Chapter 38 Tae
THIRTY-EIGHT
Tae
“How long do you think they’ll be?” Jagger paces the kitchen aimlessly. “It’s been hours.”
“Nash must be keeping her busy.” I wiggle my eyebrows. “C’mon, this is Nash’s first real alone time with her. We’ve had our turn, remember?”
“I guess,” he mumbles. “But what about food? She needs to eat at some point.”
“I’m sure Nash is making sure she’s very well taken care of.”
Jagger harrumphs. He obviously has something else on his mind.
When he’s not talking about missing Delila, he’s glued to his phone.
It’s rang a few times—probably Val harassing him—but he keeps sending it straight to voicemail.
He needs to take a long bath or something, because his antsy energy is putting me on edge.
“After last night, I thought you’d be feeling happy?
” I question him. “Sharing her was incredible.” My cock twitches as I recall Delilah’s naked body and her moans, quickly diverting my attention to unpacking some groceries before my semi goes full mast. “The best sex of my life. No fucking question, dude. She’s perfect. We’re so lucky.”
“She is…” Jagger sighs wistfully. “There’s just…” He looks out the window and shakes his head. “Forget it.”
“No, what is it?” I set down the bag of food. “Look, I can see there’s something bothering you, so why don’t you just say it? Packs don’t have secrets.”
“I’m worried she’ll decide to leave. I mean, after everything I put her through, I wouldn’t be surprised if she can’t ever fully get over it.
That or she’ll realize she’s made a big mistake by coming back.
” His gaze strays to the mark Delilah made on my neck.
“I don’t know if she’ll ever feel comfortable enough to mark me like that… ”
“If last night was anything to go by, I wouldn’t worry.
” I rub his arm affectionately. I must have looked at my neck in the mirror a thousand times already.
I love it. Many omegas don’t mark betas in a pack.
Some don’t even see them as true pack members, so the fact that I was Delilah’s first makes me feel special.
Although, I can understand why Jagger is jealous.
“I see the way she looks at you, man. You can’t fake that.
You still have some making up to do, but she knows how you feel about her, and she feels the same. ”
He manages a small smile. “Maybe we should take food up to the nest?” He sees my leave them be expression. “But it really has been hours since she last ate. We can just swing by to check if they’re hungry then leave. No lingering or crashing their alone time.” He holds up a hand. “Scout’s honor.”
“Fine.” I roll my eyes. “But no hanging around.” Just as we’re about to move, Jagger’s phone vibrates. “What is up with that today? You’ve had even more calls than normal.”
“It’s…” He shakes his head. “I’ll tell you later. Don’t worry about it.”
Probably another brand deal. That’s one of the perks of having a rockstar packmate—we get a lot of free shit.
“Come on.” Jagger urges me along.
Yet before we can even make it out of the room, we hear footsteps coming down the stairs.
Jagger’s nostrils flare, and he stands upright, his back as straight as a board. I see the alarm in his face as his fists curl. “What is it, Jag?
Moments later, Nash and Delilah float in, both with blissed-out expressions.
If I didn’t know that Nash was strictly anti-drugs, I would’ve sworn they’d just smoked a few joints.
Nash protectively wraps his arm around Delilah’s shoulder, as if he can’t bear to be parted by more than a few inches. Then I see it…
“Holy fuck.” My jaw drops as Delilah’s head turns, revealing the fresh bond mark on her neck. “Is that…?”
“You bonded,” Jagger bites out through gritted teeth.
“Wow!” I can’t wait to congratulate them. This makes her one of us. Jagger was worried about her leaving, but this means she’s staying for good. “You dark horse, Nash! What happened to the three-date rule?”
“That’s not even a thing,” Nash grumbles, but he can’t keep the smile off his face.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so happy in the ten years we’ve known each other.
“It was my idea,” Delilah confesses shyly, nuzzling into his chest like she can’t stand not touching him. “I asked him to.”
Nash kisses her head. “I’ll never refuse you anything.”
If it were anyone else, I’d jokingly make a retching noise, but they’re just too damn cute. While I don’t understand how bonding feels, everyone knows it’s the strongest display of commitment there is.
“We need to throw a party to celebrate!” I declare, my mind already racing to decorations, balloons, and cocktail menus. “Do we get a cake? Hire a DJ? Do I need to buy a suit?”
“Jagger?” Delilah’s face falls as her gaze strays to him. He’s still frozen to the spot like an ice statue. “Are you okay?”
“I…” Jagger’s throat bobs with a loud swallow. “I need some fresh air.”
He heads out into the backyard, the door slamming behind him.
“It’s okay.” Nash squeezes her shoulder. “He’ll be fine.”
She frowns, her gaze following Jagger’s retreating figure through the window. “I should talk to him.”
“I’ll come with—”
“No.” She steps away from Nash then turns to stroke his cheek.
“I think… I need to do this alone.” He doesn’t look happy about it, but her kissing him temporarily smooths out his scowl.
If her kisses can help calm him down, I’ll make sure she’s around the next time I break something. “I’ll be back soon.”
He mutters something that sounds like, “Or I’ll come find you,” before she takes off in pursuit of Jagger.
“Congrats.” I clap Nash on the back. “Who knew showing her your workshop would end in a bonding? Do you have a love potion hiding out there?”
“I…” A deep grin curls his lips, crinkling his cheeks. “I… can’t believe it.”
“Tell me, how does it feel?” I open the fridge and begin rooting around for something to celebrate with. A group of three twenty-something guys don’t have any champagne, so I grab the pack of still lukewarm beers. “Want one?”
He takes it, feels the temperature, then grimaces. “Maybe later.”
“Good call.” I put them back in the fridge. “So…?” I stare at him. “How does it feel?”
“It’s…” He rubs the bond mark on his neck. “I can feel what she feels. Not as much now that she’s outside, but it’s like she’s part of me, you know? I didn’t know it was possible to feel so many different emotions at once. I don’t know how she functions.”
“Women are a lot more complicated than us, dude.” I chuckle. “Still, that sounds insane. I’ve never felt jealous of your knot, but that connection does sound pretty cool.”
“Having a knot is pretty badass too.”
“I’m good with my piercings.” I roll my eyes. “Although an alpha’s stamina definitely has some perks. Can you feel how she feels during…?”
“Yup.” He smirks proudly.
“Okay, now I really am jealous.” I look out the window where I can see Delilah and Jagger, facing away from us. Despite my happiness for Nash, a sinking feeling settles in my stomach. “This is going to be hard on him.”
“He’ll be okay.” Nash nods with a certainty that I don’t feel. “I can feel how much she cares about him. About all of us.”
I startle at the sound of my cell phone ringing. “It’s Valerie.” I frown at the screen “I’m pretty sure Jagger’s been ignoring her all morning.”
Nash’s expression sours. “Get rid of her.”
I pick up. “Hi, Val—”
Before I can say any more, her frantic, high-pitched voice nearly deafens me, bombarding me with a string of questions. “Why’s Jagger not answering? Do you realize what he’s done? What is he thinking?!”
“Whoa… Hang on a second… Slow down.” I put the phone on speaker. “Look, Val, I don’t know what you’re talking about—”
“He quit!” Her ear-splitting screech bounces off the ceiling and floor. “He publicly denounced Pack Fire on social media! The press, the magazines, the newspaper requests… they’re flooding in. Tell him to fucking call me!”
She hangs up, leaving me gaping across the backyard at my packmate. “Shit. What did he do…?”
Whatever storm is coming, it won’t be good.