Page 39 of Dual Nature

Watching her walk away, I groaned. "I suck at people-ing."

twenty-five

Thankfully, the rest of the night was uneventful, and we managed to mingle with the pack, introducing Finley to a few people without overwhelming her. Everything in me wanted to toss her over my shoulder and take her back to my house where she wouldn't be so stressed. I'd always been possessive over my things, but the level of caveman that I had to fight when it came to Finley was extreme. When it reached the point that I could tell she had reached her limit, I decided I didn't care what the others thought. I was taking her home.

Bending down, I pulled her onto my hip like a child and nodded to the couple we had been chit chatting with. "I'm sorry to cut the night short, but Finley has had a full day and is still adjusting after her first shift."

"Of course, alpha," the female whose name I couldn't remember said with a smile. "We hope to see you around more, Finley."

I nodded to her mate and headed off into the woods. It was the first time I regretted not living closer, but I was enjoying the fact that I would get to hold my beautiful mate in my arms.

"Thank you," Finley whispered as she wrapped her arms around my neck and rested her head on my shoulder. "I had no idea being around people would take so much energy. There has to be a way to tone down my empathic abilities."

Frowning, I glanced down at her from the corner of my eye. “Wait, you could feel everyone's emotions the whole time? I thought it was only in extreme cases when emotions ran high. We knew that was something omegas might be able to do if they were sensitive enough, but not all are. I've heard some are more gifted toward healing or at least relieving pain."

"It wasn't this bad before the shift, but up until today I've only been with you six. That made me think it was because you guys are my mates and whatever elf voodoo I have going on, but after that gathering, it's clear that I can pick up on anyone if I try. It's worse when there’s contact, almost like a direct link right to whatever they're feeling," she explained.

The thought of other people freely touching my mate made me see red. Who gave them the right to touch what wasn't theirs?

"Do people touch you often?" I asked, trying to keep my cool, but the growl in my voice told me I wasn't hiding anything.

I could feel her smiling against my neck where she'd nuzzled into me. "Am I sensing you're jealous?"

"It's not jealousy when you’re mine, little dove," I stated.

She chuckled and kissed me on the neck before pulling back to look at me. "Hmm, possessive is a good look on you."

Unable to deny myself, I caught her lips with my own, releasing the growl I'd been holding back. "Glad you like it because it's not going to change any time soon. Now, answer the question. Are people touching you when they shouldn't be?" I pressed, trying not to make it a forced order no matter how badly I wanted to.

"No, it's more innocent than that," she assured me. "The brush of an arm passing by, reaching for the same thing and touching hands, or even a simple handshake in greeting."

I thought back to how many people she’d met and how shifters were naturally more touchy feely than normal humans. This was another thing we were going to need to pay attention to. Fuck, there has to be some tutorial or guide on how to deal with this. Omegas were becoming more rare, but there were still plenty around to ask about such a thing. I had already started pulling books from the library that might be helpful, but it seemed I was going to be even more in debt to my Senate contact.

"Do we overwhelm you?" I inquired, hoping that holding her like this wasn't draining her. I knew my anxiety was high right now, trying to figure all this out. I didn’t want her to have that kind of turmoil bombarding her.

She shook her head and sighed. "No, if I look for it, I can feel it, but our bond seems to give me more control over what I glean from you. Almost as if there is a built-in filter unless your emotions are super strong or I look for them. Plus, all of you seem to have more of a handle on your emotions than the rest of the pack."

"Good thing you have two nests that you can hide away in when things get too overwhelming."

"Can we all sleep together tonight?" Finley requested, looking at me with her stunning cobalt gaze. "It was so comforting when we were in my nest, and it seemed to help you guys as well."

On that, she wasn't wrong. Never had I woken up from a nap feeling more rested and ready to deal with the world than that moment. I had just come off of a six-month international tour for my latest album and still hadn't recovered from my jet lag until that nap. Part of me didn't want to go to sleep yet, but knowing I could snuggle up with her made the decision for me.

"If that's what you want, I'm sure no one will argue," I answered.

Once we entered my home, I set her down, taking a deep breath now that I was finally back in my space for the night. It had been an extremely long time since I'd been part of a pack. Once I’d left the one I grew up in, I'd been on my own. My wolf and I didn't feel the same need to be surrounded by others—unless they were fans. My true passion was wanting to enlighten the world to the fact that just because someone was or became a super, they didn’t stop being human.

Yes, in the literal sense, they did, but we still wanted to enjoy the world the way everyone else did. Sure, we were all out in the 'open,' if you will, but our lives weren’t equal. There were still so many ways that we were kept separate, with supers being looked down on just because we were something extra. Now, if a doctor or teacher was outed as a super, they would lose their jobs. Despite many supers’ attempts to educate the public, many people still believed they could be changed by a simple touch. If that wasn’t the case, then they feared us, thinking we couldn’t be trusted with vulnerable populations because we were “monsters.” So, supers either lived in a supernatural community or lived among the humans while fiercely guarding their secret. There was no in between despite the fact that we’d been coexisting for centuries. The only difference now was that we announced ourselves. We'd been around as long as humanity had; we were just more patient, living in the shadows while keeping our true natures hidden.

"Hey, you okay?" Finley asked, slipping her hand into mine. The contact was a reminder that although there were still all these problems out in the world, I had something more pressing to be thinking about right here.

I looked down at her and smiled. "Fine, just lost in thought is all. Do you need anything to drink or eat, or are you just ready for bed?"

She stilled, and I could tell she was mulling over my question. I noticed she did this a lot, but I wasn't sure if it was some kind of conflict between what she wanted and what her wolf desired, or if it was something she'd always done. I had to admit it was cute when she got the little wrinkle in between her brows.

"No, I'm fine, but I would like to know how things went today with your Senate contact. I know you wanted to wait until tomorrow, but who knows what tomorrow will bring," she pointed out.

I hummed my agreement, wandered over to the couch, and pulled her onto my lap. "The others should be here in a moment. Let's wait for them so I don't have to explain it all again. In the meantime, is anything else on your mind?"