Page 89 of Knot Their Safe Haven
"I'm easy."
"Somehow I doubt that," Alessandro murmurs, his hand resuming its path along my spine.
"Rude."
"Accurate. You're the least easy person I've ever met. It's part of your charm."
"Part?"
"The rest is divided between your terrifying competence and the way you look in that dress."
"This dress is basically pajamas."
"Expensive pajamas that cling to your?—"
"Children!" Alexis interrupts, pointing a spatula at us. "I'm trying to cook here without losing my appetite. Save the foreplay for after breakfast."
"We're not?—"
"Your pheromones are writing checks your mouth is trying to cash," she observes, cracking eggs with one hand while reaching for cream with the other. "The sexual tension could be bottled and sold as an aphrodisiac."
I bury my face in Alessandro's shoulder, partly from embarrassment, mostly to breathe him in deeper. This close, I can detect nuances—the bergamot is stronger this morning, mixing with soap that probably costs triple digits andunderneath, just him. Male and want and mine in a way that my biology recognizes even if my brain struggles with the concept.
"See? Adorable." Alexis's voice carries warmth despite the teasing. "Our omega is actually capable of being cute instead of terrifying. Who knew?"
"I'm always terrifying," I protest into cashmere.
"You're half-asleep and cuddling in my lap," Alessandro points out. "Your terrifying credentials are currently suspended."
"Mean."
"Honest. There's a difference."
The sounds of cooking fill the space—butter sizzling, eggs being whisked, coffee percolating. Domestic sounds that shouldn't feel revolutionary but do. When did I last sit in a kitchen while someone cooked just because I might be hungry? Not for a meeting, not as strategy, but simple care?
"Tell me about the others," I say, needing distraction from the emotion clogging my throat.
"The twins?" Alessandro's hand pauses mid-stroke. "They're... intense."
"That's one word for it," Alexis contributes. "Insane is another. Devoted is probably most accurate."
"Devoted to what?"
"Each other. The pack. Now you." Alessandro shifts me slightly, improving both our comfort. "They don't do anything halfway. When they commit, it's absolute."
"Sounds overwhelming."
"It can be. They're also funny, brilliant, and surprisingly gentle when it matters." His voice carries affection. "Dante handles the legitimate businesses. Damon manages the... grayer areas."
"Gray areas?"
"The family business isn't entirely above board," Alexis says, plating what smells like heaven. "Import/export covers a lot of sins."
"Organized crime?"
"Organized everything. Crime's just one revenue stream." She sets a plate before us, the omelet perfect golden brown, accompanied by fresh bread and fruit arranged like art. "The Corleones don't do anything without structure."
"And you're all fine with that?"
