Page 93 of Knot Convenient

“Jenn, step back,” I instructed, my voice firm.

“Emmett, stop this. We’ve been close for years—I’ve worked by your side since you opened this practice! You’re a good man. You know you can do so much better than an omega who’s already ruined.”

Ruined? Was she referring to my mate as ruined?

I was so shocked at her words that it took me a moment to speak, and she took that moment as permission to keep talking.

“You and I could be really good together. I’ve seen the way you look at me. I’m young, single, and so well suited for you. So much better than her.”

Her arms wrapped around me, and she batted her eyes as she looked up at me with what I thought was meant to be a seductive look.

My stomach turned sour as what she was saying hit me in full force. I had never given her any indication that we were anything other than colleagues—because that was all I saw her as. She was a good employee, and we had friendly conversations, but I had never thought of her that way, even when I didn’t have a mate.

Her touch revolted me, and I wanted it gone immediately.

“Don’t touch me,” I growled. I had never raised my voice to her like that before, but she needed to hear me. “Jennifer, you are a valued work colleague. Nothing more, nothing less.” I kept my voice firm.

She had never crossed a line like this.

“You deserve better!” Jenn insisted, tears filling her eyes. “I am better!”

When she didn’t move away, I took a firm step back, pushing her forward so she staggered away from me. I was almost surprised by the look of betrayal in her eyes, but clearly her logic had fled the room.

“Look, I do not know why you have this in your mind, but we aren’t a thing, we have never been a thing. We are never going to be a thing. I love my mate and my son.”

“He’s not your son!” she hissed, hair falling loose from its perfect ponytail.

My entire body went still at those words, and Jenn realized she was standing on a land mine by the way, her eyes went wide and she started to stammer. How dare she suggest Milo wasn’t my child.

“Milo Winters is my son. Summer Winters is my mate. You need to leave. Now.”

“Y-you don’t know what you’re talking about, she’s filled your head with promises, I can give you things she can’t,” Jenn insisted, shaking her head as tears started to fall.

I had zero sympathy for her.

“I know exactly what I’m talking about. You are my employee, and you are being highly unprofessional. Pack up your desk. When you leave this office today, you aren’t going to return.”

“You’re firing me!?” she screeched.

Was that even a question? She’d practically thrown herself at me completely out of the blue and crossed every professional boundary I could think of.

“Of course I’m firing you. No matter how good an assistant you are, that doesn’t make up for this. I want you the hell out of my office and away from my family.”

Her tears were flowing freely, but somehow her face was still twisted in anger.

“You’ll regret this!” she hissed. Gone was the sweet facade she had been putting on just a moment earlier. “I’ll tell everyone about how you led me on!”

The poisonous crazy woman. “I did nothing of the sort, and you know as well as I that if you even think about doing that, I will sue your ass to kingdom come for defamation because I have never once, in all our years working together, indicated that I am even slightly interested in you. Oh, and have you forgotten that there are cameras in the offices?” I said, pointing up to the corner of the room where the small CCTV camera sat.

Jenn’s face went bright red. She had forgotten.

“This isn’t over!” she hissed. “You don’t have to sink that low! It's pathetic, her coming here acting like she is a respectable mate and not a whore!”

The second she called my mate a whore, all bets were off.

I took one careful, controlled step forward, a deep growl rumbling in my chest as I put every ounce of my alpha voice behind the next words I spoke.

“Get the fuck out.”