Page 125 of Knot So Social

We switch places like we’ve been sharing this house all our lives. While I tidy up the kitchen, Jeremy tells me about his sprained groin and a string of lost jobs. In a matter of minutes, the alpha stud goes from unapproachable to lovable, his cheery laughter easing my apprehension.

Mr Shares perks up his ears and then gets up, trotting straight toward the spare bedroom.

Jeremy chucks his chin. “The dogs know, man.”

“Yep.” I hang the dish towel on a peg inside the pantry.

“Oh, I should probably tell you . . .” He scratches his hair and throws me a lopsided smile. “Willow scent-matched with my twin yesterday. So, there’s that.”

He leans his elbows on the bench like he’s talking about the daily news.

The air sucks out of me, leaving me wheezing.

“Shit. I probably should've eased you into that one, right? Sorry. It’s still new to me too. Those two haven’t figured themselves out yet either, plus he just got out of a bad relationship. Give them some time to work through things.”

I choke on a laugh and get myself a cup of water, spilling a ton of it across the bench. Drinking gives me a second to calm down. “Um. Any other interested parties I should know about?”

Jeremy considers for a minute, then smirks. “I dunno, but if we come across one, I reckon there might be some solid shovels and black plastic in the shed out back. Should be able to deal with it without her knowing.”

I meet his gaze. He’s half-joking, but the camaraderie is real. Turns out, I’ve never had a truer, more like-minded friend than the one I made today. I lift my water glass to toast him in silence.

“And what’s your twin like?”

“He’s an asshole.” Jeremy shrugs. “But he biked five miles in the blazing sun without complaint after picking up your truck.”

He chuckles and eases himself out of his seat. A door down the corridor clicks open and uneven footsteps patter on the floor.

Me, Jeremy, and his brother, who’s name I don’t even know. Feels like I’ve just made the biggest black-market deal in the history of alphas.

Now we just need to convince the omega at the center of it all.

Chapter thirty-nine

Willow

It’s been ten years since I woke to the sound of men’s voices in the house. Back then, I’d get out of bed with a lump in my chest, not knowing what the day would bring. Didn’t know it was called anxiety at that point.

But this is different. Someone in the house laughs and the sound makes me smile. I lay a little longer before stretching lazily and padding out to see how Alessandro’s feeling.

Mr Shares greets me right outside the door and Jeremy finds us moments after, swinging along on his crutches and beaming like a kid in a candy store.

“Good morning, darlin’,” he purrs.

“Good morning. Is he okay?”

“Yep. He’s clear eyed and on his feet.”

“And you?” I ask belatedly. “You were supposed to wake me to take over.”

Jeremy flashes me his boyish-charm smile. “Oops.”

I elbow him and he pretends to stagger.

“Truthfully, he woke up early. It’s still early, if you want to go back to sleep.”

I finger-comb my hair as we walk to the kitchen, hoping I look neat enough even though I just got out of bed. “I’m an early riser.”

He snickers. “Early bird gets the worm.”