I swing around on the chair and stand in front of him, blocking his path. “I’m not that sure, but that’s for me to work out. You were getting everything out for breakfast, so why don’t you keep doing that. If Joker and Rhodes are here, I’m not terribly fazed if we ask Hayes and Talon in, are you? I think they’re pretty fucking stupid coming here, but hey, I’m also busting to know why they think they have the right to be here at this time in the morning.”
Rhodes waits for my answer. And Puck searches my face for more too.
“Puck, give your hoodie to Rhodes for him to hold.” I smile sweetly. In my head it makes sense, but now I say it, I really don’t know what I was thinking.
Puck doesn’t say a word or move a muscle. He just keeps staring at me, and it’s completely unnerving. I go to say something, but he interrupts me, and then he screws up my earlier assumption that he’s being tentative in our reunion as we get to know each other again.
“Fuck off, Rhodes. Go do your thing. It looks like Raney and I need to chat,” Puck barks out. His voice isn’t loud but there’s no misconstruing the expectation that comes from an alpha giving a command.
Rhodes looks to me, and I smile as I answer. “It’s good, we won’t be a second.” He walks off but stays close.
Puck doesn’t move a muscle, and somehow, he purposely slows everything down, acting as if we’ve got all the time in the world. And we do.
“Does Koz like you telling him what to do?” He asks quietly once we’re alone. There’s a hardness to his voice, similar to the tone Koz gets when he’s dancing the fine line of being an alphahole and being a gentleman.
Puck stays leaning against the fridge, waiting for an answer, his eyebrows hovering high suggestively but also with a hint of… predatory entitlement peeking through. My head is immediately full of visuals of a lion stalking his lioness, or a sweet gazelle, to devour. Both work. Definitely both work.
As he waits, he scents the air. I look at him stunned, wondering if he caught onto my thoughts telepathically about him being a lion or if it’s our bond. He keeps watching me closely, while a thick heady cloud of his rain scent floods the kitchen. A smug as fuck smile changes his face when I have to grab a hold of the bench so I don’t slide off my chair as I keep getting hit by his scent.
I don’t need a mirror to know how I look. I can feel the way my body responds to him; a rush of energy races all the way up my spine, while goosebumps dance over my skin.
“I’m glad I woke you up, it saved me the time because I was coming over anyway. Make no mistake about my intentions. I spent all night talking with Joker about my freak out last night. Seeing you, hearing you talk about those forms stirred up a shit load of feelings inside me, about a whole fucking lot too. But it doesn’t change anything between us, and you yourself already know that.”
Puck maintains this really calm, and insanely confident way of talking, not rushing out what he wants to say for the sake of our waiting visitors. In all honesty, I’m thrilled he’s taking his time. The world can fucking wait. Right here, right now I’m getting some answers, some understanding about him. I think. He’s got me all thrown for a loop being as direct as he is but it’s such a good loop.
Puck takes a few slow deep drags of the air, sniffing it in and closing his eyes. A slow smirk pulls his lips up, as he opens his again. Even over the distance that separates us, you can’t miss the different light in his blue eyes, or maybe that’s what resolution looks like. He’s got all my attention, that’s for sure.
“I made the decision I’m not letting you go so easily this time. If our connection burns out, so be it.” He holds my gaze with his. “But it won’t”.
“And I have no say in the matter?”
His lips draw up more, but he ruins my underwear when he bites his lip before answering in a deep husky voice. “I mean, you can argue all you like, but you respond to me on a baser level, Raney. You always did and nothing is going to change that.”
“I’m not the same person.” I argue futilely. For some fucking reason I think I have to argue this.
His eyes flick to the omega package sitting on the kitchen bench between us, before his eyes inch slowly up my body, like really fucking excruciatingly slowly until they settle on my face again. And Puck doesn’t hide his reaction either; his eyes hood and even without me directly looking at his dick he pulls my attention down to it as he squeezes himself. Good god, Koz and him share the same cocky confidence, and yeah, it’s my weakness.
“I’m not the same person I was either, Raney. King kept us separated for a reason, but now we’re both here again, I want you to know I’m not going anywhere. And… I’ll be doing everything possible so you understand that in time I will be calling you mine again.”
I gulp. Or perhaps it’s one of those breathy moans. I hide it, or I think I do with the first thing that pops into my head, “I thought you were leaving today.”
Instead of slowing him down, it feeds him. He chuckles under his breath, and his happiness oozes off him. “Makes me feel almost indestructible knowing you were talking about me and also remembering I was going. Confirmation again of how right we are. And you’re right I was going, but you changed all that. I’ve spoken to Coach and I’ve been given special consideration, because our time is now, Raney. Nothing will stop us from happening.”
Behind me, I hear hammering at the front door. Joker’s always been pretty fucking impatient, so it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out he wants in.
“Rhodes.” I go to say more but the man disappears and a second later, I can hear his dismissive shut down on the dramatics at the door. Instead of returning, he stays down there.
“What about Koz?” I ask Puck.
“What about him? He knew you were coming here. The boys told me last night a little bit about you two.”
I huff a very unimpressed laugh.
“Don’t worry, your uncles are just as protective as they’ve always been. It doesn’t change anything. You get that? You being with him, King doing what he did, none of it matters except you and I are together again for a reason.”
“And what about me being an omega?”
He laughs, and yeah, it’s one of those deep, sexy ones before he all but purrs at me. “My guess is, that is just going to give us the reason why we make perfect sense, Raney. And always have.”
