Page 70 of Trick Knot Treat

With that dark threat, Felix releases me, freeing me to turn and bolt down the stairs. Maybe…this wasn’t such a great idea after all.

Chapter 17

Zaire

Ithink this is torture. I mean, if they were going to do something that would end up sending me to a psychiatric hospital, sitting at a table with my future omega’s mother, fathers, sisters, in-laws, and his twin, who I used to date, would top the list.

Asher is sitting beside Felix, their elbows touching, and she is glaring at me and has been since she appeared, surprising the family into happy celebrations with her arrival.

They are offering Khione and me a colder shoulder today. I suspect that it’s the omega twin that’s leading the energy. I’m not sure what to do, though. Spectre whines and puts his head under my arm.

Everyone seems embarrassed and not sure how to handle the situation.

“Do you really need to have a dog at the table?” Asher growls, her eyes on me. She’s been making cutting comments for the last twenty minutes and somehow has single-handedly turned the vibe from welcoming to hostile.

Khione growls back, and the two omegas clash in an atmospheric storm that has been building. If someone doesn’t reel one of them in, they will attack each other.

Felix sets his glass down heavily and turns slowly to study Asher. A silent conversation starts, climaxes, and ends, but whatever the result is, I am not privy.

“Oops, sorry, Ashy. I’ll send Danger to go…oh, that’s right, he always attends meal time with us, so, um, shut up,” Sofia says, pretending to be shocked.

I’m a little bit stunned to hear her support us, but Spectre is delighted with the little dachshund, and Danger is doing everything he can to get Spectre’s attention. I rub his head and then tell him to lie down. He reluctantly backs away, letting out a low aroo to make sure everyone knows he’s now happy.

“My apologies, I didn’t know there was a no-dog rule. Next time, I will just send my excuses in advance,” I say, trying to be polite and make things easier.

Asher curls her lip. “Just consider yourself uninvited permanently.”

Felix slams his cup on the table, his face turned towards his twin, his expression livid.

Khione stands up. I grab her wrist, but she shakes me off and leans over the table.

Her words are slow, deep, and full of a threat that has me wondering if I know her at all.

“Don’t you talk to my alpha like that.”

“I thought he was Felix’s alpha,” Asher says, leaping on it gleefully.

“Felix is my omega, and I am his. Zaire belongs to us.”

Does she have any idea of what she’s saying right now? She’s publicly claiming us. But no, she’s got no idea, she’s an omega enraged. The very sight of her, almost feral with fury, is intoxicating.

“They are our alphas. I don’t care who you are, you will not disrespect them.”

Her eyes are glittering jewels, and her body is a rigid line of rage. She is magnificent. Has anyone ever stood up for me before?

I can’t recall.

Felix is watching her with a ravenous expression that I recognise. When his eyes flicker to me, I see regret, and I know that he can’t be the one who goes against his family. For whatever reason, he doesn’t have it in him. Not to do it in front of guests, though.

“Khione, it’s fine, really.”

She snarls. “It will never be okay, Zaire. Not ever. Not once. I won’t stand for it.”

I smile softly at her, thinking how perfect she is.

“Don’t look at me like that.”

“I can’t help it.”