Page 101 of Knot What She Seems
She made her disapproval over how hard we are on him clear, but it’s only because she’s so utterly sweet and soft. And omegas see the world differently than alphas do. We recognize the need to be harsh and strong, but she represents the gentler side of human nature. The side that’s worth protecting. I need her to see me as more than her brother’s bully tonight.
For a second, my view of the bathroom fades as memory eclipses it. Those massive blue eyes of hers appear, framed by wispy lashes as she stares up at me with a playful expression that unlocks the gears and bolts the guys teasingly say I’m made out of. They call me a robot sometimes. A killing machine.
Maybe I am.
But not with her.
She unleashes a side of me that no one else can.
Somehow, I need to show her that.
Kylian’s head pops around the doorway of the bathroom. “How much longer? There’s only one bathroom in this shithole, you know.” His eyes trail over my gray suit, and his expression becomes a grimace. “I should have gotten the first date. You’re gonna scare her off.”
Colter cuffs him on the back of the head, but then they both stare at me with an intensity that seems to underline, bold, and italicize Kylian’s statement.
The pressure inside my chest mounts.
This date isn’t only important because it’s my first with our scent match. I’m the first of the pack to get to spend time with her…romantically.
If I mess up, will she even give the rest of them a chance?
It becomes hard to swallow because my throat is suddenly dry. Ridge is usually our appointed leader. He’s always been the first to jump from a chopper, first into any building we cleared, first to give reports to superiors.
Not this time.
I’m the one doing the unthinkable—cresting Everest, walking on the moon, courting our scent match.
Briefly, I wonder if it ever terrifies him to be our pioneer, because I feel like I’m about to step off the edge of a cliff. Then again, he’s merely facing the prospect of death—not the possibility of walking back to his pack in defeat after having lost the only omega who has ever made us believe in the possible—a happily ever after.
I don’t look in the mirror because I don’t want to see what my expression looks like right now. Instead, I turn and shoulder past both of them, walking down the tiny hallway to our minuscule kitchen…which has been transformed into a flower shop.
“What the…” I trail off, stopping short and blinking in bedazzlement at bouquet after bouquet. Lilies, roses, dahlias, tulips…and those are only the flowers I know. There are hundreds of others that I’m unsure of.
Ridge stomps into the cottage with three more bouquets in his hand.
Did he clear out every flower shop in town?
From behind me, Kylian calls out, “Here comes the bride.”
“Shut up and help me pick the best ones,” Ridge growls, setting down the latest batch of bouquets. He runs a hand through his hair, making me think he might be as worried about tonight as I am.
“I like these yellow things,” Kylian offers, and I’m glad when the others turn annoyed glares in his direction.
“Who cares what you like?” Ridge snaps.
“It’s not about you,” Colter chastises.
“Well, what then?” Kylian asks defensively, gesturing at the massive pile.
I answer because he clearly didn’t take the time to pick up a book even after we met our scent match. “Omegas have color preferences and very sensitive noses, and those can perk up their…” I can’t seem to force myself to say the wordarousal. “Or diminish their interest in you. We need to think about what she’ll like.”
We turn and stare at hundreds of blooms piled on the countertop. “Can’t we give them all to her?” Kylian asks. “Can’t we just spoil her and tell her we want to figure out what she likes?”
“Someday we will, if Luka doesn’t fuck up.” Ridge’s tone grates harshly against my ears.
Their gazes shoot like bullets, and I can feel them hit my chest. Penetrate.
There will be no walking back into this cottage tonight if I fail. I might even be exiled from the group. A dizzy feeling enters my skull and spins down my throat into my stomach, which churns.
