Chapter 7 Perry
PERRY
“We should go after him,” Buckle says.
“No.” I lay a hand on his forearm. “We need to give him time. He grew up in a fucked up place. He needs to realize we won’t hurt him like they did.”
“And how the fuck do we do that if he runs away?”
“By letting him have the choice to run away.” I press my hand to Buckle’s chest. His heart gallops as hard as mine does. “We’ll see him Wednesday, but he might change his mind by then.”
“What do we do before then?” Buckle looks to the bed, then my mouth.
I press a finger to his lips. “We wait.”
Buckle snorts, and it’s adorable watching this Alpha spin. Our Beta ran, but I know with the two of us, we can show him all the love he thinks he doesn’t deserve. He has two mates. Two. And I plan to spoil both of them.
“He’ll come around, Buckle. You’re too hard to resist.”
He chuckles. “I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you. I worked on your car a couple months back, didn’t I?”
“Yep, got Jessica working perfectly again.” My cheeks go hot. Why did I tell him my car’s name is Jessica?
He chuckles. “Named my truck Butterball, so Jessica sounds pretty normal.”
“Butterball?” I cock a brow.
“Had a bunch of Butterball turkeys in back for family dinner with all the siblings and nibblings.”
“That’s ridiculous and I love it.”
Buckle yawns and his jaw pops. He’s so damn handsome. I want to run my fingers through his hair and see where else my hands can roam. But not without Abel. I don’t want Abel to think we’ve bonded or anything without him. I don’t want him ever to feel left out.
I drop my hands.
“You’re sure we shouldn’t go after him?”
“I’m sure, Buckle. He’s overwhelmed. He needs time to think. To decide to come to us. I don’t want him to think we rushed anything. He’s a hawk and if he was raised in Hawk Ridge, he has a bunch of unlearning to do about himself. We can help him. But not if we smother him.”
Buckle swallows and bobs his head. “I know you’re right.”
“And you’ll notice I’m right most of the time, Alpha.” I cup his cheek and thumb his bottom lip. It’s the most intimacy I’ll allow myself right now.
He sucks my thumb into his mouth, tonguing the tip.
“Buckle.”
“I wanna kiss you so bad. And Abel.”
“I know, but… not yet.”
Buckle nuzzles into my hand. “I know. I’ll be patient. And I’ll be the best Alpha either of you can ever dream of.” He says it so earnestly my heart flutters. I know he means it, but…
“No.” I shake my head and pull away.
There’s hurt in his eyes that I want to kiss away.
“All I want is for you to be the best Buckle you can be. That’s all.”
“That’s what I want, too. Well, for you and Abel. I’m never going to make you do anything. I won’t make demands. I never want to disappoint you.”
“We should hold off having big conversations without Abel. He needs to feel like he’s part of this relationship, too.”
Another nod. “I’d ask you to stay, but I think you’d reject me.”
“You’d be right.” I press a chaste kiss to his cheek. “11am on Wednesday. I’ll meet you at the library to woo our pretty hawk.”
“Sounds like a date.”
“The best kind.” I blow him a kiss before turning.
Buckle follows me all the way to the front door.
After another peck to his cheek, I shift and scurry all the way back to my apartment. I can’t wait to roll around in my bed with my mates’s scents on me.