At first, his brow furrows, confusion flickering across his face like he’s trying to figure out why I’m looking at him. His lips part as if he’s about to say something to me, but then he clearly thinks better of it.
I narrow my eyes a fraction more, drilling all my rage into the fucker, and that makes his smile completely fall.
Pace’s easy posture falters, and he shifts his weight, taking a small step back, hiding on the other side of Beck.
Fucking asshole.
The physical therapist tucks her tablet under her arm, before turning to Cass. “Today is just an assessment,” she says evenly. “We’ll focus on range of motion and stability. No pushing through sharp pain. I want to see how the joint responds, then we’ll build a plan around strength and mobility over the next few weeks.”
Cass nods once. “Understood.” His tone is polite enough, but his expression is simmering with fury.
Overhead, the landing creaks once, and I turn toward the stairs.
Tansy.
The omega comes down the stairs slowly, one hand grazing the railing. Her long hair is damp from the shower, set in a thick braid down her back. It’s wild at the edges, dark red curls already escaping near her temples. She’s wearing Cass’s clothes. A dark purple T-shirt that hangs loose around her shoulders and soft gray sweatpants that are cuffed at her ankles.
She reaches the bottom of the stairs and stops right next to me. “Good morning, Warren,” she says softly.
I simply stare at her.
She’s fucking gorgeous.
Every inch of her.
Her soft face with blushing cheeks. There’s still a bruise from the mating bite on her neck. The way she looks rested and warm and very real, standing in the middle of our house.
But my mind betrays me, snagging on what I saw in Cass’s room this morning.
I see Tansy’s naked, flushed body. Her skin gleaming with a sheen of sweat. Cass was locked inside her from behind, his hand possessively gripping one full breast. All I can think about is his hips flush against her ass as he pulsed inside her.
The memory of their combined scent, of her soft cry and his guttural groan, floods my senses. My own body responds instantly, a hot, sharp pulse of arousal that makes my dress slacks suddenly feel too tight.
And then she moaned…
"Warren?" Tansy whispers my name, jerking me out of my memory like a slap.
I blink, and the image in my mind shatters, replaced by Tansy’s concerned eyes staring right at me. Her bottom lip is so puffy and pink. I wonder what it would looklike wrapped around my cock, swollen and glistening as she looked up at me with those wide, innocent eyes.
“Are you okay?” she asks.
I clear my throat, my voice rougher than I intended. “I slept great.” I grimace almost immediately, realizing she didn't ask me how I was doing. "I mean, good morning,” I say, praying I sound at least halfway normal.
Tansy’s full lips curve upward, giving me a small, amused smile. Then she turns away and walks past me toward the others, braid swaying gently against her back.
The moment she walks off, the air shifts.
I draw in a breath before I can stop myself and get hit with her heavenly scent. Earthy and warm, like sunbaked soil and wild honey, wrapped tight in Cass’s smoky amber. Alpha over omega. Deliberate and heavy.
My lungs lock for half a second as I suck in another deep breath.
I understand why he’s doing it. I really do. Soaking an omega in your scent helps forge a fast and strong bond. But fuck, I wish he wouldn't.
The combination of the two aromas swirling together is fucking with my head.
It’s a maddening, perfect blend of wild sweetness and possessive fire, and it’s doing things to my alpha instincts that I’m having a hell of a time trying to ignore.
Determined not to fall apart, I lock my arms tighter across my chest, shoulders stiffening as I force myself to stay right where I am.
