Chapter 24
CRAVINGS
Aaren woke up in the middle of the night, his stomach growling.
It was understandable; he had gone to sleep after heaving up his dinner. At that point, he hadn’t been able to eat anything while his stomach settled.
But right now... Right now, he had a huge, gnawing ache for a Philly cheesesteak sandwich, and he couldn’t stop thinking about it. Thinly sliced pieces of beef smothered in cheese, with crispy fried onions, hot peppers, and crunchy salty pickles, all wrapped up in a bread roll.
He checked his phone. It was 5 AM.
Nothing was open at 5 AM, that could make him a cheesesteak sandwich right now.
He bit his lip and snuggled into Hades’ chest, trying to ignore his hunger.
He managed for all of five minutes. Then his stomach growled again, and he whimpered.
“Sweeth’rt?” Hades mumbled, tightening his arm around Aaren.
“I’m hungry,” Aaren admitted.
Hades took a deeper breath. “What d’you want? I’ll get it fr’m the kitch’n.”
Aaren bit his lip. “It’s okay, you don’t have to get up.”
His stomach growled again though.
“Sweetheart,” Hades said, stirring. “Whassit?”
“I want a Philly cheesesteak and nothing’s open,” Aaren mumbled. “It’s 5 AM. I can’t even make it myself because we don’t have the ingredients. Your beef’s all frozen and we don’t have bread rolls or sliced cheese.”
Hades pushed himself upright, rubbing his face. “I’ll go get them.”
Aaren froze. “Right now?”
“Yeah.”
“But it’s 5 AM! You were sleeping!”
“It’s fine.” Hades shook himself awake and got out of bed, pulling on a shirt.
And now Aaren felt really guilty. “But...”
“I knocked you up, sweetheart. If you need a sandwich right now, I’ll make it for you.”
“It’s 5 AM,” Aaren whispered to himself.
Hades wasn’t slowing down, so Aaren hurriedly pulled on a shirt and pants, following his alpha to the door.
Hades turned, blinking in surprise. “You’re coming along?”
Aaren nodded. “So you’re not going alone. It’s 5 AM.”
Hades grinned and caught Aaren’s hand, squeezing it.
They were quieter than usual in the car, Aaren still sleepy. “I think I was dreaming about sandwiches. Then I woke up and it became a craving.”
Hades’ smile turned softer, something more private. He parked in front of a convenience store; Aaren hopped out before Hades could open the passenger door for him. He hurried to join his alpha at the front of the car, linking their fingers together.
“Grab the ingredients,” Hades said. “I’ll hold the basket.”
“Why—Oh. Because we’re now a four-legged, two-handed beast.”
“With two backs,” Hades added.
The cashier snorted.
Aaren groaned, his face heating up.
“Buns,” Hades said, leading them down the aisles.
Aaren picked up a bag of bread rolls. Then he spotted the fried onions, leading Hades to them. There were canned jalapenos too, and pickles; these all went into the basket. At the coolers, Aaren grabbed a tray of steak—semi-decent—and a pack of pre-sliced cheese.
Before they headed for the checkout stand, Aaren tugged Hades to the ice cream section.
“Dessert,” he explained.
“We have vanilla and mint chocolate chip,” Hades said.
“Both are half-full. And they’re not salted caramel.”
“You have a point.” Hades grinned. “I like that you have a mental inventory of the fridge.”
“Of the whole kitchen.” Aaren shrugged. “It’s food. I like food.”
Hades’ smile turned indulgent. He led Aaren to the checkout stand and paid. Then they were driving back home, heading into the kitchen.
“I can make the sandwich,” Aaren said.
Hades frowned. “I was going to deliver your sandwich to you.”
“I cook faster. If I do, then you can go back to bed sooner.” Aaren frowned back.
“We’ll split duties,” Hades decided. “You’ll do the cooking. I’ll open these packages and store the unused portions.”
A smile tugged at Aaren’s lips. “Fine.”
He set up another pan to toast the bread rolls—one for each of them—and sliced up the steak quickly. Hades drained the can of jalapenos, portioned out the cheese, and scooped some ice cream into bowls, which went into the freezer for later.
All told, the sandwiches came together much faster than Aaren expected. Hades made quick work of washing up.
“We work really well together,” Hades said as they sat at the table across from each other, biting into their meaty, cheesy sandwiches.
Aaren beamed, propping his feet on top of Hades’. Hades lifted one foot, then the other, taking Aaren’s feet along with him like some sort of weird kiddy ride.
It was such a silly little thing. But it was amazing, that he could be silly with Hades and not be judged for it at all.
The pregnancy fatigue kicked in soon after the cravings began. Aaren’s entire body felt heavy through his shift. By the time he clocked out, he could barely keep his eyes open.
He pushed through the Wine Shack’s back door and promptly stumbled, heart lurching as he braced himself for a painful landing.
Strong arms caught him.
“Sweetheart,” Hades murmured, sounding worried. “Sorry I got here late. Are you okay?”
“No. Kind of. Maybe?” Aaren shook his face against Hades’ chest. “Mmm, chest.”
Hades huffed and swept Aaren off his feet, carrying him to the car. “What’s wrong?”
“Just tired. Sleepy.”
“Okay. Let’s get you home and showered, and I’ll tuck you into bed.”
“Too tired for shower,” Aaren slurred.
“I’ll wash you. It’s fine.”
“You don’t have to.”
“I know you like being clean when you get into bed. Let me help you feel comfy.” Hades set Aaren in the passenger seat and buckled him in.
Aaren lost track of time. They drove through Meadowfall for a while, before pulling to a stop.
The car engine shut off; his seatbelt loosened.
Then Hades was all around him, picking him up and setting him on his feet.
The front door opened. Hades scooped Aaren back into his arms and carried him to the bedroom.
In the bathroom, Hades stripped Aaren with practiced ease. More clothes rustled. Something big clattered in the shower.
What was it? Aaren cracked his eyes open.
It was one of those plastic-and-aluminum stools for people who couldn’t stand up in the shower. Hades guided Aaren over to it and helped him sit down.
“Lean back against the wall,” Hades said. “You can sleep if you’d like. I’ll wash you.”
“‘Kay.” Aaren leaned back and dozed, warm shower spray on his skin and large hands smoothing over his body.
The water cut off. Hades dried him gently with a towel, before carrying him to bed.
“This was the easiest shower I ever had,” Aaren mumbled. “I closed my eyes and everything happened.”
Hades laughed.
They snuggled under the covers together, facing each other. Aaren curled his fingers over Hades’ hip.
The words fell out of his mouth.
“Why haven’t you been stolen by a hot omega?”
Hades frowned. Then it melted away, and he raised an eyebrow. “I have been stolen by a hot omega.”
Warmth bloomed across Aaren’s cheeks. “You know what I mean.”
He hid his face against Hades’ chest, knowing that Hades wanted him here. All the same, a little knot of worry gnawed in his stomach, that Hades might remember there were other omegas out there.
“Sweetheart.” Hades cupped Aaren’s nape. “Back when I was in prison, I never thought I would find someone like you. The omegas I met always minded that I had committed crimes, and they always turned me away.”
And that was the other thing they had been dancing around—whatever Hades had done to land himself in prison. Aaren swallowed. “Will you tell me what you did?”
Hades’ smile was lopsided. “I’ve done a lot of things. No one names themselves Hades for being a pillar of virtue.” Then his smile faded. “It’s why I’ve been... wary about telling you. I don’t want to drive you away. This is not something you bring home and tell your family about.”
Aaren trailed his fingertips over Hades’ tattooed chest—a hawk in mid-flight. There were other tattoos on his body: guns down his sides, knives on his hips, a bow and arrow on his thigh.
Between those tattoos were lighter patches of skin, older scars that were starting to fade.
“Tell me anyway,” Aaren said.
Hades’ eyes, when they met Aaren’s, were full of hesitation. “What would you like to know?”