Chapter 3
Mable
Iclosed the door to my dorm room and let out a breath, resting my back against the door. I had scurried across campus at a breakneck speed to get back to the safety of my dorm.
Holy fudge muffins, the things he had done to me… they felt otherworldly. The alpha who smelled like strawberry jam had come out of nowhere, but my God, he had smelled good.
My omega instincts, though buried deep, had gone absolutely haywire when he appeared. He’d probably made my heat spike ten times worse, but considering he helped me, I couldn’t be mad.
I knew orgasms—heck, orgasms and I were well acquainted, thanks to my small collection of vibrators—but the things he had done to me were something else entirely.
Usually, once my heats started, I wouldn’t have any lucid periods at all, but I felt shockingly clear-minded.
Maybe real knots were the way to go during heats.
Unfortunately, real knots were attached to real alphas, and I hadn’t exactly had the best experience when dealing with those particular creatures.
Then again, a university campus did tend to attract truly pompous idiots who were utterly full of themselves.
During my first semester, I made some tentative efforts to dip my toes into the dating pool, but quickly decided it wasn’t for me.
Alphas were so… loud and bold, and I preferred a more calm-and-collected approach. It was easy to feel overwhelmed.
Maybe after university, I had told myself.
But Strawberry Alpha had me thinking that waiting wasn’t the best idea.
Raking a hand through my hair, I looked around my tiny apartment. My heat had come on so fast that I’d had none of my usual time to prepare. I had no idea how long I had until I was lost in the heat haze again, with no break until the heat was over.
The first thing I needed to do was pull all my extra nesting supplies out of the closet. My nest was usually jam-packed, but during heats, I liked being smothered in blankets and pillows. I would make a cocoon of soft and comfortable items and bury myself in it for the duration.
Padding over to my closet, I reached for the large plastic totes of surplus nesting supplies, taking the items out and tossing them onto my nest. I would make it all nice and comfortable later once I was sure everything else was set up.
I could nest in a haze, but I couldn’t go out and get supplies. I was on the clock.
Next—snacks and bottles of water. I was terrible at eating while in heat, so I usually set up several bottles of water and candy bars next to the nest. Protein bars would probably be a better option, but they tasted like chalk to me.
Opening my cabinets in my small kitchenette, I rummaged through my meager groceries. All I had was some dried pasta and a few cans of beans. I was a mood eater, so I never kept that much in my pantry, often opting to go out and buy ingredients.
I needed to go grocery shopping.
For a moment, I thought about staying home, that would be safer for sure, but I had made myself sick during one of my first heats on campus because I forgot to eat. By the time my heat was over, I was physically exhausted and struggled to crawl out of my nest.
There was a small grocery store on campus, and they stocked everything I needed, including my favorite candy bars.
Jumping into the shower, I rinsed my body and threw on some clean clothes. I couldn’t go out smelling like heat and cum; that would just be asking for attention that I most certainly did not want. I needed to get in and out of the store without being noticed.
Despite how uncomfortably warm I was starting to feel, I pulled on my favorite hoodie and headed for the little wicker basket near the door.
Descenter. Ugh, I hated the stuff. It reeked of chemicals and made my skin itchy, but I didn’t feel like advertising to everyone I came across that I was going into heat and had already been knotted once.
Once I was sure I had thoroughly sprayed myself, I grabbed a few tote bags and left my little sanctuary, locking the door behind me.
My body ached, but I survived the fifteen-minute walk to the store.
It was a pretty outing, the path followed a canal, flanked by a canopy of trees.
The Avalon University campus was a truly stunning place, and I’d fallen in love with it the first time I saw it on a trip to check out the local universities.
Usually, I would stop to admire the plant life, but I was in too much of a hurry. Keeping my head down, I rushed into the store, grabbed one of the wire baskets and headed straight to the candy bar aisle.
Grabbing several of my favorite sugary confections, I threw them, along with the most tolerable of protein bars and some energy drinks, into the basket with a triumphant smile before turning and heading to grab a few bottles of water.
It probably only took me a few minutes to gather everything I needed before heading toward the checkout.
As I passed the produce section, a short, blond alpha eyed me, his gaze a little too intent for my liking.
You’re imagining it. You drowned yourself in descenter, I scolded myself. I was being paranoid.
As I loaded my items onto the conveyor belt, I became aware of a presence behind me with a scent so potent, so powerfully alpha, that I almost whined.
Coffee.
I loved coffee. I needed it to function. I probably had an addiction, but no matter how hard I tried to cut down and drink more tea, I would always go back to my beloved coffee.
It was rich and warm, the kind of scent I wanted to wrap myself in and rub myself all over.
Clearly, I was completely losing it because I couldn’t recall when I last reacted so strongly to an alpha’s scent.
It took everything in me to stop a low whine from escaping my chest as I resisted the urge to rub my cheek on whoever was behind me and scent mark them, making them wear my scent, even if only for a little bit.
A small part of me wanted to turn around, and find out who the source of the scent was, but the more sensible part of my mind was telling me to get home. The last thing I needed was to embarrass myself publicly with how damn needy my omega was getting.
I was so lost in that scent, I didn’t even notice that the cashier was done ringing me up and was waiting for me to pay.
A hand reached out in front of me, card at the ready, tapping the small machine, the chime letting me know this stranger had paid for my groceries.
“Excuse me!” I said, turning to gape at the source of the scent.
“You were lost in your own little world,” the warm, sensual voice said. The alpha who still had his card in his hand made my mouth go dry.
Had there always been a disproportionate number of exceedingly gorgeous alphas on campus, or had I simply been blind?
Towering over me, with soft, dark curls hair that fell around his ears, and bright blue eyes, the alpha smiled down at me. His jaw was sharp, and his body was muscular, but not in that overly bulky way. He was leaner, more defined.
“Come on, sweetheart, you need to get out of here,” he said, and it dawned on me that I hadn’t been answering him, merely gaping at him.
“I’ll leave when I wanna leave,” I said stubbornly.
The alpha chuckled, gently pushing me forward as he paid for his own groceries.
Grabbing the plastic bag in one hand, he placed his other hand on my back and leaned down to whisper in my ear.
“The entire grocery store can smell that you’re in heat.
You have several people staring intently at you.
I am going to escort you back to your place safely, and then I’m going to leave you, okay? ”
A squeak left my chest.
“Wait, you can smell that?” I asked, panicking.
He nodded, an almost pained expression on his face. “It’s the sweetest, most delicious thing I’ve ever had the pleasure of inhaling.”
Shit, I’d gotten myself into quite a predicament—again.
“I can smell your fear, but don’t worry—I don’t want you like that.
” He shook his head, a wry smile on his face.
“Okay, that’s a bald-faced lie. You are very tempting, but I also appreciate that you’re in a delicate position right now.
So, I am going to escort you out of here.
We both know that no one will approach you if you have an alpha with you. Do you live on campus?”
I nodded. I probably shouldn’t have given this stranger that information, but my mind felt somewhat addled.
His scent was the only thing I could focus on.
My body was hardwired to pay attention to it.
So rich and perfect. Something about it screamed safety—just like the comforting scent of strawberry jam.
“Okay, look, we need to get you back to your nest where you’re safe, okay? Do you have a pack?”
I shook my head. “I do my heats solo.” Even after already admitting that once today, it wasn’t any easier to say. Maybe because the idea of a solo heat was becoming less and less attractive by the minute?
He nodded, taking my answer in stride. “Okay, then, we need to get you back to wherever you ride them out.”
My brain and my mouth were no longer connected. All I could think about was the scent of alpha surrounding me.
With surprising gentleness, he guided me out of the store, carrying both our groceries in one hand, his other hand softly on my back, gently leading me. As we walked through campus, he kept muttering soothing words to me, but my brain didn’t fully comprehend them.
At one point, I leaned into his chest, wrapping one of my arms around him and inhaling that lovely, rich coffee scent.
“Hey, that’s okay, take a big sniff,” the alpha assured me, rubbing my back. He was gentle and calm.
It felt like both forever and no time at all before we were standing outside my dorm.
“This is a good, secure building. Come on—I’ll walk you as far as your door, then you’re on your own,” he assured me.
I stumbled up the steps, but he was there every step of the way, guiding me. The cramps were starting again, and my forehead was beading with sweat.
It was about to hit me full force.
“Okay, this is where I leave you,” he said as I opened the door. His eyes closed as the scent of my apartment hit him.
I had been keeping my eyes firmly on the floor, resisting the urge to watch him, but now it was impossible not to.
He was hard.
The front of his jeans were tight, and even through the layers of denim, I could tell he was a sizable alpha.
Yummy.
The ache in my gut was getting worse.
I knew what would solve it.
Knots.
“Do you need anything else before I go?” he asked softly, his gaze filled with nothing but concern.
“A knot?” I asked, cocking my head to the side.
“Uhh, sweetheart”
“Do you not want to?” I asked softly.
He cursed under his breath. “Of course, I do, but—”
That was all I needed. My hand fisted in his T-shirt as I dragged him into my dorm, possessed by the sheer need of my heat.