“He cares about you too,” Damian says softly. “At the end of the day, I just want you both to be happy. I guess the question is, do you think it’s fixable, or is it past the point of even trying?”
Dammit. I wish I could see her reaction.
“I want it to be something we can work out. I’m going to apologize if I can ever convince him not to run away at the sight of me,” Cove says with a huff. “Then I’m going to do my best to stay calm while we have a real conversation.”
Several hours of tossing and turning once I make it into my bunk produces no actual sleep.
Missing Pops is nothing new, but being on tour, I can’t help but wonder what he would have thought of Cove. He would have been quick to set her straight about her spoiled ways. Though, he was never cruel, just honest. He had a way of seeing who someone is at their core and not the facade they show the world.
I’ve put up a solid wall between the two of us, but even I can admit that Cove isn’t who I thought she was when Griffin first assigned me to her service. Well, the first few months, I wasn’t impressed by how she acted, but I think she’s finally tired of trying to be a one-woman island.
I’ve got a bad track record with omegas, which is a shitty excuse, even if it’s all I’ve got. I saw how my mother put her wants above what anyone else needed, but I also don’t think it’s fair to judge an entire designation off one person.
If it was only her, I probably would have let go of that stereotype years ago. Then again, there’s that old sayingfool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.
I’ve already been burned twice in two very different ways.
I like to think I’m intelligent enough to learn from my mistakes, but Cove shows a sliver of vulnerability, and it triggers every instinct in my body to protect her.
This shit is not healthy.
There’s no fighting it, though. It’s just how alpha and omega dynamics go.
The curtain on my bunk pulls back, and I roll to appraise what’s happening.
Cove leans over, frowning at me, and I jolt.
“What are you doing?” I ask, blowing out a heavy breath.
She doesn’t answer, climbing into the bunk.
“I felt an ache,” she whispers, sliding a hand over her heart. “I knew someone was hurting.” She leans over me, moving toward the inside wall. “I didn’t expect it to be you, but I couldn’t sleep.” She faces away from me, her ass snuggling up to my hip bone. She rests her head on my bicep, pulls my arm down, and interlocks our fingers while I blink incredulously.
What the hell is she doing?
I knew omegas were sensitive to the emotions of others, but I didn’t think that worked fifteen feet away. I was also under the impression that omegas only felt the need to comfort their chosen alphas.
Am I remembering that wrong?
Hell, maybe it’s wishful thinking.
My feelings about Cove are obviously complicated. I’m too old for her. The fact that her tight little ass is plastered to my hip while she secretes soothing pheromones is dangerous for both of us. I’m not her alpha, meaning she shouldn’t be comforting me.
That ache that Cove followed in here radiates even stronger as I’m drawn more into wondering what Pops would think if he could see me now.
Vince’s grandpa was the first adult I trusted. He’s the one person whose opinion mattered more than anything.
Dexter and Love tried to build a relationship with me, but I was an angry little fucker. My mom instilled a whole lot of hate in my mind regarding my older brother.
It’s taken years, but we’ve finally gotten to a better place. I always knew Dex loved me, but I hated his guts for leaving me with our mother. He didn’t know I existed for a while, and on some level, that messed me up even worse.
Despite all that, I had Pops.
The crotchety old fucker.
Jesus.
What I wouldn’t trade to be able to give him one last hug.
