Finally!
And it wasn’t just sex. It wasrearranged-my-organs, saw-the-stars, might’ve-accidentally-mated-without-a-bitekind of sex. It felt like coming home. Like my body had been holding its breath for years and finally exhaled. So many years of being denied the one thing my body is designed to crave like air.
Every time my thoughts start drifting to him... them... the dangerous little dream ofus,I snap a hair tie on my wrist just to jolt myself back to reality. I’ve already broken three today.
But honestly? How am I meant to focus when my whole body’s still humming with the memory of his hands…his knot.
Rut-damn.
If I’d known it’d feelthatgood, I would’ve sat on his cock the day we met in the hospital.
No fingers, no toy, no eager Beta dick haseverhit my O-spot like that. Not even close.
And yeah… I’m a little obsessed.
I wonder how it felt for him.
Sadness creeps back in and I frown at the batteries I’m counting.
Viper must feel so rejected right now. We had ground-shaking, mind-blowing sex. He declares his undying love and… I disappear. Again.
‘Wham-bam-thank-you-LT.’
Shade seemed so pissed off with him, maybe the others have punished him. That’s peak Prime Asshole Knox behavior.
I spend the whole day in a fog, bouncing between panic and pathetic daydreams. I jump at every sound, screw up inventoryreports, and can’t get warm. I’m not just cold because the howling winds creep through gaps in the stonework, it’s because my Omega is mourning the loss of the heat our Alpha should have us wrapped up in. I should be curled up with my Alpha, face buried in the warm wall of Viper’s chest, not hiding from him like some half-frozen ghoul in a supply closet.
Finally, I resign myself to attempting sleep once more.
I’m tired from fighting myself all day, and I’m looking forward to passing out.
I trudge back to the room I occupy in Everlyn and Jason’s space. It’s not comfortable, or home, but at least it’s close to family.
I’ve gotten decent at nesting with next to nothing. A single blanket, one pillow. It’s not ideal, and my inner Omega grumbles about the lack of soft, plush everything, but she lets it go. Barely. The Omega Division didn’t get much right, but at least they respected the sanctity of a good nest.
I cut through the courtyard, slogging through half-frozen slush to avoid a drill instructor barking at a squad of exhausted soldiers.
I can avoid talking to Viper and the squad forever… Right?
Chapter Eighteen
Halley
"Halley?" Everlyn's voice calls down the hallway as I close the door. The apartment is blessedly warm and my cheeks prickle as they defrost.
I hid again today. Stuffed myself back in my storeroom and didn’t poke my head out even once.
Cowardly? Maybe. Necessary? Absolutely.
But I could still smell them.
The Pack.
Their scent wafted in every time a soldier opened the door to collect gear. It clung to the air, and each inhale felt like rubbing salt into something that’s struggling to scab over.
There was also a constant feeling of being… watched. A hot press of eyes on the back of my neck, but every time I spun around to catch whoever was creeping? Nothing. Just boxes and shelves and my own reflection in a dented steel cabinet door, looking flushed and guilty.
There is a delicious smell of roast meat permeating the air of our shared accommodation, and my stomach rumbles in anticipation. I love it when Jason brings food back from the mess hall. It’s never piping hot, but on days like today when I can’t face the world, the lukewarm meals taste like luxury.
