Page 66 of Lyric & the Heartbeats

He lowered his hands and stared down at them. Emerson could still smell the sharp, sweet scent of honey and lavender as strong as if he were lying in a fucking field of it. Could still feel her creamy, smooth skin against his fingertips as if she were still there.

He wanted to chase after her, demand they talk out whatever anxiety she was having, but he also didn’t want to ruin any other chance with her. The last thing he wanted to do was scare her away. Not after he’d finally gotten to taste her.

Sorry, Odd.

He left their hidden cubby and followed in her path, but halfway through the venue, where their mixed scents veered to the right, to the buses and the loading area, he continued forward.

It wasn’t until he pushed open the door to the green room, three stares turning in his direction, three sets of nostrils flaring, that he realized his mistake.

“What did you do?” Nohen asked first, his sandy cheeks flaring with heat as he stood from the couch.

Emerson held up his hands, brain still computing at half speed after the mindfuck of an orgasm Lyric had worked out of his knot.

“She wanted it,” is what came out of his mouth, and that was exactly the wrong thing to say.

Too bad he didn’t recognize it until Nohen’s fist had already sailed toward his cheek. The punch snapped his head to the right, and after clearing the stars from his vision, he blinked at the room.

Odd had Nohen’s arms trapped at his side with his own—barely—as the beta’s lips poured curses. Emerson noted absently that his bow tie was crooked.

“Whoa! Whoa, whoa, whoa,” he called out, inching toward the door and curling up on himself as Desi approached, brandishing a pair of drumsticks like fucking weapons. “That came out wrong! Wait!”

“You better have a good goddamned explanation,” Desi growled, the outrage on her face turning her into a different person than the one he thought he knew.

He floundered for the right words. “We hooked up,” he said. “It was consensual!” he shouted as she raised a stick threateningly. “I swear. Fuck. Do you think I’d actually…”

Desi’s brows furrowed as the moment stretched on. Finally, she shook her head. “No. I don’t think you’d actually do that. But I also know Lyric, and you know how she feels about alphas and packs.”

Emerson relaxed slightly as she finally lowered her makeshift weapons, straightening up from his crouched position against the door. “I wouldn’t. She looked upset after the show, and I followed to make sure everything was okay, and we were both on edge after performing and so we just… happened.”

He rubbed at the sharp ache in his cheek and glanced to Nohen, who was noticeably more calm, though his jaw was still clenched. “Nice hit. You done being jealous?”

Nohen stiffened and gnashed his teeth, shrugging off Odd’s hold, but only because the alpha allowed it. “Oh fuck right off.” His gaze dipped to his feet before he glanced up, the smoke of his anger dispersing to leave worry in its place. “Is she okay?”

“She was… but I think she was mad at me when she left. She’s on the bus. Desi, if you happened to need to answer a call from Amber privately… I don’t think she’d mind.”

“Hint taken. I’ll go check on her,” she replied, stuffing the drumsticks in her back pocket and practically shoving him to the side.

The door closed softly behind her, and he slumped down into one of the folding chairs.

Odd pulled one up and braced his palms on his knees, drawing in a deep, slow breath before leveling Emerson with his stare. The stare was devoid of emotion, and Emerson didn’t know if he should expect an ass kicking or...

“You treat her good?” Odd asked, his voice rumbly.

Emerson knew they both had it bad for her, and guilt pinched at his heart as he met Odd’s dark gaze. “I did. I hope. I don’t like how things ended so abruptly.” Emerson rubbed at his eyes, stopping a second after he scented her again and huffing out a tortured groan. “I hope I didn’t ruin things.”

That was the closest he could get to an apology. Because Emerson wasn’t sorry.

He only hoped he hadn’t ruined anything. For Odd. For himself. Hell, even for Lyric. He didn’t want to be the alpha that turned her off of them all.

His gaze turned to the beta staring a hole in the side of his head. If looks could kill...

“Hey, don’t look so bummed. Who knows? Maybe I made her swear off all alphas. That means she’s all yours.”

Nohen frowned. He straightened his bow tie and stopped by the door, not meeting his gaze. “Don’t you get it? Lyric doesn’t belong to anyone but herself. That’s why it’s such a big deal that she shared even a piece of herself with you. You better fucking cherish it.” He scoffed, muttering, “Fuckin’ alphas,” as he left.

The door did not close quietly that time.

Emerson rested his forearms on his knees and counted the specks of gray on the tiled white floor.