I closed my eyes, making sure I didn't shift in anger. The quicker his knot released, the quicker I could get the fuck out of here.
I wasn't sure how long I was lying there before he finally released me. As soon as I felt that room to get out, I pulled from him and scurried out of his room.
When I clicked Marcus' door shut, the house was quiet and dark. No one knew what had just happened, that I had bonded with Marcus, of all people.
I tiptoed back to the bathroom and got in the shower, scrubbing my body of his scent. At this point, I wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry. Though I ended up doing neither, feeling too numb for it all.
Once I was pretty sure most of his scent was gone, I went back into the room. Eva was still there, sleeping as if my entire world hadn't shifted on its head. I wanted to be annoyed with her, but even I knew that wouldn't be fair.
Feeling deflated, I crawled into bed. As soon as I did, she put her arms around me and pulled me close. Even in her sleep, it seemed that she knew exactly what I needed.
An unpleasant slitheringin my stomach was my only companion when I finally managed to peel myself from the safety of my covers. It felt a bit like hangxiety, a crawling under my skin that I usually associated with drinking too much and remembering too little. But I hadn't been drinking the night before, and there weren't any gaps in my memory… justguilt.
Fine, maybe a little bit of anger, too. It wasn't every day that you sank your teeth into an alpha, and he mumbled the name of your girlfriend damn near immediately after.
Eva and Indi had started their days ages ago, but I couldn't face either of them. I could barely face myself, shying away from my reflection in the mirror as I brushed my teeth. Just because I felt like garbage didn't mean that I needed to treat myself like it. Getting up to do my morning routine, even if it was midway through the day, was scraping the bottom of the barrel as far as self-care was concerned, but it was about all that I could manage for right now.
And that was just going to have to be okay.
The dread permeating my thoughts, tinging everything into a lackluster fisheye of sepia tones, seemed to increase over time, glazing over everything else like a heavy fog.
Oh.
The realization hit me hard, first because I'd half-hoped to forget about the entire thing, to write it off as some omega hormone-induced nightmare that wouldn't have lasting consequences on my life. And second, because I realized that the feelings weren't my own. Sure, I felt a little anxious. I was even a little guilty, but it was nothing in comparison to the tidal wave of mixed emotions that was coming from Marcus' end of the bond.
It didn't take much effort, like reaching out a hand to stroke down your partner's arm while watching a movie, to find the thread connecting us, plucking at the taut line to remind the alpha that I was there.
No response.
If I were a smarter man, I probably would've recognized the mix of emotions was—a flashing neon light to warn me away. That he was upset, or processing, or doing whatever it was that brooding, moody alphas did when they didn't get their way.
But I wasn't a smart man; I was an omega with a fresh bond and an alpha who needed to be tended to.
I spat into the sink, dropping my toothbrush into the glass cup where it lived beside Indi's—something that would make Cameo's skin crawl—and made my way to Marcus' room to knock loudly on the door.
No answer.
I tried again.
"This is so fucking petty, Marcus. Let me in. I can help."
Bonds were tricky the first twenty-four hours after they were made, and I'd already been pretty fucking selfish by storming out last night. Though… He could've come after me.
Maybe hedidwish it were Eva instead.
Maybe, and this thought was almost as painful as the broken bond hidden beneath my tattoo, he didn't want meat all.
I banged on the door harder, so heavily that the wood rattled in the frame. Still nothing.
"Fine, alpha! Remember that you asked for this." I snapped, gripping the handle to give it a turn and nearly stumbling into the room from the unneeded force I'd used to open the door.
Entering Marcus' room without permission was a huge no-no, but I was so angry and bondsick that I was willing to deal with the consequences. Except… Marcus wasn't there to scold me for barging into his space.
No one was.
The bed was neatly made, not a thing out of place, as though the night before hadn't happened at all.
Well, except for the slightly askew lampshade from its descent onto the floor. It was a miracle the entire thing didn't shatter in the first place, but seeing it sitting there as if nothing had happened…
