“If giving in will make you happy? Absolutely. What was it you told me? Don’t prevent yourself from happiness today to avoid future pain?”
“Close enough.” I nod.
Don’t let the fear of future pain stop you from being happy now.
“No time like the present.” Tatum giggles as her Omega mate launches across the seat and drags her into his lap, done listening.
Beau apparently took notes from his fellow male Omega, because he’s dodging Thor’s hold and slinking to me in seconds.
“That was too long,” Beau whines, latching onto me like an octopus. “You can keep talking. I won’t distract you, promise.”
Contradicting himself immediately, he drops a heated palm to my thigh and drags it up, up, up until he’s gripping my bare hip. I have to bite down on my bottom lip so I don’t moan.
Fuck, his touch is like gasoline on the fire inside me.
“This dress was a beautiful choice. Really putting that cock block in my pants to work.”
“It’s not a cockblock; it keeps your boner contained so you aren’t waving your flagpole at everyone in the room,” I hiss, shaking my head at him.
“Well, it feels like a jockstrap made of evil.” Beau shifts his hips side to side, wincing.
“Beau, your scent is different. You stop your injections or whatever stuff makes you all fake Beta?” Easton asks over Tatum’s head as he eyeballs the man currently trying to turn my brain to jelly with his rogue hand on my skin.
“No. They’re monthly,” Beau murmurs, full attention on me. He doesn’t even look over at East. “Dad shows up with his guys, pins me down, and shoots them in. Always on the thirtieth.” My heart goes from racing to cold as ice.
“Beau. That's in ten days.” He blinks at me, then frowns, eyes narrowed.
“No. Don’t look at me like that. I’ll be fine. He can’t hurt me ever again, remember? That means I’m not getting another shot ever again.” Beau doesn’t move until I agree.
I thought we’d have more than ten days. No more injections is good, but if we can’t disable his kill switch, then I have no idea how much time we’ll have after those ten days to figure it out.
“He’s burning through the last shot,” East says with a shrug. “Last time he was here, he smelled like disinfectant. Now he’s more…fake fruit-scented and less floor polish. Probably their fault.” East points to the Alphas.
Whatever conversation they’re having with Declan isn’t enough to keep their eyes off Beau and me. All three of them have been looking over here every other second.
“Probably you as well, considering your scent is…” Easton makes a face like he’s disgusted and fails to be polite about it. “Very potent, even with the blockers being pumped into the air.”
He buries his nose in Tatum’s hair, no doubt trying to escape my scent.
“You think my scent is affecting his system? Making him burn through the meds?”
“Omegas that share a pack often heat sync. Especially if they’re compatible. Like Tatum and I.”
“Maybe.” Beau shrugs, unbothered. “I feel more like myself than I have in six years. I’m not fighting it. If her scent is waking up all my Omega instincts, then I don’t care at all, as long as I have her.”
He licks my neck to really drive home his point, and my scent plumes as if to agree.
Our hormones can be overwhelming. Pheromones make Omegas crave knots and nests and all kinds of things. Typically one of those things isn’t another Omega, but Tatum and Easton are proof that it happens.
Unless we’re deep in our heat, we aren’t going to accept any ol’ knot. Our pheromones can do some wild shit, but they aren’t going to make me want Beau against my will. Or make Beau want me against his.
Which means, even if Beau’s Omega instincts are riding him in a way he’s never felt, his desire for me is real.
“He might spike hard, maybe several times before his heat starts, and it’s probably going to last for a really long time. Way longer than a normal pre-heat.” Tatum winces, snapping our full attention to her. “And his heat? You should probably think about arranging a room at ABO Care. Or even here, if you’d be more comfortable.”
“You’ve got ten days at best,” Easton adds, looking at Beau with more sympathy than I have ever seen on his face. Ever. That, more than anything, makes the blood in my veins turn to ice. “Better get those three ready to handle an Omega begging for a bond bite. If they’re anything like ours—shit, they caved before we even started begging.”
“That’s not…” Tatum glares at her mischievous mate. “We never begged because we didn’t get that far. We already wanted to be a pack. Don’t say it like that, Easton.”
