Page 8 of Knot Their Boo
“Little Ghost…” Taron scoffs, crossing his arms over his chest as we stop about a foot away from him. His words only add fuel to the fiery pain in my heart. “Never thought I’d see you back in Gravewood.” There’s a sharpness to his tone that I’ve never heard before, and I hate it.Just stab me right in the heart and get this torture over with.“What are you doing here, Sable?”
Why do the men from my past keep asking me that?
“Grams left me her shop. I’m here to take over running it,” I murmur, glancing down to the lip piercing I remember all too fucking well. It’s certainly not the same one from six years ago, but it’s similar enough, and that's all my mind needs to conjureup the memory of the way it felt to kiss him. He was my solace after Rhian abandoned me, and Colter rejected me. And I ruined everything.
“Came back to stir up some more trouble, huh? Well, you ladies are more than welcome to visit the bar. First drink is on me,” he says in a mockingly cheerful voice, handing me the flyer, our fingers touching for just a breath, and when his scent hits me with more force, everything gets a little blurry for a moment.
There’s a sour, angry hint to it that makes me recoil. My instincts want me to soothe him, but just as quickly as I gained his attention, I lose it, as he steps past us to hand out more flyers.
“Well, I guess that answers your question. He’s definitely still salty,” Plum whispers, pulling me away from the only alpha that's ever made me feel like I'm the only omega alive.
Why the hell did I ever leave?
Was coming back here a mistake?
Fuck.
Sable
After my heart-aching encounter with Taron, Plum and I head for the line, as I try to get my shit together.
I haven’t been to this pumpkin patch in six years, and things have really changed since then. As we pass under the entrance, I can see that it’s at least three, maybe four times as big as I remember.
“Wow, did Rhian and his siblings do all this?” I ask as we get in line for the ticket booth.
“They did.” Plum nods, glancing around. “Three years ago, when their dad passed away, their mom stepped back from running the business, letting Rhian and his brothers take over. Really turned this place into something special for the whole town. The holidays are their busiest time of year. Halloween and the pumpkin patch are run by Rhian, and his brothers both run Christmas village. They get better every year,” Plum sighs. She loves Christmas, and I already know this won't be my last visit to the farm this year.
I grab a map and check out the list of activities and food spots. “There’s so much to do…” I murmur.
There's a corn maze, a haunted hay ride that goes through the creepy-looking forest behind the farm for the older kids and adults, as well as a kid-friendly hay ride that goes around the farm and stops off at the animal petting zoo. Several food vendors and a pumpkin patch with a carving station. Multiple themed slides for kids and a bounce house too. Face painting, costume contests… the list goes on. Six years ago, there was one slide, one grill, and the pumpkin patch didn't have a carving station. And the hay ride was just for the kids.
“This is seriously impressive.”
“Yep. Which is why they’re open four days a week, and not just the weekends. It gets busy here. They even have a quiet hour every Thursday for special needs kids and adults alike,” Plum explains.
“This is actually pretty amazing,” I add, so distracted by the map that I don’t notice the person behind me is so close until they tap my shoulder, their scent washing over me like a hug. Honeyed hay. Cinnamon bark. Crisp apple cider.
“Hey, Sable, I heard you’d be back in town soon. It’s good to see you,” I’d recognize that voice anywhere, even if his comforting scent didn’t give him away first.
“Rhian!” I yelp, spinning to face the omega from my past, clutching the map to my chest. “Oh hell… You surprised me.”
“Surprised to see me?” He chuckles, smirking to let me know he’s teasing me. “This is my farm, after all. And I knew you’d be here tonight, so I might have been waiting for you.” He shrugs, smiling warmly, his dimples showing in the cutest way.
Stuffing his hands into his pockets, he shuffles his feet and rocks forward. Is he nervous? His scent is nothing but joy, so it’s hard to tell, but I think maybe he’s nervous to see me? I don’t know why, but if anyone should be nervous here, it’s me.
Rhian looks incredible.
He’s got short sun-kissed dirty blond hair peaking out from his faded gray ball cap and a beard to match. Dressed like a damn country boy dream, with brown leather boots, dark wash jeans, and a button-up red flannel that's rolled at the sleeves. I feel a little silly standing before him in kitten ears, but at least I skipped the eyeliner whiskers.
He’s tan, muscular, and every bit as handsome as I remember, only now he’s built like a man. I am not going to survive living in this town with men like Rhian, Taron, and Colter walking around looking like my own personal curse. What deity did I anger, and how do I beg forgiveness?
Rhian and I drifted apart while I was still living here, but once I moved away, that's when we officially stopped talking. I know perfuming as an omega was hard for him, but I expected him to lean on me, not push me away. Moving away was hard for so many reasons, and Rhian was one of them.
Why didn’t I ask Plum if he was mated? I should have asked. His scent washes over my senses, and I suck in a deep breath. The instant desire to bury my nose where the scent is strongesthas me leaning toward him. If he were mated, he wouldn’t smell so damn alluring. But that doesn’t mean he’s single.
“You look great– I mean, yourfarmlooks great.” I wince, because why am I so damn awkward?
“Thanks, Sable. You look pretty damn good yourself.” He grins, stepping closer to me. “I like the costume. Binx?”
