Chapter 19

The time of day or even the day of the week no longer mattered. Nothing mattered but her. Fucking her. Tasting her. Pleasing her.

Against every wall. In the shower. On the floor. In the bed. On the countertop. Any surface he could press her body against or could lie on, he had her. Had her in ways he never imagined, only dreamed.

She was relentless, demanding more from him—more power, more orgasms. Every time, he failed to knot her, but he tried to give her immeasurable pleasure over and over and over again.

He had long since stopped worrying about what was going on in the world outside. As long as her skin burned hot for him and that his body raged at the thought of being away from her, he would remain in this space with her, dedicated in his duty to please her.

He knew the world outside was waiting, knew they needed to plan and prepare for what came next, knew they had to talk about what they would do. It didn’t matter anymore. Not when she was calling his name, begging for her Alpha to come and fuck her again, begging for his seed and his knot and his touch, and he—

He was a simple man, really. He knew his place in the world. Knew his place with her. Knew his purpose.

He was made to worship her, and he would do so for as long as she demanded it.

Food was forgotten save for when her own stomach demanded it, but beyond that, he never strayed more than a step away from her.

Control was quickly disappearing as well. Matthew was ready to let go entirely, to sink completely into his Alpha desires and let his rut take hold, but he was forced to hold off while Gabriella struggled. Despite whatever the hell had been in the injection to clear the suppressant from her system, she was fighting against her true nature. Perhaps that was why it was taking so long or that the injection was not as fast acting as they had first believed. Regardless of whatever was holding her back, he knew the only way forward was for her to let go and allow the Omega to take over.

She was an Omega in heat, unable to grasp the peace only came an Alpha’s knot could offer, and was fighting against her urges to maintain some sort of control over what was happening to them. Until she let go completely, she would never find any rest.

After years of being away from the touch of a woman and lacking in sexual desire thanks to his injections, he was on a whirlwind with the sudden upswing in his sex life. He was going to need a week, at minimum, to recuperate.

“You have to let go,” Matthew urged again as Gabriella paced beside the bed, insisting she was too restless to take a nap. “You have to let nature run its course.”

His scent was covering hers, so he couldn’t sense anything beyond sex and her rage. She was also no longer talking to him, perhaps shutting him out of her thoughts or maybe too tired to find any more words.

“I can’t,” she insisted, running her hands through her tangled hair. “I can’t. I can’t settle. There’s... There’s something, and I don’t know what but it’s right there on the tip of my tongue. I need it, but I don’t—not your knot. I mean, I need that as well but there’s something—”

“You have to let go,” he urged again, forcing himself to speak when his mouth was longing to do anything else, like sink into her skin and mark her as his. “Let go. You don’t need to know what it is, whatever it is. Your nature will lead the way.”

“What, like you’re an expert on Omegas in heat?” she hissed, pausing to look at him before resuming her pacing. “Fuck. Sorry. I’m—”

“Alphas talk, Omega. We talked about what would happen, when we found our Omega. I’m sure as shit not an expert but right now, I think I know more than you.”

“I hate not knowing,” she gasped and paused again as she rubbed her neck and then down her body. She was touching her glands again, likely as a way of self-comfort. Perhaps what she needed without knowing it was his teeth breaking into them, bonding them together. “I hate this. I hate giving up control. I’ve always felt in control until suddenly I didn’t and then I felt trapped and tried to escape it but now I’m here and I’m trapped in my own body and—”

“And you have to accept that being an Omega is who you are. That it’s always been a part of you, even if it’s been pushed down. Let go, Gabriella. Let go.”

Matthew sensed shifting on the bed beside him as he slowly woke from his own restless sleep. Cracking an eye open, he saw Gabriella sitting up on the bed, running her hands over the blanket in front of her.

She was muttering to herself, which he couldn’t make out. Wanting to comfort her, he reached to her but drew his hand away inches away from her skin.

If, before, she was a fire, her skin had become an inferno, ready to set ablaze to anything.

“What’s wrong?” Matthew asked as he sat up, not wanting to startle her with his touch.

“Me,” she snapped as she whirled around to look at him.

If her hair were still wet from the shower, he would have heard sizzling. Perhaps that was why her hair was dry. Time no longer had any meaning, and he had no idea how long they had been asleep.

“You? You’re an Omega in heat. There’s nothing wrong with—”

“There is!” She pushed herself off the bed. He worried she would resume her pacing, but she touched a wall and then squatted to touch the floor. “There’s something wrong with me! I’m not the right sort of Omega because what kind of Omega has the power I have? I’m supposed to be submissive and obedient and instead I’m in charge of a crime family or about to be and risking lives, your life and—”

He was out of the bed before he could stop himself, the rage he had been ignoring for days building.

“Who the fuck said an Omega was supposed to be submissive and obedient? And who the fuck decided that?”

“It’s what everyone says! They give up all of their goals and desires and—”

“Or maybe their priorities just fucking change but again, who decides what an Omega is supposed to be? Who even has a vote on that?”

“I don’t know, society? Societal expectations?”

“Fuck them. Fuck society. Fuck all of it. Who the fuck cares what anyone else thinks. What matters is what you think and maybe what I think but I’m with you no matter fucking what. You tell me you want to say fuck this city and leave and start popping out babies, then fuck it, we can do that, but you’re more than that and we both know it. I’m with you to the end, no matter what road you want to take. You want to talk about submissive and obedient? Say the word, and I’ll do it. Anything you ask of me. Anything that would make you fucking happy, I’ll do it in an instant because you’re the one with the fucking power, Gabriella. I live to serve you. To please you. So fuck society for not knowing what the fuck they’re talking about. We’re living it and if one of us has the power and the other has to follow their lead, then I’m sure as shit not the one controlling the reins. That’s you, you infuriating Omega.”

Gabriella’s mouth opened and closed as she turned and looked at him, clearly still angry.

He didn’t know what else to add save for that if she wouldn’t stop talking about what an Omega was supposed to be, he would punch a fucking wall.

No one else’s fucking opinion mattered on the subject. What she wanted, she got. End of story.

Save for wanting to put herself down.

“I’m not... I’m not the one with power,” Gabriella gasped, tears returning to her eyes again.

He was sick of the fucking tears. Sick of seeing her cry.

Sick not because she was sad but sick because he was unable to stop it, stop her pain. Sick because he knew she hated crying, even in front of him.

Crying, in her eyes, displayed weakness, and she hated showing it.

And he hated that she was scared to look weak in front of him, to share her fears or worries or sadness.

“I’m just a stupid, crying little girl who isn’t good enough.”

And there it was.

Like a light, it clicked in his hormone-addled brain. He knew finally found what was holding her back. The thing she was scared of. The thing she couldn’t let go.

She wanted to sink into her needs, her basest desires and create a safe space where she could cry. The touching of the wall and the carpet and running her hands over the blanket? The tears that seemed to be ready to erupt out of her, much like her rage had been the past few days. The fear that she wasn’t good enough.

He had heard about it, had even joked about it with the other Alphas more than once, but now he understood.

At this point, given how hot she was, all she needed was a tiny nudge to lose herself completely to her Omega nature and finally move forward.

He felt awkward as he moved around on the bed, tugging the bedspread off and then the pillows. A gasp erupted behind him, but he ignored it, balled up the blanket up, and tossed it into the middle. After grabbing a towel from the floor, he threw it on the bed.

He hadn’t understood why the towels were so fucking soft, but now he had it figured out. All of the different textures and thickness and weight and softness from around the apartment—which they had been fucking all over for the past whoever knew how long?—were for her. For her to use. For her to assemble. For her to nest.

Gabriella huffed, shaking her head as she looked at the bed. Her hands were on her hips, and she wore a lazy smile despite her drying tears. Although she was amused with his pitiful attempt, it had urged her to action.

He had done it. He had convinced her to give up control. And she finally sank into her baser urges and knew what she needed.

“You’re doing it all wrong,” Gabriella insisted as she moved closer to the bed and pulled off everything. “Go and get the blankets from the couch. The middle cushion as well. And the other towels from the bathroom. Hurry up.”

Omegas were supposed to be the obedient, submissive ones? Bull-fucking-shit.

Matthew moved quickly throughout the space to grab everything she asked of him, including his shirt. He didn’t understand what exactly she was doing or how any of it was supposed to be arranged, but he didn’t need to know. In fact, what he needed to do was let go. Let go of the yearning for control to help her forward.

So, he did, only to see the space with new eyes.

One side was higher, so they could easily recline against it, with his shirt right at about the height of where her head would sit. He had been fully Alpha and ready to enter his rut when he stormed the building looking for her. Even then, he could smell the pheromones rolling from it. The cushion was propped against the back, keeping the nest from collapsing, and the towels lay at the bottom. Pillows were around the sides, giving them raised barrier to feel protected all and to keep young from tumbling out. And the blankets were all wrapped around it, cocooning them in.

“Hmm.” Gabriella stood at the foot of the bed, taking in her work. “Almost perfect. Just missing one thing. Well, two things, really.”

She looked at him, a serene look on her face. Moving toward her, he shook his head, knowing exactly what was missing—well, more like who was missing.

“It’s a perfect nest.” Matthew stepped closer to her, ready to scoop her up. “A perfect nest made by my perfect mate.”

“I’ll do better next time,” she insisted. He held his breath, wary of what insult she might speak about herself next. “When I can choose all of the blankets and pillows from our own space. You’ll see. Next time, it will be perfect.”

Not an insult to herself, a recognition that she had to work with what they had access to, and she had far better taste.

Good. Great. Amazing. His smart Omega, who was capable of even more than he could ever dream of, finally recognized her own talents and gifts.

“I’m almost scared to climb in. I don’t want to ruin it,” he insisted as he bent down to pick her up and resisted the urge to flinch.

Her skin burned his, and it would be red when he pulled away, but it was coming to an end soon. He could take an ice bath tomorrow.

“Are you doubting my abilities?” She quirked an eyebrow. “Alpha. Take me to our nest. Knot me in our nest.”

Matthew climbed onto the bed and moved forward on his knees, careful to not disturb the pillows too much. His back was upright as he leaned back against the blankets and then reclined slightly under his weight, almost to the perfect angle.

Gabriella turned to face him and straddled his lap, but she didn’t reach for his cock. Instead, her arms wrapped around his neck, and she kissed him, long and slow, taking her time.

Groaning into her mouth as his hands moved to her hips, he tugged her closer, rocking him against his hardening length but not rushing them.

For the first time, he wasn’t in a rush, and she seemed to not be in one either.

“Perfect mate,” Matthew growled as Gabriella’s lips moved to his jaw. “Always beautiful and strong and independent. Smart too. Intelligent. Brave. Demanding. So perfect. Beautiful. Omega. My Omega. All mine.”

Gabriella moaned at his words as she reached his chest, and he tipped his head to one side to let her access his glands. Nowhere near as sensitive as hers, they were more intended for sending out pheromones, but there was still a sensuality in feeling her kiss somewhere, which felt so private and otherwise unexplored.

Wanting to touch her more but not wanting to rush her, he squeezed her ass. She was exploring him in a way their previous desires hadn’t allowed, and he wanted to do the same, wanted to map out her body with his fingers and mouth.

Her lips parted around the gland, and she teased it with her tongue before sucking, and Matthew swore he saw stars at the sensation, pleasure flooding his body with endorphins as she moved to the other side.

“Omega, let me worship you,” he growled, needing to give her the same euphoric feeling. “Lean back. Let me taste you.”

Gabriella giggled against his throat but still did as told, pulling away and leaning back on his knees as he raised them and planted his feet on the bed.

She was too fucking smart, and he would stress about feeling incompetent compared to her later, but right now, he had a lap full of Omega, and he would taste his mate.

“What do you see?” she moaned.

He scanned her body, from the dark patch of curls at the top of her cunt, up to her belly, to the swell of her hips and then her voluptuous breasts.

He had seen her in a number of tops, some struggling to contain her curves, others accentuating them. But nothing could have prepared him for seeing her fully naked form, spread out on display for him. He had touched her a thousand times while she was in heat, yet it felt like the first time.

Gliding his hands from her hips to her waist, he cupped her breasts. “I see a woman I am unworthy of. Can’t believe I get to touch you. To taste you. Would gladly die smothered by these. Or by you sitting on my face.”

“Displease me and that can be arranged.”

Although she wouldn’t actually kill him.

... Or at least, he wouldn’t give her a reason to.

“Fucking perfect. The tips are just... begging for my—”

He couldn’t remember it if he had done this, so he savored the moment and committed it to memory as he took her nipple in his mouth. Her fingers ran into his hair, and she pulled him closer as he nuzzled between them, then moved to suck the other hardened tip. Her hips shifted against his, but he willed his cock to be less demanding as he switched between each.

Fuck, they were big enough, he bet he could suck on both nipples at the same time. He pushed them together and shifted his hands until the dark tips were touching, swirling his tongue over them.

“Oh, fuck, those are still attached to me, but, oh my fuck , please, Alpha please , please, oh—” Gabriella gasped in his arms as she rocked her hips in search of friction but found nothing.

His cock was hard, and he wished for more hands to touch her everywhere all at once, but his cock inside of her would have to do.

“Move your hips closer to me,” he urged, not wanting to let go of her breasts.

Doing as commanded, she shimmied her hips closer and ground against his length. Her slick dripped onto him, folds parting around it as she rolled against him.

“I need it, I need your knot,” she whimpered.

Pain rushed through him at the thought.

It wasn’t his knot she truly needed but his teeth in her skin. It would be impossible if he couldn’t stay hard for longer than five seconds. It wouldn’t take, and the gland would heal—if he could even puncture it without his cum softening the skin from within.

Fuck, he would try, but he already knew it wouldn’t be enough.

“Be patient, Omega,” he growled and nuzzled her breasts. “You’ll get everything in time.”

Maybe he did have a little power after all.

She rolled her hips again, just as his teeth caught one of her nipples, and she shuddered, not pulling away. Back and forth, he moved, leaving her squirming and begging while gripping his hair. She was covered in sweat, a sign of her fever reaching its peak. He licked a bead of it dripping down her chest, then lifted his head to kiss her, letting go of her breasts.

She was radiant as she kissed him back, her arms tugging him closer even as he tried to pull away again, and he deepened his movements, tasting every drop of her own desire. Even as his tongue burned against hers, he kept her close, breathing in her every breath. They were connected in their souls. He just wished they could truly be one.

Her squirming resumed as he pulled one of her hands from his hair. She let go after a slight tug, and he lifted her wrist to his mouth, sucking on the scent gland sitting at her pulse point. Gabriella moaned and tugged his hair, so he grabbed the other wrist to do the same.

Her wrist glands were far less sensitive than the ones between her thighs and neck, but every time he licked her wrists, she shuddered again and begged for more.

He would give her more. Give her everything. Give her the fucking world if she asked.

Matthew let her hands fall as he lifted his head and brushed her hair back from her face. Almost instinctively, she gave him a coy smile, leaning her head to the side. The gland on her neck was red, calling to his teeth, and he licked his lips as he leaned in. Never again would he taste anything as good as her swollen scent glands aching to be broken by their mate. He wanted to savor this, to take his time, and she seemed to know the same as she sat still, waiting for him to close the distance.

His first touch was tentative as he brushed his lips over her skin, but her erupting moan forced him forward, unable to resist the urge any longer. His mouth clamped over the gland, and he sucked, then licked. In seconds, she was screaming his name, and he moved a hand back into her hair to hold her still, not wanting to have either move and his teeth break the surface.

If he could ever get through, it would be torture for her to heal without her mate bonded to her. He would only attempt to complete their bond one time, when he was fully knotted within.

“Matthew. Alpha. Please. Please .” She dug her nails into his chest. “Please, breed me, bond me, mate me. Alpha, please, I’ll be the best Omega, please, I need your teeth, I need you, I need—”

As he let go of her throat, he growled but held onto her hair and forced her to look at him. He knew what she needed, but, fuck, he couldn’t do it. Couldn’t give it to her. Not this time. One day. Fuck, he really was hoping for some day.

“Not until I can knot you. I will knot you in our perfect nest and sink my teeth in your throat and—”

The tears seemed to come out of nowhere, erupting from her eyes and running down her cheeks, and he let go of her hair as she lifted her hands to her face, trying to hide them from him. A second later, he pulled her head close to his chest, cradling her, helpless to fix her situation. All he could do was comfort her.

“I know.” He ran his fingers through her hair, trying to comfort her. “Fuck, Omega, I know.”

Her hands left her face as she cried, no longer trying to hide her vulnerability. It was the first time she had cried freely, and he stroked her hair, acknowledging her progress in letting down her guard.

Instead of rage underneath the surface, his own tears welled up because he would be unable to mate her properly. Knowing his mate would be walking around freely with his scent growing colder and colder on her skin, still ripe with the pheromones of an unmated Omega and unbroken glands ready for the bite of another...

He trusted his brothers in arms, truly did, but Gabriella was a jewel, a prize, a crowning glory. Any Alpha would be foolish to not try claiming her, and that was before even considering the Santorini Crime Family. It was only a matter of time before someone would try their luck and Matthew’s Alpha nature would force him to put the other Alpha down. For good.

He would be a deranged beast by the time she went into her next heat—if the jealousy at having other Alphas looking at her unbroken gland didn’t kill him first.

“I love you,” he murmured against her hair. “I promise you; we will fix this. We will find a way to fix this. My life and my love and my heart and my gun are all yours, for as long as you will have me and then even after that from afar. We will get vengeance on everyone who had a hand in this. They will not go unpunished. I love the murder in your gaze when someone speaks out of turn and love the way you analyze every situation, looking at it with far more plans in your head than anyone else could comprehend. You are far from stupid and you will always be safe to cry with me. I will dry your tears every time and never tell a soul what you whisper to me in confidence. You are more than good enough and anyone who doesn’t see you for who you are is a fool. I will fight you on this if I must but I would much rather fight beside you than against you. I’m the luckiest son of a bitch to have you as my mate and I’m proud to be your Alpha.”

She lifted her head to look up at him, the tears still clinging to her cheeks, but no fresh ones were falling. When she smiled at him, he smiled back, then leaned down to press his lips to her forehead, sealing his promises with a kiss.

It was natural for her hands to move down his body and find his half-hardened cock. With a few strokes, he was hard once more, and she was shifting her position to sink herself onto his cock. Matthew groaned against her throat as he bottomed out inside of her, their position encouraging him to stay locked. This would be the last of this heat—when they woke up, their time together would be over.

He planned to remember every second of it, even as the endorphins raced through his body, and his mind went hazy as his Alpha nature took hold. He only had to last as long as she did and stay knotted until she found peace, and maybe, with this angle, he could do that. Or at least pretend like he was until she fell asleep in his arms, safe in their nest.

Gabriella’s head fell back as he caressed her hips, and he lifted her to keep her going, knowing she would give out as her orgasm approached. His legs supported her body, and he stroked her breasts, down to her belly, then groaned as her nails scratched up his chest. Nothing else mattered as her hands reached his shoulders, and he leaned forward again, pressing her lips to hers.

She grazed his bottom lip with her teeth, then bit down, stinging it and drawing blood. His tongue tangled with hers as he tried to do the same, but she pulled away. He would get her for that, maybe even leave his handprint on her ass later. For the moment, he could only satiate himself with digging his fingers into her hips, leaving bruises.

“I need you,” Gabriella gasped as her head fell back again, her eyes half closed. “Oh, Alpha, please, Matthew, I—”

Her trembling legs let him know she was close. It was impossible for her to resist, with their bodies made for one another, made to fit perfectly. His cock, which seemed useless with its inability to stay knotted inside of her, was still giving her pleasure with every thrust, and he dug his feet into the bed as he let go of one hip and moved to touch her clit.

Her hips stuttered as he found the nub, and she leaned forward to press her forehead against his shoulder, gasping with every shuddered breath. She whispered something between her panting, begging for something he couldn’t give her. He could hear it, the words he wanted to answer to, begging for him to breed her, to mate her, to knot her.

Gritting his teeth, he rolled with each thrust over her clit with his thumb. Just as he thought he could take no more, she bit down on his shoulder. She was tightening around him, her slick gushing out just as his knot swelled.

“Fuck, Omega, fuck,” he growled, head falling back as she bit down harder.

He wanted to do the same, to bite her gland instead, and he felt his teeth ache with need. He was growing more stiff, knot swelling inside of her, and she let out another cry.

“Big, oh god, it hurts, hurts so good, Matthew, Alpha, please, please.” She pressed her forehead to his shoulder. “Please, I need it, I’m so good, your Omega, please—”

Her screams were all he could hear as his knot stopped growing. Without being able to compare the size, he knew he was nowhere near as big as he should be. In this position, she couldn’t take his fully swelled knot—a good thing because he loved having her in his arms like this. Next time, next heat—because, fuck, everything there would be a next time and a next heat. He would have her face down, ass in the air, knot in her cunt, and teeth at her throat.

“Fuck so tight,” he growled, even though talking hurt with his mouth throbbing. “Perfect mate. Perfect Omega. Taking me so fucking good. Made for this. Made to take me. Made to be bred, be knotted. So fucking good, you fucking perfect creature. God, fuck, I love you. So goddamn tight, I can’t—”

It was impossible to think, impossible to breathe as he held strong inside of her. Her slick was no longer leaking around his knot, and if he pressed against her belly, he would feel his cock inside of her. She was still screaming, likely unable to hear him, but he needed to say the words. He needed her to know, at her most vulnerable moment, that she was his, and he was hers, and he would spend the rest of his life proving that.

He was still hard, an ache pulsing in his knot. His gums throbbed again, and he considered taking the risk, searching for her gland, when the pain began and their combined fluids spilled onto the bed. As she clung to him, he roared, her fingers threading into his hair and tugging his head back. The pain on his scalp was nothing compared to his body as his knot deflated, but it was still something else to focus on as the ice shot through his veins.

Fuck. He had failed her again. Failed to stay knotted inside of her. He had lasted longer than before, perhaps because it was the end of her heat and his rut or perhaps because the injections were finally lessening in his bloodstream. It still wasn’t enough. Wasn’t enough to mate her. Wasn’t enough to breed her.

Yet, even with the pain shooting straight into his cock as he slipped out of her cunt, he still found peace holding her in his arms, knowing that she loved him and that she was his.

Broken gland or not, Gabriella Santorini was his mate, and he was going to shoot anyone who dared to argue with them about it.

Before he knew it, the pain moved from stabbing to aching and then his hands were moving up and down her back, soothing her. Her skin was cooling rapidly, and she shivered in his hold as he reached for a blanket and found one folded neatly to the side. Pulling it around her, he leaned back, trying to recline enough that she could rest on his chest.

She shivered as he spread the blanket over her, as it wasn’t as soft as the others against her sensitive skin, but it was all he had access to without destroying her nest.

Not yet. He would let her do that before they left the apartment. He wasn’t stupid enough to do anything without her say so.

Gabriella let out a soft sigh, and he knew without looking that her lids were closed and that she was resting. He wouldn’t wake her nor even speak until she would first and tried to close his eyes and rest as well.

They were going to need their rest, given what awaited them outside of the safety of their walls. Her uncle was in hiding, her father anticipating news of her heat from Petyr.

Petyr was, hopefully, still alive in his cell. His uncle was running around free with the knowledge that Matthew had gone to save her, and his Alphas were all off grid, waiting for their commander and new boss to give them orders.

It was a whole goddamn shit show waiting for them out there and until they emerged. Everything was hanging by a thread.

Gabriella was safe in his arms, but once they left this space... he could have all sorts of plans and goals and promises. Though with one well-placed bullet, either of them could be killed. Nothing was guaranteed when the Santorini Family and an entire team of Alpha enforcers were involved.

“Why are you so tense?” Gabriella asked, her voice soft against his chest. “Is it your shoulder?”

Fuck, his shoulder. He hadn’t even remembered her bite there. Now that he thought about it, he had could feel the pain, but it was no worse than anything else he had ever felt. It sure as shit didn’t hurt worse than his knot did. As he focused in on the spot, he could sense blood drops.

Had she broken skin? The boys were right—she had an Alpha spirit, even if she wasn’t one.

“It’s fine. Get some rest. You’re going to need it.”

“I will,” she promised, turning her head. He looked down to see her looking up at him, forehead wrinkled. “But you’re clearly worried about something. Tell me. We’re a team. I can’t fix whatever has you stressed if you don’t share the burden.”

He didn’t want to share the burden, even if he knew he had to.

“I’m worried about what comes next. Worried about what happens when we leave this place.”

Gabriella nodded, then settled again, her cheek rubbing his chest. “Well, what comes next is getting to the bottom of this. Figuring out who we can trust. Figuring out who betrayed us.”

No. What came next was confronting her father. Until they removed him from the board, there was no telling who else would come out swinging.

“All of the Alphas are hunkered down, waiting for us. Most of them are probably at Petyr’s building, in case your father comes looking for you. The rest are at the Alpha Compound, keeping an eye on things but there’s no telling what’s going on until I call Alessandro.”

“They’re waiting for us to finish fucking,” Gabriella commented, with a hint of a whine. “Great.”

Matthew could only chuckle.

Yeah. A whole bunch of suppressed Alphas were waiting for them to finish fucking. He would deck the first one who made a sex joke or sniffed the air more than once.

“Matthew,” Gabriella asked, her voice small. “Is it... are they going to be a problem because I’m not marked? I mean, an unmarked Omega who has been through a heat... you hear stories and—”

“They’re on suppressants and already know you belong to me. I’ll shoot any bastard who tries to take you away from me.”

She must have been wondering about more than just his fellow enforcers.

“Even my father?”

He had been dreading this question because there was only one way to take care of Renaldo Santorini, and it wasn’t with a calm discussion and logic and reasoning.

“If you don’t want me to kill him, tell me now, Gabriella because I don’t miss.”

He waited for her to protest, to tell him no, to give excuses, to maybe even reason with him.

Instead, she was quiet.

He wondered if she was still awake, but as he ran his fingers through her hair, she looked up at him. Staring down at her, he waited for her orders when he realized what her silence meant.

Very well, then.

She shifted in his arms and, almost timidly, moved her face closer to his. It was a question, and he would gladly answer it. Leaning forward, he pressed her mouth to his gently.

It like a first kiss between Matthew and Gabriella, not Alpha and Omega, and she hummed against his lips before pulling away, not deepening it.

As her head settled on his chest, he closed his eyes and finally found rest.

They seemed they were in agreement about what they would be forced to do next.