“There’s no pressure, omega,” Cass says carefully, watching her reaction. “If you want to call your family, you can. And if you don’t, that’s okay too.”
Tansy nods, her soft brown eyes locked on the blanket in her lap. When she finally speaks, it’s a weak, “Thank you.” She shifts, letting go of the blanket. “I don’t think I want to call them right now.”
My jaw tightens as my mind races.
They hurt her.
It’s the only fucking thing that makes sense.
I can see it in the way she folds in on herself. The way her gaze drops, locked on the blanket like it’s safer than looking up. That’s not the reaction of someone who misses home. That’s the reaction of someone who learned the hard way that home isn’t safe.
“Of course,” Cass says softly. “It’s getting late. How about a bath before bedtime?”
Tansy nods again before pushing herself onto her feet.
The blanket slips from her lap as she stands, fallingback into the nest in a soft heap. She doesn’t look at me. Doesn’t look anywhere except at the floor as she walks toward Cass, her shoulders drawn in tight.
Cass shifts his cane to one side and reaches for her without hesitation, steadying her with a hand at her elbow. She leans into him immediately, small and tired.
“Grason,” he says softly, like he’s scared of scaring Tansy. “Run her bathwater.”
It takes half a second for it to register.
Oh. Right.
The bath.
“Shit,” I mutter under my breath, blinking like I’ve just been woken up.I completely forgot that was on me.“I’ll be right there.”
Cass gives me a tight smile, silently telling me not to take too long, then turns his attention back to Tansy. She’s still not looking at anyone. Her shoulders are tucked in, posture small with exhaustion.
“Come on,” he murmurs, his hand settling at the small of her back. “It’s been a long day.”
They leave together, the quiet tap of his cane and her soft footsteps fading down the hall.
I stand there for a beat longer than necessary, surrounded by the quiet hum of everything I built for her. I stare at the blanket she dropped, still warm where her hands were touching it, and my chest tightens until it almost hurts.
Whoever broke her before will fucking pay for what they did.
And I will tear the world apart before I let them hurt her again.
Cass’s Bedroom
Tansy
I wake up slowly,a heavy warmth pressing against my back. It’s still dark, the room bathed in the soft, pre-dawn gray that filters through the curtains. I’m on my side, and Cass is curled around me, his body a solid, warm wall all along my spine. One of his arms drapes heavily over my hip, holding me in place.
And he’s inside me.
His hips move in a slow, deep rhythm, a lazy, possessive thrusting that sends little shudders of pleasure through my sleepy body. He’s not fucking me hard, not like he did during my heat. This is different.
This is slow.
Intimate.
His breath is warm against the back of my neck, and every time he pushes into me, a soft groan rumbles in his chest.
My own body responds automatically, arching back into him, a soft breath escaping my lips as pleasure builds, slow and inevitable. I should be scared, or maybe even angry. But all I can do is lie here and take it, my body melting into his as he claims me all over again.
