Chapter 8
Geo
I’m barely watching the movie, gruesome deaths completely forgotten. I’m barely fucking breathing, actually, because I’m terrified that one wrong move will wake the sleeping beauty leaning into my side, her head resting on my shoulder.
Adjusting myself slightly causes Juno to nuzzle her face into my shoulder, her soft sigh sending a flurry of that mouthwatering scent that sets my blood on fire and my heart pumping heavily in my chest in my direction. A beta, I might be, but that doesn’t mean I’m not at all affected by the gorgeous woman using me as a pillow.
“Is she asleep?” Creek asks quietly, answering his own question when he leans forward and sees with his own eyes that Juno is sound asleep on my shoulder. I watch as his lips tug into a soft smile, one I haven’t seen since before Juno left. “Well, hell. Now I’m jealous.”
I accidentally snort, instantly freezing when Juno grumbles under her breath, turning to press herself more deeply into my side and tucking her face into the crook of my neck. Her breath is warm as it brushes over the bare skin. Her lips barely brush, and, as much as a bastard as it makes me to even think about right now, I can feel the soft press of her breasts pressed snugly against my arm.
“What do we do?” Evron whispers, turning to kneel in front of where Juno is cuddled. “Do we drive her home and leave her car here? Or do we take her to a spare bedroom and she can stay the night?”
The twins look over and Lowie rolls his eyes at us all before he stands, but not before I catch that soft look changing his features from their hardened exterior. Leylan follows after him, collecting plates and cups before heading to the kitchen, sending several looks of longing at our girl.
“Very helpful,” Evron quips, snickering for a second before he shuts his trap when Juno grows restless, her adorable button nose caressing my skin as she tries to grow comfortable in her sleep again.
“Think she’ll be pissed if we just take her to a spare room?” I wonder, pulse fluttering as rapid as a butterfly’s wings at having Juniper close enough that I can feel her body heat seeping into me, can smell her sugary-sweet scent I’d love to bottle and keep with me forever, and can picture a thousand more nights spent exactly like this, only slightly modified to include Juno on my lap as she sleeps instead of seated on the couch.
“Why don’t we just leave her there to sleep for a little while longer?” Creek suggests, not so subtly shuffling closer to our girl before sinking lower into the couch, reaching for the remote and turning the volume of the movie up a little more. Not sure why, since the sounds of terror are already loud enough that I can feel the bass vibrate through my chest.
None of the guys protest, and I’m inclined to keep my silence, too, when Juno nuzzles deeper into me, practically crawling in my lap like she’s a heat seeking missile in need of a sleepy cuddle. I’ll bet she doesn’t even realize she’s doing it. In fact, I’d go as far as to put my entire trust fund on it, because there’s no way the skittish, apprehensive, and guarded woman that walked through our front door would ever cuddle into a man she hasn’t seen in eight years.
That thought alone sends a sharp, piercing pain through my chest, and I mentally bat it away, deciding not to look a gift horse in the mouth. If the lady wants a cuddle, then I’m more than willing to provide. Hell, I’d swim in a croc infested swamp if Juno so much as uttered the idea.
Scooping her from her seat with only a brief glance of annoyance from Creek, I cradle Juniper in my arms before depositing her in my lap. Her contented little sigh makes me smile even while a family is grossly run over by a lawnmower-wielding child on the large screen, her warmth and very subtle scent seeping into my body and straight down to the muscle and bone.
As she settles into my body. Head tucked beneath my chin, I note several things in quick succession. One, she’s entirely too thin. There’s no doubt in my mind that the girl could do with a better meal than pizza and iced tea, and I know for certain either one of us would be willing to cook that meal for her. Two, she’s running a little warm. Warmer than any person should be running, though I can probably place that down to her being cozied up between a hot-blooded alpha and a beta built like a truck. And third, her scent isn’t just faint. There’s a funny little note to it that almost smells… chemical? I don’t know how to describe it, but among the painfully dull pineapple and, I think, coconut and vanilla, there’s a lick of something that shouldn’t be there.
Frowning, I pull my head back and peer down at the sleeping beauty nuzzling my chest and murmuring in her sleep, her arms banded around me like she’ll put up a fight if anyone so much as pulls her away. I soften instantly, even as I bend my head and press my nose to the crown of her deep-purple hair, a color that suits her to perfection.
“What are you doing, you creep?” Ev snickers from the ground, and I look over at him, only to find him watching me as closely as Lowie is trying to watch the movie. I know he hasn’t watched a damn second. All of our focus is firmly planted on the little firecracker tucked against my chest.
Clearing my throat, wincing when Juno startles briefly before falling back to sleep, I lower my voice and ask, “You guys notice something about her scent? ”
That draws the attention of every alpha in the room, the guys all turning to look over at me. Lowie frowns fiercely, while his twin looks at Juniper with a pinched brow that screams his concern. Ev raises an eyebrow at me, like he’s waiting on me to elaborate, but I don’t.
Instead, I peer over at Creek, only to see him eyeing Juno like she’s his favorite puzzle he’s trying to piece together. That only hurts my fucking heart that little bit more, because there was once a time where we knew Juniper Henley better than we knew ourselves. We could predict her every reaction, action, and thought before she’d make or have them. We knew her likes and dislikes, her dreams and nightmares. But now? Hell, she’s almost a stranger. A familiar stranger that still cuddles in her sleep when she wouldn’t dare ask for one if she were awake.
When no one answers me, I shrug a shoulder carefully and explain, “Look, I’m no alpha. My sniffer isn’t like yours, but my Spidey senses are telling me there’s something off about her scent.”
And so, like a total freak without an ounce of shame, Creek leans in close and gently lifts Juno’s limp arm and presses his nose to the bare skin of her wrist. He inhales deeply, slow to retreat, but when he does, I watch as the exact moment her scent registers comes to him.
“There’s something weird there,” he whispers, linking his fingers with Juno’s instead of letting it go, setting their hands on his lap as he continues to frown. “It’s almost metallic. Kind of like a chemical?”
That’s when Leylan sits up straight. “Metallic? Could it be a suppressant?”
We all pause at that, because the only suppressant available would be for omegas. Something that will prevent heats, dampen scents, and effectively render one a slightly-sweeter-smelling beta. And, although I did ponder the idea, it feels suddenly surreal that it could be a possibility. That Juniper is an omega, and she’s been roaming around unbonded the entire time we’ve been apart .
Swallowing hard, my stomach churning with a nauseating sickness at the idea that she could have been claimed at all sets off inside me, I hug Juno a little tighter and quietly point out, “If she’s on suppressants, that would mean she’s an omega, right?”
They all nod, and my chest tightens, moreso when Juno nuzzles her smooth, relaxed face into my shirt and sighs so softly that I feel her breath warm a spot on my chest.
“Let’s not jump ahead of ourselves, though. We don’t know for sure what she’s taking to alter her scent,” Evron notes, resting his head against the back of the couch looking as exhausted as I feel.
We’re all quiet for a long moment, only the movie playing in the background breaking up the heavy silence that falls on us all. Juno remains blissfully asleep, almost too heavily asleep, but I cuddle her into my chest, enjoying the way she fits against me like a puzzle piece I’ve been missing for much too long.
“Should we bring up the topic?” Leylan asks quietly, his expression still painted in concern, eyes solely on Juno.
Creek is already shaking his head, and I raise an eyebrow at him. With a tired sigh and a longing glance at the woman on my lap, he answers, “I think we should wait for her to broach the topic. If she brings it up, we’ll ask. Otherwise, we should wait until she’s comfortable enough around us again that she’ll tell us on her own. Maybe there’s a reason she’s keeping it to herself. And maybe there’s a reason why she could be on suppressants in the first place. Either way, I’d rather hear it all from Juniper before jumping to conclusions.”
“Seems like we’ve done that enough as it is,” Lowie mumbles under his breath before he reaches for the empty plates on the table and carries them to the kitchen, leaving us all to stare after him.
The guilt I’d been feeling before doubles in size, knowing we all believed Juniper left us without so much as a backward glance. Worse is that we didn’t think to question it any deeper than preteen and teen kids would. It makes me wonder if we would have found her sooner had we actually pushed for answers, asked our pack parents what the hell happened. Maybe we wouldn’t have had to go eight years without the only girl we’ve all been madly obsessed about.
Just as I begin to spiral into a shame-filled pit of guilt and sadness, a tiny whimper yanks my attention away, my thoughts slipping from one thing to another so fast that it takes me a moment to process what I heard. Only for Juno to whimper again, a horrible, pained sound that hurts my chest.
“Is she okay?” Ev whispers, already on his knees in front of Juno and me, hands hovering between him and her as though he desperately wants to reach out and touch her.
I shake my head in confusion. “I don’t know, man.”
She whimpers once more, the sound quickly followed by a pained groan. I’m pretty sure I hear her pitifully whisper, “Please, don’t,” but there’s a funny ringing in my ears, my heart thundering hard enough that I’m sure Juno could hear it if she were awake. The distress in those almost muted words has my hold tightening on her, like I can protect her from her own dreams.
“Should we wake her?” Leylan asks just as his twin brother comes in, eyes Juno, and sighs with a sad shake of his head.
Without so much as a single uttered word, he strides toward me and scoops Juno out of my arms, quietly explaining, “She’s always had nightmares, remember? There was that one time we convinced her to camp in my backyard for the night and she woke up screaming and crying. Accidentally scratched me when I tried to wake her because she thought I was whoever it was in her dream.”
The memory comes back to me with all of the force of a tidal wave, and I sag into the cushions with a body ache that makes me groan quietly. “I forgot about that. She felt so bad when she woke up and saw the bloody scratches on your arm.”
“Imagine what the little tornado will do now,” Lowie grumbles, but I’m pretty sure I see his lips twitch before his face goes blank. He shakes his head, easily hoisting Juno up into his arms more securely, before he says, “We’ll put her in the guest room. Keep your doors open in case the nightmare gets worse. We’ll hear her better that way.”
He then carries Juno out of the room, heading toward the stairs, and I suddenly feel like there’s a powerful magnet luring me from my seat that I’m powerless to ignore. Heaving myself off the couch, I follow after Lowie and Juno like a lost puppy, unable to let her out of my sight just yet. It’s almost like I’m worried she’ll suddenly disappear again if I can’t see her anymore, can’t see the rise and fall of her chest, her rosy cheeks filled with heat as she sleeps restlessly through her nightmare.
Another whimper tightens my chest, and I call over my shoulder, “Finish the movie without me.”
There’s no way I’m leaving Juniper alone tonight, even if that makes me crazy. Hell, I fucking am crazy. Crazy for that purple-haired beauty. Always have been, and I’m pretty damned sure I always will be.
And so, like some total creep, I follow after the moody twin alpha and our girl. I’m right on their tail as he carries her into the guest room that has very little personality, if any. The walls are bare save for some weird-ass picture Evron found on the internet, some abstract thing in shades of brown, beige, and nude. It goes well with the pale curtains that hang to the floor and the bedding that covers the springy bed that no one has ever slept in.
Gently, the gentlest I’ve ever seen Lowie be in eight years, he lowers her to the bed. Juniper sprawls across it the moment her back hits the cushioned bedspread, her shirt rising enough to reveal the creamy pale skin of her stomach. She lost her jacket not ten minutes into the movie, claiming she was too hot, which isn’t surprising. I run hotter than the normal beta, and alphas are naturally warmer, so sandwiched between Creek and me probably played hell on her body temperature.
With some adjusting, Lowie has her boots removed, tucking them at the end of the bed where she’ll easily find them. He eyes those skin-tight jeans like they’re amazing and the bane of his existence for a long moment before he looks over at me and asks, “Would it be too much to take her jeans off? Or would that be creepy?”
I shrug, having no idea. I mean, past Juno would have laughed at the idea of us having to drag her around trying to get her jeans off so she could sleep comfortably. But that was then, and this is now, and I have no idea how the little firecracker would react now.
“Your guess would be as good as mine, bro,” I finally answer, eyeing the jeans that don’t look comfortable at all to sleep in.
Lowie eyes them once more before scowling, and then decides the ‘fuck it’ approach is where we should go with this dilemma. Unbuttoning the jeans, he shuffles those tanned legs out of the dark material, keeping it vanilla and tame. So focused on his task and making sure Juno is comfy, he doesn’t see the boy shorts she wears, trimmed with lace that wrap around her upper thighs in all ways I’d love to replace my hands with.
My eyes widen at that thought and I look away before I become a perverted peeping Tom, clearing my throat before I decide to do something to help instead of standing here watching.
On quiet feet, I rush over to the side of the bed and tug the comforter from beneath Juno. She’s so light that it takes very little effort at all to maneuver her under the blankets and such. The moment I wrap them over her lithe frame, she burrows deep into it, and I can’t help but brush her hair back from her beautiful face.
“She’s a little warm. Should we take a blanket or two off her?” I wonder, peering over at Lowie only briefly before looking back at Juniper.
Lowie takes a seat on the bed, right beside her hip, and says, “Nah. She likes to snuggle into them, remember?”
Sure enough, Juniper starts to frown in her sleep, right before she starts tugging a blanket towards her. It’s like she’s seeking the comfort of it in her sleep, likely still in the depths of her nightmare.
“See?” Lowie snickers softly, helping her drag the blanket closer until she has it bundled against her chest, rubbing her face subconsciously into the soft material before settling. The frown doesn’t disappear, though. In fact, it’s almost like it deepens, just before yet another scared or pained whimper slips past her parted lips.
“Are you staying in here with her?” I wonder, deciding that if he is, then so am I. I haven’t really decided what I’m doing if he says no. Probably stay anyway.
With a tender touch, he rubs his hand over Juniper’s hip, and says, “Nah. She needs her sleep, and she kicks like a donkey if you get too close.”
I snort, accidentally waking sleeping beauty. Hell, I’m almost glad. At least she’s still not deep in her nightmare.
“Where am I and why are you both creeping on me?” she sleepily murmurs, cuddling the blanket tighter. Her legs make a weird cricket like motion, and she pauses. “And who took my pants off?”
“Lowie,” I blurt, fully throwing him under the bus.
Only, instead of getting mad, Juno sighs and mumbles, “Thanks. I hate sleeping in pants.”
And with that, she starts to snore gently, falling asleep so fast it’s like no time has passed between us. Like she trusts us just as much now and she did back then to fall asleep, leaving herself vulnerable but knowing we’ll look out for her.
“Guess that resolves that worry,” Lowie sighs, rubbing his hand over her leg before he stands and makes to leave. Before he goes, he says, “Wake her if she has a nightmare. She might not now that she’s already woken out of one, but you never know.”
I guess he knows I’m staying put for the night.
Throwing him a grateful smile, I nod and tell him, “I’ll look after her.”
He jerks his head before he disappears, taking one last glance at Juno before he disappears from sight.
Still crouched beside the bed, eyes back on Juno, I reach for her hair, removing a strand from her face. Her snore stops and she sighs, right before she mutters, “If you’re going to stick around, you might as well get in the bed, too. ”
“You sure you’re willing to share? Apparently, you kick like a donkey,” I tease, my heart fucking soaring at her offer. It’s just sleeping, sure, but hell, I haven’t slept beside Juniper in fucking years. Haven’t cuddled her, held her, felt her sleeping easily against me in too long. I’m not stupid enough to pass up an opportunity like that.
“Guess you’ll have to risk it,” she snorts, this funny, exhausted little sound that makes me grin.
Deciding the risk is worth taking, I shuck my shirt and drop my pants, leaving them to fall to the floor where I stand. When I’m down to my boxer shorts, I climb into the bed beside her and cuddle down, lying facing her.
“Stop staring at me, Geo,” she growls adorably under her breath, trying her hardest to fall asleep.
“Stop being so beautiful, then,” I volley, grinning when her lips tug up into the sweetest smile. It has my chest tightening, my heart pounding hard enough that it’s a miracle it doesn’t crash out of my chest.
Shuffling closer when she doesn’t answer, her breath slowing enough that I know she’ll be right back to sleep soon, I go to reach an arm around her before thinking better of it. Instead, I whisper, “Think I can sneak a cuddle in while we have you here?”
“Mhm,” she hums back, already reaching for me, her warm fingers brushing my waist before sprawling her whole hand on my skin. It’s like a hot brand on my flesh, searing but very much welcome, and I waste no time in wrapping her up in my arms. She fits like the perfect puzzle piece, her head tucked beneath my chin, arm slung over my waist, and her free hand pressed against the thundering beat of my heart now that she’s unclutched the blanket.
It takes absolutely no time for the excitement of the day to turn into exhaustion, and I find the most peaceful sleep I’ve had since before I lost the woman of my dreams.