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Cassy looked away, unable to meet her father's gaze, but she knew he was crying as much as she was. And she couldn't bear it.

Lino's hand slid out of hers and he slipped out of the room quietly, giving her privacy with her parents, now that he knew she was alright.

Her father pulled her into his warm embrace. "I am so sorry, Cassy," he said, patting her hair down softly.

Cassy sobbed, wrapping her arms around her father's torso. It had been a while. A long long time since she had been held by her father. She had forgotten what his scent was. Wood, smoke and musk.

She breathed in deeply, letting all of the pain go as his warmth seeped into her, reminding her of what it had been like before Lino. The life she had lived. Though they had not been rich, though they had been ordinary Omegas, they had been happy and content.

But she was happy she met Lino. That part of her life had always felt like it had something missing. She had found it and she would protect it.