12. Talya
CHAPTER TWELVE
TALYA
I awoke with a start and immediately had to catch my breath. There was one frantic moment when the weight on me felt like I was being restrained again, but then I heard Colby’s purr and immediately relaxed.
Everything was fine. I was safe. Colby was here.
“Okay?” he asked.
Taking a deep breath, I nodded and pushed further into him. But as the world around me came into focus, it felt too big. My skin itched, so I tried to get even closer. I needed to be surrounded and closed in tightly. A shiver skittered down my spine.
Colby kissed the top of my head. “Don’t move,” he murmured before pulling away.
It took everything I had in me not to pull him back. My heart jumped and raced as he sat up. He didn’t move for a minute, then he stretched his muscles, a groan escaping his throat.
My discomfort was momentarily forgotten in lieu of the concern that drew my brows together. “Colby?”
He looked at me over his shoulder and smiled. “I’m fine. I’ll be right back.” With that, he got to his feet. He moved through the room, opening drawers and doors. From the closet, he pulled out blankets then brought them to the bed.
After that, he left the room, returning two more times with blankets and pillows. Anything soft and fluffy. I smiled as I nestled them all around me until I could finally release the tense breath caught in my chest. Much better. Not perfect yet but better.
Colby stripped his clothing and disappeared into the attached bathroom before crawling into bed with me again. He pulled my clothes off next, leaving us both in just underwear. When we first laid down, we were so tired that nothing had come off, not even our shoes. Now, finally, Colby stripped off the dampening bracelets, and his scent filled my lungs, making me salivate.
“Much better,” he growled, his hand and face burying in my hair.
As much as we both needed the connection of sex right now, and I could feel his heart racing as much as mine was—never mind that our scents gave our arousal away—what we really needed was just being together.
No being watched or interrupted by doctors. No beta nurse judging an alpha and omega with jealousy. No hospital sounds and unfamiliar scents.
It was just us, and with that, we fell into a long, deep sleep.
So long, in fact, that it was late into the next day before I woke. I yawned, stretched, and curled back into Colby as his arms tightened around me.
“You okay?” he asked, his voice filled with sleep.
“I feel almost human again. Except I need a shower.”
He chuckled. “Yep. I woke up remembering how many airports and plane seats we’ve been in.”
Even acknowledging that, we didn’t make an effort to move for a while longer. It was nice to just lie here and be. The things I’d taken for granted over the years seemed so trivial now. I’d seen and felt real horror, and nothing could compare to feeling Colby’s pain and panic and not being able to get to him. I’d get over my own trauma in time, but I knew it would be a long time before I’d stop dreaming about feeling his pain in my chest while being helpless to do anything about it.
When my stomach growled, Colby decided that was enough lounging around. We likely only slept so long because we’d eaten in the car on the way here. With one demand met, it was easy to let exhaustion overtake us.
We took showers separately, but neither of us left the bathroom until we were both clean. Once dressed in what few articles of clothing had been stuffed in the backpacks, we headed out into the hall.
The house was silent. Standing just outside the bedroom doorway, we listened for any sound, but none came.
Colby took my hand and led me to the stairs. I didn’t think we were being quiet so that we’d not be overheard. At least, not consciously. But we were strangers here, surrounded by betas and alphas whose presence were not comforting right now. Hell, as weird as it sounded, I thought I’d take a house of omegas at this point.
The thought nearly made me snort. I must have let out some sound because Colby looked at me with a raised brow and a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. I shook my head. Nothing at all to be concerned with.
Once on the main floor, we paused again. I was far too tired to have paid much attention during the tour we’d been given when we arrived—was it only yesterday? I’d be lucky if I remembered names this morning. Hopefully, when I saw them, I’d remember. The only thing that I seemed to recall was a gorgeous, glaring alpha standing against the wall with his arms crossed.
Big alpha.
Oh! I hadn’t realized he’d caught my attention in that way.
Colby kissed the side of my head as he chuckled, the sound so soft I barely heard it.
“What?” I asked.
“Your perfume is all over the place this morning,” he commented. “What are you thinking about, omega?”
There was teasing in his voice, a low sultry purr that had me shivering and my panties getting wet. I frowned at him. “Thanks for that.”
This time, his laugh was louder. He kissed my temple, pulling me into his side.
Our noise must have called attention to us because the beta who’d shown us around poked his head through a doorway with a wide smile. “Hi!” he said, his dark eyes flitting between us. “You’re finally awake. Everything okay?”
He’s a little excitable. I smiled at the thought even though my nerves felt charged. Betas were no longer harmless.
“Fine, thank you,” Colby said. “Could probably sleep for another three days, but we’re hungry.”
“I was thinking a week,” I said, looking at my alpha.
He met my eyes, a smile stretching across his lips. “Whatever you want.”
Kasen stepped out of the room. He was still smiling, his gaze constantly moving between us. “I’ll bring you to the kitchen.” He paused, his brows furrowing. “Unless you’d rather go on your own? I can stay here, or… we can order food if that makes you more comfortable.”
“Kasen.” He jumped at his name, suddenly wide eyes looking at the alpha who’d stepped out of what I was sure must be the kitchen. He wore an open white button down over jeans and had one of those classically handsome faces. Lohtus , I thought, squinting. As if squinting would somehow make me sure of his name.
“Relax, beta.” He looked at us, a soft smile on his lips as he moved from the kitchen to wrap an arm around Kasen. The beta sighed. “He just wants to make sure you’re not uncomfortable. Please forgive his rambling.”
Kasen nodded. “Sorry.”
I smiled, squeezing Colby’s hand as I looked up at my alpha. He was glancing between the two thoughtfully. “No worries,” he finally said. “The kitchen will do just fine. Please.” He gestured in the direction that Lohtus had stepped out of.
Lohtus’ lips twitched as if he were trying to keep his smile from growing. He nipped at Kasen’s ear before letting him go, and I recognized that gesture. Slight reprimand. It made them more human and relatable, and my smile came a little easier.
Kasen’s smile was a bit sheepish now. He awkwardly gestured for us to follow him and turned for the kitchen. Lohtus let his amusement show as he shook his head. He moved aside to allow us to follow then took up step behind us.
The kitchen was modern but filled with the same colonial charm as the rest of the house. Like the outside, it was primarily black and white, featuring sleek lines with warmer wood tones at the table and a farm-board-covered wall behind the long counter.
“Um,” Kasen said, his gaze darting between us before turning back to the kitchen. “We have leftovers… casserole. It was good. Or there’s lots of things to make. Something easy like frozen meatballs or chicken wings and pierogies. I think there’s some dumplings or whatever in the freezer, too…” He trailed off as he tilted his head, thinking about it. His gaze flickered to us again, and a slight flush tinted his cheeks.
Colby smirked, dropping my hand and wrapping his arm around my waist as the beta’s sudden nervousness expanded. He continued to tell us everything that was in the house. Everything . We were even informed that there was another bag of flour since the canister was getting low.
Finally, Lohtus took pity on him and shushed him with a kiss to his lips. “Good boy,” he murmured, and Kasen shivered. “Go see if anyone else wants lunch, yeah?”
“Okay,” Kasen answered quietly. He gave us another shy smile, his cheeks darkening with a blush once more, before disappearing out a back door.
We watched him go before Lohtus drew our attention. “You said something last night that made him nervous about his presence around you, like maybe you’re not comfortable with him, so while he wants to play host, he isn’t sure if being around him will upset you,” he explained.
Colby frowned. “What did I say? I’m sorry. When we got here, we were both exhausted. I don’t recall the conversation.”
Lohtus lifted his hands. “No, it wasn’t offensive or anything like that. He just got the impression that you might not want a beta around.”
“Oh.” I looked at Colby. “You did say something off hand, I think.”
Colby closed his eyes. “I believe you. The last several days are a blur. I’ll apologize.”
“No, no,” Lohtus said, turning to the freezer and pulling out a large bag. “Not why I’m mentioning it.” He paused as he continued to pull items from the fridge and cabinets before turning on the oven. Then he stilled for a second, looking at us. “He’s not upset, but he’s likely going to fall over himself trying to accommodate you while also going out of his way to make you comfortable and welcome here. He’s a good man.”
“He’s your beta?” I asked.
Lohtus smiled in return. “He is. Almost since the day I was dropped here, all feral and pissed and nearly out of control.” He shook his head and busied himself around the kitchen. “His kindness and peace instantly settled me, and really, I haven’t let him go since.”
“That’s both the same and not at all how I found Talya. I immediately knew she was mine when we met as teenagers,” Colby said, smiling fondly at me.
I shared his smile before looking back at Lohtus. He’d paused to watch us, his eyes on Colby. He licked his lips before moving back to preparing lunch.
“Sometimes you just know,” he agreed. “But anyway, you can put him at ease if you like.”
Colby smiled. “I’ll do that. I didn’t mean to upset him.”
“Upset who?” Blakely asked as he walked in, the other beta and an alpha on his heels.
I remembered Blakely for some reason, but the others were escaping me, which I found funny since my gaze was drawn more to them than Blakely—or Lohtus for that matter. The two whose names I couldn’t remember, beta and alpha alike, were watching me. The alpha was all sorts of sexy and hell, but so was the dark-skinned beta.
“Kasen,” Lohtus said.
“Ah.” Blakely looked at us. “I see you were subject to his nervous rapid-speak.”
Colby chuckled. “Yep. It’s adorable, actually.”
I raised a brow, finally tearing my eyes away from the alpha and beta pair to look at my alpha. He winked at me before kissing my forehead. I narrowed my eyes at him, making Colby chuckle.
“He is adorable,” Blakely said slowly. “Glad you recognize that he’s not just being… Well…”
Colby laughed. “Not just being a beta.” He looked at the other beta, grinning at him.
The beta shrugged. “I get it, but I’m weird. I don’t chase alphas.”
The alpha holding his hand grinned wickedly. “Of course you don’t. Because you’re already caught.”
They shared a look, and I didn’t miss the heat. I sighed, leaning against Colby’s side. I liked the easy conversation. How relaxed and companionable it was here. This was what a pack should be.
“Sit,” Lohtus said, nodding his head toward the table. “We’re relying on pre-made frozen shit right now for convenience since you haven’t eaten in almost twenty-four hours.”
Colby moved me toward the table, and we took a seat. The alpha-beta pair joined us, but Blakely moved to the kitchen counter.
“Where is our beta?” Blakely asked as he washed his hands.
“Since Ronan isn’t inside, I’m guessing he’s hunting down our grumpy bear,” Lohtus answered.
“His grump is just a front,” the alpha at the table told us.
What the fuck was his name?! That question basically slipped away when he turned a smile toward me. Even I could smell my perfume spike. I took a deep breath through my mouth to focus on him, enough that I acknowledged his nostrils flaring and the funny way the beta’s scent changed. Now, that was curious.
“I’m pretty sure Ronan is a marshmallow,” the beta said, a strange edge to his low voice. He swallowed, pressing his lips together as he looked at his alpha.
The alpha laughed quietly, shaking his head. He turned to me. “Are you familiar with designation fluidity, Talya?”
I tilted my head a little. “In passing. Why?”
“Emerald is designation fluid, meaning he’s biologically a beta, but those markers can change. He has moments where he can go any which way—beta, alpha, or omega.”
Glad to have a name to put with the face, I stared at Emerald with surprise and interest. His dark skin prevented me from seeing a flush, but based on his expression, I was sure he had one.
“When his scent shifts like that, he’s responding to you in a way an alpha might. I’m explaining because I know it can be confusing and I want you to know that he’s not doing it on purpose.” He shrugged. “While he can mostly resist the urge one way or another, Em hasn’t had much call for pushing back the alpha side of him.”
“Do you have an omega side?” I asked, leaning forward.
He smiled uneasily. “More so, yes.”
“With your alpha,” Colby said. It wasn’t phrased as a question but more a guess.
Emerald shook his head and shrugged. “Yes, in the beginning when I first met Ainsley, it was hard to make it stop, but I learned to. I don’t want to be wanted for something I can kinda, sorta be. I want to be me.”
“Arguably, you’re still being you when you’re presenting as an omega since it’s a unique part of being designation fluid,” Colby said. “You’re not acting or pretending or anything.”
“I’m not,” Emerald agreed. “And… I guess I never thought about it that way.”
Ainsley, finally named, grinned at Colby, nodding his appreciation of my alpha’s words.
But Emerald was looking at me. “If you could switch off being an omega for a day, would you?”
With a laugh, I shook my head. “No way. I like being me.”
“I guess that’s the problem with me. I am a beta, so I kind of feel like I’m wearing another skin that doesn’t quite fit right when those pieces inside me shift.”
“But when you’re doing it without thought, that’s different, isn’t it?” I argued. “If my whining suddenly stopped working and I produced a purr instead, naturally in reaction to a situation, that’s different. It would still be me. However…” I paused to study him. “I understand what you’re saying. It might feel a little… unnatural.”
Emerald smiled again, then he reached across the table, covering my hand with his for a brief moment. In that second, the faint lemon of his scent bloomed brightly. My eyes widened, making his smile flash with teeth. “Very unnatural,” he agreed. “And a little startling at times.” He pulled his hand away, but the lemon remained pungent in the air. “That’s why I haven’t gotten it under control yet. I don’t have much experience with the alpha traits, so it’ll take me a little while to get used to it enough to predict them and tame them.”
This time, I reached out and touched him, and when his lemon blossomed again, it was like a citrus tree was struck with lightning. “Don’t fight it on my account,” I said, my voice a little breathy from the scent suddenly surrounding me. “I don’t mind. Only work on it if it bothers you.”
I didn’t miss the way Emerald or Ainsley looked at me, and while Ainsley had managed to keep himself level before, now his scent spiked. All sorts of yummy woodsy flavors and a hint of vanilla that had me swallowing hard because my perfume burst, too.
Beside me, Colby chuckled.