Page 179 of Knot So Social

“Oh, sweetheart.” Jeremy kisses the back of my neck. “Please, how can we make you feel better?”

I don’t want to feel anything at all.

“We’ll do anything for you.” That choked-up voice comes from near my waist.

“Just tell us what you want, truly,” Joel adds. “If you send us away, we’ll go once you’ve calmed down. But please, let us help you.”

I’m the one who feels like dying, so why is his voice shaking like he can’t bear it?

“Please, Willow. Let us share your pain. We’re right here.” His fingers dig into my shoulder. “As your alpha, I can help, you know I can. Tell us what you want and we’ll make it happen.”

His deep voice reaches a frozen part inside me.

What I want? No one ever asked what I wanted. It was always assumed.

You’re an omega, of course you only want one thing. Spread those legs and we’ll give it to you.

The skin on my wrist burns as if the old bond were still there, creeping into me with a ghostly memory.

A bond will make everything better, Willow. You’ll see.

It didn’t. And yet I miss it. The sensation of someone else living in my skin, confirming I’m not alone in this world. I miss it so much I can’t bear it. I bought a dog to keep the pain at bay, but even Mr Shares isn’t enough to drown the inner vacuum. Nothing can replace a bond.

Except another bond.

“I . . . don’t want to be . . . alone anymore.” The words rise from deep within, dragging a guttural moan with them. I grab at my dress, clenching my fists in the soft fabric. “Happiness. Is that too much to ask for? I don’t want to hear their voices, and I don’t want to feel worthless. I just don’t want . . . to lose everything again. I can’t.”

My hands shake and I reach out blindly. The familiar scent of rosemary sticks in my nostrils. The warmth in my palms belongs to the alpha who helped me through my heat, saw my scars, witnessed me trash my own office.

“Are you mine?” I whisper. “Do you promise?”

“Always.” Jeremy squeezes me.

I lunge forward, my mind suddenly clear. The thing I’m most afraid of is the thing I need right now. Lightning needs a rod, and I’ve been living without one for so long I’m losing myself. For a second, I breathe in the rich rosemary scent on his skin, and then I bite down.

Chapter fifty-five

Jeremy

Willow’s teeth punch through my skin. I gasp at the sudden flash of pain, but on its heels comes a cool flowing sensation, like water trickling through me. The pulse is so beautiful, it takes my breath away.

Delicate as spider silk, it flutters, conveying all her desperate hope. It’s almost like I can hear her voice in my mind as she offers me a gift, begging, “Please don’t turn me away, alpha.”

I pull her higher on my lap, tears blurring my vision. “Oh, my sweet omega,” I croon, holding as much of her as I can.

She’s so frightened her scent’s charred, like a fire burned down her Jasmine plant, and she shakes uncontrollably. I don’t even know what’s scared her so bad, but now she’s crawling to me like I’m her safe space.

I’ll never let her feel alone again.

I shift her hair off her neck with trembling fingers, searching for a place to return her bite.

“Here,” Joel husks out, lifting her hand. “You should cover this one.”

Between his fingers sits an old scar. Of course, how did I not put two and two together when she admitted she’d had a bond once before?

I lift her wrist to my lips and kiss the site. “Willow?” I rasp, thick emotion lodged in my throat. “Are you sure you want my bond?”

She nods, the motion tearing at my skin where her teeth are still lodged. The fragile bond between us hums with her need.