Page 178 of Knot So Social

A louder shatter echoes behind me. I shake my head. Was it an echo?

“Willow!”

Strong arms clamp around my waist. The tool clatters on the desk as my alpha drags me backward.

“No!” I scream, reaching for the shiny metal. “Let me go! Let me disappear!”

“Never!” Joel’s alpha growl by my ear sends a hot shiver down my spine.

More arms wrap around me. “Please stop, cara mia! Don’t hurt yourself.”

Jeremy joins the huddle. “Oh, Willow, baby.”

I’m shaking so hard, I can’t speak. Only cry, wailing in a way I didn’t know was possible. Lamenting for a broken, unsociable omega.

Someone captures my palms. “Shit, she’s bleeding.”

I hiss as pressure forms on my skin, but not even that can take away the pain filling my soul. “Let me go!” I yell. “Just leave me alone! You won't want me when you know the truth!”

But despite my words, I grip the closest man, his scent a balm in my nose. These alphas are the only thing I can cling to when everything else falls apart. Holding onto these them is my desperate plea to be wrong.

“That’s not true, Willow. We’ll always want you, no matter what you’ve done. You’re safe with us.”

I’m blind to everything, only the sensation of touch prickling over my skin. Trapping me.

“I’m not! I’m never safe! I don’t get to be safe! Everyone leaves me! And why wouldn’t they?" A bitter scoff shreds my throat. "I can’t run, can’t dance, I’ve got ugly scars. And I’m a liar! Did you all know I’m a liar? Who would want such a terrible omega? Tell me!”

I lash out and an alpha grunts.

"We want you, no matter what, Willow. No matter who you are, we'll always be your alphas."

I want to believe Jeremy, but my heart hurts too much. If they abandon me now, I'll break beyond repair; my omega nature can't recover a second time.

Strong arms pick me up. I scream and kick as the colors around me blur.

“What do we do?”

“We have to restrain her. She’s hurting herself.”

“Don’t you d-dare!” I scream, hammering on someone’s back. Joel’s, I think. How dare he lay his hands on me?

“I’m sorry, Willow. It’s just until you calm down.”

Calm down? Calm down? How can I? My life is in ruins. I scream, gurgling as my pouring tears fill my throat.

“We’re here to take care of you.” We drop into a lower position, something bouncing gently beneath us. “You’ll be okay. Everything will be okay,” Joel soothes.

Lies! And how could I not tell lies when everything I was ever told was a lie?

I snarl, my chest rumbling. “That’s what they said! That everything would be okay. And then they fucking abandoned me!” I dig my nails into his skin and shake. “They k-kicked me out, with n-nothing, Joel! And now my whole business is going up in flames!”

“I know, darlin’, I know. And they were wrong and cruel. But you’re still here. You survived. Overcame all their bullshit. And now you have us, Willow, and I promise we'll never, ever let you go through anything alone again.”

I cling to him, Jeremy stroking my back, and Alessandro, well, I think he might be praying, hands clasped together on my thigh. “D-did I? Is this s-surviving?”

“It’s a start,” Joel rumbles. “Breathing is a start. Crying is a start. Feeling alive is good. Whatever happens from now on, we’ll take care of you. If your business dries up, or you don’t have any money, we’ll provide. Help you get back on your feet. That’s what we’re here for.”

I blubber a whole batch of fresh sobs.