15. Kallis
Kallis
Strong hands grip my upper arms to stop me from falling, and I flinch at the sudden contact.
I struggle, panic instinctively flaring up inside me as I crush the bars in my hands and try to yank myself backward.
“What the hell are you doing?” he snaps.
I gasp, but the second I hear his voice, every part of me that screams that I have to fight vanishes.
My eyes open, and a breath whooshes from me as Orso looks at me with a mix of anger, concern, and confusion.
He’s fresh out of the shower, completely shirtless with a distinctive sheen on his skin.
My gaze dips, and I have to swallow as I follow the hard lines of his body leading to the sweats riding low on his hips. So low that I can track the line of hair from his belly button all the way to his…
“You’re shirtless,” I say numbly.
After I scolded Aspen and told her bare-chested alphas didn’t appeal to me, I’ve clearly changed my opinion.
“What the fuck does that have to do with you sneaking out of our locker room?”
It doesn’t escape me that I’m calm even though I’m experiencing nearly full-body contact. In fact, I find myself softening into him, which is an incredibly bad idea.
The bars I’m clutching might be good for my nest, but Orso Williams is definitely unhelpful for my upcoming heat.
“Let go,” I say, my voice cutting away any of the tension rising inside me.
“I don’t fucking trust you after you wound Mathan up like that, so don’t try anything.”
“I believe you’re the person accosting me,” I reply, despite naturally leaning toward him. Or is he pulling me?
Because, without warning, the bars crinkle as my hands press to his chest, and warmth floods me.
My breath catches. Our faces are too close. His fingers tighten on my biceps as I give the lightest whimper, and Orso sucks in a breath.
I’m so aware that all I’d have to do is move my leg two inches forward to rest against his crotch to discover if he’s reacting to me with more than just rage.
I shudder as wisps of honey curl in the air. I’m already worked up from Mathan and Artie’s scents, but I can’t take any more than that.
“Kallis,” Orso’s voice rumbles through my chest, and my scent thickens. “Are you going to answer me?”
I lift my head to meet his hooded gaze.
I’ve been so scared of being trapped by alphas my whole life, and now that one restrains me, I’m giving in to him.
“You can’t draw a fucking line between us, tell us you want nothing to do with us, and then smell like that,” he says, instantly ruffling me.
My misty-eyed omega side is beaten back as I quickly gather myself.
“Are you serious?” I snap. “At least I have the decency to take suppressants. You don’t have to be around alphas every day who smell like this.” My growl rises as I push at his chest, but he doesn’t let me go.
He’s too good, and the reasons why allowing Orso Williams to roll his hips and press closer to me is a grave mistake fade with a wash of clover as he returns my growl.
“Tell me what I smell like, Kallis,” he says, his sudden purr forcing my nipples to peak as my core tightens. My desire is dripping into my scent, and his shudder is as strong as mine.
What would Orso do if I told him, or all three of them, that they smell like home?
“Let me go,” I say. I’m growing too hot, and my slick is building inside me. Orso bit me without warning, so what will happen if he scents my slick?
His hands suddenly release, and tingling floods my skin, along with a stab of disappointment as I step back with a whoosh of breath. My shoulders knock against the door, but it’s safer than rubbing up against him.
“I don’t know what the fuck you’re up to, but don’t let me catch you again.”
But the way he said it makes it sound like he’s going to hunt me relentlessly instead, and lust tremors through me at the thought. My throat bobs, and he notices, along with the first hint of my slick.
“Kallis, fucking stop,” he says with a hint of a moan, and slick fully coats my pussy with a pulse of need for the alpha in front of me.
“Excuse me,” I rasp, jerking away from him.
I run as fast as I can, the bars glued to my chest. But now I have the lush scent of clover on my clothes to carry me as well.
I had been too close to becoming wrapped up with him and losing my sense of self.
So why am I smiling as I slip into my office and press the keypad to lock the door?