“You do?” I know I shouldn’t care, but I do. Why does winning Calder’s trust suddenly feel so important?
“Tell me a secret, Kady.” The atmosphere thickens, like I’m starting some kind of test. “Something about you no one else knows.”
“Is this supposed to be some kind of new work training?” He’s my boss. So his question isn’t inappropriate, right?
He steps closer, eyes shining as his zesty lemon scent engulfs me. The tingling blooming between my thighs feels anything but professional.
“Humor me.”
I swallow hard, tearing my eyes away from how his shirt stretches over his pecs before taking the leap. “I guess I’m not very good at art. I can’t draw.”
“That’s the best you have?” The temperature in the room seems to spike when he steps even closer. “You can do better than that.”
“I don’t know what you want me to say.” I force myself not to stare at his lips, only inches between us now. So close that my omega instincts are rattling their cage, making me forget that I’m at work and wanting to burrow into his shirt to breathe him in.
“Tell me how you feel about my pack.” Calder’s voice is huskier than usual. “How you really feel.”
I feel like I’m under a microscope from the way he looks at me. How do I describe how being in their presence makes my stomach all fluttery? How their scents—especially when combined—cause me to feel things that I haven’t before? That sleeping with Ezra and Hale was unlike any of my previous rendezvous with other alphas, and that I don’t want to go through another heat without them? And how the whole thing is so damn infuriating because I never wanted to find a pack.
I roll my shoulders, taking a few seconds to collect my thoughts. “I mean, I like you all.”
That sounds okay, doesn’t it?
He smirks. “You like us?”
“You’ve helped me out more than once,” I add. “All of you have.”
His gaze probes me. “You know that’s not what I’m asking Kady.”
I can barely hear him over the blood pounding against my eardrums.
“What do you want me to say, Calder?” My words come out in a choked burst as he steps closer again.
When he places a muscled arm on either side of my hips, boxing me in against the desk, my heart hitches, craving the feeling of his skin on mine.
“I want you to tell me the truth.” His whisper has my toes curling in delight. “How do you really feel about us?”
He gently takes a strand of my hair between two fingers, stroking it delicately before tucking it behind my ear. As he pulls away, his hand brushes against my cheek, and my knees go weak. His fingers against my skin make me want to purr, but I don’t react, quashing my instincts.
“I feel…” Looking up into his face, I grind my molars to stop words I may regret from tumbling out my mouth—the admission of what I think our connection may mean. Since I met them, I’ve been living in denial, ignoring what my body is telling me. However, if I voice my theory out loud, it’s like I’m willing it into existence.
Scent match.
Chills rushed through me as Calder’s warm lips find my neck, his mouth gliding over my skin until it rests over my scent glands. I perfume, unable to stop it, my entire body vibrating as he licks across my sensitive point.
“Tell me.” He slowly slides a hand under my skirt.
With his citrus and driftwood scent blanketing me, I feel dizzy, unencumbered. Free.
“I…”
His hand glides higher, tickling my inner thigh as it continues upwards, then I push my hips into him as his finger strokes the wet patch drenching my thin panties.
“So much slick,” he hums. “Are you going to tell me the truth now, or am I going to have to coax it out of you?”
My knees tremble, backed against the desk as I jut my hips into him more forcefully. “Is this how you usually coax the truth out of your sources?”
I gasp as he hooks a finger beneath my underwear and strokes my pussy. His thick finger skates between my folds, massaging my wetness before nudging a finger inside me. A strangled moan escapes my lips as I fight to remain composed.
