Olly clears his throat. “It is dangerous, yes, but Auryn has proven she is capable of defending herself,” he says cooly. “On multiple occasions.”
“She did dismember those alphas before rescuing Em,” Diego says.
“And Em is still an alpha,” Olly shrugs, his gaze flitting to me. “And he’s strong. Always has been. I’m not worried.”
Auryn hugs him. Really fucking hugs him, and he blushes something fierce.
“Olly’s right,jefe. It’s just a few hours; I’m sure they will be fine.”
Gage catches my glance. His jaw tenses, and he looks back at Auryn, chewing his lip.
“Fine,” he grits through his teeth. “But I expect you both back here in no less than three fucking hours. Got it?”
“Yes, sir,” I say, trying to hide the grin splitting my face, but it’s no use.
Olly kisses Auryn on the cheek as he gently lifts her up out of his lap—when that happened, I have no clue—and she runs up to me, throwing her arms around me and kissing me in front of our pack, and my insides turn to fucking mush.
This is shaping up to be the best day ever.
I take it back. I take it all back. Why did I think taking an alpha shopping would be fun?
Auryn and I have been to two stores, and all we’ve done is argue. I gave up trying to suggest things for her to wear after she nearly bit my head off when I suggested a white dress with little yellow flowers on it.
Still, all things considered, I think she’s having a good time outside of the compound. I don’t miss the way her gaze falls on the people walking through the store. Moms with their children. Teenagers goofing off. Men wandering aimlessly through the sports section.
I slide my hands in my pockets, waiting for her to come out of the dressing room. Our cart is already pretty full, and I think Gage is going to bitch about all of this, because of course, before Auryn even looked at anything for herself, she found about four shirts and outfits for the others, including me. I told her I really didn’t need new clothes, but she growled at me and told me to be good, or she’d punish me for being defiant.
When I say it tookeverythingin me not to argue, I mean it. I know what rewards are like with Auryn, and I’m fucking dying to see how she punishes me.
Still, I know the difference between a playful alpha and a pissy one, so I keep my mouth shut. For now.
When she opens the door, I nearly gasp. I’ve been trying to get her into a dress all day, and I was convinced it was a lost cause. When she walks out in a long, tight blue dress with spaghetti straps, I have to fight a groan.
Her breasts look amazing, squished together and practically spilling out the top. I don’t remember them looking so full before, but then again, underneath Olly’s shirts some things weren’t as visible, I guess.
My gaze travels down her hips, noting the curves there. When we found her, she was practically skin and bones, but after a few weeks with us and Diego’s cooking, she’s looking fuller there, too. Healthier.
Her gaze finds mine, and she looks nervous. What the fuck does she have to be nervous about? A couple walks by us, a woman in a shorter dress. Her boyfriend’s hand rests on her rear, and he squeezes it as they walk past, and I see the look of worry in Auryn’s eyes, see the tense of her shoulder, and then I realize what she’s so nervous about.
She holds herself tight, the motion pushing her tits together to make some fantastic cleavage, but I push away the inappropriate thoughts because I can see she’s uncomfortable.
I take two steps towards her, that lemongrass and sunshine scent hitting me like a wave.
“Hey,” I say, reaching out to run my fingers along her arm. “You look great. How do you feel?”
She chews on her lip, glancing up at me, and something in her gaze shifts.
“Better now,” she says softly. I give her a grin.
“Now that your alpha’s here, right?”
She rolls her eyes. “And there it goes.”
I shake my head. “You must like me enough; you saved my ass.”
She shakes her head as she heads back for the changing room door. “And with every word, I am regretting it,” she says, but her voice isn’t venomous. It’s sarcastic. Humorous.
“Yeah, yeah, you’ll be singing another tune when we hit the register, sweetheart.”
