Our gentle kiss turns aggressive and needy. I want to taste him. I need to be closer.
Someone coughs loudly. “Sorry to break this up?—”
Remembering where we are, I pull away from Ren, panting. Red splotches pepper Ren’s neck as he adjusts his glasses, clearly as lost in the moment as I was.
“Don’t get me wrong, it was hot to watch,” Laz—the kissing interrupter—chuckles. “But I’m sure you don’t want Faye going into heat again right here on the sidewalk.”
Ren pinches the bridge of his nose. “What’re you doing here?”
“I recognized the decor in your photo.” Laz waves his phone and grins at me. “Sorry, honeybee. Don’t worry, I’m not here to crash your date. I just have something for Sabs and thought you could drop it off for me?”
“Yeah, yeah.” Ren rolls his eyes. “Likely story.”
“What?” Laz asks innocently, digging a whistle out of his pocket. “Sabs needs this for volleyball practice.”
Something tells me that Sabs’s whistle could definitely wait, but I don’t mind. In fact, it’s good to see him again. Especially now that I’m dosed up on extra strength suppressants and don’t feel like yelling in his face or crying for a change.
“I’ll give it to her,” I promise, stashing the whistle in my purse. A clock chimes in the distance. “You’re going to be late, Ren!”
“It was worth it.” Ren winks at me.
I can’t believe that he went from being worried about me not being interested in him to openly flirting.
“So you’re free now?” Laz looks at me hopefully. “I can walk you back?”
“Good idea,” Ren answers for me. “I’ll be able to concentrate better in my seminar if I know you’re safe.” He bends to gently kiss my forehead, making me weak at the knees. “See you again soon.”
I watch him dash away, almost skipping as he happily swings his satchel. My heart swells. How does he not see how freaking cute he is?
Laz grins mischievously. “I guess that leaves the two of us.”
Spending time with my housemate’s hot brother, what can go wrong?
EIGHTEEN
Laz
Okay, Sabs had only briefly mentioned she needed a whistle to keep some of her teammates in check, and it could have totally waited, but knowing where Faye was and not seeing her was killing me.
Initially, I’d only planned on walking past, perhaps stealing a glance at her through the window. But I hadn’t banked on walking into her and Ren’s steamy make-out session. Holy hell, seeing them together was about the hottest thing ever. Instead of feeling jealous—as is often the case with alphas—I was happy to stand back and watch. It’s the first time I’ve seen Ren with a woman before, and the way he looked at her when they pulled apart was priceless. Faye doesn’t know how special she is or the effect she has on us.
Thankfully, Ren is diplomatic. He knows how desperate we’ve all been to see her again. Since we helped her through her heat onset, it’s been hard to do or think about anything but her. The urge to be close and protect her from other alphas is all-consuming. I know the others feel it too. Even Damon, not that he’ll admit it. He’s been taking on extra security work— probably to avoid facing his feelings—coming home with more grazed knuckles than usual.
“That must have been some kiss,” I murmur, watching Ren bounce away. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen him walk like that.”
Faye giggles shyly. The noise is so cute that it makes me want to kiss her little button nose.
“So, honeybee…” It’s a fitting nickname because of her hair color, the way she smells of flowers, and because I’m like a bee drawn to her like a honeypot. “Did you have a good date with Ren?”
She falls into step beside me. “I did.”
I notice an alpha staring at her from across the street as the breeze catches in her hair, delivering a waft of her scent. Faye remains oblivious as I glare at him, teeth slightly bared, making it clear that she’s mine. I quicken my pace then slow when I realize Faye has to take two steps to every one of mine because she’s so short.
“What do you have planned for the rest of the day?” I ask, watching the alpha slink into a nearby store out of the corner of my eyes. “Hanging out with the Stellas?”
“Actually, I think the girls are out this afternoon. Sabs has volleyball, Delilah has a cooking class, and Kady’s at theValley Voiceoffice, finalizing the next edition.” She peeks up at me from beneath her long lashes. “I haven’t joined any clubs or societies yet.”
I perk up, having an idea. “How do you fancy hanging out with me, honeybee? I can take you to one of my favorite places on campus.” I hold my hands up. “No talks about heat, bonds, or anything serious, pinkie swear!”
