Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
WELLS
I t’s kind of hard to hate a guy whose mom just died.
Although I’m sure part of that is the fact that Finnegan Abernathy seems to be a genuinely good person.
Somehow, Alora was able to talk him and his dad into coming out to eat with us after they spread Fiona’s ashes over the edge of the lookout.
I’m honestly not even sure how she did it.
They both said they were going to head home and take some time for themselves, but within fifteen minutes, we were all headed to a restaurant in Glenmore.
Alistair left about twenty minutes ago after we finished eating, and Jordan assured him we’d see that Finn made it home. Finn didn’t seem like he wanted to stay, but with just a few words from Alora, he was agreeing.
I swear my omega has some kind of magical powers of persuasion or something.
“Are you okay?” Alora asks when Finn gets up to go to the bathroom. “This is all okay with you, right? If it’s too much, we can bring him home.”
I shake my head. “No, Alora, we’re not taking him home. Especially not after you convinced him not to leave with his dad. I’ll admit that he doesn’t seem too bad.”
“High compliments from my brother,” Jordan says with a laugh as he slaps his hand on my shoulder.
I flip him off, keeping my eyes locked on Alora. “Do you still feel drawn to him?”
She ducks her head as she nods. “Maybe even more so.”
“Then we’re going to continue to get to know the man. Although, you might want to let him know that you’re interested in something more than just being his friend.” I glance at my brother, sharing an amused look with him when she wrinkles her nose.
“What do you mean? I’ve been very obvious about my interest in him.”
Jordan nods slowly. “I will agree. I can see that you’re interested in him, but you already wear an alpha’s mark. He probably thinks you’re just being friendly. Since you have a pack, he probably thinks you’re not looking to add to it.”
Her eyes go wide. “Really? I didn’t think of that. Wow, I’m an idiot.”
“Hey.” I grab her hand, lifting it to my lips and pressing a kiss to the palm. “Don’t talk about my omega like that. You’re the furthest thing from an idiot.”
Because she’s used to this kind of thing from both me and Jordan, she just rolls her eyes. She looks like she wants to say more, but Finn returns to the table and pauses.
“Everything okay?” he asks, glancing between us.
I nod, gesturing for him to take his seat. “Of course.”
He’s slow to lower himself, but finally retakes his seat .
“I like you, Finn,” Alora blurts, and I have to bite back a laugh.
Finn chuckles, his face flushing. “Uh…I like you too, Alora.”
My omega growls. “That’s not what I meant. I mean, I’m interested in you and your alpha. Like being more than friends.”
“I…uhh…” he stammers, eyes wide as he glances toward me.
“Don’t look at me. Alora’s the one who’s interested—not me. I’m not into men.”
He snorts. “Well, neither am I… At least, not really. Whatever, that doesn’t matter. I’m looking at you because you’re her alpha.”
And that’s when it clicks.
“Ahh, you’re looking to me for permission.
” At his nod, I laugh. “If you think I’m the one in charge of this pack, you’re sadly mistaken.
Alora is the one who says what goes, but we’ve already discussed her interest in you.
We’ve been trying to figure out how to get a hold of you for the last five days.
We took a break today only to go to your mom’s funeral. ”
“You were?” His disbelief is clear in his tone. “But why? You’re already a pack.”
Alora sighs. “Are you not interested in me? Because if that’s the case, all you have to do is say so. I know attraction is sometimes just one-sided.”
Finn shakes his head frantically. “No. That’s not it at all. But you already have a pack, so I put you into the off-limits category.”
“Told you so,” I sing-song, a smirk painting my lips.
When Alora turns to me with a glare, I just laugh before growing serious as I lean forward.
“Finn, you seem like a good person, so I’m going to be upfront with you.
I never planned to be part of a pack, but when Alora fell for Jordan, I figured he was my brother, so that wasn’t too hard of an ask. ”
His face falls, and I know he thinks I’m about to tell him to shove off—even though I just told him we’ve been looking for him for the last five days.
“A little over a year ago, I was hospitalized after one of Alora’s heats after passing out at work—for exhaustion and dehydration.
We were informed that, due to the nature of Alora’s heats, we would need to bring another alpha in during her heats.
We haven’t done that yet because Alora doesn’t feel comfortable using a heat service as she doesn’t want a stranger in her nest during her heats.
It took a while for me to come around to the idea of adding another alpha, but I can’t continue to take an extra week off work after her heats.
It’s not sustainable, and I don’t feel good about myself that I have to take more time off than my omega after her heat.
“This is the first time Alora has shown interest in another alpha, and I’ll admit that seeing her flirt with you is a little…
grating. But it’s not as bad as I thought it would be, but I think a big part of that is that it’s you.
It’s true we don’t know you well yet, but just from your actions alone, you’ve proven yourself trustworthy.
Well, besides kissing my omega in the forest while I was going out of my head with worry, but I’m choosing not to hold that against you.
“Alora feels a connection to you, and I find I don’t mind your company so far.
But you need to understand that I’m a possessive asshole when it comes to Alora.
Usually, she puts up with it, but I know my being that way toward someone else in the pack—in a non-joking way—will hurt her.
While this is my issue, if we all agree for you to join our pack, it’s also going to become your problem.
You’re going to need to be able to shut down that shit if I can’t stop myself. ”
Alora shakes her head. “This isn’t what we talked about, Wells.”
“Shh, baby. Let Wells finish.” Jordan reaches across the table to take her hand. “This is something that would happen regardless of Wells’s possessiveness. Alphas in packs need to know the hierarchy—especially when one is added into an already established pack.”
She chews on her lip, glancing between me and Finn. We both give her a smile, and that seems to set her mostly at ease. Although it doesn’t stop her from standing from her chair and crawling into Jordan’s lap as she seeks his comfort and reassurance.
Finn watches her for another moment before returning his attention to me. “So I need to have a stronger alpha than you?”
“I don’t know how else to make this work,” I admit, hating that I need to admit it. It makes me feel weak—like I’m not in control of myself when I am…most of the time.
“And how do you expect to figure out if I’m strong enough?”
It’s a fair question.
“Why don’t you come back to our hotel? If I’m going to freak out, I’d prefer it to be somewhere more private.”
He blinks at me for a moment. “I’m not going to have sex with Alora to see if you can handle it.”
His words bring a smile to my face. “That’s good because you wouldn’t be the man I think you are if you would. But that’s not what I was suggesting. Maybe we start with kissing.”
“Oh.” Finn flushes again, eyes darting to Alora. “Is that what you want?”
“Oh, yes, please.” She smiles, nodding her head.
As if she would’ve said no.
What a silly alpha .
“So what do you say, Finn?”
He considers me for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, okay. Let’s do this.”
It doesn’t take us long to make it back to the hotel and to our room. We gather in the seating area with Finn and Alora on the couch while Jordan and I sit in armchairs.
As soon as we’re all settled, an awkward silence descends on us.
“This is stupid,” Alora says, her bottom lip poking out slightly. “You’ve made it all weird, Wells.”
I laugh, leaning back in the chair. “Are you saying you no longer want to kiss him?”
“Well, no.”
“Then kiss him,” Jordan urges her, and I wish I were more like my laid-back brother. He never seems to get jealous, but he also never pushes back when I do.
Maybe we really do need another alpha in our pack and not just because of Alora’s heat.
Surprisingly, it doesn’t make me feel like a failure of an alpha for not being enough.
When the doctor first told me I wasn’t enough for her heats, that’s the only part I really heard. That I wasn’t good enough. That I was a failure.
Now, admitting this to myself feels…freeing. Like it’s a burden off my shoulders, and I’m not sure how I feel about it.
Alora sticks her tongue out at Jordan, but then clambers onto Finn’s lap. His arms wrap around her, pulling her flush against him, and the first twinge of possessiveness hits me square in the jaw.
I bite back the growl threatening to break free. I don’t need Alora to freak out.
But when his hand sinks into her glorious red hair and he yanks her toward him for a kiss, I lose it .
A growl rips out of my throat as I launch out of the chair.
Part of me knows this isn’t how I should react—especially not given how Alora moans into the kiss—but I can’t stop myself.
Finn pulls away from her to look at me. “Stop.”
There’s no force behind his words, and I’m beginning to doubt whether or not he’s up for this challenge.
I take a step toward them, still growling as I prepare to snatch my omega out of the unworthy alpha’s arms when Finn flashes his teeth, a growl spilling from him.
“Sit down, Wells.” The full force of his alpha bark hits me, and my eyes widen as I fall back into the chair.
Holy shit.
I’ve never had another alpha’s bark affect me before, but his definitely does.
Thank fuck.
“Stop growling,” he commands, and my growl falls away. I didn’t realize I was even still growling.
Alora glances over her shoulder, a worried look on her face as she meets my gaze. I shoot her a smile.
“I’m fine. This is good. Kiss Finn, sweetness.”
She hesitates for another moment, and Finn takes control of the situation, pulling her hair to draw her attention back to him.
The kiss starts out timid as they both feel one another out, but it doesn’t take long for it to turn hot and lustful.
My cock stirs in my pants, surprising me. I palm myself, watching as Finn cups Alora’s tits in his hands.
That’s much hotter than I thought it would be.
“I’m proud of you,” Jordan murmurs.
I shoot my big brother a grin as Finn and Alora break apart.
“As much as I’m enjoying this,” Finn pants, shaking his head. “We should probably stop this before it goes any further.”
Alora huffs. “You don’t want to have sex with me?”
Finn laughs, lifting her off his lap and settling her back on the couch. “I definitely want to have sex with you, but I’d like to do this the right way. Can I take the three of you on a date tomorrow?”
“All three of us?” Jordan asks, eyebrows raised. “I thought you weren’t into men.”
“I’ve had sex with men, but I’ve never had an emotional connection with one before.
So I guess if you want to fuck me, we can talk, but that’s not why I want to take all of you on a date.
” Finn smiles. “You’re a pack, and if I’m going to pursue your omega, then we need to get to know each other too. ”
“See, I knew you were one of the good ones.” I push to my feet, offering him my hand. “Thank you, and we’d love to do something with you tomorrow.”
Finn shakes my hand as he stands. “Do any of you get seasick?”
Alora shakes her head. “No.”
“Do you like being out on the water?”
She nods. “Why?”
“Because we have a boat, and I’d like to take you out on it—if that sounds like something you’d enjoy.”
“Yes.” She lights up. “That sounds wonderful.”
Finn nods. “Then that’s what we’ll do. Since it’s winter, there won’t be any bikinis, sadly.
But there are a few islands along the coast I’d like to show you.
They used to be part of the mainland, but during the Event, a large portion of Scotland was lost to the sea.
Somehow, portions remained, making new islands.
I honestly don’t understand the science behind it, but it’s kind of cool. ”
“Huh. That definitely sounds cool,” I admit .
“Good. Why don’t I come get you around ten tomorrow morning?
I’ll bring something for lunch, and we can eat on one of the islands.
” He turns back to Alora. “In the meantime, I should head home to see my Da. My aunt is staying with us, and the two of them do not get along. At least the rest of her family and my uncle got a hotel—none of them want to deal with their bullshit.”
Alora is full-on pouting at this point. “Already?”
“Alora, the man just lost his mom and has to deal with family. He might also need a few moments to think since we just dumped this on him.”
She sighs. “Yeah, okay. That makes sense. I’ll walk you out.”
We say our goodbyes as Alora leads him to the door, stopping him before he can leave to kiss him again.
Once again, jealousy hits me in the chest, but it doesn’t feel as strong as before. I certainly don’t feel like I need to go rip her out of his arms.
Maybe this will really work.