Chapter 40 Ezra
FORTY
Ezra
“She’s starting to stir now,” Riven comments after checking his phone.
Hale has been texting him updates. I didn’t know that a sleeping omega could be so fascinating, but I’m enthralled by his cute message about how she murmurs in her sleep.
“They’re going to help her clean off before coming downstairs. ”
When Kady wakes up, Riven and I have a feast waiting for her.
I stopped at Pearl’s to buy a few of everything—fresh baked cinnamon buns that are larger than my hands, bulging donuts stuffed with thick pistachio cream, a slice of every fruit pie they make, even though I might have accidentally scarfed down the pecan one on the drive back. All this waiting is making me antsy.
Usually, I escape to the forest when I need to clear my head. Take a stroll along the stream. Look for flowers. Study the pond life. But right now, the only thing I want to look at is Kady, and knowing that she’s upstairs is killing me.
“This is exciting, isn’t it?” Riven has an icing sugar mustache from devouring a churro. “Us having an omega.”
Riven is often so hyper-fixated on whatever subject has become his latest fascination that we don’t see a lot of him.
And when he is around, he’s never like this.
Since Kady came into our lives, he’s come out of his shell.
He’s still the same Riven that we all know and love, but he’s more comfortable in his skin and talkative.
Who knew it would take an omega like Kady Sinclair to do it?
Suddenly, a phone rings from across the room, followed by a loud yowl from Larry. Like his owner, Larry has been enjoying a rather long nap until now, his squashed face staring in judgment at a cushion where the offending sound seems to be coming from.
“It’s okay, Larry.” I pat his head then locate the phone that must have fallen down. “I’ll take it away.”
“That must be Kady’s phone,” Riven says.
“It’s…” I see that it’s a video call from the “Stella Girls” group chat. “Kady’s friends.”
“We should probably answer.” Riven grabs another churro. “If they’ve been monitoring traffic conditions, they would have been expecting Kady home over an hour ago. Maybe thirty minutes if we got held up for food. They may be worried about her.”
If Kady wasn’t likely to be tied up for the next few days with her heat, I’d just ignore the call and let her get in touch with them herself.
However, from what Kady told us on the drive here, her girlfriends are a huge part of her life.
After the last fiasco where she went unaccounted for a few hours, the last thing we need is another SWAT team descending on our cabin and destroying more wildlife with a helicopter landing.
I answer the call and am met with three faces peering at me through the screen. A red head, a brunette, and a blonde, all wearing what look to be matching pink robes, sitting on a sofa, hugging bowls of snacks. I recognize their faces from Kady’s screensaver.
“Professor Brackenwood!” Faye squeaks in surprise, almost spilling a bowl of popcorn.
I instantly recognize her from my classes.
Faye’s got a keen eye and a natural talent for botany.
If she nurtures her talent, I’m sure she’ll be more skilled than me in a few years.
Although I’m now kicking myself for forgetting that one of Kady’s best friends is one of my top students. “It’s good to see you.”
“You’re Professor Brackenwood?” The redhead—who I presume is Sabs based on Kady’s description—peers uncomfortably close to the screen.
I feel like I’m being exposed to some kind of inspection, like a contestant on a dating show.
“You can call me Ezra outside of the classroom.” I loosen my collar with my spare hand as Sabs withdraws with a satisfied nod. I guess that means I satisfied whatever she was looking for? “Kady can’t come to the phone right now.”
“You better not be holding her hostage!” Sabs wags her finger. “Although being locked away with four alphas in a cabin doesn’t sound like it’d be too much of a hardship for her.”
“Sabs!” The brunette wearing sparkly hair clips swats her. “Sorry about her, Ezra. She can’t control her mouth sometimes. I’m Delilah. It’s good to meet you.”
“Prof—” Faye clears her throat. “I mean, Ezra. Is something wrong? Is Kady okay?”
“She’s fine.” I skim a hand over my jaw. “She unexpectedly went into heat before we left, so we decided to stay in Rose Harbor for a few more days. She’ll be more than comfortable here. We have a nest here.”
Sabs winks. “I bet she’s more than comfortable.”
“I can contact Kady’s professors to let them know she won’t be in class for a few days,” Faye offers. “She did the same for me before.”
“Thank you, Faye.” I smile gratefully. “We’d appreciate that, and none of you have to worry. We’ll make sure she has everything she needs.”
“We’re glad to hear it,” Delilah replies. “Thank you for looking after our friend. Kady’s not always an easy person to take care of.”
I chuckle. “Yeah, we’re learning that.”
Behind me, Larry meows.
“Is that Larry?” Sabs snatches the phone up from wherever it’s balanced in front of them.
“Sure is.” I pan the camera around to show her him. He’s currently lounging across the cushions in a French lady pose. “Say hi, Larry.”
“Look at him!” Delilah clucks. “He looks like he’s made himself at home.”
“You better watch out for him, though,” Sabs warns. “He’s a furball straight from hell when he wants to be.”
Larry hisses at her, apparently disapproving of her comments.
“It’s okay, Larry,” Faye coos. “She doesn’t mean it.”
I swear, Larry’s mouth stretches into a smile.
“Well, I better go.” I crack my neck. “Riven and I are making snacks for when Kady’s ready.”
“Thanks again, Ezra,” Delilah chirps. “When you’re back at SVU, we’d love to meet you and the rest of the pack properly. Kady already said she’d like that.”
“She did?” Riven asks in the background. “She wants us to meet her friends?”
I can’t stop a smile from spreading over my face at this too. Kady seems fiercely protective over the Stellas, so it’s a big deal that she feels ready to introduce us already.
“We’d like that.” I nod before saying goodbye and hanging up.
“I’ll be right back.” Riven gestures toward his room. “I’m just going to do some more research real quick.”
“Research? Now?” I frown. “About what?”
“I want to know more about an omega’s biological response during heat.” He lifts up a bulky shoulder. “Maybe there’s more we can do to help her.”
“There are some things you can’t find out about in books, Riven.” I rearrange a platter of cookies. “Every omega is different. We need to learn what Kady needs. It’ll come with experience.”
“Still, it’ll make me feel better to study the theory.” He nibbles on his lip, surveying the snack table. “It’s either that or I’ll just stand here and eat all the donuts.”
“Go, if it makes you feel better.” I clap him on the shoulder as he passes then sit next to Larry. I turn on the television, flicking aimlessly through the channels, but nothing keeps my attention.
“Was that Delilah’s voice I heard earlier?” Kady suddenly comes from behind me.
Her wet hair covers her breasts, soaking through the thin fabric of the white button down she’s wearing that I recognize as being Calder’s. Behind her, Hale follows, a towel wrapped around his waist. Lucky fuck. From the look on his face, they did more than shower.
I swallow hard, noting how she only fastened a few of the shirt buttons, giving me a tantalizing glimpse of her cleavage. The shirt leaves little to the imagination. When she moves, the dwindling sunlight streaming through the windows highlights her peachy ass and that she isn’t wearing underwear.
“Ezra?” She cocks a hip.
“Oh, yeah.” I jump up. “Yeah, your friends called to check if you were okay. I hope you don’t mind that I answered. We didn’t want them to worry about you.”
“You survived a video call with the Stellas?” Kady’s eyebrows shoot up. “I guess you’re up for anything.”
“It wasn’t so bad.” I smile. “They seem nice, and Faye’s going to sort everything out with your professors, so you don’t need to worry about school.”
She sighs in relief. “Good.”
Hale wraps his arm around her shoulders. “You really should eat something, Kady.”
“I wasn’t sure what you liked.” I proudly lead her to where the goods are waiting. “So I kinda bought everything.”
Her jaw drops. “This is enough food for an entire party.” Her blue eyes soften as she gazes up at me. “You did all of this? For me?”
“Of course.” I mentally kick myself at how much of a jerk I’ve acted over the past few days. I must’ve been pretty bad for her to be so grateful for my completing such a basic task. “Despite what I’ve said before, I want you to know that I’m taking this—us—seriously now.”
After what happened with her father, unsaid words hang in the air between us. Hale, intuitive as ever, must sense this. “I’m going to help Calder straighten up the nest.” He plants a kiss on her forehead. “I’ll be back soon.”
“So…” Once alone, we both speak at once then laugh awkwardly.
“How are you feeling?” I lean against the table.
“Okay for now.” Her cheeks turn an adorable shade of pink. “I need to refuel after… You know.”
Damn right I know. Knotting her is all I’ve been thinking about since the first time I fucked her in that alleyway in Forestville. Every time I’ve touched myself since, the image of her moaning in pure bliss has fueled me.
“Here.” I hand her a plate. “Load up.”
She hesitates, biting her lip. To my surprise, she veers straight past the sweet treats to the small selection of savory goods—miniature quiches, bagels, and huge doughy pretzels.
“You want salty food?” My stomach drops. “I thought omegas preferred sweet food. Shit. If I’d have known, I’d have gotten more.”
“I do love sweet treats.” Her cornflower-blue irises flicker over the layout. “But for some reason, during a heat, my body really craves salt. It must be its way of trying to replenish some of what it's lost.”