. “Oh, please. The only thing that changed is now I know I get to make fun of a very grumpy Alpha instead of just a very grumpy muscle-head. Honestly, I could make it my life’s work to annoy you—and I’m naturally gifted at it.”

His lips twitched, almost like he was fighting back a smirk, but his eyes stayed dark and unyielding. “Don’t test me. And don’t ever insult my pack again.”

“I didn’t insult them, I—”

He moved closer, so close that the scent of cedar and something darker wrapped around me, making my breath hitch. “You may have run from it, but at the end of the night, you’re still part of this pack. Which means you answer to me.”

A laugh broke free, sharp and bitter, slicing through the tension. “Answer to you? Wow, that’s a little alpha-hole of you, don’t you think?”

His jaw tightened, but beneath the low growl, there was a flicker of something else—frustration? Amusement? Maybe both.“Annoying, reckless, stubborn. No wonder Sophie worries about you.”

I raised an eyebrow, refusing to let him have the last word. “And grumpy, arrogant, and possessive. No wonder your pack has a therapist on speed dial.”

“Adrian! Can you help me with the flowers?” Sophie’s voice, bright and oblivious, cut through the tension like a knife.

He straightened, a mask of calm sliding over his face, and without another word, he turned and walked toward Sophie, his long, powerful strides eating up the distance in seconds. I stood there for a moment, breathing like I’d just run a marathon, my coffee forgotten in my hand.

“Liv, come on! I need your help too!” Sophie waved at me, her voice sweet and eager, and I forced my legs to move, crossing the courtyard to the other side of the temple.

I spent the next ten minutes drowning in Sophie’s excited chatter. Ribbons, flowers, where the choir would stand, which side the guests would enter from—every tiny detail of her perfect, fairytale wedding being arranged with military precision.

But my focus wasn’t on the ribbons or the flowers. It was on him. Adrian, who moved with that same cool, confident ease, lifting boxes of decorations, arranging tall vases without even a hint of strain. He spoke briefly with the guy on the ladder, his deep voice calm and steady, and yet his eyes—those dark, intense eyes—kept finding me.

Every time I glanced his way, I caught him looking. Sometimes just a flicker, a brush of his gaze, other times a long, steady stare that sent a thrill of something—nerves, heat, maybe both—skittering down my spine.

“Liv?”

“Huh?” I snapped back, realizing Sophie was staring up at me, a slight frown on her perfect face.

“I said, you and Adrian will stand beside me as the two witnesses in front of the Moon Goddess during the ritual.”

“What?” The word came out like a strangled laugh. “I’m not holding hands with that jerk.”

Sophie’s frown deepened, her wide blue eyes full of confusion. “Why not?”

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe because I don’t have a death wish?” I gestured vaguely in Adrian’s direction. “And standing next to Mister‘Respect the Pack or Else’sounds like the fastest way to develop a migraine.”

“Liv.” Sophie’s voice softened, a hint of that familiar, pleading sweetness creeping in. “Please? It would mean so much to me. You and Adrian are the two most important people in my life. It’s tradition for the bride to be blessed with the strength of the pack’s Alpha and the love of her closest family.”

“I… fine.” I forced a smile, though I knew it probably looked more like a grimace. “But if he tries any Alpha posturing, I’m walking out.”

Sophie’s laughter was like a bell, bright and musical. “He won’t. I promise. He’s really a sweetheart once you get to know him.”

“Oh, sure. A real teddy bear. Just covered in spikes and venom.”

Sophie just giggled. I stood there, trying not to think about how my perfect little sister’s dream wedding now included me—disaster Olivia—standing beside the most frustrating Alpha I’d ever met. And I definitely wasn’t thinking about the way his gaze seemed to burn right through me, even now, even when he was across the room, talking to some of the pack members.

---