Evander #2
“Don’t worry about it,” I say with a grin.
I don’t know which of them delivered it, but none of them are ready to acknowledge the bond with Cassie just yet.
I won’t ruin it. Not when she’s holding something from all of us like it already matters.
Her brows lift, and I can’t blame her for being so confused.
“I don’t understand,” she says when I offer the blanket back to her. “You seemed… upset?”
“I was,” I reply, tucking her hair behind her ear. “But now that I can smell it, I’m not as concerned. Nothing about it feels threatening.”
Which is true—it’s only Isaac, Silas, and Harlan, after all.
Her brows pull together, a soft wrinkle appearing at the top of her nose.
I want to kiss the frown away.
“You’re really confusing me.”
“I thought someone… random delivered this to you,” I say softly. “But now I know it was someone wanting to gift you a surprise. There’s nothing to worry about—it’s a sweet gift.”
She looks at the blanket with an adorable expression on her face. “You didn’t get this for me?”
I shake my head. “I wish I did, considering how much you love it, little daisy, but no. It wasn’t from me.”
“It’s made up of fabrics I picked,” she says softly. “There’s a fabric room here, and I was… I am… I love that place.”
I laugh softly. “My sister is obsessed with going to the Nesting Nook. Don’t be so embarrassed for being an omega.”
She looks up at me, and I have to resist the urge to pull her back into my chest.
To cross a line she’s not yet ready for.
To take liberties with her.
“I’ve never been embarrassed about being an omega,” she murmurs. “At least not until I worked here.”
“I don’t like that,” I say softer than I mean to.
Even without her saying so, I know it’s down to us. At least, Harlan. The bastard is so scared about controlling himself around her that he’s forced her to hide her nature.
To hide her scent from him.
Weak-ass alpha.
That would never be me. If I was stupid enough to resist her—to resist our bond—I’d punish myself with her scent for the rest of my days.
Cassie tucks a loose strand of hair behind her ear and awkwardly shuffles back. For the first time all week, neither of us seems to be running anywhere.
An idea forms, and it’s one I don’t know how receptive she’ll be to, but I can’t hold it in.
Not if it means I can spend some more time with her.
“Dinner.”
She blinks at me in surprise before looking up at the clock.
“Dinner?”
“Dinner,” I repeat, fighting the smile tugging at my lips.
Her confused look is adorable, and I can’t help wanting to tease her further.
Besides, she didn’t say no immediately.
“That’s not a question.” She raises a brow.
“It wasn’t intended to be.” I step closer, looking down at her. “You ready?”
A laugh escapes her before she can stop it. My chest makes an embarrassingly pleased noise in response.
She bites her lip, her cheeks dusted with a red flush. “I can’t.”
“You absolutely can,” I protest. “It’s practically the weekend even by your standards, daisy.”
Cassie shifts her weight from foot to foot, and although she physically seems nervous, her scent is full of want.
I’m not backing down. Not when her scent is telling me she wants this, even if her mouth doesn’t know how to ask for it yet.
“I should probably head home,” she says quietly.
“Why?”
The question catches her off guard, and I know she didn’t think before answering.
She looks genuinely confused by the idea that I might want her company.
“I just...” My pretty little mate trails off, hesitation clear.
“Why?” I don’t reach out for her like I want to because I don’t want to pressure her. “If you have a genuine reason, including simply I don’t want to, then, fine. But, so far, you’re telling me what you think you should do, not what you want to do.”
She opens her mouth, closes it again, and then shrugs. She rubs her cheeks, trying to hide the embarrassment and the sweetness blooming into her scent.
“I’m home alone.”
I stare at her, my chest rumbling. “As in, no parents?”
There’s nobody there to make sure she gets home safe. Nobody to make sure she feels safe.
How could they—
“Yes, they’re at work,” she says, and I sigh in relief.
“So, they’ll be back tonight?”
She tilts her head, those cute little wrinkles appearing again as her scent lightens. “I don’t understand.”
“Understand what?”
“Why you care,” she admits, biting her lip again.
“I don’t like the idea of my omega coming home to nobody,” I tell her.
“I’m an adult, Van.”
I nod. “I know. But I’m an alpha—your alpha—and that makes me a little extra protective. Don’t hold it against me.”
She grins, reaching out to prod my chest. I have no idea why she did, but it makes me smile.
“If you’re home alone, then that’s significantly more reason to leave the house.”
Her lips twitch, and she looks up at me under her lashes.
Fuck, my mate is gorgeous.
“I’m not going to dinner just because you think I’m going to get murdered at home.”
I growl low and grab her by the forearms, pulling her into my chest. My scent darkens, too thick to scent her properly underneath it, and she immediately softens in my hold, pressing closer instead of pulling away.
“Don’t joke about that,” I snarl.
She purrs in response, nuzzling my chest once more like she’s trying to bury herself in my scent, and wraps her arms around my waist.
She opens her mouth, and I feel the tension in her jaw, but then she closes it again.
I can practically feel the argument happening in her mind.
Then she sighs.
“Let’s go to dinner,” she says softly. I freeze, and she nods against my chest. “I mean it. I’m done here, and I’ve barely seen you all week.”
“You’ve missed me?” I ask.
She sighs dramatically, pulling away from my chest.
I let her go.
Mostly because I’m trying very hard not to drag her straight back into my arms, where she belongs.
“Don’t make it weird,” she says, and there’s a soft edge to her voice that I fucking love.
She’s relaxed. Happy. Calm.
“Impossible request, daisy. I’m weird by nature.”
Cassie rolls her eyes, but there’s no heat in it as she rounds her desk and wakes her computer screen.
The smile she’s trying to suppress is still there, her eyes glistening with warmth.
And her scent, fuck, her scent is everything. Warm, sweet, familiar.
I should probably be more dignified about the fact we’re going to dinner together, but I can’t. I’m smug, I’m excited, I’m fucking victorious.
My mate is coming to dinner. With me. Willingly.
I lean against the edge of her desk and watch her pack away her things like I’ve somehow won a competition nobody told her we were having.
“You’re staring,” she says, her neck flushed with the weight of my attention.
“I can’t help it,” I admit, smiling at her. “You’re too beautiful not to have all my attention.”
Her blush deepens, if that’s even possible.
“You’re adorable.”
She nearly drops her bag, her scent immediately sweetening with her embarrassment.
Cassie saves the last of her work before carefully closing each file, double-checking everything twice despite the fact most of her colleagues left two hours ago.
It’s not until she looks around warily that I understand.
She’s nervous.
My chest tightens unexpectedly.
How many things has she wanted, only to convince herself she didn’t deserve them?
How many times has she stood there exactly like this and decided she was being too much?
Fuck, she needs me.
No—she needs us.
“You know,” I say casually, “most people don’t look this stressed when they’re being fed for free.”
She glares at me. “I’m not stressed about food, and I can pay for myself.”
Shit. I’m pushing too much.
“I’m teasing, but badly,” I admit, rubbing the back of my neck. “I’m nervous, too, if that helps.”
Her brows draw together. “You are?”
I nod because, apparently, honesty works better on her than me being a stubborn prick.
The bull-headed alpha routine doesn’t work with her. I know that now.
“You’re my mate, and this is the first time we’re on the same page.”
She nods carefully. “I thought we were on the same page when we were dancing.”
“Yes, we were.” My cock strains against my pants at the reminder. “But we weren’t alone. This is different.”
She sighs and finally gathers her bag, smoothing down her skirt, and rising from her desk.
She hesitates again, but it only lasts for a second this time.
Then she squares her shoulders and puts the mask back in place.
I don’t mind—I can get rid of that later.
Watching her choose me feels better than every boardroom victory I’ve ever had put together.
“Ready?” she asks.
I push away from the desk and nod.
“Very.”
The smile she gives me is small and shy, but it’s mine for a second, and that makes it so fucking perfect.
Dinner feels like the best idea I’ve had all week.
As we leave her office together, I glance back towards the main corridor, feeling eyes on us.
Unsurprisingly, Silas is standing by one of the glass meeting rooms, his eyes trained on the pair of us.
He’s speaking to a member of staff—or, realistically, pretending to.
His gaze is trained on where Cassie is walking beside me, a smile on her face.
The older alpha gives me a small nod of approval, and I return it automatically.
Beside me, Cassie remains oblivious to the interaction.
Probably for the best.
One alpha is overwhelming enough for her right now.
Three other men might actually send my poor girl running, never to be seen again.
The restaurant is warm and softly lit, and Cassie looks like she’s already trying to decide whether she’s allowed to enjoy it.
There are lanterns casting pools of golden light across polished wooden tables, while the low hum of conversation blends with quiet music somewhere overhead, creating the sort of atmosphere that encourages people to linger.
It’s one of the reasons I like this place. Nobody rushes you, and everyone leaves you the hell alone.
Well, business dinner. Isaac is the only person I’ve been here with.
The waitress leaves with our order, and Cassie’s gaze immediately follows her across the room before she looks back down at the menu quickly.
I hide my smile. “Daisy?”