Chapter 14 #2
I look to Ryland, who’s been eyeing me carefully. “If you ever want to start playing again,” he says gently, “you know who to ask.”
I give him a half-smile. “How convenient that you own a video game company.”
But there’s understanding in his gaze that I appreciate.
Ryland has shown an abundance of patience since we first met at the rescue and I ran away.
Yet, when I saw him again, he made sure I knew that he would be happy to be in my life any way I wanted him.
Ryland is a genuinely good person.
Just like Rowan, who is going through everything on my shelf, skimming the spines of books and game cases with his fingers and whispering the titles to himself. It’s intimate in its own way, but I find I don’t mind.
“Good choices,” he says as he turns to me.
I raise an eyebrow. “Are you done inspecting my things?”
He cocks his head. “No, not really. We’ve got a lot of lost time to make up for.” His eyes blaze while Ryland rolls his eyes.
“So dramatic, Rowan,” he murmurs, and I smile. Two dark figures burst into the room and hurtle themselves under the couch. Tufts of black fur slowly fall through the air, the only evidence that a cat was even in the room.
“Rowan’s not the only dramatic man here,” I say, nodding at the couch. “Marlin and Merv say hello.”
I have no idea where the boys were before—but they decided to make their grand entrance and scare themselves in the process.
“I am not dramatic,” Rowan argues, narrowing his eyes and puffing out his chest. “I’m passionate.”
“Uh-huh,” Ryland mutters.
But I find myself joining at my bookshelf, standing next to him. “Any passionate thoughts you want to give after looking at my things?” I ask. “You’re worse than a cat, you know. Immediately digging through everything.”
Ryland joins us, surveying the contents of my bookshelf, and suddenly, I’m sandwiched between the brothers.
My inner Omega stirs to life, and a throbbing starts in my core that I try to ignore.
But my cunt flutters at our proximity, and I swallow, trying to keep my composure.
Their scents are ridiculous together.
Delicious, welcoming, and arousing.
Rowan must notice my reaction, because his gaze darkens. “Passionate thoughts about you?” he muses quietly. “I’m not sure you want to know the thoughts I’ve had of you.”
“Rowan,” Ryland murmurs in warning.
But my core clenches, wetness pooling between my legs.
This is a dangerous game I’m playing, but I’m not scared.
Rowan is my scent match.
Regardless of what happens, I know I’m safe with him and Ryland.
So, I tilt my chin up. “Try me,” I challenge him.
Ryland clears his throat next to me.
The air grows thick with a different, sweeter scent.
My arousal permeates the air, the floral notes melding with the brothers’ earthy, stormy ones.
Judging by the sharp inhale Ryland takes behind me, it’s obvious he notices it, too.
Alarms ring in my head.
Warning! You are going to cross a line you can’t uncross!
But I hold my gaze steady and my chin high, waiting for Rowan’s answer while Ryland moves closer.
My body is on fire with need.
I ache. I want.
I yearn like I haven’t in years.
“Ryland and I have known about you for a long time,” Rowan says lowly, his eyes falling to my lips.
“Months and months, we’ve had to listen to Travis talk about you.
It was little things at first. How you ran a cat rescue with your best friend, and how fucking smart you were.
Then, he started mentioning you every day. It was torture.”
My chest tightens at his words.
“Every day?” I repeat.
Rowan nods. “I felt like I knew you before we even met. But now…I see the full picture. I see a woman in front of me that I’m lucky to know. Lucky enough to even breathe the same air you do. Travis told us how incredible you were, and even that didn’t do you justice.”
It has to be the scent match talking. Rowan can’t feel that way about me after knowing me for less than a day.
“Rowan, we ate bagels together,” I say shakily. “We’ve barely spoken.”
“You’re independent, resourceful, confident, and smart as hell. I can pick up on that easily.”
I take a step back and collide with Ryland’s chest. He catches me easily, his hands coming to my hips.
“Whoops,” he says, amused. “Didn’t realize how close we got, sweetheart.”
Oh, god.
My body is a live wire, my cunt yearning with anticipation.
Slick spills out of me, a wet spot blooming in my panties, and I bite my lip to keep from letting out a groan.
“Fuck, you smell good,” Ryland whispers in my ear while Rowan grins. “Like sunshine.”
Something hard presses against my backside, and I whimper.
If they stay any longer, we’re going to do something I’m not ready for.
Rowan must see it on my face, because his grin falls and he nods softly. “You’re worth the wait, baby. No matter how long it takes.”
Ryland steps back and his hands release me.
My body aches at the loss of contact.
“I…I have to get ready for work,” I stammer. “I should…you should go.”
My inner Omega rages at me, furious that I cockblocked us.
“Wait,” Ryland says. I turn to face him. “If we made you uncomfortable, I’m sorry. If we took it a step too far—”
“That’s not the problem,” I tell him. “I promise.”
He cocks his head, his brown eyes curious.
“I liked it too much. I like this too much.” I motion between us, then move away from the brothers to lean against the back of the couch.
But Ryland gives me an easy smile at my admission. “Nothing wrong with that.”
Rowan looks pleased. “I’m honored, baby.”
My arousal is still potent, but Rowan’s ridiculousness makes me burst out laughing.
“You should be honored,” I mutter. “Now get out.” I point to the door, my lip quirking playfully. “You two are just distractions.”
Handsome, delicious smelling distractions that I’m sure I would jump if they stayed in this apartment any longer.
But a tiny thought lingers in my mind.
It’s not guilt that stopped me this time.
I just realized I want my first kiss to be with Travis.
I want to kiss Travis.
I want to kiss all of them, and maybe that’s okay.
“Well,” Rowan says, then pulls off his sweatshirt, causing my jaw to drop. “I’m just going to leave this here, then. In case you get cold.”
He tosses his clothing on the back of my couch, giving me a mischievous grin.
I know exactly what he’s doing.
He’s offering me his sweatshirt for the inevitable nest I’m going to make.
Ryland looks at his brother, exasperated. “Really?”
Rowan shrugs. “What’s one more sweatshirt? It’s a courtesy. The weather is going to get colder.”
“You’re not smooth at all,” I tell him, but can’t stop the warmth that spreads across my face.
Ryland shrugs out of his grey jacket and tosses it on top of Rowan’s, and I become privy to a sibling rivalry over my nesting materials.
“Okay, both of you, out,” I demand, but they don’t look the least bit bothered as they head to the front door. Instead, they look pleased with themselves.
“Talk to you soon, babe,” Rowan says. “We’re already saved into your phone, by the way.”
I rub at my forehead. “Of course, you are.”
Ryland frowns at his brother. “You went into her phone?”
“As a courtesy.”
“We need to talk about boundaries.”
Rowan swings open the door, and Ryland turns to me. “Sorry about him,” he mutters.
I’m continuing to pretend to be normal, but the minute they leave, I’m going to turn into a hormonal Omega mess.
Maybe we’re all pretending at this point, because if Ryland doesn’t shut the door behind him, I’m going to drag him and his brother back and jump them.
But I truly want my first kiss to be with Travis.
Which has to constitute for some type of growth, right?
Less than a month ago, I was ready to not have anything to do with my scent matches.
Now, I’m ready to start nesting with the clothes they left on my couch.
The door shuts behind them, and I lock it in a hurry.
I don’t waste any time.
I grab both the sweatshirt and jacket and hold them to my nose, my mouth watering as my head swirls with their scents.
They’re my dream fragrances that make my body come alive and shiver with pleasure.
I run into my bedroom, throw the cat toys out of my bed, and fluff every pillow and blanket on the mattress, making it enticing and welcoming.
I toss the clothing that belongs to Ryland and Rowan on top of the blankets, strip out of my own clothes, and practically throw myself into my nest.
Goosebumps pimple across my body while I luxuriate in the blankets, the fabric caressing my skin deliciously.
Ryland and Rowan’s scents are everywhere on my bed as I drag Rowan’s sweatshirt across my body, my nipples pebbling from the sensation.
I let out a quiet moan as my cunt throbs, slick dripping onto my inner thighs.
Ryland’s jacket is next, and I lay it across the lower half of my naked body, shivering in delight.
Then, I burrow under the blankets, curl up into a ball on my side, and cuddle with the articles of clothing.
Instead of loneliness, hope blooms in my chest.
I clutch the jacket to me tightly, nuzzling into the fabric and rubbing Rowan’s soft sweatshirt on my mating gland.
So good.
My clit aches for attention, wildly sensitive from inhaling the pheromones of my scent matches.
It hasn’t been like this in forever.
Even with my old pack, it was never this intense.
My suppressants are up to date, and I’ve been taking my proper dosage. I haven’t missed a pill once.
Yet in my nest I’m a feral, wild Omega, my womb cramping painfully.
I’m not even in Heat yet, but Ryland and Rowan’s scents drive me wild.
I need to start getting ready for my shifts at the rescue then at Scents tonight.
But Ryland’s jacket sleeve somehow ends up rubbing against my swollen cunt, and shamefully, I press against it, the rough fabric catching on my clit in just the right way.
Earth to Blair. Do not orgasm on your scent match’s jacket. Do not do that.
My body overheats, and a delicious sensation starts to build from the tips of my toes and slowly up my spine. I close my eyes in bliss, softly thrusting against the fabric.
“Mrow.”
I freeze my movements.
“MROW.”
Kicking off the blankets, I sit up, staring at a tuxedo cat that demands attention.
Merv watches me judgmentally from the foot of my bed, his black tail swishing back and forth slowly. The neon green mouse that I chucked from my nest is in his mouth. He lets out another yowl, showing off his prey, and I sigh.
“Thank you, Merv. Good boy,” I mumble in defeat.
It’s a good thing the cat interrupted me, anyway.
I need a shower and to get on with my day—not be writhing around in my nest like an obsessed weirdo.
That doesn’t stop me from putting the detachable showerhead in my bathroom to good use, though.
Under the stream, I make myself quietly finish, fantasies of my scent matches in my head.
I need a clear mind when I see Travis tonight.
I can’t let my inner Omega take over when she sees him.