CHAPTER SIXTEEN – Silas
Fuck no.
Not only were both of my best friends compatible with the same Omega, but so was I. This was the worst possible thing that could happen.
I leapt into my truck and tore out down the drive. My dick was so hard it hurt. I couldn’t get away from Nicolette fast enough. If I stayed any longer, I would go back inside and fuck her on the table. Her sweet little body against mine felt so right. Even when Sarah tricked me with black market slick, I’d never felt anything so powerful like the instinct to knot Nicolette.
Skidding to a stop near the entrance of the driveway, I put the truck in park and scrambled to yank my erection out of my wet pants. I gripped the steering wheel with one hand as I furiously jerked it. My eyes squeezed shut as images of that hot Omega in her wet leotard, nipples so hard, moaning against me.
The fact that she stood up for herself, her strength and fire, only made her sexier. It was sad that fighting with Nicolette was the best foreplay I’d had in years. Every nerve in my body was sizzling.
I groaned as my sac tightened. That succulent tight ass, her luscious mouth, those long dancer’s legs. I wanted her screaming my name, begging me for more.
I slammed my head back as I came. My jizz splattered all over me and the steering wheel and seemed to keep shooting out for days. Panting, I growled because the urge to fuck her still clung tightly to every heartbeat.
Fuck. I’d have to stay away from her now. I didn’t trust myself, and no way would I betray Ezekiel or Kodiak by claiming the Omega. I wouldn’t be the one to destroy our pack.
Everything in my life had gone to shit. My parents had died and none of my extended family wanted me. The first female I let myself fall for turned out to be a lying bitch pretending she was an Omega because she wanted the good money I made. What made it worse was that I realized having my own Omega was what I wanted. Not that I ever told anyone.
Now I was going to lose my best friends, my pack, to an Omega that I wanted to knot. Hell, I wanted more than just to knot Nicolette. I wanted to make her laugh, to keep her warm at night, to kiss every inch of her hot body.
“Stupid.” That’s what I was. I whipped off my wet shirt and cleaned myself and the steering wheel. “I should have never touched her.”
It was painful to think of a life never touching her again. But that’s what I deserved. She wasn’t mine. No one ever wanted me.
I reached into the rear seat and nabbed a spare hoodie. My pants were still wet, but there was nothing I could do about that at the moment. I put the truck in gear and turned to head to Savva’s place, but stomped on the brake.
That would be a dumb idea. Savva wanted Kodiak with Nicolette. He wouldn’t care if Ezekiel got with her either. I was the kid that caused him the most trouble over the years. Poor grades in school, lots of fights, my drinking. He wouldn’t want to know I was compatible with the Omega too.
I couldn’t go to Savva’s nor could I go back to the cabin. This weekend there was some fishing tournament in town, so the hotel and all the lodges would be booked. If it was summer, I’d sleep on the boat, but the temperature could drop well below freezing at night even in early November.
I wasn’t friends with anyone else to crash at their place. Except, well, maybe….
Turning left out of the drive, I headed to Shae’s. She and I got along fine enough. Ezekiel was the most friendly with her, bonding over the dogs, but she’d been around all the while we were growing up. When Savva was out in the woods for days, Shae would help keep an eye on us and make sure we didn’t burn the cabin down.
Shae had converted an old trapper’s cabin and added on to it. The original little one room cabin dated back almost two centuries, The rest of the parts were from different recent decades, and it showed. It made the architect in me cringe. No section looked like it belonged with other sections. Sort of like the big yard full of various doghouses for her twenty dogs.
The huskies started howling long before they came into view. I could hear them from the road. When I parked the truck, I got out and cringed at the racket. Atka and Kavik could be loud enough on their own, but this gigantic pack? The noise thundered in my ears.
Shae came out from her workshop, wiping her hands on her jeans. She had something smeared on her face and her gray hair was standing out at all sides. “Hey Silas. What can I do for you?” As she got closer, she narrowed her eyes. “Had yourself a little accident?”
“Nah, got myself into a fight last night.” I shrugged.
“I heard about that.” She waved it off. It was no news to anyone that I got into a fight. “I meant your pants there. You’re all wet.”
Shit. I’d forgotten about that. “Ah, yeah. The Omega filled the washer too full and it became unbalanced. Had to pull the plug before she flooded the whole house. She’s a house-wrecker on every level.”
Shae raised her brows. “Heard she’s doing okay.”
“From Ezekiel?” I shook my head. Of course he’d say Nicolette was perfect.
“Nah, from Sav. He says she’s a fast learner.” She motioned for me to follow her to her workshop. “Come in here. Think I still got a box or two of Joe’s clothes. You can’t be walking around in that wet stuff. The girl ain’t going to want to play nurse if you get sick.”
A naughty nurse. Fuck, I had to stop thinking about her. I was getting hard again.
“Can’t see her wanting to have a thing to do with me no matter what.” No one needed to know Nicolette told me to fuck her not even half an hour ago. “She doesn’t like me and I don’t like her.”
Shae went to a pile of boxes in the far corner of her workshop and shot me a stern gaze. “And whose fault is that?” She didn’t even wait for me to reply, she continued on. “You need to be nicer to the girl. She’s going to be around for good.”
How much did Savva gab on to Shae? Everyone on this island was a gossip. Like they didn’t have anything better to do. “I don’t have to do any such thing. She’s already pitting the guys against me, and when she chooses one over the other, she’s going to break one of their hearts. Our pack is ruined, and it’s all because of her.”
“It would have happened eventually. Kodiak always wanted a mate.” Shae found the box she was looking for and popped it open to remove a worn pair of men’s jeans. She tossed them to me, and I caught them in one hand. “Besides, she doesn’t have to choose. If you have a real pack, you guys would share.”
A harsh laugh burst out of me. Share? Even when Ezekiel has been on the couch cuddling with Nicolette, Kodiak looked like he was ready to kill him. Never mind my own feelings of possessiveness. I’d wanted to bite her and proclaim she was mine after one kiss.
“Kodiak and Ezekiel are barely restraining themselves from beating the shit out of each other over her as it is. No way they’re going to share.”
“If they love and respect her, they’ll make it work.” Shae returned the box to its place and walked back to me. She nodded toward her still howling dogs, seemingly deaf to the noise they were making. “My dogs and I, we’re a pack. I’m the Alpha, but they have their own hierarchy in the bunch. When one of the females goes into heat, she mates with each of the Alpha males if I let her near them. It’s good for creating strong ties. They all care for her, protect her and the pups. Helps the males bond too. Each of them knows they’re worthy, and they create a stronger pack by working together.”
“We aren’t dogs.” I snorted. All that was bullshit in relation to people. Shae was a dog trainer and breeder. Her husband, Joe, died long before I could remember. She never remarried and dedicated her life to the animals. She didn’t know how it was between Alphas and Omegas. “It wouldn’t work.”
“Then you aren’t a strong pack.” The way she said it as a matter-of-fact was like a knife to the gut. No way was I going to stay here if she doubted the strength of the bonds between Kodiak, Ezekiel, and I. “Go on inside and change. You’re likely freezing your nuts off.”
“Yeah, thanks. I can change in my truck.” I stomped back to my pickup, grinding my teeth. We were an awesome pack. Kodiak and Ezekiel always had my back no matter how much trouble I created. We were not only best friends, but we worked together as a solid team. None of the small crews working the Tongass were as good as we were. Nowhere near.
Until Nicolette came along. Now it had all fallen to pieces.
“Hey, why’d you come here anyway? You need something?” Shae called after me.
“Nothing important.” I hopped into my truck and waved, not looking back as I drove away.
I loved my friends. I’d been trying to scare off the Omega for all of us. They were too blinded by her heat to see what was right for our pack. And now, after what happened between Nicolette and I this morning….
I slammed a fist against the steering wheel and hissed when I realized it was the injured one. “Fucking hell.”
Screw all of this. My head immediately went to having a drink. Just one. It wouldn’t hurt. One drink to wash away the pain and heartache, to erase Nicolette’s moans from my mind. If I lost Kodiak and Ezekiel, it would destroy me. They were the only reason I survived what Sarah did to me. They were all I had.
The memory of Nicolette’s mouth under mine and how good she felt against me.
I sped towards town. The pub would be quiet this time of day. No one there to bother me. One drink. Maybe two.