Page 130 of His Stolen Omega

“This isn’t the life that I wanted, Leviathan.”

“Tell me,” he urged, “what is?”

Elm turned his head, freeing himself from his hold, and Levi let him. “I don’t know, I just…I wanted to be happy.”

“I’ll make you happy.”

He snorted.

“It’s fine if you don’t believe me,” Levi continued. “I’ll show you.”

The omega started picking at his cuticles, so Levi covered his hands with one of his own.

“Are you ready to go back to sleep now?” This conversation had gotten heavier than he’d anticipated. He’d meant every word earlier that day when he’d said they needed to take things slow.

Elm had both gained and lost a lot all at once. That sort of change took time to adjust to, even for someone as adaptable as he was.

“Yeah, sure.” The omega got back under the covers, rolling onto his side so he was facing Levi. “Alpha?”

“Yes?” He got comfortable and rested a palm over Elm’s hip, making sure there was physical contact, but also enough distance between them not to risk freaking him out.

Elm stared at him a moment and then whispered, “Stay.”

“I won’t go anywhere,” he promised. “I’ll be right here when you wake.”

His eyes fluttered closed and he sighed. “Thanks.”

“Anything for you, treasure.”

The corner of Elm’s mouth tipped upward.

* * *

Within a few days, things had mostly returned to normal. Some things had changed, of course, like the way the omega stared at him more openly whenever he thought Levi was too distracted to notice, but acted like he hadn’t been when he was caught in the act.

Elm was trying to sort through his feelings. Trying to figure out if he could accept a future at Levi’s side, and knowing that, Levi never called him out on it. He’d merely go back to whatever he was doing, pretending like the charged moment hadn’t occurred.

He also touched the omega more often. Frequently allowing his touch to linger. Nothing major, just a knee against his thigh while they were on the couch, or a hand on his shoulder. At night, he held Elm close while they slept, calming him if there were more nightmares, always waiting for the omega to wake before getting out of bed.

Things had gotten better in that department. By the end of the week, the bad dreams had seemingly come to an end, and Elm’s surprise clinginess had subsided.

Which was why Levi was currently searching for him.

“Koah and Pike are both missing, and you don’t seem all that concerned about it,” Baal’s voice came through the earbud attachment in Levi’s right ear as he headed up to the second floor.

“The General can handle himself,” Levi stated.

“And Pike? What if they aren’t together and he alerts Kian?”

“What would he tell him? That we held him captive?” Who cared? “We’re enemies. That’s to be expected when one of theirs lurks into our territory unannounced.”

“If he mentions Elm—”

“He knows nothing about that,” Levi reminded. Pike had never gotten close enough to catch sight of Elm, and they certainly hadn’t revealed to him that he was with them. Hell, Oberon didn’t even know the identity of the Possessio, and he was one of Levi’s few close confidants.

“Still,” Baal insisted, “this could turn into a problem.”

“So solve it.”