I glance away, feeling vulnerable all of a sudden. “They’re not really into video games. At least, not a large variety. Thatcher likes sports games that he plays with Atlas and Kendall, but he never really took to these. He says it makes him think more than he wants to.”
I laugh because it is amusing that Thatcher doesn’t like a lot of mental stimulation, but a part of it is sad, too. Video games and animations are such a big part of my life, and my pack isn’t too keen on it. I always imagined that when I found my scent match, they’d be just as into this stuff as I was. Everything about Sam and my pack is more than ideal, but accepting that I wouldn’t have that camaraderie with them was harder than I wanted to admit.
Opal doesn’t push for me to say more. She gives me a softsmile and nods. “Well, I’d love to play with you. Especially since my friends also get frustrated with these games. Maybe we could build a farm together, too.” She flashes me theStardew Valleycover.
My smile grows in response. “Okay, but I get to marry Sebastian.”
Her brows arch teasingly at me. “You’ll have to pry Sebastian out of my cold, dead hands.”
Something tells me that this is the start of a beautiful friendship.
EIGHT
Playing: “To Die For” by Sam Smith
“Unfortunately, you were right,”I say after I swallow my last bite and reach for a napkin to wipe my hands. “You did know the best place to order my obscure pizza choice.”
Kit lets out a quiet laugh, his mouth full. Once his mouth is free, he gives me an exasperated look. “Unfortunately? You wanted me to order somewhere bad?”
I playfully scrunch up my nose. “Call it a weird character quirk. I wanted the place I order from to be the best.”
Between the best pizza I’ve ever eaten in my life and the comfort ofOne Pieceon in the background, my body finally starts to relax. Even with the combination of my scent matches lingering in the air, there’s a buzz in my bones as I recline, letting the fig jam and cheese settle happily in my stomach.
Kit got his own pizza, a meat lovers with hot honey. He finishes his last slice, closes our separate boxes, and steps awayto put them in the fridge. His scent doesn’t dissipate, but it doesn’t make me as skittish as it did when I first arrived. The force of it was so overwhelming that it tempted a flare-up, and I desperately didn’t want that, not in front of Rory and Stacia. My omega keeps taunting me for practically pushing him away, but having him so close and so potent can’t be good for the hormones that I’m trying to keep at bay.
Still, I can’t help being near him. He’s a force of bubbly energy. Someone with both cool and nerdy attributes, making him a complete enigma to me. I have never had a cool bone in my body, so being near him is electric, even though his scent consistently reminds me of the predicament I’m in.
He steps back into the living room and claps his hands a tiny bit too loudly. “Okay, time for the house tour. I should have given you one earlier. I apologize for being a shitty host.”
My lip goes between my teeth without thinking, anxiousness mixing in with my guilt as I say, “No, it’s okay. I wasn’t being a very good new roommate, either.”
“Hey, don’t say that,” he scolds me. “It wasn’t your job, it was mine. So now I’m going to rectify that. Let’s go.”
He leads me down the hallway, past my room and the hallway closet that I’ve already discovered. He shows me the bathroom in the hall, which has a full bath and shower. There’s a simple sage shower curtain, and the counter is impeccably organized. “I love my pack, but they’re not allowed in this bathroom. Call it an omega perk, but it’s ours now. So don’t worry about any of the alpha pheromones messing up our stuff. I have bath bombs by the pile down here.” He shows me the basket full of plastic-wrapped balls beside the tub. “Use them anytime you want. I buy a ton of them.”
Something about that causes my heart to stutter. I keep forgetting that we’re both omegas, but this is a firm reminder. We both desire self-care and time to ourselves. Weboth wish to have a bathroom to ourselves, and now we’re sharing one. “I don’t want to commandeer your space,” I say, realizing that I’ll be taking over the one place he has to himself.
He arches his brow at me. “What? No! It’s okay! I told them you could share it with me. I don’t mind at all.”
“But—”
“Opal,” he warns, giving me a serious expression that looks both foreign and really hot on his face. “If I ever change my mind, I will tell you. But I am being truthful, I promise. Okay?”
I nod because I don’t know what else to say. Also, I am having conflicted feelings about being talked to so sternly by another omega. Is it because he’s my scent match? I think I may need to ask him to leave the facility for a second so I can puke up my nerves in the toilet.
When I don’t say anything else, he takes a step forward. I startle as he takes my hand, my breath hitching as he softly brushes his thumb back and forth. “If you ever feel uncomfortable, please tell me. I will try to make it right.”
After a moment of thinking about it, I let out a sigh. “Fine. But Kit, I’m being serious. As another omega, I understand how we are. I know you want to help me, but I want your omega to have his space, okay?”
The smile that blooms on his face is cheeky, but also a bit shy. “Trust me, Opal. My omega has a lot to say about you being here, and none of it has to do with you going away.”
A sharp inhale sounds from somewhere, and I realize too late that it came from me. He squeezes my hand slightly, the look on his face impossible to interpret as he looks down and says, “You’re trying to take care of my omega, but I’m trying to take care of yours. We want the same thing. Let me give you what you need, okay? And I promise if anything changes, you will be thefirstto know.”
I gulp slightly at the still-close proximity of our faces, but I still manage a nod of confirmation. “Deal.”
I let him pull me out into the hallway. My skin tingles where his touch lingers just before he drops his hand from mine. I take a breath once more, but it’s bittersweet. My omega and I both long for him to touch me again, even the slightest bit.
“Alright,” he says, and I realize he was watching me as I went through a rollercoaster of emotion. His jaw tenses slightly, the movement confusing me until he diverts my attention to the stairs just off to the side of the bathroom door. “Let me show you upstairs.”
