Chapter 3
Chapter Three
Jae
P anicking about my situation was going to help no one, especially me. How could I freak out when I felt so safe with Curtis?
Throughout our date, he had given me all the green flags. The eye contact, the conversation, his honesty, were all so appealing. When he’d cut a large piece of his burger and given it to me along with more than half his fries? I was done for.
In his Mate Match bio, he said his friends told him to add that he was a soft alpha, apparently not understanding the appeal. The man was a natural caretaker, and it was just so damn attractive it had sent me into heat weeks early. That or his potent pheromones.
At a young age, omegas were taught that overpowering pheromones indicated a strong alpha. Curtis’ weren’t massively intense, they just wrapped all around me like a warm hug. They gave a feeling of safety unlike anything I’d sensed before in an alpha.
That’s just what it took for my system to lie down and beg to be impregnated, I guess. There was no other reason I could think of for me to go into heat so early.
Curtis, naturally, handled it perfectly. When he embraced me, reassured me? I knew trusting my gut on him was right.
Well played, Mate Match, well played. Their algorithm knew its stuff for sure.
“Would you rather we go to a hotel or my house? Mine isn’t far and there’s a drugstore open late on the way. I’m not going to suggest your place. I want you to feel free to leave at any time if it’s not working out. Your safety is important.”
“Wow, um, wow. Your place would be better.” The heat was making thoughts hard, and other things harder. All I wanted to do was strip off my clothes and have Curtis fill me over and over until my heat broke.
Giving over control to an alpha I barely knew probably wasn’t smart.
“Oh! My friend is here.” I suddenly remembered Brady and knew I had to tell him where I was going. “You need to come with me. Tell him where you live. He needs to feed my cat.” Percy, my Maine Coon, would be furious with me if I left him for a couple of days with whatever crunch he had left in the bowl.
“Okay, where is he?”
I pointed out Brady to Curtis, who wrapped an arm around me, keeping me steady as we walked across the restaurant towards my friend.
“Sorry to interrupt,” Curtis said in a polite tone. “Jae would like Brady to take care of his cat for him while he is at my house for the next day or two.”
Not shouting I was in heat gave him big points. He gave Brady both his phone number and address with a friendly smile.
For his part, Brady was subdued as he took in my alpha’s words. He tapped away on his phone. Mine buzzed in my pocket. Curtis stepped away so I could get it. Now that the wave of heat had ebbed slightly as it prepared for the next wave, I felt steadier, clearer headed.
Brady
Are you sure? Will you be safe?
Jae
100% Curtis is perfect. I trust him
Brady
Huh. You don’t trust anyone anymore so that’s a big deal. Check in with me please
Jae
I will
“Ready to go?” Curtis asked.
“I’m ready.” While I was also a little nervous, it wasn’t about my decision to be with Curtis. Him, I was sure about. It was just the first time with a new person nerves.
He took my hand as we left the restaurant.
“Sorry our date got interrupted.”
“We can always have another.” His smile was so genuine and kind it took my breath away.
Most drugstores carried emergency contraceptive kits alongside the more traditional contraceptives. When we had evolved, there was a leap in medicine. It had helped doctors cure many medical conditions including all STIs and STDs, which was lucky since there was a protein in an alpha’s ejaculate that an omega needed to get through their heat.
Some omegas, like me, didn’t react well to the synthetic kind which could be bought for omegas who either did not have or did not want a partner to take them through their heats.
So, there were contraceptive pills you could take in the run up to your heat if you had notice. Barrier methods like condoms where you would ingest the synthetic protein. Hormonal implants, heat blockers, all sorts of ways to prevent a pregnancy or even a heat.
Unfortunately for me, I was sort of allergic to the implant and heat blockers. The hormones upset my stomach and gave me chronic headaches, so I had to avoid them. Avoiding my heat wasn’t possible and a synthetic protein just plain didn’t work on me, leaving me miserable.
If I’d had more time to prepare for my heat, the pill would have worked fine. I could deal with the headaches for a week or so, as unpleasant as it could be.
My impromptu heat had robbed me of time to protect myself. Luckily, there was an emergency option.
I pulled Curtis to a stop just before the drugstore. I could see the sign was lit up, telling me it was still open.
“Are you okay with taking DuoStop?” The popular last minute contraceptive from AlphaPharm worked on slowing an alpha’s sperm and preventing the omega’s egg from implanting. It was sold in liquid form to be injected into a person’s thigh no less than thirty minutes before sex.
Apparently, some alphas didn’t like taking it because their orgasms weren’t as strong on it. You’d think they’d be more concerned with not having to pay child support, but whatever. I just hoped Curtis was on board.
“Oh, I thought you’d want to use condoms. Either is fine with me.”
I briefly explained my situation along with the surprise heat limiting my options.
“Whatever you want is fine with me. I’m not the best with needles. D’you think you could stick me with my dose?”
“Sure.” I grinned, happy to have such an easygoing alpha with me. There was no way Hwan would have been so calm about the situation.
The next wave rose, bringing with it a flush to my skin. Sweat broke out all over my body. I really wanted a shower before Curtis got anywhere near me. My stomach cramped as my hole clenched. I could feel the slick in my underwear. I was grateful for the absorbent layer to the briefs I’d picked out. Designed for omegas, they kept me feeling dry even with the surge of hormones creating slickness to ready my ass for sex.
We entered the drugstore and Curtis asked for the DuoStop, but I paid for it, feeling bad he’d already paid for dinner and now we were doing this. There was a good chance I was interrupting his entire weekend. We were given our dosage pens, and the attendant told us how to inject ourselves. Like those epinephrine auto injectors, we did it through our clothes. I did mine quickly, trying not to wince at the sting, so I didn’t put Curtis off.
“Is it okay if I do his?”
“Not good with needles?” the attendant asked sympathetically. “I can do it while you distract him if both of you are okay with that?”
Curtis’ eyes met mine. “I’d much rather look at you while you don’t have that thing in your hand.”
I handed over the pen with my thanks and while they got in place, went onto my tiptoes to kiss Curtis.
He made a gasp of either pain or surprise before kissing me back. His hand cupped the back of my neck in the barest of touches, fingers brushing over my scent gland where an alpha bite would go if he wanted to be my mate. The bites were incredibly difficult to remove. Stimulating the gland, particularly during sex, helped the alpha/omega pair bond.
The feeling of our kiss was electric. It held the promise of great chemistry in the sheets, but also genuine affection.
We parted with a smile to find the attendant looking at us. “You two are so cute! Sorry! I shouldn’t have said that.” They blushed, made their way around us to return behind the counter. They packaged up the remains of the box folded with the relevant information.
“Please, keep this for your records just in case you need to seek medical attention due to a reaction. Duostop is ninety-nine point five percent effective. I have to remind you of the legal stuff. Don’t forget to wait thirty minutes. Best set a timer now.”
“Thanks. I understand.” I took the packet and tucked it into the inner pocket of my jacket while Curtis played with his phone before showing the ticking timer to the attendant, earning him a pleased look.
Curtis held out his hand. “Ready?”
“Yes.” I took his hand eagerly. Grateful for the grounding touch.
Together we said goodbye and left the store for Curtis’ home. Nerves plagued me as we walked. Was I doing the right thing? I could go home and be miserable for three to five days as my heat played out alone. It would be shorter with an alpha but that wasn’t the only reason to pick Curtis. He was such a soothing presence, I really didn’t want to go it alone. He made me feel safe and desired at the same time.
One look at him keeping pace with me despite his longer legs, a concerned expression on his handsome face, and I knew I’d made the right choice.