Chapter 34
34
Layne
I wake up pressed between Matteo and Valentine. It’s a goddamn furnace between them, despite me only wearing my panties.
“Shit,” I moan, sitting up. A wave of nausea makes me feel like I’m in the middle of the ocean in a storm.
“Sssh”—a hand feathers up and down my spine—“come sleep some more.” Valentine rubs my shoulders when I refuse to lie down.
I do a dry retch, holding a hand over my mouth. “I think I’m about to pass out. I’m so hot.”
I go from sitting on the bed with a heat spike threatening, to up in his arms as Valentine walks quickly through the apartment. The lights are off, and morning is still a while off, but we’re closer to a new day, compared to a late night, judging by the purple hue to the sky.
A small purr tumbles from his chest, and it holds back my temperature from soaring higher. From behind us, I feel Matteo. His presence is like a focus, something for me to grab hold of as I keep my eyes shut and my ear glued to Valentine’s chest, hoping not to pass out.
Every part of me feels like it’s about to combust. It might have to do with the cocktails I drank, although I’ve never had such an adverse reaction to alcohol. I didn’t eat anything at the club, so it’s not food poisoning.
It is them. Pure and simple.
A part of me is yearning, needing us to bond as packs do.
A door opens and Valentine purrs louder. A breeze flutters over my blazing skin, making me feel slightly better but nowhere near right.
“We’re outside,” Matteo adds. He’s close by, but he doesn’t touch me and, worried about completely losing the battle I’m already fighting to stave off my heat, I’m grateful. But I’m also sad because of the comfort I know his touch would bring.
A moment later, it’s not me whining about wanting touches, it's the sound of splashing water that consumes me. Valentine takes a step down and then another before he lowers us both into tepid, heavenly water.
“Where are we?” I ask as we keep moving through the water. I can feel it deepen, even though I’m not walking; it’s the way it flows around me and the weightlessness that feels divine over my hyper-sensitive skin.
“Our swimming pool,” Valentine says. “Salt water, so tell me if the water stings.”
“No,” I sigh, opening my eyes, “this is perfect.”
And the view is better. Matteo is next to us, the shimmering lights making him glow ethereally. “Open up, beautiful.”
I do, and he pushes the medication I need into my mouth before lifting a bottle of water to my lips. He turns away, and I nearly start bawling. I know it’s the heat haze, but it doesn’t make the spike of pain in my chest stop aching until he comes back. His brown eyes are full of worry, and I reach out for him, knowing the pool is helping my temperature plummet back to safer levels.
“This is getting out of hand. I’m sorry,” I say, holding on to his hand while leaning my head on Valentine’s chest.
“Don’t apologize,” Matteo says, using his other hand to swipe cool water over my forehead.
We float in a watery paradise until the threat of my heat is cooling, along with a metallic burn on my tongue from the medication. But now, I don’t want to leave their arms for completely different reasons. I adore being touched and held by any of them.
“I’m okay now. Thank you,” I say, and they both brush it off with a noise as different as they are. Neither of them steps away or stops spoiling me.
Valentine walks us over to a ledge where he sits, and Matteo sits next to him, both of them floating me over so I’m between them.
“We seriously can’t have any sex today.” I moan, getting confirmation in filthy sounds from both of them.
“You want to talk about packing properly?” Matteo suggests.
“If our wedding dinner wasn’t so important, we’d already be drowning in my heat, and I’d be scarred by you all. As soon as Vitale is dealt with, I vote we pack. And I don’t need to be in some fancy chalet in southern France or a luxurious nest on a super yacht in the Mediterranean. I just need to be where you are. And I want to line my nest in Tom Ford suits.”
“I won’t rob you of an incredible bonding day, Layne,” Valentine says, running his mouth over my shoulder before he catches himself and pulls away.
“Hmm, I’m pretty sure I will die if you stop all your touches,” I warn him, and I get a husky chuckle, but he doesn’t do it again. Sadly.
“I’m with Valentine. Our packing needs to be special. We took away any opportunity for a wedding in a church or somewhere more poignant away from you. So, think about what you want.”
I close my eyes and sink against them, thinking about the endless possibilities. “I want it to happen as soon as possible. I don’t want us to be interrupted, but I also understand there’s going to be a whole world of trouble after you reclaim what is rightfully yours. Which means, my idea of staying here deserves a lot more consideration from you two. If you’re gunning for your future, you need to be here. We can celebrate anniversaries and birthdays in the future—hell, any special event you can think of anywhere you want—but for right now, the apartment is the safest option.”
“Vitale is currently living in the main house of the De Luca Estate.”
“Well, then, kill him that night. In the morning, we have removalists go through the Estate, and you get rid of anything you don’t want. The cleaning crew follows behind us and does a deep clean of all the rooms. Hell, we can close some off if we don’t have the energy until we’re ready. We also ask a personal chef to come in and get meals and snacks prepared, pay someone to watch them prepare everything, so we don’t get poisoned. You arrange a fleet of helicopters or a small army to form an impenetrable defense. Then, when everything is set up and the Alpha in you knows we are safe enough, we pack. I want those bites you promised me, sooner rather than later.” I twist around to face them. “Please?”
Valentine blows a long, drawn-out exhale out before he slithers out from under me.
I hear him screaming as he swims underwater to the other side of the pool. His head pops up, his blue eyes nearly glowing with desire in every heated blink even though his glossy black hair hangs over them. And when he pulls himself out of the water to sit on the edge, I see the reason for his frustration, and the reason why he put some distance between us.
But his body turns me on, no matter what. His physical proof of how much he likes my idea could take an eye out right now, and the medication I’m taking gets pushed to its limits again.
“Fuck. Everything you do and say does this to me,” he growls, pointing at his erection and swelling knot. “We need a plan for today. Or you’re going to end up sick from all the medication.”
“Guess that means, we take our wife on the quick surprise we had planned for later,” Matteo says. “It will be good to throw Vitale in a spin if he can’t find us, anyway.”
“Where are we going?” I spin to face Matteo, although I most certainly do look back at Valentine in his naked glory, because hot damn, I’d be stupid not to.
“Come on, Layne, a little faith, please. Plus, it’s such a good idea, and it honestly is the perfect courting gift. A real one.” Matteo twists in the water to catch me with his legs. He draws us close together and tries to keep it platonic, but like Valentine just said, that’s nearly impossible between the four of us.
I am their gasoline, like they are my flame.
“Out,” Valentine says sternly, and Matteo gets a rumbling sound like a bear growling when he goes to follow. “Shower by yourself. And you’ve got thirty minutes to get ready. We’ll be gone all day, so maybe pack a bag. No questions about where we are going, but I will say we’re flying. Now, go.”
He barks the last bit out, and my legs move on their own. The cool air kisses over my wet skin, and I leave wet footprints as I wind back through a part of the apartment I never knew existed.
It takes me close to the allotted time Valentine said I have to get ready and pack a bag, and when I walk out in an emerald-colored skirt and jacket, with a pair of black pumps, it’s uncanny how similar the four of us look.
“Mrs. De Luca, you look in-fucking-credible,” Valentine purrs, burying his hands in his pockets. His eyes are full of so much heat, they almost burn as they trail up my legs too slowly.
My heart races when he tips his head slightly, his gaze lingering at how short the skirt is, and I blow out a long exhale, thankful I wore the nearly military grade padded panties. But if we’re going to be flying in a small cabin—because, seriously, I doubt this pack has ever flown commercial—then I had to go the extra mile in terms of Omega protection. The small sting of the desensitizers and scent blockers on my skin will be worth it, along with the extra tab I took.
“I called Hannah when I was getting ready,” I say softly, not wanting to interrupt the way they’re all looking at me, but they’ll be looking entirely different once my skin is leaking chemicals. “She and another Alpha are in Jana’s pack, she’s a doctor, and she’s said I can up the dose, which is what I have done. The tabs they prescribed will get me through to when we’re ready. I just need to take them every twelve hours and not skip.”
Without being asked, the three of them pull out their phones.
“What time did you take the latest one?” Matteo asks, and once I let him know, they set timers, which is insanely sweet, even though I already did.
“Do we need to get a refill of the script from a pharmacist?”
“No. She’s going to courier some medication over, or I can them pick the tabs up from Jana.”
“Or Jana could come here, with her pack and meet us,” Valentine offers. Before I get a chance to gush at how amazing that would be, he slides a large gift bag over the kitchen island.
“What’s this?” I ask, not even bothering to hide my excitement.
“Open it,” Dante says, waving me closer, but he also checks his watch. “Actually, can we do this once we’re traveling? We have clearance to go.”
Valentine scoops the gift off the counter and holds his hand out for me. “I hope you don’t mind. I fed the dogs and harnessed them. They’re coming with us.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
Dante slides up next to me on the other side while Matteo is behind. But he’s so close, I can feel his presence wrapping around me.
The way we all fit together is taking some getting used to, but it feels so right.