My breath catches. I know what this feeling is. I can’t pretend not to. The slow, familiar warmth pooling low in my abdomen tells me my heat is beginning to stir, like the first flicker of a flame. It’s not in full force yet, but I feel it creeping in, a slow, pulsing ache that spreads through my body.
Dean murmurs again in his sleep, his lips still at my neck, pressing soft, barely-there kisses that only intensify the heat building inside me. The problem is... he’s not even awake. He has no idea what he's doing or how he’s making me feel. It’s not like he's trying to provoke this—it’s just him in his most unguarded state. And maybe that’s why it hits me so hard, why the need I’ve been suppressing surges up so sharply.
My heat isn’t something I can control. I know that. I’ve always known that. It’s the one thing about being an omega that I can’t shut off with sarcasm or walls. It comes when it wants, and when it does, it consumes everything. No matter how much I try to push it down, need will rise up and take over, turning me into something mindless, desperate.
Like that first time. I’ve never allowed myself to get that needy again. Always checking myself into heat clinics to ride it out with a random alpha who volunteered.
I have to get out of here.
My perfume blooms, seeping out of me at the same time slick starts to coat my ass. And my cock strains against my sweats.
Dean’s lips graze my neck again, and the ache in my stomach sharpens. My breath comes in shallow pants as heat spreads, making my skin prickle and my muscles tense. It’s too much—if I don’t move now, I won’t be able to stop myself. And the last thing I want is to lose control with all of them tangled around me, still asleep, unaware of the storm brewing inside me.
I need to get away.
Carefully, I begin to untangle myself from the pile of bodies. Lakelyn’s arm is draped over my chest, her warmth pressing into my side, and Mason’s heavy leg is thrown over both of us as if, even in sleep, none of them can bear to be too far from me. Dean’s hold tightens for a second, like he senses me slipping away, but I gently ease his arm off me and slide out from under the covers, careful not to wake them.
My heart races as I step out of the nest and into the cool air of my empty house. My heat flares at the sudden loss of their warmth, a sharp contrast to the dark, quiet space around me. It feels vast and hollow without them, without the safety of their presence, but I push forward, forcing myself to put distance between us.
I stumble into the hallway, leaning against the wall as need claws at me, relentless and demanding. My whole body feels like it’s burning from the inside out, and I press my palm to my stomach, trying to steady myself, but it’s no use. My heat is here, and it’s only going to get worse.
I grit my teeth, breathing hard. Only alphas can ease it. That’s the truth of it. Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t make this go away on my own. But I’m not ready for that yet. Not ready to ask for what I need. Not ready to submit, not when everything inside me is screaming to run, to hide.
I make my way downstairs, the shadows pressing in, closing around me like they know what’s coming—like they’re taunting me. The emptiness of the house is suffocating, even though I should find some peace in it. It’s the only thing keeping me from falling apart and running back upstairs, begging for something I know they’d give. They’d claim me, just like I want. But then, what would that mean? They’d be stuck with me, tied to me because of some primal need, and I can’t be sure if that’s what they want.
My skin burns, a fire that’s spreading faster than I can control, and I stumble into the kitchen, yanking open the freezer and pulling out the full ice tray. I clutch it in my shaking hands, making my way to the downstairs bathroom. Maybe if I cool myself down—maybe if I can stop my heat before it fully takes over—then I can keep from completely losing it.
The cold water feels like salvation as I turn on the tap and start to fill the bathtub. It’s not enough. I dump the ice in,watching the cubes float for a moment before I climb in fully clothed, sinking into the freezing water. The shock hits me like a wall, the cold biting at my skin, but it’s a welcome relief to the raging fire coursing through me.
I submerge myself, letting the icy water seep into my clothes, my hair, my skin. My body trembles, but the burning inside me is relentless. I can’t think, can’t focus. Time becomes a blur as it gnaws at me, the water doing little to slow it down. My mind drifts, slipping in and out of rational thought, my omega instincts taking over completely, driving me with overwhelming need.
I don’t know how long I’ve been in the water when I feel a strong hand on my arm, pulling me up. I gasp for air as I surface, water streaming down my face and body. Dean. His face is tight with worry, his eyes dark with something I can’t name. “What the hell are you doing, Chad?” he mutters, his voice rough, tugging me out of the tub with more force than I expect.
I shiver uncontrollably as he pulls me to my feet, my clothes soaked and clinging to my skin, the icy water dripping down onto the tile. "You're freezing," he growls, more angry than I’ve ever heard him, but beneath it, there’s a thread of something else. Something that makes my breath catch in my throat.
Dean doesn’t waste time. He strips me of my wet clothes, pulling my shirt over my head and tossing it to the floor. I’m shaking so badly that I can barely stand as he works my pants off, leaving me bare and exposed. He kneels between my legs. His hands are firm, but when his eyes flick over me, they darken, and his breathing changes—sharp, almost ragged.
My body betrays me in the worst possible way, the need that’s been building inside me roaring to the surface as soon as I’m naked. I’m rock hard, my arousal undeniable, and I can feel the pulse of it in every inch of my body, every nerve lit up with pure, aching want.
Dean’s gaze locks onto me, his nostrils flaring as he inhales. My perfume’s heavy in the room. His senses hone in on the raw, unfiltered need radiating off me, and something in him snaps. He leans forward, his breath hot against my skin, his lips brushing against the place where my arousal throbs.
I gasp, my whole body jolting at the contact, a moan escaping before I can stop it. Dean’s mouth hovers there for a second as if he's fighting against himself, but then he gives in—just for a moment—and he dares to taste me. His tongue flicks over my length, the sensation sending white-hot pleasure shooting through me. He runs it over my slit, tasting the slick forming on my tip. I groan, my head falling back, completely lost in the feeling.
The pleasure is overwhelming, tearing through me like a storm. I can’t think, can’t breathe, can’t do anything but feel as Dean’s mouth works over me with a hunger that sets every nerve in my body on fire. My fingers tighten in his hair, my hips bucking forward of their own accord. I’m so close to losing control, so close to giving in completely.
“Dean,” I gasp loudly, my voice trembling, a plea caught somewhere between desperation and surrender.
His response is a deep, possessive growl vibrating against me, and the sound nearly sends me over the edge. It’s too much—too intense—but I can’t stop. My whole body aches with need, my heat rising faster than I can keep up with. I’m teetering on the brink, ready to let go completely when?—
A dull thud fills the air.
Dean’s head jerks violently, and the next thing I know, he’s crumpling to the floor, collapsing at my feet. I fall back in shock, my legs shaking as my heart slams into my chest. I’m too disoriented to process what’s happening, the sudden cold rush of confusion freezing me in place.
And then I see her.
Jenny, standing over Dean’s fallen body, with a twisted, satisfied grin on her face. In her hand, a heavy object—one of my kitchen pans, I think—gleams under the dim light. I can barely register what I’m seeing. My mind struggles to catch up, my body still on fire with unsatisfied need while fear and anger flood my veins.
CHAPTER 42
