He offers me a single nod, still not meeting my eyes.
“Of course I’ll be yours!” I throw my arms around him andbury my face in his neck, soaking in his intense scent of leather and iron. “You don’t have to thank me for talking to you. And you’re not a monster.”
His arms band around my slight frame, holding me like he never wants to let go. Clinging to me like I’m his lifeline.
“I’m so glad to hear that you’re mine,” I whisper. “I know the whole bonding thing with my last heat must bother you a little bit, but I choose you, too.”
He leans back and grabs something off the bed. I pull away from the hug to see him scrawling something else on a notepad.
You’ll wear my bite too?
“Of course I will,” I nod. “I think we’ll have to wait until my next heat, but it’s going to happen, I promise!”
His lips quirk upwards, and I freeze in his lap, tentatively reaching out to brush my fingertips against the corner of his mouth. My fingers drift up a little higher to brush against his scar before cupping the side of his face.
“I like it when you smile. You have a pretty one.”
He shakes his head before lowering it and scrawling something else on the notepad.
I’m not pretty. You are.
I flash a bright smile at him, biting my lower lip.
“You think I’m pretty?” I giggle.
“Rage’s got a fucked up eye, but he’s not blind,” Ash huffs from behind me. His arms are crossed over his chest, and he’s wearing a satisfied smirk of his own on his face. Like he’s happy to see Rage and me talk.
Well, I guess technically I talk to Rage and Rage writes to me.
“You guys are so sweet,” I say, shaking my head. “I feel gross, though. I want to learn how to do my makeup like Roxie one day. I’ve never had the opportunity to learn.”
“We’ll buy you all the makeup you want when we earn some more money,” Griffin says, glancing upfrom his phone.
“We’ll get you everything you could ever want,” Rowan murmurs softly.
I glance over at him and see that his eyes are closed.
“You guys don’t have to, I have everything I need,” I say.
“That just makes us want to spoil you more,” Griffin says, flashing me a toothy smile.
I would be lying if I said that didn’t make my inner omega preen. I know because of the way I was raised in that facility that my understanding of what freedom in the real world even entails is just the start. We’re free.
The idea honestly makes me terrified. What are the rules now?
“I’m gonna rest for a bit,” Rowan sighs. “Wake me up when the pizza gets here.”
“Pizza?” I ask, drawn from my thoughts at the mention of food. “I like pizza.”
“You’ll like the ones we ordered even more, Sugar,” Rowan murmurs softly. “Pizza delivery doesn’t compete with the cheap frozen pizzas I had.”
“Before that, though,” Ash says, his voice pitched low as he steps up behind me and wraps an arm around my waist. “We should get you all cleaned up. You said you feel gross, right?”
“Yeah, that’s probably a good idea,” I say before leaning down and brushing a soft kiss against Rage’s lips. “I’ll be back, okay? Then we can talk more! I’m so excited that we have a way to communicate now.”
He offers me one of his signature nods before Ash pulls me away, walking me to the bathroom.
“Don’t take too long in there, man,” Griffin calls out. “Mirabelle needs her rest.”
