Page 16 of Knot Enough

“You’ve done this before?” I asked innocently. Finn’s chest practically doubled in size in pride.

“Yeah, I’ve done line dancing a few times before, " he said as we passed by an image of last year's competition winner. The person looked a lot like Finn.

“Just a few times, huh?’ Gabriel said, eyeing the picture. Finn’s face reddened at Gabriel's comment.

“Maybe a bit more than a few times.” He admitted, rubbing his neck shyly. Gabriel patted him on the back while I laughed.

“It’s okay, we forgive you,” Gabriel said. We finally reached the floor.

“Remember, just follow my lead,” Finn repeated before he moved us to the end of the last line. Finn watched us carefully while Gabriel and I pretended to be bad dancers. I don’t think we hid our skill level well because Finn eyed us suspiciously.

“You've done this before?” He asked knowingly.

“Just a few times,” I said with a teasing smile. I could see thoughts turn in Finn’s head as Gabriel and I danced.

“I’m going to get a drink,” Gabriel said in my ear. I nodded, letting him know I heard him. He repeated the same thing to Finn. Finn looked worried momentarily, but Gabriel said something I couldn’t hear over the music before walking away.

“Where did you learn?” Finn asked me. I kept my eye on Gabriel. He had just reached the bar.

“At a bar in my hometown. It was a small town, and there wasn’t much else to do besides line dance.” I answered. I stopped trying to be terrible and easily kept pace with Finn. I watched Gabriel talk to the bartender. Gabriel probably felt my worry in the bond and turned to wave at me. I smiled.

“And Gabriel, where did he learn?” Finn asked. I took my eyes off Gabriel and watched Finn nod towards him.

“I taught him. It was after...” I trailed off, remembering the memories I wished would go away. “It was after my most recent pack rejection. He took me out to have fun at a local bar, and I taught him the basics. We ended up going back every week.” I smiled to myself at the memory.

“Must have been fun,” Finn commented as he watched me with a smile.

“It was,” I said, grinning. That’s when it hit. A deep wave of fear and worry came through the bond. My eyes searched through the crowd, trying to find Gabriel. He wasn’t at the bar where I last saw him. Finn grabbed my arm lightly and pulled me off the floor.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, worry coating his eyes.

“I can’t find Gabriel,” I said, panic filling my heart. I continued to look for him. My eyes searched everywhere. The dance floor, our table, the bar, he was nowhere. I could feel the panic start, making my breathing heavy. I thought I lost him, but then I noticed his hair out of the corner of my eyes. My heart was wrenching out of my chest when I saw two large men dragging him away. That’s when I noticed that both the men looked a lot like Brettt and Logan.Fear, worry, confusion, and panic prevented my brain from working. Finn followed my eyes, which I was grateful for because I couldn’t trust my voice to work. Once he caught sight of Gabriel, he guided me quickly back to the others.

“Sorren, come with me.” He said with urgency. Sorren looked at me with worry and confusion. He scanned around us, looking for Gabriel before nodding. “We’ll be back, Graham,” Finn said quickly before guiding Sorren into the crowd.

My hands went into my hair, and I pulled at the strands. The pulling wasn’t hard enough to cause any actual damage; it was just a way to try and ground me. I started to walk in a circle. I needed to move, to do something. My panic didn’t lessen, especially now that I couldn’t feel Gabriel through the bond. I felt like I was going crazy, not knowing what was happening. I considered running after them when two gentle hands caging my arms. Graham’s sky blue eyes entered my field of vision.

“Breathe, Lydia, they'll find them.” He said calmly, his natural smile gone. This man was dead serious about making sure I didn’t pass out from panic. “Can you think of three things you can see?” He asked. My thoughts were so frantic it took me a minute to process what he said. He waited patiently for me to gather myself before speaking.

“You, the ceiling, the floor.” I replied. His eyes filled with pride as I spoke.

“What about three sounds?” He asked. My breathing evened out slowly as I thought about it.

“Your Pumpkin spice scent, fried food, and a little bit of alcohol.” I answered. He took my hands in his and started to rub his thumbs over the back of my hands.”

“Good girl, what about three things you feel?” His voice was in a smoothing whisper now. This question required me to think a little more.

“You rubbing my hands, my clothes, and my phone in my pocket.” I said. His smile grew brighter and he asked me to do it again. We continued this pattern while we waited for his pack’s return.

Chapter 8

Gabriel

I walked up to the bar for another drink. While I waited for the bartender to finish with another customer, I kept an eye on Lydia and Finn. I watched them dance as they laughed and talked to one another. It made me smile seeing how relaxed she was being alone with him. I could feel her worry for me in the bond. Lydia tended to be nervous about being apart from me when we were in public. Most of the time, it was mainly because we were both omegas and attracted attention whether we wanted to or not. Other times, she just didn’t like me leaving her side.

“Here's your shot.” The bartender said as he slid a clear glass cup to me. I went to my wallet to pay for the drink, only for him to stop me.

“No need; the drink has already been paid for.” He said curtly before walking away to help another customer. I furrowed my brow at his words. He had disappeared before I could ask him who paid for it. I took a large sip from the drink as two alphas walked up to me.

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