Chapter Seventeen
Blaze
I woke tangled with my alpha, my face tucked into his chest. His chin rested on the top of my head, our legs intertwined.
I’d never slept so hard or so deeply. I moved a bit to press a kiss against his Adam’s apple and he pulled me in tighter, his palms moving in circles along my back. “Good morning.”
“Good morning,” I answered but neither of us budged. One of his hands moved to the back of my head where he ran his fingernails against my scalp.
“Are you okay?” He asked and moved his lips to my forehead.
“I’m great,” I answered, a little too soon. I moved my legs and stretched and felt the ache. A delicious ache. “Oh, maybe I’m sore.”
Darsh pulled back. “Did I hurt you?”
“No. Yes. It’s not your fault. It was my first time. I’m bound to be sore.”
“How about a hot shower?” He asked. “Ease your muscles.”
“That sounds nice. Will you join me?”
My alpha chuckled, shaking us both. “Me joining you in the shower would do nothing to help your issue. I’ll get in with you to wash up but no funny business.”
I pouted. “If you say so.”
“I do. While you let the hot water help you, I’ll make us some breakfast and coffee. Anything in particular you like?”
“I’m not particular. I’m just starving.”
“Good. My wolf is eager to feed you, take care of my mate.”
We showered but true to his word, Darsh only washed up and then left me to get pruney in the warm water.
His shower had three heads and if I hadn’t smelled food and coffee, I might not have ever gotten out.
I dried off and found he’d left me a new toothbrush and a pair of his sweatpants on the counter.
I lifted them to my nose and inhaled. Goddess, he always smelled incredible.
Oak, cedar, and forest filled my senses.
“Are you okay in here?” He came into the bathroom, chuckling. Shit. I’d been caught. I looked at him in the mirror, my nose still pressed against his pants.
“I’m embarrassed now. You caught me.”
“Come here,” he coaxed. He opened his arms for me and I stumbled into his hold. “You scent your alpha anytime you need to, sweetheart. Does it ease you? Calm you? Bring you peace?”
“Yes.”
“I’m honored,” he said, holding me tight. “You do the same for me. The other night when I dropped you at work, I stayed in my car long after I’d parked it in the garage so I could be surrounded by your scent.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Are you ready to come eat?”
We walked into the kitchen where Darsh had cooked up a feast. He packed my plate full of hashbrowns, vegetable-and=cheese omelets, and pancakes that tasted like apple pie.
“What are your plans for today?” he asked before sipping his coffee.
“I have to work tonight. I need to return some books to the library. Other than that, not a lot. What do you have going on?”
“I have a meeting at noon. I’m hating myself for agreeing to a noon meeting. If I had known you would be here this morning, I would’ve said hell no.”
A laugh bubbled from me. Darsh could be serious and romantic but also funny. He continued to surprise me. “We have time, alpha. There will be plenty of mornings where we can laze around.”
“We do. I suppose I will see you at the club tonight as well.”
“How is that going to work?” I asked.
“What do you mean?”
I sipped more of my coffee. My cheapie coffee didn’t come close to whatever this was. “I mean, employees and owners and mates.”
“There are no rules like that at Cuffed. I checked in advance.”
“When?” I had to know.
“As soon as I met you. I asked one of the other owners. Some of their omegas worked at the club as well. It’s not forbidden.”
I leaned back in my chair. “And what if it had been? Forbidden.”
“I would’ve urged the other owners to change the rules. Or we would’ve broken them. There was no way I was letting you go once I realized you were mine.”
“It’s good to be yours.”
“I hope you always feel that way.”
I shrugged. “Life happens. I’m sure we’ll argue and have disagreements, and people ebb and flow through different times in their lives, but as long as we act out of love, we’ll be okay.”
Darsh stopped moving. “Is it too early to tell you that I love you, omega?”
“No. You’re right on time. I love you too.”
He pushed back from the table, heat and determination almost feral in his stare. “Are you still sore, my love?”
“No. I think my tiger helped heal me.”
“Good.” In seconds, he came over and picked me up and tossed me over his shoulder. He put me on the bed and stripped me naked before I could take my next breath. When he put his mouth over my mating mark and licked it, I came instantly. “That’s one, but I want more.”
“You can have them all, alpha.”