A woman with a cold twist to her lips.
And last, another man, older than the first, sneering with derision.
It’s the face of the last man—clearly an alpha—that sends a shudder down my spine. I might not remember his name, but the feeling he evokes in me is enough to know if I never have to see him again, that would probably be a good thing.
But his hard eyes continue to haunt my dreams, following me as I trip through disjointed and indecipherable memories until I feel his gaze like a burning blade of light concentrated between my shoulders.
Sometime later, my mind surfaces into a light doze. I know I'm still mostly asleep, still half-dreaming, but the waking world is closer, and I can feel the warmth of Luke next to me. I curl closer to his side and drift back off, this time getting lost in more pleasant things, like the comforting thrum of the connection between me and my mate.
Not much later, the alarm on Luke’s cell phone startles me out of my doze and I jolt in his arms. He reaches over to the nightstand and does something to make the noise stop, then slides his hand down my side to rest at my waist before running his nose over the back of my neck. The mating bite is a bit sore, but the sensation of Luke nuzzling it sends a shiver of pleasure down my spine, and I arch my back, rubbing my ass against my mate’s very obvious morning wood.
He makes a pleased rumble and presses a series of soft kisses along my shoulder. “Good morning,mate.”
I slowly turn over and press my mouth against his, morning breath be damned. The kiss quickly turns heated, and I sling my leg over his hip, grinding myself against him. Luke’s hands movedown to cup my ass, urging me closer. Lungs burning, I break the kiss, resting my forehead against his, panting for breath.
Luke cups my cheek, bringing my mouth back to his, and kisses me slowly, hungrily, his tongue tangling with mine as our movements become jerkier and more uncoordinated. The rest of the world fades away as I lose myself in chasing my orgasm in the delicious friction of his body. My body goes rigid, and I let out a low moan, biting down on Luke’s lower lip as I come. Luke follows me over the edge, his muscles tensing as he groans out his release.
The jarring alarm chooses that second to go off again, leaving us no time to enjoy the afterglow.
Luke blows out an exasperated breath. “Fucking cell phones…”
I giggle, burying my face against Luke’s bare chest as he reaches over and picks up his phone, bringing it closer to his face as he squints at the screen. He taps at the screen, then tosses the thing back onto the nightstand, wrapping his arms around my waist and burrowing his face into the crook of my shoulder.
“Can we just stay here all day?” I ask.
He laughs. “Unfortunately, I think we have to get up. We need to shower and hit the road if we want to get there by this evening. Unless you’ve changed your mind and want to wait a few more days?”
“No.” I sigh. “I’m not exactly looking forward to the visit itself, but I would actually like to see my brother.”
Luke pulls me closer, ignoring the squishy wetness between us. “Whatever happens, I’m there for you.”
“Thanks,” I whisper.
He kisses my forehead. “Anything for you.”
We drag ourselves out of bed and into the shower, quickly washing away the evidence of our morning activities. Luke wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me closer until I rest my cheek on his chest as the water streams down around us. Inuzzle my face against Luke’s skin, humming with contentment as I breathe in his now familiar scent.
We stand there until our fingers wrinkle and the water goes from hot to lukewarm, then Luke wraps me up in a towel, drying me off just like he did when I was still a little lost in my wolf.
There’s a pile of clothes waiting on the bed when we get out of the bathroom that weren’t there when we went in. I grab the T-shirt off the top of the stack and hold it up. Based on the size, I’m assuming the clothes belong to Keir and will fit me much better than Luke’s do. Luke grumbles half-heartedly about wanting me to smell like him, not his cousin, but he can’t deny I need something that fits.
Once dressed, we head downstairs and find Keir alone in the kitchen. His hair is sticking up in all directions and he’s wearing nothing but a pair of pajama pants and a drowsy expression.
“Thought you guys might want some breakfast.” He stares blearily into a cabinet for a moment before pulling out a box of cereal and dropping it on the table. He grabs a gallon of milk out of the fridge and plops it down next to the cereal. “It’s too early for cooking. Not that I’m any good at it.”
“This is fine,” says Luke. He glances at Keir wry smile. “It’s not like we didn’t practically live on this sugary junk when we were kids.”
Keir’s lips curl upward. “True enough.” A mischievous glint enters his eyes. “Congratulations on completing the mating bond, by the way. Did you have fun last night… and this morning?”
Fire burns behind my cheeks and I turn to hide my face against Luke’s arm.
Keir claps me on the shoulder, letting out a soft chuckle. “No need to be embarrassed. We’re shifters, so we’ve all been there at least once.”
After the three of us eat, Luke grabs his bag and tosses some snacks in the cooler we brought from Smyrna, and twenty minutes later, everything is loaded up in the SUV and we’re ready to leave. Julien’s roused himself and wandered downstairs to see us off. He and Luke shake hands while Keir gives me a big hug.
“Keep in touch,” he says. “We omegas need to stick together.”
“We can start a club,” I say.
