“I don’t need an alpha’s help.” Her response comes through clenched teeth.
“Look, I get that you’re a strong, independent woman, but you can’t think yourself out of a heat. My packmates are great guys, they’ll take good care of you. Or you could call a friend to meet you here instead?”
“I don’t want anyone else to know about this.” Her chest heaves as her breath comes in shallow bursts. “Fine, take me to your apartment. Somewhere away from campus would be best anyway.”
I swallow hard, pushing down my protective instincts to bend her over my desk to take the pain away right now.
“Are you 100 percent sure you don’t want to call anyone else?” I ask.
Fingertips itching to touch her, I jam my hands in my pockets.
“I want—need—to get away from campus, okay?” Her eyes are clamped shut, arms wrapped around her belly. “If you changed your mind, all you have to do is say so.”
“Nope, not changing my mind. Just double-checking that this is what you want.” I’m probably breaking a thousand SVU rules, but I can’t bear the thought of leaving her to suffer. “Follow me, baby girl.”
“Don’t call me that.” She issues the command, but I can tell she likes it from how her lips quirk a little at the corners and her shoulders release some of their pent-up tension despite her pain.
“This way.” I unlock, what looks to be, a storage closet and push the door open to reveal a dark, hidden passageway. The air is damp and warm, mixing with the smell of heavy blooms and dirt. “Follow me.”
After ushering her through, I close the door behind us, sealing us in our private Garden of Eden. Thankfully, there areno other professors teaching my subject, and all my teaching assistants are out in the greenhouse right now.
“Ezra?” Victoria’s trembling voice echoes through the dark, windowless tunnel, vines creeping up the sides and plant warming lights glow from above. “I…”
I can sense her lust. Her desire. I take her hand in mine, wanting to be the steady reassuring force she needs, even though it puts me in a terrible predicament.
I stroke tiny circles on the back of her hand. “I’m right here.”
“I-I don’t know if I’ll make it to the car.” Her words are muffled, like she’s talking through gritted teeth. “I need relief.”
An omega going into heat—especially one as perfect as Victoria—is any alphas’ wet dream, but I can’t help her. I shouldn’t. Yet consequences and the outside world don’t seem to matter so much now that we’re tucked away in the isolated heart of the greenhouse.
A whine escapes her lips, awakening my raw carnality.
“I shouldn’t…” Her scent catches in my throat, filling my lungs, making it impossible to resist.
“I know.” Her body is inches from mine, radiating heat like a furnace. “We shouldn’t.”
Our feet move of their own accord, like a magnet is tugging us together.
“No.” I stroke her silky hair then rest my palm against her cheek. “We can’t.”
The smell of her slick makes me dizzy.
“Ezra.” She rubs her cheek against my hand before taking my wrist, guiding my arm down. “Please.”
She slides my hand under her skirt, the organ in my chest jackhammering as my fingers graze the top of her stockings.
“Victoria—”
“Shh.” She juts out her hips, pushing against me. “Don’t speak.”
This is a bad idea.
A terrible idea.
Theworstidea.
Yet I don’t put a stop to it. I let her rock against me until she releases her grip and allows my fingers to roam free. What other choice do I have? I can’t leave her like this.
