"I..I know you changed your mind about…claiming me," I finally managed to get out. "Its okay. You don't have to keep spending time with me." I made myself meet his eyes. "I understand."
Finished speaking, I dropped my eyes again and wondered how long I had to sit in the strained silence before it was okay for me to leave. I didn't have long to wonder before Alrick broke the silence.
"I see." His voice was deceptively calm. "So you didn't actually want to talk, you wanted to break up." His deep, even breaths were the only sign that he was struggling to control himself.
"What? No." I shook my head vehemently. "I don't want that, but it's not about me." I brought my eyes up to his again. "Its not fair to you to be stuck with me just because you made an impulsive declaration about claiming me."
"Right." Alrick drew the word out. "Tell me why you think I'mstuckwith you?"
Chapter Twenty-Five
Alrick
I've always thought of myself as a reasonable, level-headed being. That all went straight out the window when my Omega sat down in my temporary home and, nice as you please, informed me thatIwanted to be free ofhim.
Sebastian was shaking, his breaths were labored, and the scent of distressed Omega was thick enough to cut in the small room. The problem was that I didn't know if he was distressed about the fact that he wanted out of our relationship or about the fact that he thought I did.
"C'mon, Sebastian," I forced myself to speak calmly, to hold the Alpha voice back. "Tell me what's really going on."
He took several deep breaths and began to speak. He laid it all out neatly; all of the clues that had built what, to Sebastian, was an irrefutable case that showed I didn't want to claim him after all. My frequent absences with no explanation, no mention of our future, the lack of sex, and, of course, the very obvious fact that I still hadn't claimed him.
I listened as he cataloged the evidence, forcing myself to see it from his perspective. It didn't take much for me to realize exactly how it had looked, how it had seemed to him. When he finally stopped talking and was sitting miserably in his chair, I decided that I had pussy-footed around enough. It only took two steps to reach the chair and scoop him up into my arms. He gasped, proof that I had taken him by surprise when I dropped back onto the couch with him straddling me.
"What..are you doing?"
"You were too far away." I wrapped my arms around his waist. "And I want to be sure you really hear what I have to say."
He swallowed but stayed where he was.
"I'm sorry that I gave you the wrong impression about what I wanted," I started. "It really didn't occur to me that you would feel that way."
I leaned in to nibble at his neck.
"It wouldn't have been fair to you for me to claim you before I had a place to live." Another nibble on his neck. "And a job."
"Oh." Sebastian relaxed a little in my arms and then his eyes got big. "You're staying here?"
I nodded.
"I had some money saved up," I admitted. "I was looking for a small piece of land that we could build a house on."
"Really?" Sebastian breathed out.
"Really," I confirmed. "But, while I was looking, I ran into a local Alpha who said his pack could use someone with my skill set." Sebastian was now openly staring at me. "How would you feel about vetting into the Blood Valley pack, Sebastian?"
Epilogue
Two Weeks Later
Sebastian
"I can't believe that this is happening," I said for the hundredth time in an hour as Trevor fussed over my simple black suit.
"Which part?" Colby asked from his perch on the bed.
"Any of it," I admitted, glancing at him shyly.
"Did you ever find out why the Oaf quit putting out?" Colby asked, snickering when I glared at the mean nickname he insisted on using for Alrick.
