Chapter 17 #3
Gideon pulled back, swiping his thumb across his damp lower lip, looking at me like I was the most delicious thing he’d ever tasted.
I half expected him to pull back, to go rinse his mouth or drop his pants, looking for his own relief.
Instead, he crawled up the length of the mattress and pulled my languid, thoroughly exhausted body flush against his chest. He pressed a kiss to my damp forehead, wrapping the duvet around my shoulders to keep the chill away from my cooling skin.
“Breathe, Sweetheart,” he murmured, sounding incredibly satisfied despite the fact that I was the only one who’d had a release. “You did perfectly.”
Only when my erratic pulse began to slow down to a manageable rhythm did River finally step fully into the room. He walked with that characteristic unhurried grace, crossing the floor until he stood at the edge of the bed. He looked down at me with an incredibly fond smile curving his lips.
“You feeling a little more settled, Pretty Girl?” River asked.
I nodded against Gideon’s collarbone, a lazy, contented flush coloring my cheeks. “Yeah. Considerably.”
“Good.” River reached out, trailing the back of his knuckles lightly over my leg.
The calloused brush of his skin was an electric spark against my sensitivity, but it didn’t trigger the over-sensitive edge from earlier.
“Because the sun is going down in a few hours, and I still owe you that date. Assuming you feel up to it, would you like to take a ride with me?”
I looked up at him. I was a thoroughly dismantled mess, but River had a way of looking at me that made me feel like I was perfect regardless.
Between the guilt over the silence on my phone and the fevered havoc of my pre-heat, the morning had wrung me out.
I was starving for the exact kind of effortless, open-hearted warmth River seemed to carry with him everywhere he went.
The thought of escaping for a few hours just to get to know the man behind that easy smile was exactly what I needed.
“I’d really like that,” I told him honestly. “I just need to shower and remember how to formulate complete sentences.”
River chuckled, a deep sound that did fluttery things to my stomach. “Take your time. I’ll be downstairs.”
He started to pull his hand away to leave, but my inner Omega wasn’t quite ready to let him go.
The demanding flare of my nesting instinct soared the second he stepped back.
I was surrounded by Gideon’s scent, locked safely in his arms, but the nest itself still needed building. It needed the rest of them.
Without thinking, I shot a hand out from under the duvet, reaching for him. “Wait…”
River stopped. He looked down at my hand, then raised an inquiring eyebrow at me.
“Leave the shirt,” I demanded, unapologetic.
River’s smile widened into a deeply amused, ridiculously handsome grin. He glanced over my head, catching Gideon’s eye, and a silent conversation passed between the two men—the kind of fluent communication they possessed that usually drove me crazy. This time, I just waited.
“Extorting me already, Jules?” River teased, though his tone was rich with affection.
“It’s a trade,” I argued stubbornly, my outstretched hand still waiting. “I’m giving you my company. I require collateral.”
He laughed out loud, and the genuine sound went straight to my needy heart… and my greedy pussy. Without breaking eye contact, River reached behind him and pulled his shirt off in that sexy, masculine way, revealing inch after inch of golden tanned skin.
I had to remind myself not to drool as I unashamedly drank in the sight, just barely resisting the urge to crawl to the end of the bed so I could lick his washboard abs.
But before my brain could direct the rest of me to leave the comfort of Gideon’s arms, River had dropped his shirt into my palm.
It was all over from there. The fabric was saturated with his scent, and I almost came again just from shoving it under my nose and inhaling.
I moaned, and River practically purred.
“Collateral accepted,” River murmured. Crawling momentarily onto the bed, he captured my chin and gave me the world’s quickest kiss. Just a peck. Just his lips on mine for a fraction of a second. There, then gone. “I’ll see you later, Jules.”
I watched him turn and walk out of the room, shutting the door behind him with a soft click.
As soon as we were alone again, I wiggled around until I’d found the right spot, then deliberately tucked the shirt into the side of the blanket fort I was apparently building. I stole Gideon’s shirt next, ignoring his amused hum as I tucked it into the opposite side, stupidly happy with myself.
It wasn’t just a pile of laundry anymore. It was a nest. My nest.
I snuggled back into Gideon’s bare chest, tangling my legs with his as he wrapped his arms tightly around me.
Between his steady heartbeat under my cheek and the calming scent of River nearby, my inner Omega finally settled.
I let my eyes flutter shut, holding on to my happy little endorphin buzz and the sense of complete contentment.
Now, I just had to catch my breath before River came back to steal it all over again.