Page 15 of Knot So Sweet
"What are we going to do about it?" Liam asks.
"“Nothing,” Garrick mutters, still not looking at us. “She made it clear that she’s not sticking around. I gave her a bed, a hot meal, and enough breathing room to get back on the road.”
He shrugs like it’s no big deal. But his posture’s locked tight, and he hasn’t moved from that damn window since she went upstairs.
I've known Garrick Tavis for nearly a decade, and I can count on one hand when he’s rattled. The same guy who barely grunted at customers for six months after Rebecca left him for someone else is now coming apart over a guarded omega.
The irony isn’t lost on me. Sophia didn’t just leave, but dumped me for Jesus and took vows. Liam once said he trusted animals more than any omega. And me? I figured if we all had our hearts stomped on, we might as well build something from the wreckage. That’s how our pack started. Three rejects, swearing off love like it was a bad habit. We’re not poster boys for emotional stability.
Out here, it's nothing but pine, rock, and space to think. No staff. No patrons. No one expecting a damn thing from me.
Just the road, the trees, and the kind of quiet that doesn’t ask questions.
No scent, but I can’t stop thinking about Violet’s, even after she stole the bread rolls from the tables.
I shift my grip on the wheel.
Focus. Just the road, the trees, and the kind of quiet that doesn’t give a shit about feelings.I check the mirrors again. Habit. Not the way her scent’s still lodged somewhere in the back of my skull like it belongs there.
It's not a traditional pack house. More like three separate cabins connected by covered walkways, with a central common area that houses the kitchen, living room, and the kind of stone fireplace so damn big it could roast a moose and still leave room for the flames to show off. Visitors lose their minds over it.
Liam designed it after we decided to stick together. He wanted something that gave us room to breathe without cuttingoff connection. Smart man. Nothing strains a bond faster than being crammed together with no escape.
I park next to Liam's SUV, where he left it after work. He tends to hitch a ride to the bakery after he’s finished at the clinic. I kill the engine.
"You know," I say, making no move to kill the engine or open the door, "for someone who claims he wants her gone as soon as possible, you sure did put a lot of effort into that soup."
"She was hungry," Garrick snaps, and I can practically hear his defenses slamming into place.
"Uh-huh. And the fresh bread?" I ask.
"Had extra dough."
"Right. And the way you went back to check on her three times while she was eating?"
"Making sure she didn’t choke or stab someone.”
Liam snorts from the back seat. "Mate, you do realize we can all smell the lie on that, right?"
I twist around to look at our vet, raising an eyebrow. It's rare for Liam to call anyone out directly. He's more of a gentle nudge and supportive silence kind of alpha. This is new territory.
"What?" Liam shrugs, not looking particularly repentant. "Someone has to say it. Garrick's a grumpy alpha and even more brisk against her being there than he might normally, and we're all just going to pretend it's normal?"
Garrick's scent goes from bitter coffee to something dangerously close to espresso mixed with motor oil, his version of barely contained fury.
"I am not..." he starts, then stops.
I’ve seen Garrick go full grizzly before. It's not a Hallmark moment.
Right now, he has tense shoulders, fists like he's ready to punch a wall for breathing too loud. One wrong word and he’seither throwing hands or emotionally combusting. It could go either way.
"Look," I say, "no one's judging you for noticing an attractive woman. We're alphas, not monks. It’s not like we haven’t all used Knot Me app to keep things... manageable.”
We swore off having an omega of our own. Too much mess. Too many complications.
That doesn’t mean the need disappeared.
The app, Knot Me fills the gap. Quick hookups. No bonds. No aftermath.
