Kaelen bracketed my hips and walked me back into the wall. I swallowed a lungful of air, the room getting small too quickly. My vision tunneled on him, my palms splaying across his chest and tracing the taut lines of muscle.
His nose trailed over my pulse, making my breath catch. Was he going to scent-mark me? When his teeth grazed the thin skin near my ear, I mewled. A powerful voice was over me, and pleasure coiled in my belly, slick sticking to my thighs.
“He’s lucky I didn’t slit him ear to ear. I showed a mercy I am not known for.”
“Why?” I asked.
For a moment, he froze, his hands slipping up to my waist as he stroked the jut of my hips. Indecision flashed in his gaze, a vein pulsing in his neck.
“Business,” he mumbled. “I promised someone I wouldn’t kill him.”
“Good to know your word means something.”
“It is everything,” he said, his voice raspy and strained. “You’re everything. Precious. Pretty. Strong.”
All the air was sucked out of the room, the space between us charged with an electrifying current by his declaration. I was not on the verge of heat. My pheromones weren’t clouding his or my judgment. Every nerve in my body crackled with a sudden, surprising energy.
Warm breath fanned over my lips, his mouth hovering abovemine. A desperate longing curled around my heart, my omega yearning for me to relinquish control, to give in to an alpha. An alpha I could trust. A frigid dread seeped into my bones, whispering warnings, pushing all my fears to the surface.
About to push him away, his hands covered mine. His beard brushed against my face, his lips resting on the corner of my mouth.
“Tell me to stop, mo chroí.”
My retort died, burrowing into the depths with all my worst fears. I squashed them down, wanting to bathe in his scent and the beautiful burning sensation that he elicited inside me. My fingers closed around the collar of his shirt, daring to tug him closer. A wide grin split across his lips.
“Don’t,” I whispered, his breath mingling with mine. “Please. Kaelen.Alpha.”
My omega crawled to the surface. So often, I brushed her aside, not wanting to give in to her. I liked to pretend she didn’t exist. But for once I wanted to give in to my omega, to Kaelen, and trust an alpha to care for me.
I was tired of doing it on my own.
Two hands cradled my face, so soft, I almost forgot who Kaelen was and what those hands were capable of. He tipped my head back as his lips brushed mine. I braced myself for something demanding, something that mirrored the unyielding way he carried himself, but the press of his lips against mine was unexpectedly gentle.
It was a tender exploration as his tongue coaxed my mouth open, sending a tremor through my small frame. His hands fell to my waist, anchoring me, like he was afraid I’d float away.
A long, shaky exhale fell from me, and fingers dug into me more. His tongue licked inside, deepening the kiss.
“My Willow,” he whispered, holding me close.
He tasted of chocolate and whisky, pure decadence on my tongue. It wasn’t the forceful claim I expected. It was something far more disarming, something that stirred feelings inside me I didn’t know existed.
I bucked my hips forward, moaning when his dick rubbed against my thighs. It had been over a year since I had slept with anyone, and never an alpha. Slick coated my legs, imagining hisknot. Teeth dug into the swell of my lip, nipping before he pulled away with a restrained hiss.
Labored breaths heaved in his chest, his eyes pure obsidian. My fingers trailed over my swollen lips, a swirl of emotions making me sway.
“Easy, little omega.”
Tears pricked the corners of my eyes, the ice from earlier encasing my heart and closing me off. I should have listened. I should have run.
This was a mistake.
“You don’t want me?” I murmured, hope splintering as icy fear eclipsed the delicious heat from only moments ago.
“No. Shite,” he hissed, stealing a brief, bruising kiss. “Are you mad? Of course, I want you. You’remine. But I want to savor you. Worship you. Court you. I won’t treat you like some whore.”
As if to punctuate his point, his stubbled cheek brushed against mine, something between a purr and a growl lodging in his throat. I melted in his hold, going lax as he marked me with his scent. I sighed, nudging my cheek against his to return the motion.
His fingers slid through my hair, gripping the strands.
