16. Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Sixteen
T here is no fighting the grin plastered across my face tonight, especially not as Saylor dons her slutty pumpkin costume. How she had the foresight to pack it while rushing around her apartment in pre-heat, I’ll never know. But fuck, I’m glad she did.
As shitty as it was to come across her in the way we did, that night will always hold a special place in my heart. The way her scent blew to us on the wind had to be the work of fate.
“How do I look?” Saylor asks, spinning in a circle in front of where I’m sitting on the edge of the bed.
“You look like I don’t want to let you out of this house,” I growl, grasping her wrist and pulling her down into my lap. “Want to keep you all to myself.”
Dipping my head, I place a kiss on her lips. She responds instantly, melting into my body and kissing me back softly. Sweetly. There are so many sides to our sassy omega that I need to see more of.
“I won’t though,” I say, pulling away, the both of us a little breathless. “You look amazing, and I know you’re looking forward to this party.”
She smiles at me, but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes. My brow furrows as she stands up, dancing back to the mirror to finish her makeup. Somethings off.
“Are you alright, Saylor?”
“Yeah. Of course,” she says a little too quickly. “I just need to let go of some of this stress. Hopefully a dance will help.”
I can’t fault her for that. This last week has been a lot. We’ve truly spent very little time together, and with Luke back in the picture, I’m sure her anxiety is high .
“It’s okay to be afraid, Pumpkin. No one will blame you for feeling that way.”
She sighs heavily, placing down her mascara and spinning to face me, leaning back on the vanity with her hands on either side of her thighs.
“He doesn’t deserve any more of my fear, Corey. It’s exhausting, and it’s a power he doesn’t deserve to have. What he deserves is to be locked away for a long time. Hopefully, that happens tonight.”
“Tonight?” I ask, the crease in my brow deepening.
“I mean, hopefully they catch him as soon as possible. Tonight would be best. Yesterday would have been even better.”
What she’s saying makes sense, but at the same time an uneasy feeling washes over me, settling heavy in my stomach. Whilst I know her intimately, we’re still so new to one another that I can’t quite read her yet.
Macey was often avoidant when talking about her attack. Maybe that’s all this is—Saylor’s attempt to brush off the situation and not allow it anymore space.
“Hudson is on it. He’s a great cop, and if anyone can catch that motherfucker, it will be him.” Pushing up from the edge of the bed, I stride towards her, brushing her long, deep brown hair out of her face and catching her around the waist. A purr rumbles from my chest as I say, “ We won’t let him ruin your favourite holiday, Pumpkin, I promise.”
Saylor wraps her arms around my neck, pushing up on her tiptoes to press her lips to mine. Her pumpkin spice scent fills the room as she perfumes for me, her tongue slipping into my mouth. Tugging her body flush to mine, I groan into her mouth, nipping her bottom lip.
That’s it. Now I really don’t want to let her out of this house. In fact, I’d much prefer to take her back to her nest and spend my time kissing and nipping every inch of her skin.
My toasted marshmallow scent joins her as my cock hardens against her stomach, throbbing with need. A small gasp escapes her as my hands slide from her hips, cupping her shapely ass and lifting her back onto the vanity.
She opens for me, spreading her thighs and throwing her head back as I push between them, feeling the damp heat between her thighs through the thin material of my Peter Pan costume.
Trailing kisses down her throat and across her shoulder, I rub my neck against hers, marking her with my scent and eliciting a soft moan from her as she perfumes again.
Skimming her sides, I cup her breasts, softly teasing her nipples before bending down and sucking one into my mouth through the lace cutouts in her dress and twirling my tongue around the tip.
“Fuckkkk,” Noah groans, startling both of us. Saylor nearly jumps out of her skin before breaking out into a fit of giggles. “We’ll never get out of here if you two don’t disentangle now.”
Grinning, I raise my arms in surrender, stepping backwards from Saylor as her giggle turns into a laugh and she cups a hand over her mouth as she looks at Noah.
The big oaf is wearing a Fred Flinstone costume, the dress pulling tight over his broad shoulders and his dark hair carefully spiked just like the characters.
“I thought you were joking when you asked me to dress as Barney this year,” I ask as he tosses a wadded up brown ball my way. Unravelling it, I hold it out before me, examining the brown Barney Rubble dress, snorting. I can’t believe he was serious.
“Not joking, and you need to change, anyway.” He looks pointedly at my crotch, and I glance down to see the wet patch coating the front of my costume.
“Ooops,” Saylor says, barely suppressing her laughter. “Sorry, not sorry.”
There will never come a day that I want her to apologise for covering me in her scent. If I hadn’t promised Noah I’d wear the matching costume, I wouldn’t be changing now. Nothing would make me prouder than wearing her scent and claiming her as mine.
There’ll be time for that. For now, our Pumpkin needs to relax and enjoy her favourite night of the year without looking over her shoulder.
“I got you something, Pumpkin, if you’d like to match us?” Noah hands Saylor a bundle of blue fabric, holding it in front of her with a giggle.
“Betty?” I ask, surprised he didn’t go straight for Wilma, given he’s dressed as Fred.
“It was all they had,” he grumbles, causing Saylor to laugh as I snort. Gods, the sound of her laughter is everything.
“Of course, I want to match with you,” she exclaims, turning to the vanity and pulling her pumpkin dress over her head and replacing it with the Betty costume. Noah pulls a bow out of his pocket and hands it to her. She positions it on her head, then turns to us with a grin. “Ready?”
“Ready.”
The Halloween celebrations are in full swing as we pull up at the Lion’s house. They are well known for hosting the best university parties and the crowd spilling out of the double story house onto the fully decorated lawn can attest to that.
My gaze darts around the house, spotting the extra presence Sargent Hudson provided for the night. There are undercover men stationed at every entrance and exit of the house. He isn’t taking this threat lightly, ready to protect the residents of our town—Saylor in—the best way he can.
We make our way inside, nodding at the guys as Saylor leads the way to the dance floor, already filled with partygoers in all manner of dress. From witches to celeb look-alikes. Noah breaks away, nodding towards the back of the room where a makeshift bar is set up.
“Sealed drinks,” I shout over the pounding bass, remembering how we’d found our Pumpkin in the alley.
Noah nods, and I let Saylor drag me to the middle of the thrumming bodies. All around us, people lose themselves in the music. Solo, paired up, or in groups—alphas, betas and omegas all dance together. Bodies grinding, I hold Saylor close as she lets the beat take over. The tension she’s been holding in her posture slowly seeping out as she lets herself go .
Noah joins us a couple of songs later, handing us each a bottle of apple cider. A beautiful mix of orange and red liquid shimmers through the glass and I realise they’re the new Halloween themed ‘poisoned apple cider cocktail’ drinks the local brewery just released. It runs smoothly down my throat as I take a sip, stepping back and watching as Noah wraps his arms around Saylor’s waist while she dances.
How did I get so lucky? Watching the two of them together is like witnessing two parts of my heart merge into one. How quickly Saylor has become a part of me would be terrifying if it didn’t feel so right. She fits us perfectly.
I watch the two of them until they break from the crowd, Noah clasping her hand tightly as they make their way to me.
“Bathroom break,” Saylor says.
“Okay, we’ll come with you.”
“No, no. It’s right there,” she says, pointing across the room to a door where a few women are gathered. “Stay here. You can see me, and I’ll be right back.”
A weight settles in my stomach as I look at Noah. His jaw is tight as he nods. She drops his hand, pushing up on her tiptoes to press a quick kiss to his cheek. Doing the same to me, she turns away, her eyes sparkling in the flashing lights as she weaves through the crowd to the bathroom.
“Shit,” I mutter to Noah. “I don’t want to fucking stand here and just watch. What if something happens while she’s in there?”
“I feel the same way. But we can’t force her. She isn’t ours.”
“Yet,” I growl, not taking my eyes off the door as she disappears behind it.
“Yet,” Noah agrees. “Trust me, it’s taking everything I have to reign in my alpha and not break my way into that room. But what if we push too hard and she runs?”
The thought had crossed my mind. Saylor is a survivor. She’s strong, capable, and fiercely independent. We need to respect that, allow her to thrive. We can’t squash who she is because of our protectiveness.
Together we stand watching the door, the party going on around us in a blur. My spine stiffens, my pulse picking up as a few minutes pass by with no reappearance.
“Fuck,” Noah growls, uncrossing his arms and standing tall. “Move,” he barks as he pushes through the crowd toward the bathroom. They part, the force of his command tangible even over the thumping music.
Knock, knock, knock .
“Saylor,” he calls, pounding on the door again. “Open up, Pumpkin.”
Nothing but silence follows his demand, and a knot forms in my throat. What if Luke got to her?
“Saylor, honey, Noah is going to break this door down if you don’t answer him right away.”
Silence follows again and we don’t wait any longer. Trying the handle, I find it locked.
Noah takes a few steps back, readying himself to kick the door down, just like we did at her apartment.
Following suit, I join him and together we kick. The door splinters straight down the middle.
Noah’s faster than I am, kicking again. The frame breaks and the door comes free.
Pushing it open, I freeze as I glance around the space. Nothing is out of place. The room is completely empty. Everything is still, except for the small curtain above the sink, billowing as the breeze blows gently in the open window.
“Where is she?” Noah barks, clenching his fists as he comes in behind me.
“I don’t know.”