Chapter 12

KNOX'S POV I woke up with a start, my nose catching the lingering scent of my mate. But she was nowhere to be found. My eyes landed on the empty spot beside me, and all I could think about was last night—how it had taken everything in me not to fuck her. I wanted to. God, I wanted to. But I couldn't. She wasn't ready, not really. She might have seemed like she was, her body responding to me, her lips pleading for more—but I knew the truth. Her mind was desperate for an escape, searching for anything to drown out the pain of her memories. As much as I'd have loved to take that pain away, I couldn't let mating be the answer. Not like this. I wouldn't claim her only for her to wake up regretting it. She deserved better than that. That's why I gave her bliss in another way—something to help her forget, if only for a little while. "Wow, quite noble of you. I didn't know we were such gentlemen," Liam sneered in my head, and I rolled my eyes at him as I climbed out of bed. "Shut up," I mutter