Page 190 of Knot So Social

“Well,” Willow gasps out, her glowing marks jerking back into the chair. “Why does it feel like I’ve been here for three hours?”

“Because—” My voice cracks. “Because you just relived more than any person should ever have to go through.”

Joel switches the light back on, and we blink hot spots out of our eyes for a second. Alessandro’s on his feet and at Willow’s side in a flash. He buries his face in her lap.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry I didn’t find you before them.”

I join them, wrapping my arms around our omega and Alessandro. I’m not exactly a praying man, but now I silently beg for the love in my heart to make its way to hers. That we can be her healing and replace every bad memory with good ones made within each other’s arms.

Joel clears his throat and when he speaks his voice is ominous and gravelly. “So, just out of interest. Those three alphas, any idea where they are now?”

His best attempt at a neutral interest hides none of his pulsing anger.

Willow sniffs away her tears. “Stop it. We’re moving forward now. I . . . I don’t want to waste even another second thinking about them.”

“Right,” he mutters. The brooding look on his face tells me we might not quite be ready to move on from the past. Suits me just fine.

Willow looks up over Alessandro’s glossy black hair, smiling at me. And in the bond, in the center of the swirling dread and misery, sprouts a tiny glow of relief.

Maybe my prayer will be answered. I can only hope so, hope we can love her hard enough.

Because we still don’t know what kind of response her confession will bring when she uploads it.

Chapter sixty

Willow

Is this what an exorcism feels like? A deep exhaustion settles in my bones, but with it comes a fog that muffles the tormenting voices. In mental silence, I edit my confessional video, reviewing it several times before collecting my medical history and other related documents in an online drive. I upload everything to my major socials and sit back with a sigh.

People will make what they will of it. I have no say in that. All I can control is what I believe about myself. And with a bit of help, I won’t allow myself to listen to lies that put me down again.

And now, I don’t need to tell lies myself. The bond I was so afraid of has set me free.

Drained, I crawl back into bed, and my alphas follow me, their presences a balm to my tattered heart. We don’t fall asleep right away, but lie there, tangled together with soft touches of reassurance. Holding hands, back rubs, tiny kisses peppered on my brow. Where exactly did these amazing men spring from?

“Just checking, but none of you are angels in disguise, right?” I slur into my pillow.

It’s so strange that they came to me out of nowhere.

The guys laugh. “If anyone, it would have to be Alessandro, right?” Jeremy jokes. “Those dreamy eyes?”

“No, no,” he protests. “Willow is the only angel here.”

I snort softly. “Fallen angel, you mean.”

Joel gathers me closer. “No. Our angel.”

They mean it too. I didn’t think I had anything left to offer an alpha . . . but it turns out relationships are never about giving them something. For the right men, I’m enough just the way I am.

I drift off to sleep, utterly spent but not afraid of waking up. The future’s not so lonely, anymore.

After our nap, the guys cook me lunch. Jeremy digs a chessboard out of the cupboard, one that must've been left behind by the previous owners when they sold the house. Alessandro doesn’t know how to play, and since there are no game pieces, we draw tiny ones up on pieces of paper. Which turns out terribly because with every breath they skitter off their assigned squares.

We laugh and give up, and I order a proper set online.

“What do you want to do next?” Jeremy asks.

I cock my head, thinking for a minute. “You know, I’d really like to finish our date. It got interrupted last time, but I want to know what’s on the rest of my ticket.”