Did Knox bite me?
The realization hits like a blow. I blink hard, trying to clear the haze from my vision as sound rushes back in. Alex’s pained grunts, the pounding of my pulse, the fangs still buried in my neck.
Everything inside me feels wrong. My instincts are a chaotic snarl—fear, confusion, anger tangling together. I can feel the heat of Knox’s breath against my skin, the press of his body behind me, as he slowly pulls his fangs out, then licks.
I twist in his hold, forcing space between us as I look up at Knox's face. I expect guilt from the alpha—or maybe confusion—I get neither.
Knox isn’t apologizing. He isn’t horrified. He’s staring at my neck with the softest expression. He looks…proud.
The sight hits harder than the pain in my shoulder as shock grips me.
“You—” My voice cracks and shakes. “You bit me on purpose. Didn’t you?”
He doesn’t answer. He just takes a slow breath, finally meeting my eyes. He looks completely unapologetic.
Rage burns through my fear, sharp and hot. “How could you?” I whisper, my pulse hammering so hard it hurts. “You can’t— You shouldn’t—” I can’t get the words to leave my mouth. “You can’t mark an omega outside of their heat!” I finally scream, unable to stop myself. “It can kill me!”
“Skyla.” Knox lets out a slow breath. “I had to. You needed?—”
Heat burns through me so fast I don’t even think. I twist, trying to hit him—anywhere I can reach—but the awkward movement makes Knox’s knot pull and jerk inside me, sharp enough to make me gasp. Knox hisses andAlex lets out a pained growl beneath me, gripping my hips hard.
“She’s going to rip my cock off!” he yells, his face scrunched up with pain.
“Skyla—stop!” Knox grips my arms, holding me in place. It isn’t gentle, but it isn’t cruel either. Just desperate.
“Let go of me!” I cry, but his hands don’t move. They curl around me tighter, keeping my arms pinned to my sides.
Then voices thunder down the hall. The door bursts open.
Tadeo barrels in first. He’s in his boxers, fists curled, ready to tear apart whatever threat he thought he’d find. His eyes sweep the room, landing on Knox, Alex, then me.
Behind him, Dakota hesitates in the doorway, his hair tousled, skin flushed. His gaze drifts from my face, straight down to my neck. His expression shifts, not in shock or disbelief… but something like grim understanding. Like he expected this.
My stomach drops.
“Did you know he was going to do this?” My voice cracks as I twist, trying to face the beta. Pain flares in my pussy, white-hot, but it’s nothing compared to the sick twist in my gut.
“Skyla, please,” Alex begs as he grips my thighs, trying to keep me still.
“Did you know?” I repeat when Dakota doesn’t answer. “Did you know he was going to mark me?”
The beta’s throat works as he swallows. He doesn’t answer. He doesn’t have to.
And that’s when it hits me—this wasn’t passion, it wasn't instinct spiraling out of control. This was deliberate. Planned.
My pulse pounds in my ears. I can feel the mark throb against my skin, hot and wrong, a brand I never agreed to. My gaze darts from one alpha to the next, searching for something—remorse, an explanation, anything.
But all I find is silence.
“I’m sorry,” Knox murmurs, his breath warm against the fresh bite. It throbs beneath his lips—a brand I never asked for, another scar that won’t heal right. “I had to,” he says, loosening his hold until it becomes something almost gentle, like a hug. “I didn’t want to?—”
“Youhadto?” My voice comes out sharp, trembling with disbelief. I can feel the pause in Knox’s body, but it’s so damn hard to see his face from this angle. I fucking hate that his knot is locked inside me right now.
Enraged, I finally look down at Alex. His face is bright red, the cords of his neck straining with pain. I know his cock is trapped between my pelvic bone and Knox’s knot, but I’m so angry and numb, I can’t feel anything other than the fury pounding at the base of my skull.
If I were a kind person, I’d feel bad for him, but I’m convinced he knew what Knox had planned. Just like Dakota…and probably Tadeo too.
How could they risk hurting me like this?
