Chapter 4 Jaxon Roarke #2
"You're not fine. You're barely holding it together." I could smell it now, the way her body was rejecting the chemicals. "How long have they been failing?"
"It's under control."
"Like hell it is."
Before she could protest, I pulled her close. Not rough, not demanding, just gathering her against my chest and letting my scent wrap around her. Her body went rigid for exactly three seconds.
Then she melted into me.
A soft sound escaped her throat, something between a sigh and a whimper. Her hands came up to clutch at my shirt and her scent bloomed, unrestrained and desperate. For a moment, she just breathed me in, her body recognizing what her mind was still fighting.
Safety.
Pack.
Home.
My Alpha rumbled in satisfaction, every instinct screaming to keep her here, to never let her go, to eliminate every threat and lock her away somewhere only I could reach her.
Then she pushed against my chest.
"I have to finish work," she said, but her voice was shaky.
I let her go because forcing her to stay would break something fragile between us. But I didn't step back.
"I'm not done with you, Pretty Girl."
"Jaxon, please." She looked up at me and I saw the fear there, raw and real. "I can't do this. Not with you. Not with Luca. I can't..."
"Can't what?"
"I can't be what you need me to be."
The words hit like a physical blow.
"You think I need you to be something other than what you are?" I reached out, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "I don't need you to be anything, Reina. I just need you to stop running."
Her eyes filled with something that looked like tears but she blinked them back.
"I have to go," she whispered.
This time, I let her.
She slipped past me, grabbed her camera bag, and was out the door before I could find the right words to make her stay.
I stood there in the equipment room, surrounded by her lingering scent, my hands shaking with the effort of not following her.
She was breaking down.
The suppressants were failing.
And whether she admitted it or not, her body was calling out for the pack bond that had been severed twelve years ago.
I pulled out my phone and checked the time.
Her work day would be over in a few hours.
Perfect.
I had a motorcycle and a plan, and Reina was about to learn that I was just as stubborn as she was.
Maybe more.
I waited in the parking lot for two hours.
The sun had already set by the time the last of the media staff started trickling out of Iron Stadium. I leaned against my motorcycle, arms crossed, watching the employee exit like a predator waiting for prey.
Finally, she emerged.
Reina had her camera bag slung over one shoulder, her head down as she fumbled with her keys. She looked exhausted, her shoulders curved inward like she was trying to make herself smaller.
My Alpha didn't like that.
She made it three steps before she noticed me.
Her entire body froze. Even from across the parking lot, I could see the way her breath caught, the way her fingers tightened around her keys.
"Took you long enough," I called out.
"What are you doing here?" Her voice carried across the distance, wary.
"Waiting for you." I pushed off the bike and started walking toward her. "Get on the bike."
"Jaxon, I'm tired. I need to go home."
"You need to stop hiding." I stopped a few feet away, close enough to see the dark circles under her eyes, the way her suppressants were barely holding. "When's the last time you actually had fun, Reina? Not work, not hiding, just... living?"
She rubbed at her face before smoothing her blond tresses. "I don't have time for fun."
"Make time." I pulled the spare helmet off the bike and held it out to her. "Let me show you the city. No expectations. Just a ride."
She stared at the helmet like it might bite her. "This is a bad idea."
"Probably." I smiled. "But you're going to say yes anyway."
"You're so sure of yourself."
"I'm sure of you." I took a step closer. "I know you're suffocating under all those suppressants and rules and fear. I know you haven't let yourself breathe in twelve years. So let me give you one hour. Just one. To remember what it feels like."
Her throat worked as she swallowed. I could see the war playing out across her face, practical Reina fighting with the part of her that was desperate for relief.
"One hour," she finally said. "That's it."
"One hour." I grinned, feral and victorious. "For now."
I handed her the helmet and watched as she secured it, her fingers fumbling slightly with the strap. Then I swung onto the bike and waited.
She hesitated for just a second before climbing on behind me.
The second her arms wrapped around my waist, her scent bloomed.
Lilies and cinnamon, unrestrained and desperate. It hit my system like a drug, making my Alpha rumble in satisfaction. I felt her press closer, her chest against my back, her thighs bracketing mine.
Perfect.
I kicked the bike to life and felt her grip tighten.
"Hold on, Pretty Girl."
Then I opened the throttle and we shot out of the parking lot.
I drove fast and reckless, weaving through traffic, taking corners harder than necessary. Behind me, Reina held on tight, her body moving with mine like we'd done this a thousand times before.
The city blurred past us, lights and sounds bleeding together. I took her through downtown, past the arenas, along the river where the water reflected the skyline. With every mile, I felt her relax incrementally, her death grip on my waist loosening into something more natural.
By the time I pulled off onto a quieter street, she was practically melted against my back.
I slowed as we passed a small ice cream shop, its neon sign flickering in the darkness. On impulse, I pulled into the narrow alley beside it and killed the engine.
"Ice cream?" Reina asked as she pulled off her helmet, her voice slightly breathless.
"You used to love ice cream." I swung off the bike and took her helmet, setting it on the seat. "Chocolate chip cookie dough. Extra sprinkles."
Something flickered across her face. Surprise that I remembered.
"That was twelve years ago."
"So?" I moved closer, backing her up against the brick wall of the building. "You telling me your favorite changed?"
"I..." She licked her lips nervously. "No. It didn't change."
"Then wait here."
I left her there and ducked into the shop, emerging five minutes later with two cones. Chocolate chip cookie dough with extra sprinkles for her. Plain vanilla for me because I'd never been fancy about dessert.
Reina was exactly where I'd left her, leaning against the wall in the shadows of the alley. The dim light from the street barely reached us here. Private. Secluded.
Dangerous.
I handed her the cone and watched as she took the first lick, her eyes closing briefly in pleasure.
"Good?" I asked.
"Perfect." She took another lick, then looked up at me. "You remembered."
"I remember everything about you, Reina."
The words hung between us, heavy with twelve years of meaning. She stared at me, ice cream forgotten, her scent starting to shift into something warmer.
"Jaxon..." It was barely a whisper.
I moved closer, caging her against the wall with my body. "I never stopped looking for you, Pretty Girl."
"You should have."
"Why? Because your mom told you to disappear? Because she convinced you that you were dangerous?" I reached up, tracing her jaw with my thumb. "You're not dangerous, Reina. You're perfect."
"I'm Category Red," she said, her voice breaking slightly. "My scent makes Alphas violent. Makes them fight. Makes them..."
"Makes them recognize their mate."
She inhaled sharply.
"That's what you are," I continued, my voice dropping lower. "You're not unstable. You're not a threat. You're a dual-bond Omega and your body's been trying to tell you that for twelve years."
"That's not..." She shook her head. "That's not possible."
"Isn't it?" I leaned in, my nose tracing along her neck where her scent was strongest. "Explain why your suppressants keep failing. Explain why your body responds to both me and Vale. Explain why being near us makes you feel safe instead of scared."
Her breathing had gone ragged. The ice cream cone was dripping, forgotten in her hand.
"I can't..." she started, but I cut her off.
"You can. You just won't." My hand slid down to her waist, pulling her closer. "Stop fighting it, Reina. Stop fighting us."
"Jaxon, please..."
"Please what?" I pressed against her fully now, letting her feel exactly what she did to me. "Please stop? Please keep going? Tell me what you want, Pretty Girl."
Her eyes were dark, pupils blown wide. Her scent was everywhere now, thick with arousal and need and desperation.
"I want..." She licked her lips. "I want to stop feeling like I'm breaking."
"Then let me put you back together."
I took the ice cream cone from her hand and tossed it aside. Then my mouth was on hers, hard and demanding and twelve years overdue.
She made a sound in her throat, something between a gasp and a moan, and then she was kissing me back with a desperation that matched my own. Her hands fisted in my leather jacket, pulling me closer even as her body arched against mine.
I kissed her like I was drowning and she was air. My hands found her hips, pinning her to the wall as my tongue swept into her mouth. She tasted like chocolate and cinnamon and everything I'd been missing for over a decade.
When I finally pulled back, we were both breathing hard.
"Jaxon," she whispered, my name a plea.
"I know, baby. I know." My hand slid under her shirt, finding warm skin. "Tell me to stop and I will."
She didn't tell me to stop.
Instead, she pulled me back down into another kiss, this one even more desperate than the first. My hand moved higher, cupping her breast through her bra, and she arched into the touch with a whimper.
"More," she breathed against my mouth.
Fuck.
My hand left her breast and traveled down, popping the button of her jeans with practiced ease. She didn't stop me. Didn't even hesitate. Just widened her stance slightly, giving me access.
"Good girl," I murmured, sliding my hand beneath her panties.
She was soaked.
The discovery made me groan, my forehead dropping to rest against hers as my fingers found her slick heat. I stroked through her folds slowly, teasing, until she was squirming against me.
"Jaxon, please..."
"Please what, Pretty Girl?" I circled her clit with my thumb, light and maddening. "Use your words."
"Please... I need..."
"Need what?" I slid one finger inside her and she gasped, her nails digging into my shoulders through the leather. "Need me to fuck you with my fingers? Need me to make you come so hard you forget your own name?"
"Yes," she whimpered. "God, yes."
I added a second finger, pumping slowly while my thumb worked her clit in tight circles. Her head fell back against the brick wall, her eyes squeezing shut as pleasure rolled through her.
"Eyes on me," I commanded. "I want to watch you fall apart."
Her eyes opened, dark and desperate, locked onto mine.
"That's it," I praised, picking up the pace. "Take what you need, baby. Take everything."
My fingers curled inside her, finding that spot that made her cry out. Her hips were moving now, riding my hand with increasing desperation. Her scent was overwhelming, pure arousal and need, calling to every instinct I had.
"Close," she gasped. "I'm so close..."
"Then come for me, Pretty Girl." I increased the pressure on her clit, my fingers pumping harder. "Let everyone hear who's making you feel this good."
She shattered.
Her orgasm hit her like a freight train, her entire body going rigid as pleasure crashed through her. She screamed my name into my leather jacket, her teeth finding the material to muffle the sound as wave after wave rolled through her.
I worked her through it, my fingers gentling as the aftershocks subsided. When she finally went limp against me, I withdrew my hand and brought my fingers to my mouth.
Her eyes widened as I licked them clean.
"Delicious," I murmured.
For a long moment, we just stared at each other, both breathing hard. Then reality seemed to crash back in and I watched the panic start to creep into her expression.
"Don't," I said softly. "Don't run from this."
"Jaxon, I..." She shook her head. "This was a mistake."
"No, it wasn't." I cupped her face, forcing her to look at me. "This was twelve years overdue. And it's happening again. Soon."
Her eyes widened. "We can't..."
"We can. We will." I kissed her forehead. "But not tonight. Tonight, I'm taking you home."
I helped her fix her jeans, my hands gentle now. Then I led her back to the motorcycle, ignoring the way she was still trembling.
This time when she climbed on behind me, she held on even tighter.
And when I dropped her off at her apartment complex an hour later, I made sure she knew I wasn't done with her.
Not even close.