72. Chapter Seventy-One
Chapter Seventy-One
Trick
Ishouldn’t have left these two alone together. Now something weird is going on and I have no idea what. Scarlett seems reluctant to tell me whatever it is, but maybe I’m just being impatient.
She’s wearing a pensive expression on her face, while Kian grins like a lunatic at her side.
All he can think about is how she said she wants him.
That makes me more irritable before I realize he knows what she’s gonna say, and if he’s not worried about it, then I shouldn’t be, either.
Tension drains out of me like I just turned on a faucet.
“I did something dumb,” Scarlett admits, looking me straight in the eyes. “I took too many suppressants.”
“Oh,” I murmur. “How many is too many? Why was it dumb?”
That explains how her perfume completely disappeared.
Suppressants were made to stop hormonal reactions in Omegas.
But I don’t know why she took them … unless it’s because she isn’t ready to be claimed.
“I didn’t know the limits so I took a couple more than I should have. Apparently, there’s a fifty/fifty chance I could have just blocked my ability to perfume or anything else that’s supposed to happen with my mates. So, yeah. It was dumb, and that’s on me.”
She looks sad when she moves her gaze toward the ground between us.
I’m too shocked to say anything. I’ve never heard of something like this.
Then, I remind myself she’s feeling bad and I need to take care of her.
“Come here,” I say, as I get on my knees and move in closer.
She sniffs a little before she straightens up and puts her arms around me in a loose hug.
“It’s gonna be okay. You’ve got me, and Kian, no matter what. We’ll get through this together.”
“You don’t have to say that,” she mumbles, pulling back a little to look up at my face. “I know it’s messed up. What if I don’t ever perfume again? What if you can never knot me? What use is that? You deserve a real Omega.”
Kian drops the marshmallow he’s holding into the fire and moves in behind her, putting an arm around her waist, and resting the other hand on her shoulder. It’s not as uncomfortable as I expect.
“We don’t care if you’re an Omega or not,” he tells her. “You’re our one true mate. Don’t you know how rare that is? There’s one woman meant for us in this whole world, and she’s right here with us.”
“You two are gonna make me cry,” she warns, her voice shaking.
She’s really worried about this. I don’t know how it would feel to lose something I always had, but I know it can’t be easy to think about.
“Kian’s right. This doesn’t matter to us. We’re not gonna change our minds. But we’ll do whatever we can to help you. Whatever you need. We’ve got it covered.”
He kisses her shoulder, and I kiss her on the lips, remembering her complaint and making it a real kiss, because she deserves a real one every single time.
“Okay,” Kian mutters. “Quit with the making me jealous already.”
I break the kiss and Scarlett laughs.
“You don’t feel jealous,” she admits, turning her head to raise an eyebrow at Ki.
“Oh, really?” he asks, grinning. “How do I feel?”
“Like you’re ready to claim me.”
“I’ve been ready since I first saw your face.”
He leans in and kisses her, and yeah, it’s a little awkward being this close while they do that, but it’s also pretty hot. She definitely wants both of us.
If this isn’t what fate feels like, I don’t want to know what it is.
They break apart breathlessly.
“We should probably settle down,” I admit. “Xane and Riley …”
Kian pulls a face. “Those two have no idea what they’re missing.”
He backs off and Scarlett looks up at me.
“What are the plans for where we sleep tonight?” she asks, clearly thinking about continuing things after we’re alone later.
“We claim the tent closest to the jet,” Kian says quickly, nodding toward Riley. “Heads up, Xane’s coming back.”
I let Scarlett go, and she sits back down, close, but not quite touching.
“The one closest to the jet?” I ask Ki, waiting for his explanation.
He grins as he gets another marshmallow loaded onto a stick.
“Trust me, okay? Now shh!”
He looks away as Xane’s shuffling footsteps get closer.
Our lead Alpha sits down opposite Scarlett, at the other side of the fire.
It’s almost as if we’re not together, three of us separated from the other by the flickering flames.
I really hope that isn’t how this vacation is going to end, with our pack split apart because Xane is too stubborn to accept that we have a true mate.
I guess only time will tell.