Aiden #2
Jed takes my hand and we both turn to leave, but he turns back at the last second.
“And for what it’s worth, Richard, Jed is still sweet.
And gentle. And all the things you think an omega should be.
He’s just also powerful, and strong, and ambitious, and he has this dry sense of humor that takes you by surprise, and he’s absolutely terrifying in the ring.
Those things make him better, not worse, you goddamn luddite.
And I’m sad for you that you can’t see that. ”
I stare at him with my mouth slightly agape, feeling lightheaded. He turns back to me, kisses me squarely on the mouth, and nods. “Okay, now let’s go.”
We turn on our heels, gripping each other’s hands tightly, and walk away from the table.
“Fuck,” I say blankly.
“Fuck,” he echoes, with a giddy, half-shocked laugh. “I don’t think I'll be invited back for family dinner anytime soon. Sorry.”
“I don’t care,” I say. “That was amazing. You’re amazing. I’m amazing.”
A breathless laugh bubbles out of me. But something fierce and wild is thrumming in my chest too, the weight of Jed’s words sinking into my brain and settling there.
Because he’s right. I’ve been telling myself I have to fit into a narrow box for so long—the huge, burly, bench-pressing omega who doesn’t take any shit or ever crack a smile, or the cute, dainty little omega who doesn’t rock the boat—without realizing that I don’t have to pick a lane.
I can be all of it, or something in between.
“Where are we going?” Jed chuckles, squeezing my hand, the adrenaline rolling off his scent in intoxicating waves.
“The fuck if I know,” I murmur. “Somewhere quiet. Somewhere alone.”
We pass the dancefloor as Jed tugs me towards the nearest door, and I catch sight of Lucie dancing with her new mate and her friends, totally oblivious to the drama that just unfolded in the dining room next door, thank god.
She looks so happy, and when she sees me, she nods to Jed and wiggles her eyebrows at me suggestively from across the room.
I flip her the bird with a smile, and she throws her head back on a carefree laugh.
At least one of my immediate family members is awesome. And my mom, well, she’s a work in progress.
The cool air is a welcome relief when we step outside.
The hotel gardens are beautiful, even in the darkness, and Jed and I are like two schoolkids as we blindly follow the lit pathway that winds through them, giggling and bumping into each other as they take us further away from the noise of the wedding.
We pass other couples and stray guests, until we’ve gone far enough that it’s just us and the still night air.
“Over here,” Jed says, pulling me off the path and towards a cluster of fairy lights between some trees. We emerge into a small clearing, and I realize that they’re not fairy lights.
They’re fireflies. Small, glowing balls of light floating in the air and dancing around the tree branches, illuminating everything in an otherworldly glow that takes the breath from my lungs.
“Holy shit,” Jed whispers, like he doesn’t want to scare them away. “I didn’t know these were actually real.”
“What?” I whisper, laughing.
“I thought fireflies were from fairytales,” he grins, his eyes darting around the clearing before landing back on me, his blue eyes glassy and bright. “They’re fucking beautiful. You’re fucking beautiful.”
And for now, with no one else around to perform for, I’m past caring if this is real or not. It feels real. I reach for him, fisting my hands in his lapels and bringing him in for a hard kiss. He winds his hands into my hair and pulls us flush, sighing softly when a low purr rumbles from my chest.
“I want you,” I mutter as he kisses along my jaw, his cock already pressing against the meat of my thigh.
“You fucking have me, baby” he murmurs, untucking my button-down so he can slide his hands over the ridges of my stomach and up my sides, making me shudder.
Something wild and reckless flickers at the edges of my thoughts. Something I’ve only ever done a couple of times with a previous boyfriend who eventually told me it felt emasculating, but I’d loved. Something I wasn’t sure I’d ever feel confident enough to do with another alpha again.
Jed notices my hesitation and tilts my chin up with a smile. “Tell me what you want. I’ll give it to you.”
“Have you ever been topped by an omega before?” I mumble uncertainly against his lips, my fingers faltering on his belt buckle.
Jed pulls back, eyes sparkling. “No. Fuck, why have I never done that?”
“Want to try?” I breathe, dipping my hand below his waistband so I can wrap my hand around his thick cock.
He groans. “Fuck, yes. You–you’ve done that before? Topped?”
“Only a couple of times,” I say, grinning at the crack in his voice as I slowly palm his length. “Most alphas think I’m a challenge, something to be broken. They’re not so keen when I turn the tables.”
“Most alphas are fucking morons,” he says, groaning softly when I swipe my thumb through the wetness at his tip. “Why should omegas have all the fun, huh?”
“Exactly,” I say, and then I lean in close enough that I can feel the shiver that runs up his spine when I whisper against his ear, “So turn around and bend over, alpha.”
He does as I say with a ragged groan, bracing himself against a tree trunk and helping me ruck his pants down over the perfect globes of his ass, the muscle firm beneath my hands as I spread him apart and let saliva drop from my mouth to between his cheeks.
“Oh, fuck,” he murmurs, his forehead dropping forward against the trunk as I spread the wetness over his hole with my thumb. “That’s fucking hot, Aid, but it’s not gonna be enough. I’m brave, but I’m not that fucking brave.”