Chapter 16
CHAPTER 16
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The rest of the dinner goes well, despite their awkward start.
The wine is out of her system, and her head is completely clear by the time he pays for their meal.
He genuinely listened to her, too. She rarely opens up about what she does for a living or why she loves it so much, but he appeared enraptured by his words.
Despite his intensity, she enjoys his company, and the way his voice lowers when he calls her sweetheart.
She hopes he doesn’t notice that she has to shift her thighs together to alleviate some of the throbbing between her legs.
“You really don’t have to do that,” she insists as he pulls out his leather wallet, placing his card at the end of the table. “I can pay you back when we get back?—”
“You’re going to want for nothing,” he says simply, and leaves her no room to argue .
A tiny, secret part of her is flattered that he wants to take care of her.
No one has wanted to do that before, but it’s not like she’s ever given them the opportunity.
Alphas have always been out of the question for her.
Whether it’s because she’s punishing herself or she’s just too terrified of intimacy, she doesn’t know.
She’s leaving at the end of the week, but she can enjoy the few moments of being cherished by Cole.
Even the ride back to her cabin is enjoyable. Cole’s charming, and his scent comforts her, even if he’s a bit intense and possessive.
She decides she’s allowed to enjoy this because it's temporary.
Bree can’t imagine a scenario where she dates him—she doesn’t even know how to date properly. She can’t imagine him sitting in her cramped apartment on her cheap cotton bedsheets and actually enjoying it.
He doesn’t belong in her world, and she doesn’t belong in his.
But in this strange in-between in Green Woods, they can belong together.
She catches him watching her while they’re at a red light.
“You have to stop with the staring thing,” she says.
“You’re the only thing in this world worth looking at. It’s your fault, not mine.”
She almost smiles.
They keep the conversation light, and she relaxes around him. The car fills with both their scents, and by the time they’re at her cabin, goosebumps pebble her skin.
She wants him, badly. Her nipples ache through her tank top, her cunt is wet, and he’s everything she’s only dared to fantasize about.
To hell with everything else. She wants to enjoy these moments before the dream ends and she’s back in Holden, writing articles for Carl.
She doesn’t protest when he opens the car door for her and takes her hand. Their fingers intertwine, and she sighs at the contact as electricity courses through her body.
He stops her at the door to the cabin, reaching into his pocket.
“Keys,” he says, pushing them into her hand. She looks up at him, his face mere inches from hers.
His expression is tender, his eyes bright and vulnerable.
She’s not frightened of him anymore—she just wants him.
It’s time she takes what she wants.
She stands on her tiptoes and gently presses her lips to his.
He freezes.
For one horrible moment, she thinks she misjudged the situation. His body goes rigid, and she pulls away quickly, terrified that she did something wrong.
She can shrug it off as a polite goodnight kiss.
She opens her mouth to apologize, chastising herself for being stupid when Cole cups her face in his hands and returns the kiss, pressing his lips furiously against hers.
Bree hasn’t been kissed in ages , but she’s certain this is the best kiss she’s ever had in her life. He tastes delicious—minty, citrusy, and woodsy, just like his scent, and he’s pushing her up against the outside wall of the cabin before she can think.
She gasps against his mouth and parts her lips slightly as his tongue licks the inside of her mouth, and she almost loses her footing. The keys that were in her hand fall to the ground as she clutches at his shoulders, gripping the muscles of his arms and running her hands down his chest.
When he finally pulls away from her so she can breathe, he chuckles against her neck and presses kisses against her sensitive skin. “I knew I was right,” he breathes, one hand around her waist as the other pushes her hair out of the way to suck at her skin.
She lets out a moan. “About what?” she rasps, closing her eyes as she tugs at his dark hair. Her fingers run through the silky strands, and she pulls at his scalp, eliciting a delicious growl from him.
“You feel it too,” he whispers, pushing her sweater out of the way to nibble at her collarbone. “The pull.”
She groans, her head falling back against the wall with a thud as he continues sucking at her delicate skin. She’s certain he’s going to leave dark marks, but she doesn’t care.
She wants him to mark her. She wants to feel like she belongs to someone.
“The pull?” she chokes out, and his lips find hers again, silencing her question. She moans into his mouth, her cunt pulsing in her jeans as slick drips into her panties.
“The connection,” he says against her lips. “I knew it the minute I scented you. Fuck .”
He’s spewing nonsense, but she doesn’t care. All she knows is that he makes her feel good, and if he wants to believe that they’re meant to find each other, so be it, as long as she keeps feeling like this.
He kisses her like they’ve been apart for ages, and they’ve finally reunited.
Nothing has felt this right to her. Nothing.
And it’s all happening outside a cabin in Green Woods.
She’s soaking through her underwear. Her womb painfully aches, and he pauses his movements when she gasps at the sudden sensation.
It’s a Heat cramp, dangerously early.
“What is it?” he asks, one hand still caressing her face. He runs his thumb along her lip as she breathes deeply, hoping the cramps don’t continue.
She focuses on his face. His pupils are so wide that they drown out the blue of his irises, and his lips are swollen from kissing her. His hair is a mess; ruffled from when she was running her hands through the strands.
“I…” but she’s transfixed, unable to give her answer as she wraps her arms around his neck. “Sorry, I just got flustered for a moment. I don’t normally do this.” She motions between them, her heart beating wildly in her chest.
He smirks, then pulls her in for another kiss, and thankfully the pang in her abdomen doesn’t return.
She doesn’t know how long he continues to devour her, but once his hands start pushing her sweater down her shoulder, she doesn’t realize until it’s too late what he’s doing.
He finds her mating gland and nuzzles it with his cheek, marking her with his scent.
“Oh— oh , fuck ,” the words fall from her mouth, and he chuckles against her delicate skin. He gently licks at her mating gland, and she sees stars.
She doesn’t know she’s coming until she’s gripping at him desperately and muffling her cries into him. She bites down on his shoulder, trembling against him as she soaks herself and jerks against his touch.
His scent is everywhere, invading and serenading the deepest parts of her until all she can feel is Cole.
And he didn’t even bite her.
Her release comes as much as a surprise to her as it does to him, because he pulls away from her mating gland to gaze down at her, his lips parted in shock.
“You’re even more perfect than I realized,” he rasps.
Her head spins with his words. She’s not perfect, and he doesn’t even know her…
But she grinds against the front of his jeans, feeling his obvious erection pushing against her stomach. She wants more and doesn’t care that it’s all happening outside where anyone could see or hear them .
The keys to her cabin remain on the ground as he hoists her up by her thighs, lifting her as if she weighs nothing. Her legs wrap around his waist, and he grinds against her slowly, pushing directly against the soaked front of her jeans.
She giggles and feels him smirk against her lips as he continues to devour her.
Until she feels the sleeves of her sweater ride up, and catches a flash of silver, jagged skin.
Reality crashes down on her.
Quickly, before he can see, she yanks her arms down and shimmies out of his hold. Her feet fall back to the ground, and she pulls down her sleeves and crosses her arms.
“Stop,” she rasps. “We have to stop.”
He frowns, confusion in his eyes. “What is?—”
“No. You have to go. Leave,” she says, panicked.
He almost saw them. He almost saw those disgusting, horrible marks.
She can’t breathe.
“Go, you have to go—” she continues, tears springing to her eyes.
How embarrassing. The first time you’re with an Alpha, and you have a nervous breakdown.
Cole takes a step back, giving her space.
“Breana,” he commands. “Talk to me.”
She shakes her head. “Leave. Leave .” She raises her voice as a light turns on in a cabin down the street from her. “Leave me alone. Stay away from me.”
“That’s impossible,” he snaps. “You know it is.”
Her heart aches.
Another light from another cabin. People are starting to notice them.
“You need to stay away from me,” she hisses. She’s aware how unhinged she looks, orgasming against him, then turning him away .
But she can’t live with the disgusting look that will cross his features once he sees her scars.
“Don’t shut down on me. Don’t ,” he whispers, attempting to come closer to her.
“ Get away from me ! Go !” Her voice cracks.
A figure in the distance opens their front door, watching the interaction.
Another cabin light turns on.
Cole notices and clenches his jaw. Then, he nods curtly, and she watches as he enters his car and drives away.
He almost saw her scars.
“Hey! You okay?” Someone calls. She nods weakly, then realizes the neighbor is too far away to see.
“Yup,” she chokes out. “Just family stuff.”
She doesn’t know why she refers to Cole as family. It’s the first word that came to mind.
“Alright, as long as you’re okay!”
I’m not okay.
She’s a stupid, foolish Omega that listened to her hormones and allowed herself to be caught up in some twisted fantasy.
She could never be the type of person to have a fling. And even if she did, it should never be with someone like Cole.
Someone that used his Influence on her, exploited her pheromones, and made sure she left her purse and phone behind.
Picking up her keys, she unlocks the door to the cabin and makes it inside before she bursts into tears. She slams the door shut, latches it for good measure, and lets out deep, shaky sobs as she snatches her phone off the counter and makes her way up the stairs.
She can’t remember the last time she wept like this.
Stupid, stupid girl .
There’s no reason for the profound sense of loss that tugs at her chest—she’s only known Cole for two days.
Maybe because for a moment she felt like a normal Omega that could enjoy another Alpha’s company.
The tears don’t stop, even as she rummages through the closet and pulls every blanket off the shelves. She fluffs them up on the bed the best she can, creating a comforting pile of fabrics.
“This isn’t a nest,” she mumbles to herself as she flops onto it and buries herself underneath the pile.
It can’t be a nest, because her Heat isn’t close.
She burrows under the blankets and pillows, clutching her phone as she scrolls through her messages.
Cole’s number is still blocked, but she rereads the final text he sent.
I see.
She doubts that her behavior will ever have him seeing her again.
She’s sure this time she pushed him away for good, and he won’t show up in random places and take her out to fancy restaurants she has no business being at.
It was all a mistake. A stupid, two-day mistake that has her buried under covers because she can’t even show her arms to someone without breaking down.
So, she remains under the blankets, closes her eyes, and surrenders to sleep.
She has nothing else to do for the next couple of days, anyway.
She’ll just stay in bed where nothing and no one can hurt her.