Chapter 17 Theo #2
I stay still for a second with a carton of orange chicken in my hand. She isn't checking the clock. She isn't looking for the door. My chest tightens, but it is just plain relief. She stopped pushing for a second. She let the wall down just enough for me to see through the cracks.
"I'll dish it up."
I find two plates in her cabinet. One has a chip on the rim and the other is a different shade of blue.
I pile rice and chicken onto her plate and grab the extra sauce she likes.
I bring the food over and set it on the coffee table near her hand and take a seat on the floor with my back against the cushions near her feet.
I grab the remote and scroll through the options.
"Just pick something. I don't care what."
I settle on a random action movie. The sound of a car chase fills the room in bursts of noise.
I lean my head back against the sofa and watch the steam rise from my plate.
This is what I wanted when we were kids.
Back when we were just four boys with nothing but a plan.
I spent years staring at code and building a fortune so we could give her the world.
A decade passed in boardrooms and server hubs.
Money moved and influence was bought. Her career was built from the shadows; we pulled the strings that she didn't even know existed.
That felt like the whole point, providing safety and success. Playing the architect of her life took up so much focus that the part where we just got to be with her was missed. We should’ve found a way to reenter her life that wasn’t controlling it..
We eat in silence, half-watching the movie.
I can feel the warmth of her leg near my shoulder.
I watch the light from the TV bounce off the wall.
The sound of her fork against the plate is a steady rhythm.
This is the pack dynamic I dreamed about.
Just a quiet night with a B-rated movie and her within reach.
Zora sets her empty plate on the coffee table.
She shifts on the sofa, pulling her legs in toward her chest so she can sit up.
She slides her weight toward the end of the couch, moving her body until she is right above me.
She reaches down and rests her hand on the side of my neck.
Her palm is warm. She stays there for a minute, her thumb tracing the line of my jaw while she watches the screen.
Then she slides her fingers into the hair at the nape of my neck and gives a firm tug to get me to look up.
"You've been staring at the wall for five minutes, Theo."
I turn my head and look up at her. She leans forward over the edge of the cushion, her brown face close to mine. Her eyes are dark and searching.
"I'm just taking it in. We don't do this often."
"The movie?"
"The everything. Sitting here. Not having to hide behind lies. Just getting to be with you, not for sex to quiet the bond. In the last few months it has been quickies at the shelter and nothing else."
I turn around on the floor so I am facing her. I rest my arms on the edge of the cushions.
"I’m going to be honest with you. You’ve been the love of my life since we were kids. There hasn't been anyone else. Not ever."
Zora's brow furrows. She pulls her hand back from my neck and stares at me like I’ve started speaking a language she doesn't recognize.
"Wait. No one else? You're twenty-six, Theo. You're an Alpha."
"I’m a man who knew what he wanted and couldn't have it. I never saw the point in a placeholder. The first time for me was that night in the penthouse. During your heat."
She goes ashen as her mouth drops open."You were a virgin?
And I took it from you... like that?" She looks down at her hands, her voice a whisper.
"I didn't even think. I've just been with Betas, Theo.
I didn't think virginity was even a thing for you guys.
Most Alphas end up working for Alpha Aid for money.
I treated you like a tool that first time.
I used you for the knot and I didn't even give it a second thought. "
I reach out for her hand again. "I gave it to you, Zora. I wasn't a victim. I don't regret a thing."
She shakes her head and lifts her head to meet my gaze. "I was so cold. I was angry at all of you and I just used your body to get through the heat. You were my first Alpha knot, and I didn't even try to make it mean something for you."
She moves closer to the edge of the couch. She reaches out and cups my face with both hands. Her light touch is warm as she runs her thumbs over my cheeks.
"I’m so sorry. I want a second chance. I want to do this right. Without my heat, or the anger. You deserve a softer experience than a quickie or angry sex. I want to do this right."
She leans down and presses her lips to mine. It is a soft kiss. I stand up and move onto the cushions beside her. I am mindful of her wrapped ankle, keeping her leg propped up on the pillows as I shift her weight.
Pulling my shirt over my head, I toss it aside.
Zora keeps her gaze on the shift of my muscles as I move closer.
My hands find the buttons of her shirt. The fabric falls away to show her in the pale light.
Her bra comes off next. It is impossible to stop looking at her.
I run my fingers from her collarbone down to the divot of lean muscles in her stomach. I want to memorize every inch of her.
"You're shaking, Theo."
I can’t take my eyes off her body. "I've waited fifteen years to touch you like this. I think I'm allowed a tremor."
I lean down and press my face into the crook of her neck. I breathe her in. Honey and vanilla. I trail my lips down her chest, my tongue tracing a path over her brown skin. She lets out a low moan.
Undoing her jeans, I tug them down as she lifts her butt for me. I’m careful of her ankle as I pull them off. She lies naked on the cushions, her eyes fixed on mine. I strip out of my jeans and boxers and join her.
I move over her, my weight supported by my forearms. I kiss her again, a deep slide of my tongue against hers.
I move my hand down between her legs. Her slick folds meet my fingers; she’s so wet.
She tilts her hips, wanting more friction as her hand reaches out to the arm holding me up to dig her nails into it.
Her fingers tangle in the hair at the base of my neck. She pulls me down until our foreheads press together.
"Stay right here, Theo. Don't rush a single second."
My thumb circles the spot that makes her breath hitch.
I hum. "I’ve spent half my life wanting to see you like this."
She lets out a breath, her gaze heavy as she pulls me closer. The flickering light of the TV shows the flush on her skin.
I grin. "I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere."
Sliding two fingers into her opening, I curl them and press up into her G-spot.
I watch the way her eyes flutter shut and her mouth opens as the pleasure builds.
I move my hand in a steady rhythm, my fingers sliding in and out of her heat.
She arches her back, her hands gripping my shoulders as her breath hitches.
"Look at me, Zora."
Her brown eyes meet mine as I pump my fingers faster. I want her to know it is me giving her this pleasure. Her lips part as her walls flutter around my fingers and her back arches more. "Fuck, Theo. I’m coming!"
I groan as her passage squeezes my fingers with a rush of slick.
Pulling my fingers out, I suck them clean as I watch her come down from the orgasm.
She watches me with a look I can't name.
I move between her legs and take hold of my dick, tapping the head against her clit.
I run it along her slit to find the entrance.
I push in an inch then stop, drawing out the friction, wanting her to relish every inch.
I edge in deeper, my eyes locked on hers.
She is tight and hot. Her muscles clamp around me as I bottom out.
I take my time setting a pace. I pull out and thrust back in. It is a slow, deep slide. I’m not trying to win a race. I lift her good leg to go around my waist, keeping her injured one flat and safe on the cushions. My free arm uses the armrest behind her head to brace my weight.
The pressure begins at the base of my shaft where my knot forms. I slow my movements, edging the widening base into her entrance. Zora gasps, her eyes widen as it stretches her opening millimeter by millimeter, I push forward with a slow grind, forcing the swollen knot past her opening.
She lets out a choked sound, her hands finding my hair and pulling me down for a hard kiss. I seat the knot deep inside her, locking us together. We are locked. Her walls squeeze and pulse around my cock.
A pressure that has been waiting a lifetime to break builds in my chest. I watch Zora as she hits the peak again, her body reacting to the lock.
Her back arches. Her chest heaves as she lets out a long cry.
She shakes under me. Her release hits in waves, the muscles of her core clenching around the knot in a tight grip.
I lose my hold a second later, my body tight as I come deep inside her.
I collapse against her, my face buried in her hair. The knot holds me inside her while the release fades.
Zora reaches up and runs her fingers through my hair. She pulls my head back so she can look at me. Her tears gather in her the corners of her eyes.
I frown. “What’s wrong? Did I hurt your ankle?”
She shakes her head as a smile tugs at the corner of her lips. "Theo."
"Yeah?"
She runs her thumb over my cheek. "I’m in love with you too."
I freeze. I’ve wanted to hear her say that for so long.
"I’ve known it for a while. But I needed to find it on my own. I needed to know it wasn't just the bond or the situation. I needed to see you like this. Thank you for giving me the time."
I lean down and kiss her forehead. “I’m sorry that we unknowingly took your free will away, but I’m glad over the last few weeks we’ve been able to restore it and your faith in us. I will always love you.”