Chapter 5 - Adam
There was a knock on my hotel room door only a few seconds before Taal’s voice came through it.
“You ready?” he asked. “It’s beach time!”
I chuckled and walked over to let him in.
“Aw man,” he sighed as he walked into the room, dropping his bag on the floor by the door. “You’re still in slippers.”
I snorted. “Dylan and Flynn are still firmly in that honeymoon phase. I’m not going to wait in the lobby when they could have gotten distracted by each other’s cocks.”
“Don’t trust them to limit themselves to quickies?”
I leveled a stare at him. “Do you? Would you be able to keep from knotting if you were in Dylan’s shoes?”
There was a moment of shocked silence, then Taal laughed. “Alright. Good point. They can barely keep their hands off each other.”
I nodded. “And that’s why I’m going to wait for a text that they’re headed this way before I put shoes on.”
He nodded, then plopped onto one of the chairs. “Wanna game once we get back and the lovebirds abandon us?”
“Did you get hooked up to the WiFi?”
He snorted. “It was gonna be a pain in the ass. But there are plenty of offline games.”
I shrugged. “Works for me.”
“Awesome. Think about what kind of food you might want. We can discuss later and ask Flynn for recs.”
“Ok.”
I was about to ask what games he had loaded into memory, then my phone buzzed with a text. I checked it and smiled. “They’re on the way.”
“Awesome. Put your shoes on.”
I blew a raspberry at him. “Well now I don’t wanna.”
He laughed, grabbed my flip-flops, and tossed them on the floor near my feet. “Too bad! I’ll carry you if I need to.”
I echoed his laughter as I slid my feet into my flip-flops. Then we grabbed our bags and headed to the lobby. A few minutes later we piled into the back of Dylan’s rental car and headed toward the beach.
The parking lot was full, but we lucked out, and Dylan found a good spot. The lucky streak continued as we headed down the path and spied a few good places to set up. We discussed for several seconds while the wind was at our back, then started that way.
“I say the alphas set up the shade while we change,” I suggested. “Then we can set out towels while they change.”
“Works for me,” Taal said. “Dylan?”
Dylan shrugged. “I’m ok with it.”
“Come on.” I grabbed Flynn’s arm and pulled him toward a cluster of changing tents.
Somehow, despite me only packing my beach bag that morning, my swim trunks had managed to migrate into my rolled-up towel and took a couple of minutes to find. Luckily, it didn’t take me too long once I located them.
Flynn was waiting for me outside the changing tents. He smiled as we started to where Taal and Dylan were setting up.
We were about halfway there when I smelled something.
Something incredible.
Something that made my cock twitch, then start to harden.
Something that made my omega side say ‘mine.’
Mine… Alpha…
I froze, every muscle demanding I find the source of the scent.
“Hey, you ok?” Flynn asked.
My breathing quickened, and I tried to smell it again. “I… don’t know.”
“What’s up?”
“I smelled… something. Every instinct is demanding that I find it.”
“One of the food trucks?”
I shook my head. “It’s not food.” A long pause. “The best way I can describe it… is it smelled like… mine.”
“Hmm…” he mused. “That’s what Dylan smelled like to me when we met. Just an overwhelming sense that he was mine.”
“You think it’s an alpha?”
“If it’s not food… I don’t know of much that can trigger a strong response.”
I knew it was an alpha… everything inside insisted that it was, and that he was mine.
“Let’s find out who it is,” Flynn suggested. “Can you tell which way they went?”
I sniffed the air, turning my head to try to find it again—desperate to find the slightest trace. But the scent had dissipated. I forced myself to hold back a whine of frustration and shook my head. “It’s gone.”
“Do you want to wander around and look for them?”
“Hey, everything ok?” Taal asked as he walked up. “You’ve just been standing here.”
“I think Adam might have smelled a fated mate,” Flynn explained. “But we have no idea who or where they are.”
Taal was silent for a moment. “If you did, I think the wind was wrong. I don’t see anybody else looking around. Why don’t you two walk around and see if you can smell them? Dylan and I can hold down the fort.”
“Adam?” Flynn asked.
I nodded. “Ok.”
We started back toward the changing tents, just in case the scent had come from there. I sniffed, trying to find the scent, while Flynn scanned for somebody who might be looking for me.
For a moment I thought I smelled him again heading toward the parking lot. But as soon as I had it, it was gone again.
The breeze was almost abrasive against my skin. Scents were overwhelming as I sniffed for any trace of my mate. The heat of the sun was wrong; it was supposed to be his warm hands on me.
My instincts were screaming: run, find him, he had to be close.
I probably would have bolted if I had any idea of which way to go. It couldn’t have been more than a couple of minutes since he’d been there.
I weaved through the surge of people heading toward the beach from the parking lot—my nose assaulted by the artificial scents of sunscreen and tanning oils.
Cars came and went.
I scanned the crowd, praying to see my alpha trying to find me. But it was too busy, and if he’d been heading that direction, he was probably gone.
I returned to where Flynn was, and we walked along the beach and through the crowd. He scanned for anybody searching, while I almost gave myself a headache trying to find my mate’s scent in the crush of smells coming from people and the sea.
Alpha… some deep voice within whimpered.
Eventually, I had to admit defeat. I trudged over to where Dylan and Taal had set up the shade, pulled out my towel, and collapsed onto it.
Taal plopped onto the sand next to me. “You ok?”
“I… don’t know.”
Flynn studied me for a moment, then sat on the opposite end of my towel. “I don’t think fate would do you dirty. This was a mean tease, but I’m sure you’ll find him.”
I let out a long sigh as disappointment curled through me. Every instinct still demanded that I find my alpha.
Dylan squeezed my shoulder. “You’ll find him.”
I forced a smile. “You two should get changed. I’ll be fine. I’ll start setting out towels.”
“You sure?” Taal asked.
I nodded. “Yeah.”
I forced myself to my feet in an attempt to prove that I was ok, but it was clear that they weren’t convinced.
Luckily, they didn’t argue. Dylan and Taal headed toward the tents to change while Flynn pulled towels from a bag. I helped him arrange them, and followed his direction as he kicked sand onto the corners to help keep them down.
The alphas returned after longer than expected, but I was grateful when Taal handed me a cardboard container with barbecued meat and a side of coleslaw. Then he plopped beside me and pulled me against him. He rubbed the arm that wasn’t against him.
“You’ll find him. I know you will,” he murmured.
I forced a smile. “Thanks.”
Dylan handed Flynn some food, and we ate in mostly silence.
Well… they ate. I managed a few bites, but as delicious as the food was… my stomach wasn’t having it. I set it aside after a few minutes, and told Taal to have the rest so it wouldn’t go to waste.
I offered to stay with our things while they played in the water, and I snuck some pain relievers for some ovulation cramps when nobody was looking.
But Taal’s face told me I wasn’t convincing anybody that I was ok.
We left the beach sooner than planned.
I was unable to muster the energy to play video games with Taal, but he still showed up at my hotel room door with a carryout sack at dinnertime.
“I’m not hungry,” I muttered as I let him in.
“I… uh…” He scratched the back of his neck with his free hand. “I looked up the best foods for fate-sickness. Some sites said bone broth, others said spices like ginger and cinnamon. I thought…”
He held up the bag. “Pho? Can you at least drink some of the broth for me?”
I smiled, even as part of me was on the verge of tears from his kindness. “I’ll try.”
“May I join you?”
I nodded, and he set the containers on the small table.
Taal studied me as we ate, but kept his thoughts to himself.
I managed to drink half the broth, and took a few bites of noodles and meat, before my stomach refused anything else. I put my leftovers in the fridge and promised to reheat them if I got hungry.
I expected him to leave, but instead he asked me what I wanted to watch.
“Huh?” I asked.
He sighed and pulled me into his arms. “Get ready for bed.”
“What are you doing?” I asked.
But I didn’t push him away.
“Look, I know we don’t do the cuddle buddy thing,” he murmured.
“But we’re doing it now. Your scent is damn near overwhelming with how stressed you are, and you look exhausted.
I can’t do much. I’m not the alpha you need.
But I’m still your friend. So we’re going to put on a movie, and I’m going to hold you until you fall asleep. ”
“I’ll be ok,” I protested.
I still didn’t push him away.
“I know you will. But that’s future you. You, right now, are fighting the beginnings of fate-sickness, and I’m not going to stand by and watch you fight it alone. So put on your PJs, and do whatever you need to get ready for bed.”
I closed my eyes and slumped against him. He smelled good, calming.
He wasn’t my alpha, but he was trying to help.
His arms tightened around me. “Come on. You can be strong when you find him. But for now, let your friends help you.”
I nodded into his chest. “Ok.”
He released me, and I trudged into the bathroom to change and get ready for bed. It was still early, but I was exhausted.
Taal had turned down the bedcovers, and the television was on and waiting.
“Do you want me to put on a robe?” he asked. “Or is it ok for me to wear jeans?”
“As long as they don’t have sand on them…” I muttered as I settled against the headboard.
He chuckled. “I wouldn’t do that to you. I showered and changed into fresh clothes before coming.”
“You planned this?”
He climbed onto the bed beside me and pulled me into his arms. “Yeah. I could tell before we left the beach that it was going to be bad. Dylan and Flynn are worried too. We’re here for you.”
I sighed as I relaxed against him. “I feel weak. Who the fuck gets fate-sickness from one whiff of their fated mate? It’s not like we’re fighting it. I don’t even know who he is.”
“You’re not weak. That’s the downside of fated mates. The urge to mate and breed is overwhelming. Your body is primed for something that isn’t happening, and it’s causing problems. That’s all.”
I sighed. “Are you going to be mad if I say that it’s weird to be cuddling you?”
He snorted. “No. It’s weird for me, too. But I spent some time looking things up online, and I saw a lot of articles that said one of the best ways I could help as an alpha… was to offer physical closeness. I’m not your mate, but my scent can still help.”
I closed my eyes and let out a long breath. He wasn’t wrong. I’d been jittery since that moment on the beach, but my body had calmed since we’d started cuddling.
“I’ve got you,” he murmured. “We all do. Your friends have your back. We’ll help you find your mate, and, until you do, we’ll help you fight the fate-sickness.”
“Thank you…”
“Of course.”
Taal was warm, his scent soothing. What pho I’d been able to eat sat low in my stomach.
Maybe I’d close my eyes for just a few minutes while the intro credits rolled…