Chapter 05
ISCA
It was overwhelmingly quiet inside the bedroom: no rustling of sheets, no sleepy huffs of breath. Darkness lurked in the corners of the room, held at bay only by the warm glow of the nightlight Talius had installed in the bedroom to keep my fears at bay should I wake during the night. I”d done that a lot at first.
Nightmares still haunted my sleep at times, but less often now. Maybe the warmth of my mates beside me chased the demons away.
I was grateful that someone had turned on the nightlight before leaving the room. It was in that moment between sleeping and waking that I was most vulnerable to my fears, especially when I woke alone as I did now.
The sheets were warm and silky against my skin, the combined scents of Irian and Talius strong on the pillows. I lay staring at the ceiling, luxuriating in the comfort of our over-sized king bed and the familiar scents surrounding me, checking in with my body.
Heat sex was exhausting, even when it was not my own. Not just physically, but in my case I had so many terrifying memories, that even though I enjoyed it now with Talius and Irian, I found it mentally draining. Even several days later, I was only just recovering. Talius would never have hurt me and was never anything but encouraging and appreciative of every little thing I did, but there was a tiny part of my brain that was always waiting for me to do something wrong, expecting criticism. Goddess knew, Zarbius had told me so many times how useless I was in bed. I knew he was cruel and I couldn’t trust anything he said or did, but some of it had stuck nonetheless.
Talius worked hard to make me feel loved and appreciated, so I tried to hide that tiny part of myself that didn’t feel worthy. It was exhausting. I wondered if he suspected though, and if that was why they had left me to sleep and recover longer. The blinds had been pulled down, the night light turned on. It must be night, or almost.
I was fine now but I lay there a little longer, gathering my strength. I guessed Irian would be buzzing around the kitchen, as happy as a bee in spring. In contrast to my own experience, he was always totally energized after his heats. He had been the entire time I’d known him. It was one of the things that had made me realize my situation in my old pack was not normal. His delight in having his alpha take him through heat was eye-opening, refreshing. I understood it now, though I hadn’t at the time.
A loud gurgle broke the silence. I clapped my hand to my belly to silence it and sat up, looking around for my pajama pants.
There they were! Someone had left them conveniently draped over the end of the bed. I pulled them on and padded barefoot down the stairs towards the kitchen and food.
“If you could look into it and let me know what you find out, I’d appreciate it,” Talius’ deep voice rumbled over the crackle and spit of something sizzling in the frypan. The delicious aroma of bacon and beef teased me as I rounded the corner.
Irian was standing over the stove with a spatula in his hand. He greeted me with a wide smile and happy contented eyes. Talius was leaning casually against the wall a meter or so behind him, his ear pressed to his phone, his eyes glued to Irian’s ass as he spoke again.
“Yes, but you need to keep it on the down low. No-one can find out about this. Seriously, it’s no joke.”
I moved in behind Irian and slipped my arms around his waist, nibbling on the base of his neck. Irian carefully placed the utensil on the counter beside the stove and turned to face me. My lips slid over his. A warm tongue eased into my mouth and I squirmed against him, pressing my groin to his, not trying to hide my hardening cock.
“How do you feel?” I asked, when eventually he pulled away to check on the spluttering pan behind him.
He chuckled. “Well used. I should be able to sit down today though. What about you? Tired?”
“Nah. I’m good now. Thanks for letting me sleep.”
“We know you need it.” He kissed me affectionately on the forehead.
“I’m getting better.”
“I know. We can both see it.” Irian’s lips curved gently and his eyes softened as he cast a look across at Talius still speaking earnestly into his phone.
“It was something though, wasn’t it?” I said, smirking. Irian knew what I was referring to.
“Yeah.” A dreamy look crossed his face.
We shared a grin.
“What’s going on?” I asked, breaking the gentle moment. I gestured towards Talius. “That seems a bit intense for this time of night.”
Irian bit his lip. “Wait ‘til he’s off the phone. I’m sure he’ll tell you about it himself.”
That was intriguing but I knew better than to press Irian. He wouldn’t give up any of Talius’ secrets, not even to me. I peered into the pan.
“Want some meat?” Irian raised his eyebrows.
I felt the heat rush to my cheeks. I looked away. “Ah… I… er,” I flailed, unable to meet his eyes. He was so much more forward than me.
He bumped my shoulder gently. “Burger? I thought we’d have these for dinner.”
“Oh, right. Yes… th-that’s great,” I stammered. I could feel the heat in my cheeks. Irian always knew how to throw me off balance. I was much more reticent than he was, particularly when it came to sex, or even flirting.
Irian tut-tutted. “What did you think I meant? Filthy mind.” He shook his head in mock disgust.
Just when I thought I’d pulled myself together, Irian leaned in close. His warm breath caressed my ear as he said, “The other comes later.”
Then he turned away and resumed tending to the cooking while I stood there with my mouth open in surprise.
“Isca.”
I jumped, startled out of my thoughts by the deep husky tone.
“H-hey, Talius.” I looked across at the handsome alpha – our handsome alpha – who was standing erect and prowling across the space between us.
“My sweet omega, I’m glad you’re up. There’s something we need to talk about.” His words were directed at me.
Something we need to talk about?I stiffened. There was nothing in his voice that suggested a problem, but the words seemed... I tried to calm my suddenly racing heart. Had I done something wrong during the heat? Or was there something I hadn’t done that I was supposed to?
Talius must have felt my panic, because he closed the gap between us quickly, his hands reaching for me.
Strong arms wrapped themselves around me, and several days” growth of facial hair rasped across my temple, warm lips nipped my ear.
“Talius?” I murmured from within the cage of his arms, but already I felt reassured. I sighed. Damn alpha pheromones, his alpha pheromones… I could never resist them. They insisted on calming me even though I knew there was something important going on.
“You’re fine,” he assured me leaning back to look at me, his brilliant blue eyes simultaneously calming and mesmerizing. “There’s nothing wrong. In fact, I”m hoping you”ll find it”s a positive thing. Come, sit down. We can talk while Irian cooks.”
He led me to the kitchen table and pulled out a chair, waving towards the seat with his hand. I slid onto the seat, folded my hands in my lap, and waited as Talius took the one across from me.
He was my alpha and I was his omega, and he wanted to talk to me about… something. It must be reasonably serious, so I kept my eyes down submissively, allowing him to take the lead.
We sat in an oasis of silence, surrounded by a backdrop of hissing bacon and sizzling meat, while I waited for him to speak. I wanted to chew my nails, but resisted the urge to lift them to my mouth. I silently picked at my fingernails under the table instead.
Rough skin chafed against my chin and a subtle but insistent pressure encouraged me to raise my head.
I blinked, my eyes widening as Talius’ intense gaze caught me in its spell. I looked into those fathomless depths and waited.
Talius hesitated. I worried. Surely, this wasn’t bad?
With a sharp inhale, Talius drew himself up. He looked strong, powerful, commanding. He was a magnificent alpha, and I wanted to throw myself at his feet.
But when Talius said, “I was just on the phone to the Council”, I shivered. The Council was usually only involved when there was some sort of problem. Was I the problem? Or was there a problem for me?
“Isca! Stop.” Talius’ brows had drawn together. His lips pinched. He looked fierce. I gulped. Then he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand.
The back of his other hand traced the curve of my cheek. “Stop worrying. There’s no problem. I was simply making an enquiry. An enquiry that concerns you.”
Irian had stopped tending to the dinner and was standing, turner in hand, watching us.
Talius continued, “I’ve asked a friend to make some discreet enquiries about whether it’s possible to safely break a mate bond.”
“B-break a mate bond?” I paused as my mind put things together. “You mean… my bond with Zarbius?” I’m sure my eyes must have lit up in surprise.
“Yes. I don’t know if it can be done, but it might be possible, especially as it’s only a partial bond. But I need to be sure… if it’s possible, would you want to break it, Isca?”
I was speechless as the possibility ran through my mind. I could finally be free of my old mate? What would that mean for me? Would Talius mate me properly? Would Irian be okay with that?
My failure to respond must have alarmed Talius because his voice lowered and softened.
“That would leave you free for me to mate you… if you wanted that,” there was an unaccustomed touch of vulnerability in his voice that brought me to my senses. I couldn’t bear to hear this amazing alpha uncertain, especially when he was offering me my heart’s desire.
“Yes!” I surged out of my seat, closing the distance between us and without second-guessing myself for once, smashed my lips to his.
The impact knocked him back in his seat but rather than break contact, he grabbed me and hauled me across the table until I was sitting in his lap. His arms tightened around me. His tongue slid past my lips as he claimed me in a punishing kiss. It was my perfect delight to yield to him, my body softening in his embrace, my mouth and my tongue following his lead.
A possessive growl rumbled through Talius’ chest, vibrating against my ribs.
“My omega!” he growled, pulling back from the kiss, his eyes luminous. His wolf was near the surface. He dropped his head to the base of my neck, his nostrils rubbing along the tender skin, sniffing. He rested his fangs in the little hollow where the mating bite would go, where the little silver scars from Zarbius’ bite marred the flesh. The pointy teeth dragged across the skin, bumping up against bone. I shivered. I wanted that mating bite from him. I wanted it so badly.
“Your omega,” I whispered, trembling in his lap. I caught a glimpse of Irian watching us, a tender smile dancing across his lips. There were no worries there. He wanted this as much as I did.