Chapter 18
Awareness returns in fragments. The ceiling swims into focus above me, then blurs again as another wave of pleasure crashes through my system.
Rowan’s cock fills my mouth, his thick shaft stretching my lips, the heavy weight of it resting on my tongue. Heat pools in my hips as I register the wet, insistent stroke of his tongue between my ass cheeks, lapping at my slick-soaked hole with hungry strokes.
How long was I out? Seconds? Minutes? Days? My brain struggles to piece together the gap between collapsing after our first round and waking to find myself in this position, my head cradled on Rowan’s thigh, his cock buried in my throat while he feasts between my cheeks.
His tongue circles my rim before plunging inside, and my back arches, a moan vibrating around the thick length in my mouth, drawing an answering growl from Rowan felt more than heard. He spreads my thighs wider to give his mouth better access.
The Heat surges back, searing through my veins. Sweat beads on my skin as more slick leaks from my hole. Rowan’s tongue collects it, the wet sounds of his mouth working between my ass cheeks filling the room.
I refocus on the cock in my mouth, hollowing my cheeks as I take him deeper. His flavor fills my senses with salt and the intoxicating musk of my Alpha. I work him with lips and tongue, fighting the fog of Heat to coordinate my movements.
Rowan’s tongue thrusts deeper, fucking into me with increasing urgency. His fingers dig into my ass cheeks, hard enough to bruise. The combination of his tongue in my ass and his cock in my mouth overwhelms my Heat-drugged brain, sending sparks shooting down my spine.
My hips buck upward, seeking more friction, more pressure, more of anything to sate the building need. Rowan’s tongue withdraws, and I whine around his cock, the loss immediate and devastating.
“Patience, precious,” he murmurs, his breath hot on my inner thigh. “I’m not done with you yet.”
He shifts beneath me, withdrawing his cock from my mouth. The loss leaves me whimpering, lips swollen and slick with saliva. Rowan maneuvers our bodies, lifting me as if I weigh nothing.
“Want you to ride me,” he growls with need. “Want to see this greedy hole swallow me up as you work yourself on my cock.”
He positions me above him, my back to his chest, his hands guiding my hips as I straddle his thighs, facing away from him.
“Go on,” Rowan urges, his hands on my waist to steady me. “Put me inside you.”
I reach between my legs, fingers wrapping around his length to guide him to my entrance. The blunt head catches on my rim, and I sink down, his size still a challenge even with the slick easing the way.
When I’m seated, his cock buried inside me, a sob of relief escapes my throat at the delicious fullness only Rowan can provide.
“Fuck, that's pretty,” he breathes, his hands sliding up my sweat-slicked back. “Your pink little rim eats me up so beautifully.”
The praise washes over me, fueling the fire in my veins.
I lift up, thighs trembling with the effort, and drop back down. The impact jars through me, and I cry out as it hits my prostate, lightning crackling through my nerves.
Rowan’s fingers tangle in my hair, tugging my head back. His other hand clamps onto my shoulder, providing leverage as I begin to ride him in earnest. Each downward motion fills me so completely I can feel him in my throat.
My movements grow more frantic, more desperate, as I chase the pleasure building at the base of my spine. My untouched dick bobs between my legs, leaking onto Rowan’s thighs.
I reach back, turning my face into the crook of his neck to inhale his pure Alpha pheromones. I whimper, tongue darting out to lick the salt off his skin. The angle drives his cock deeper, hitting my prostate with every thrust, and my vision blurs at the edges.
“Mine.” Rowan's teeth graze the shell of my ear. “All mine.”
I clench around him, drawing a groan from deep in his chest. He releases my hair to wrap around my throat, applying enough pressure to make my pulse jump beneath his palm.
“You’re mine,” he repeats, each word punctuated by a savage thrust upward. “Say it.”
“Yours.” The confession tears from my lips. “All yours, Alpha.”
“Come for me,” Rowan demands. “Now.”
My orgasm crashes through me, a physical force that whites out my vision and steals my breath. My inner muscles pulse around him as my release paints my chest and stomach in hot streaks. Wave after wave of pleasure washes over me until I’m shaking and sobbing in Rowan’s arms.
He holds me through it, his palm flat over my thundering heart. His hips continue their relentless pace, chasing his own release as I shudder through the aftershocks of mine.
“Beautiful,” he murmurs against my temple, his breath coming in harsh pants. “So fucking beautiful when you fall apart for me.”
My body goes limp in his arms, strength sapped by the force of my climax. Rowan’s arms tighten around me, cradling me as the Heat-fog begins to recede again, leaving me floating in the aftermath of pleasure.
“You need to eat,” Rowan says, sliding a plate of scrambled eggs in front of me. “I’ve barely gotten anything besides my cock in your mouth this entire time.”
The top of the kitchen counter cools my bare arms. I’m wearing nothing but Rowan’s T-shirt, which hangs loose on my smaller frame, the hem brushing the middle of my thighs. Three days of Heat have hollowed me out, leaving me weak and shaky between waves of desperate need.
“Not hungry,” I mutter, pushing the plate away.
It turns my stomach, though I know he’s right. I need food.
Rowan leans across the island, pushing the plate back toward me with gentle authority that won't be denied. “Three bites. Full glass of water. Then back to bed.”
His hair is rumpled from my hands being in it, stubble darkening his jaw. Purple marks bloom along his shoulders and chest, evidence of my teeth and nails, and the sight of him marked by me sends a flutter through my stomach that has nothing to do with hunger.
I pick up the fork, cutting into the fluffy eggs. The first bite sticks to my tongue, but I force myself to swallow and take another.
Rowan rumbles with approval. “Good boy.”
The praise sends a flush of warmth through me.
I’m raising the third bite to my lips when the Heat returns with no warning, crashing through my system. The fork clatters to the counter as my fingers spasm open. Slick floods between my thighs, soaking my bare skin beneath the T-shirt.
“Rowan,” I gasp in warning.
He’s around the island in an instant, gathering me close. His nostrils flare as he catches the spike of my need, his pupils dilating until only a thin ring of amber remains.
“I’ve got you, precious.” His hands slide down my back to cup my ass. “Your Alpha will take care of everything.”
In one fluid motion, he lifts me onto the island, shoving the plate aside. It skids across the surface, teetering on the edge before toppling to the floor with a crash. Neither of us spares it a glance.
Rowan pushes the T-shirt up, exposing my already hard dick and slick-soaked thighs. He grips my knees, spreading them as he steps between my legs. The cool marble of the island chills my overheated skin, drawing a gasp from my lips.
“It’s never lasted this long before,” I whimper as I reach for his cock through his sweats.
“That’s because you never had your Alpha nearby to satisfy you before.” Rowan fists my hair, tilting my head back, and his mouth finds the pulse point there, teeth grazing the sensitive skin as he works the drawstring of his sweatpants.
The fabric slides down his hips, freeing his cock, already thick and hard.
“Hold onto me,” he commands, positioning himself at my entrance.
My legs wrap around his waist, ankles hooking high on his waist as my arms circle his shoulders. The position leaves me open and at his mercy. Slick drips onto the island beneath me, forming a pool that will embarrass me later when I’m capable of feeling anything beyond this desperate need.
Rowan’s cock pushes into me in one smooth thrust, and my back arches off the island with a cry as he stretches me open. Days of near-constant sex have left me sensitive and swollen, all of my nerve endings firing at once.
“Fuck,” Rowan groans. “You’re so hot inside.”
He withdraws before slamming back in with enough force to lift me from the counter. Rowan’s grip on my hair tightens, keeping me in place as he establishes a brutal pace.
The sound of skin slapping echoes off the tile backsplash, mixing with my desperate cries and Rowan’s guttural groans.
“Mine.” Rowan's free hand grips my hip hard enough to bruise. “All mine.”
His mouth moves to my shoulder, teeth sinking into the flesh there.
“Yes,” I sob, fingers digging into his back. “Mark me. Please.”
The plea slips out before I can stop it, my Heat-addled brain unable to filter my deepest desires. Rowan’s rhythm falters for a heartbeat, and he groans.
“The guard,” he reminds me, tight with restraint. “You still have it on.”
My fingers fly to my neck, finding the leather collar of the nape guard still in place. The contradiction of wanting his Mark while still protecting myself from it tears at me, frustration and need warring in my chest.
“Want you to.” The words come out nearly incoherent through my pants and moans. “Want your teeth. Want everyone to see your Mark.”
A growl rumbles through Rowan’s chest and into mine. His hips snap forward with renewed vigor, each thrust driving deeper than the last. His teeth find my throat again, biting down above the collar of the guard, hard enough to leave an imprint of each tooth.
“When I claim you,” he pants against my skin, “It’ll be when you’re sure it’s what you want.”
“Please,” I beg, unsure what I’m asking for anymore. “Please, Alpha.”
Rowan’s hand slides between us to wrap around my neglected dick, stroking in time with his thrusts. The dual sensation of being filled and his hand working my dick is too much. The coil of tension in my core snaps, release tearing through me with such force it rips a scream from my raw throat.
My body convulses around him, inner walls clamping down as ropes of cum paint both our chests. The intensity of it whites out my vision, leaves me gasping and trembling in Rowan’s arms.
His rhythm grows erratic, his thrusts harder and deeper as he chases his own release. With a final, powerful thrust, his cock pulses as he fills me with his seed. His forehead drops to my shoulder, teeth grazing the skin there as he shudders through his climax.
For long moments, we stay locked together, bodies joined, breath mingling in the quiet kitchen. My limbs feel leaden, muscles trembling with exhaustion. Three days of Heat have taken their toll, each wave leaving me more drained than the last.
Rowan recovers first, easing from my body. His arms slide beneath my knees and back, lifting me from the island with surprising gentleness. I curl into his chest, face tucking into the crook of his neck as he carries me back to the bedroom.
The sheets welcome us, cooling our overheated skin. Rowan lays me down with care, climbing in beside me. His arm wraps around my waist, pulling me back against his chest in a position that’s become familiar over the past three days.
“Rest,” he murmurs, brushing aside the sweat-dampened hair at my temple. “I’ll be here when you wake up.”
My eyelids grow heavy, the brief respite between Heat waves pulling me toward sleep. The last thing I register before succumbing is the steady beat of Rowan’s heart.
When the fever passes for good, it leaves me with an aching body, bone-deep exhaustion, and a clarity that’s almost painful after days of Heat-fueled madness.
Turning my head requires effort, the muscles in my neck protesting the movement. Rowan lies beside me, his chest rising and falling in the deep, steady rhythm of sleep.
I lift a hand to my collarbone, fingers tracing the constellation of bruises Rowan left there. Each mark throbs under my touch, a reminder of his mouth, his teeth, and his possession. Similar marks dot my shoulders, my chest, and my inner thighs, a map written in purple and red across my skin.
The nape guard remains in place, though the leather is worn at the edges from Rowan’s teeth testing the boundaries. He never removed it, even when I begged him in the throes of Heat-madness.
My hips bear the imprints of his fingers, five points of pressure on each side where he gripped me, held me, positioned me. The bruises there are almost black on my pale skin, badges that make my stomach flip with a strange pride.
I shift, and a twinge between my legs reminds me how thoroughly I’ve been claimed, used, filled. Dried slick and cum cling to my inner thighs, evidence of countless rounds over the past three days. The sheets beneath me will need to be burned rather than washed.
For most of my life, control has been survival.
Walls built, vulnerabilities hidden behind discipline and distance.
Heat stripped it all away, leaving nothing but instinct and need, exposing every raw, unfiltered piece of me to Rowan.
The desperation. The hunger that drove me to beg, to submit, to offer my throat to his teeth when higher thought gave way to biology.
I should be ashamed of my loss of control.
Instead, I feel lighter.
For three days, I surrendered myself to Rowan. Let him feed me, clean me, and hold me through the worst of it, and not once did he cross the boundaries we set when I was clear-headed. Even when I begged him to remove the guard and Mark me, he refused, choosing my autonomy over my Heat-driven pleas.
This wasn’t the subjugation I’ve feared since presenting as Omega. This was a partnership in its most elemental form.
As I turn onto my side, the movement sends sharp reminders through overworked muscles as Rowan stirs in his sleep, his arm tightening around my waist to draw me closer. Months ago, the possessive gesture would have had me bristling and shoving him away.
Now, I’m safe enough to lean into it.
Over the last several months, Rowan has always waited for my consent.
Always let me decide when to step forward.
Always chosen my autonomy over his instincts.
After all this time, I finally understand the difference between protection and control.
And Rowan has never confused the two. The relief at being able to stop questioning every decision allows me to pass out, confident I can trust Rowan to keep my sister and me safe.