Chapter 22
Chapter
Twenty-Two
Aries
Leon and I escaped the packhouse early the next day. Last night we’d all hidden away and the guys barely stirred.
I wasn’t even sure what to say to them and sticking to my schedule felt like just enough control to not lose my damn mind.
This entire thing was an absolute mess.
I had a fresh bite mark, my relationship with Leon was still new, and there were two more men that were supposedly my mates as well.
When we walked back in they were all three waiting. I offered a tight smile as Leon and I hurried to our room.
After we put up our workout gear, I couldn’t avoid this any longer. I wasn’t the ‘hide away and ignore it’ type, so we joined them in the living room.
At first, no one spoke. Nik just started pacing and the tension rose with every lap until I wanted to scream.
“Can you just sit?” I finally burst out. I couldn’t handle Nik stalking back and forth any longer.
“Fine,” he growled, dropping down onto the couch next to the other two.
Now it looked like we were in a meeting, and they didn’t look too happy about it.
Leon shoved a hand through his soft, brown hair. HIs mouth opened and closed but eventually he just gave up.
“Why don’t we start with the elephant in the room?” Ronan said, glancing from me to Nikolai, then back to the bite mark marring my skin.
“What, the fact that I rutted my mate and claimed her? I have every right to do that, and she didn’t protest.”
“Did you give her a chance to protest?” Ronan argued.
That wasn’t exactly where I thought they’d start. But Nik was right, I didn’t protest. It felt wrong to admit, like maybe I should have fought harder.
Yet, despite the chaos in my head, I didn’t regret it.
“I didn’t protest,” I said quietly. “I think my mind was a little too broken for that.”
“That’s not a glowing review for a consensual mating,” Leon said, glaring at Nikolai.
“Stop,” I groaned. “I just said I wanted it and fighting between ourselves is not going to solve anything.”
“No, but it might make me feel better,” Leon growled, more to himself than us.
I’ve never seen my beta be anything but agreeable, so this was throwing me off.
“So, he claimed you. I’m assuming he explained that we’re a pack?” Ronan said.
“Yes,” I admitted. “Fuck. This is insanely awkward, and I hate it. I need, like… food in front of me or something.”
“How about we go out to dinner tonight?” Ronan suggested. “We can take the day to just relax, then tonight go on a pack date. We can get to know each other and leave all the animosity behind.”
His words had me taking a closer look at the pack. They all had exhaustion written all over their faces and dark circles underlined their bloodshot eyes.
“That sounds good,” I agreed. “I’m not against this pack. I know how much your scents affect me. It’s just been a bit of a mindfuck and I need to process it.”
“Well, we can get out of your hair. We’re going to need to check in on the Crows and buy a few things, maybe nap,” Ronan agreed, eyeing his two packmates.
“There’s coffee and plenty of food in town. Stores aren’t as plentiful but we make do,” I promised. “Honestly, everything you need is pretty easy to find.”
“Thanks, darling,” he said as he stood, forcing the other two to follow them. That left Leon and I sitting there, the tension still hovering in the space.
“I don’t like this,” I told him. “This awkwardness between us.”
“I’m just adjusting,” Leon promised. “We all are. As much as Ronan makes me want to hit a wall, they seem like decent guys. I’m willing to give them a chance as long as they treat you well and you are happy.”
“He was the only bright light in my life growing up. I spent most of that part of my life being beaten by my mother, both verbally and physically. If it wasn’t for him, I would’ve died.
And it’s not that I feel like I owe him something…
it’s just that my omega knows him. It was terrifying having that ripped away. ”
“I’m sure it was,” he agreed, moving closer and pulling me into his lap, holding me as I sorted out my head.
“I don’t regret him finding me. I’m excited to see where this goes, I’m just scared of losing you and messing this up. We’re different people. What if we don’t fit together now?”
He let out a soft chuckle. “From what I’ve seen, you fit together just fine. You’ll just have to get to know them.”
“I know, but my omega doesn’t agree. She wants to go all in, to accept and claim them and forge a pack. Like being surrounded by mates will keep us safe from the rest of the world.”
“I can confidently say we all want you safe.”
I let that sink into my bones. Knowing he saw the connection and also my insecurities, helped to lift some of the burden that had rested on my shoulders.
“How are you feeling about us after this?” I needed to know if I messed anything up before going on.
“Fine,” he admitted, sounding a bit surprised. “We said we wanted to take it slower, to savor this, but with him going into a rut and now them all living here, I don’t think that’s an option anymore.”
“It’s a little messy,” I admitted.
“Yes, but I have a feeling we’ll figure it out,” He said, placing a kiss on the top of my head.
“How about we go shower off the run and then go have lunch somewhere?” I offered.
“Sure,” he agreed, his smile softening.
His warm hands found mine, our fingers twining together, and that sense of rightness settled in my chest again.
He pulled me down the hallway. His things were already in my room, our scents mixing together. My omega sighed in relief. I think I needed to see this with fresh eyes and let it realign what I’d thought my life would look like.
But right then, I wanted to focus on the mate standing right next to me.
We didn’t talk again until we were standing together under the warm spray of water.
Leon pulled me closer, his lips ghosting over mine. It almost tasted like an apology. He had nothing to be sorry for so I kissed him back, reminding him that I still chose him and we were scent matches.
Our pack would be a bit disconnected, but that didn’t mean we couldn't forge our own connection and keep it strong.
His kiss deepened, tongue teasing across my lips then diving in when I moaned into it. Our bodies were pressed together, the warmth making my omega groan in relief.
The beta was gorgeous. His body was lean and fit, filling out now that he’d been eating properly and building his muscles. His cock was long and thick, pressing into me and I couldn’t take it anymore.
“Leon, I need you,” I finally choked out. This wasn’t about reassurance, it was about us and grounding our relationship how we saw fit.
“Fuck the shower,” Leon growled into the kiss, shutting off the spray. He didn’t bother with any sort of sweet words. Instead, he dried us off quickly and carried me to my bed.
He laid me down, my omega sighing happily with our mixed scents wrapping around us. This was our version of a nest for now. The faint hint of Nikolai wasn’t hurting the situation.
Though, it felt a bit incomplete and that was enough to make me realize as complicated as this all was, that it was also right. They were mine if I could stop trying to run away from reality.
I was just being stubborn. Though, I’d more than earned that right.
Now that I was naked and laid out on the bed, Leon was not in a hurry anymore.
He brushed my long, blonde hair aside before placing kisses on my heated skin.
His tongue flicked out, teasing one peaked nipple, and then the other.
My back arched off the bed, pressing into his mouth and demanding more as my omega writhed below him.
My nipples were sensitive and he was using that to his advantage, teasing and licking me until slick was dripping from my needy pussy.
“You are so beautiful,” he whispered reverently against my skin as he trailed kisses from my breasts down to my navel, and then moving lower. My legs parted for him, making room, and he didn’t hesitate for his mouth to latch on to my dripping pussy.
Nik had been hurried and desperate, but Leon was savoring me. He slowly swirled his tongue through my slick, circling my clit and pushing into my core. There was no rhythm or trying to drag orgasms out of me, he wanted to make sure I felt incredible first.
“Relax for me, Aries. Let me take care of you,” he urged in that sexy, husky voice of his. He put pressure on my clit as his tongue pushed into me, fucking me on his tongue and teasing me until I fell apart for him.
The orgasm was slow and languid, pleasure unfurling through me before I was shaking. My eyes rolled back as I gave into it, riding the wave and putting all my trust in this beta.
For a man who had no experience on this side of sex, he was incredible with his tongue and hands.
I loved that he wasn’t experienced, that this sweet beta and I could learn what we enjoyed together. He followed every cue and learned what I needed, and I wanted to do the same with him.
I’ve had sex before, but it was more of a necessity, not an exploration
With Leon, I wanted to give him as much pleasure as he drew out of me.
“Leon, I need you inside of me,” I begged, pulling his face away from my pussy. His chin and lips were coated in slick, glistening on his smile. His blue eyes were hooded and he looked almost dazed as he moved to his knees.
We both needed this moment of reassurance. To establish our own pack before it shifted and changed. I needed him to know that I wanted him just as much as I wanted Nikolai, and someday the others.
Leon was my rock. He was the first one to pull me out of this monotonous haze that I’d been living in. I was going through the actions and I did have friends and the occasional fun night out, but the rest was simply existing.
He understood the hell I’ve been through in a way that most couldn’t. In a way that I suspected the others couldn’t, either.
Leon teased the head of his cock through my slick, circling my clit slowly with the blunt head just to drive me wild. My hips bucked against him, demanding he push into my core, but he once again reminded me with actions that it was him in charge right now.
Soft whimpers fell from my lips, turning into a gasp as he finally slid into my pussy. It wasn’t as gentle as I expected. He filled me in one quick movement until our bodies were joined together.
He felt like home. Like mine.
Our scents flooded the room, my perfume rising as much as his, mixing together into a sweet and tart mix that had my mouth watering.
He leaned over me as he fucked me slowly, our lips teasing against each other, his hands bracketed on each side of my body as my nails raked down his back.
I arched into my beta, my hips snapping up, forcing him to move faster.
“You want it harder, omega?” he questioned, his lips twisting into an adorable smirk.
“Yes,” I demanded. “I want all of you, Leon. I want to feel this later and let it ground me while I deal with everything life is going to throw at me tonight.”
“My pleasure,” he promised. He lifted my hips before he started to move faster, slamming into me furiously. He twisted his hips slightly each time, making sure to fuck me as deep as possible.
My cries were loud and unfiltered as he gave me everything I asked for and more.
A part of me knew that Nikolai was probably getting a front row seat to everything, but I didn’t care.
Let him know that this beta was mine and that wouldn’t change.
That even though I’d let him rut me, I needed more than just a barking alpha.
I needed intimacy and to know he cared about me, not just my past.
Leon continued to fuck me into the mattress, his fingers urging me to come for him.
My body obeyed like it had every time, my orgasm shattering through me once again, body shuddering as he came with me. His cum filled me, a deep, primal satisfaction echoing through me.
“Leon. Bite me,” I demanded, needing to feel him, too. My beta did as I asked, his teeth sinking into my shoulder. The bond that was already forming snapped fully into place as my orgasm reached its peak.
He was officially mine.
Leon pulled away, licking it gently before tilting his head, baring his own neck. My omega moved before I could decide where to mark him, sinking her teeth into the beta, claiming him as our own.
This was our choice. A decision we made together as we found peace in each other. It was perfect.
Leon pulled out of me, grabbing the towel that he’d brought in cleaning me up quickly before pulling a blanket over us
His warm body curled around mine holding me to his chest and I felt more whole than I had in years.