Nothing. Nothing on the ground. Dammit!
I growled loudly, frustrating fighting with my hopeless, aching desire. I reached, grabbing at the second to last bush and tearing at it. I ripped away branches, knocked down leaves and ruined blossoms. I was ready to break the world.
But then I saw it…
A slick corner of brown that didn’t match the bush’s insides. Straining against the sharp ruin of jagged, busted branches that I’d created, I pinched the thing that didn’t belong between two fingers and began to pull. It had well and truly been jammed inside the middle of the damn bush somehow. As I pulled it lower and more into view, I found the telltale branding colors of BPS. The fuckers at Eros had used Beta Priority Shipping. Being a Beta-backed company wasn’t a fundamental issue. The fundamental fucking issue was the fact that BPS had a shit Beta Business Bureau rating, and they were the cheapest option. So, Eros had taken our millions, and they’d sent something so damn important through an unreliable shipping service.
Once again fighting my way back out from beneath bushes, I rocked back on my heels and brought the padded shipping mailer fully into view. The outside, thank fuck, was waterproof. I slicked my hand across the surface and knocked off the rain, though those drops were immediately replaced. Standing, legs shaking, I brought the package up to my face.
It smelledso goddamn good.
Lowering the envelope, hating each inch of distance, I parted my lips about to tell the others I’d found it. Yet, my throat went dry, and words escaped me. I couldn’t bring myself to speak. I wanted to enjoy the scent of her for myself just a little longer.Fuck, if Tessa’s gown smelled like this sealed inside, I couldn’t even imagine how out-of-this-world it was going to smell outside of the mailer.
“Find something?” It was Mac’s voice. I glanced to my right, lockingeyes with him. I gave him a shallow, halfhearted nod—despite every particle of my soul telling me to hide what I was holding. His eyes narrowed, expression clouding with the kind of hope that I knew he rarely dared to embrace. Still, I turned away from him even as he began to approach.
I took one staggering step away from everyone, clutching the package protectively against my chest. Mac's footsteps splashed through puddles behind me. His weren’t the only shoes slapping the ground now. Sloshing water. Trying to get to me. Trying to get to the package. My heart was hammering so hard I could feel it in my throat.
Mine! It was fucking mine!The glorious goddamn scent was seeping through the waterproof material now with wild abandon.Was it a trick of my mind? Was it my inner Alpha reaching for Tessa’s Omega?Her personal perfume wrapped around me, cloaking me in protection, bloating my body with the kind of fast-forward love I’d only seen in stupid holiday movies. Love at first sight shit. Love at first smell, in this case.
"Dixon." Mac's voice behind me was closer now, more urgent. "Did you nod? Is that it? Did you find the package?” Urgency colored each syllable he uttered.
I should answer. I wanted to answer.No, I wanted to want to answer my loyal pack brother who deserved to see the light at the end of our dark, depressing tunnel.We weren’t going to succumb to the feral side of our Alphas after all. We were going to be saved. I’d only recently found out how bad Mac was struggling. Shit hurt my heart that he’d tortured himself so goddamn much and not leaned on the rest of us.
Why couldn’t I open my mouth? Why couldn’t I just say ‘yes, I found it’?
“Dix, what’s wrong?” Mac shifted slowly around me into view. His movements were careful, his face studying mine. His gaze flicked down to take in the package I clutched so tightly. He sucked in a breath and began to tremble.
Rain assaulted us, blurring my vision of Mac. The others had to be right behind me now. They weren’t moving though. Just breathing heavily. The world seemed to hit pause. The rain froze midair. The only soundwas Catalina’s heels clicking. She hadn’t raced forward at the same time as my brothers.
But the mailer was mine.Shewas mine. I couldn’t share. I couldn’t. No wonder Ryder had been so obsessed after that fleeting moment in Seattle. No wonder he couldn’t let go.
Mine.The word blazed through my consciousness again before I could stop it.Mine, mine, mine.My stomach warmed with need, and my cock began to harden. God, if Tessa were only here now. I’d... I’d... I’d want to touch every part of her, kiss her until she couldn’t breathe, and sink my manhood so deeply into her body that she’d remember the feeling of me filling her forever.
"Dixon, darling," It was Catalina’s voice that broke through to my Alpha who was quickly morphing into that monster which would not be controlled easily. “Dixon, it’s okay. No one is trying to take it from you. Close your eyes.”
It was then that I realized I was staring blankly. Eyes open but seeing nothing. Everything was on pause. Frozen. Caged. I blinked slowly, chasing away the wetness clinging to my lashes. The world switched to slow motion. I rotated my head as if it were trapped in quick-set concrete minutes away from hardening. I locked eyes with Catalina. Her face was soft, eyes warm. A strand of wet gray hair clung to her left cheek. I lifted one hand off the package and towards her face. She didn’t flinch. Cat was never scared of me. The mother I never had, always soothing the beasts beneath the bed. I pushed the wet strands out of her face. She smiled so kindly.
“There you are,” she murmured. “May I have it? I’ll take it inside. You can follow right behind me.”
I still couldn’t speak, but I could—with great fucking effort—lift the package towards her. My knuckles had gone pale. As my iron grip loosened, Cat slowly took the wet package. She hugged it against her own chest protectively.
“See, safe as houses,” she reached up and patted my cheek before turning away and striding towards the stairs.
The other guys didn’t move. Not until I took my first step to follow the package.
21
MAC
1 DAY AGO...
As if we’dall telepathically communicated, Ryder, Tray and I didn’t move until Dixon started following Catalina back into the mansion. It had been easy to see that he was on the verge of losing control. This time, I feared, it wouldn’t just be a broken table or bed. It would be broken bones again, like Tray’s ribs when he’d attempted to keep Dixon in check during that fan event.
Despite the falling rain, Tessa’s scent trailed behind Catalina as she purposefully walked to the stairs and ascended. The second she wasn’t in view, my chest ached. With her went the medical gown. With her went Tessa’s Omega perfume. Being so far away, after being so damn close, wasn’t something I could handle. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one that felt that way. I picked up the pace and so did the other guys. Dixon launched himself up the stairs, only touching the middle riser before vaulting onto the landing. Ryder took the steps two at a time. Tray slapped out a drum beat on the railing as he made his way up and into the house.
I entered the mansion last, nearly slipping on the sleek floor which was soaking wet from the previous parade of Alphas led by one dripping-wet Beta.
The air-conditioned interior whooshed against me as I closed the front door, blocking out the din of what was now torrential rain. For a heartbeat, I just held onto the polished handle. I let the others disappear into the living room. I needed the space. Now that we were contained indoors, I could sense the rising tension. My body was surrounded with a strong, almost offending cloud of pheromones. In their wake, my pack brothers had left their own souring scents. In our many years together, we’d rarely been so at odds that our chemistries clashed. Right now, our Alphas were fighting for dominance instead of meshing. Tessa’s aroma muted everything though. God, even tainted with the fear she must have been feeling when she’d worn that medical gown, she still smelled amazing.
