35. Liam

Wild horses couldn't stop me from climbing the stairs slowly, ignoring Henry as he tells me not to do it. He doesn't know the connection we have. He doesn't know that I can help her if she will let me. Stopping outside Zara's room, I inhale sharply.

"Zara?"

After a few seconds, she gasps. "Liam?"

I push the door open, and the scent hits me like a cargo plane.

Zara's heat is like nothing else I've experienced before. No omega has affected me this way. Without a shadow of a doubt, I know she has brought my rut on early. Very early. There is nothing else for it. She is my fated mate, and while I know this now, she doesn't. At least, I don't think she does.

I'd planned to take my time with her, to go at the pace she's comfortable with. But right now, every bit of me is screaming to toss those plans out the window.

"Zara?" My voice doesn't sound like mine, it's thick with something raw and unfiltered.

My eyes fixate on her, huddled in her nest of crumpled blankets and pillows. She's entangled in it, gasping for air, her body glistening with sweat and slick. Every fibre of my being awakens, urging me to go to her. I know she needs a knot, and I'm consumed by the urge to be the one who offers it.

"Hey," I say, softer this time, stepping closer. Her eyes flutter open, glazed with discomfort and need, and I know I'm already too deep in this to back out now. I want to be the one she turns to, the one who can ease her through this.

Dropping to my knees so as not to overwhelm her, I shed my suit jacket and tie. Crawling to her slow enough that she can stop my approach with one word, I wait for it. But it doesn't come.

My gaze flicks to the side, catching sight of the dildo lying haphazardly next to her, covered in her slick. The growl that escapes me is something I can't stop, even if I wanted to. It's a clear sign she's tried to take the edge off herself, and something inside me flares up, a primal urge I can't ignore. My heart races with a need that aligns perfectly with hers.

"Zara," I breathe out. She doesn't seem to hear me, or maybe she can't focus on anything but the overwhelming sensations crashing over her.

Feeling the carpet under my palms as I edge towards her. Every inch I get closer, her scent wraps tighter around me, drawing me in, urging me on. I'm crawling, slow and deliberate, because part of me knows I should be careful even if every part of me wants to quickly rush to her side, despite any consequences.

"Hey, princess," I say again, trying to keep my voice steady. The urgency in the room is thick, matching the pace of her breaths, and by instinct, my movements echo that rhythm. I'm close now, so close I can feel the heat coming off her in waves. My mind's racing, but there's a strange clarity in what I want, what I need to do.

"Liam," she whispers.

"I'm here," I whisper as I finally reach the edge of her nest. My heart's going a mile a minute, but I'm here now, right where I need to be.

Zara's skin glows with a flush that spreads across her cheeks and down her neck, a rosy warmth that tells of her inner fire. Her hair is a wild cascade around her shoulders, strands sticking to her damp forehead. Despite her dishevelled appearance, there is a mesmerising beauty to her. The chaotic state she's in makes my primal alpha instincts roar loudly.

"Zara," I say softly in comparison to the raging inside me. My voice is filled with an emotion I can't quite name, but it feels a lot like a longing mixed with fierce protectiveness.

She shifts slightly, and the movement draws my gaze to the way her chest rises and falls rapidly. I'm captivated by her, every sense attuned to the woman in front of me. It's as if my world has narrowed to this moment, to her need calling out to mine. She is a goddess, and my cock is so hard staring at her nakedness, but I know, despite this, I would walk away if she told me to get lost.

"Will you allow me to help you?" I murmur, hoping that with everything I've got, she will say ‘yes.' It's not just a question; it's an offer laid bare, a promise of relief. "I'm here, Zara. I can help."

Her eyes flicker to mine, and even through the haze of her heat, I see the raw edge of hope. I'm offering not just satisfaction but solace, and I mean every word. Whatever she needs, I'm here to give.

"How?" she murmurs, her voice rough with need.

Smiling softly, I say, trying not to sound smug, "You've brought on my rut."

Her eyes go wide, green pools of surprise and then a purr escapes her that sets my nerves on fire.

I growl back at her, louder than I intended because I didn't want to frighten her with my intensity, but she's anything but scared.

"Come over," she whispers, holding her hand up weakly as she invites me into her nest.

There's no hesitation left in me. That's all the permission my instincts need. I'm ready to be what she needs, to ease this unbearable heat clawing at her insides.

Stripping off the rest of my clothes, I give her a nod to tell her I'm entering her nest now; she smiles back, eagerness splayed over her features. She is about to get what she is craving, and I feel like a fucking god that I'm the one that's going to give it to her.

As I crawl onto the soft mound of blankets, I marvel at how our bodies align and how everything at this moment feels right. Her skin is hot to the touch, a heat that only serves to drive my desire. It's just the two of us, and the electric charge between us could light up the whole of the Lake District.

"Are you sure?" My voice is a husky whisper, seeking consent one more time because it's as crucial as breathing in this delicate situation. The last thing I want is to steamroll over her wishes. But every inch of me prays she won't send me away.

"Yes, Liam, please," Zara gasps out, her hand threading through my hair and pulling me closer.

I lean down, pressing a gentle kiss against her forehead before trailing lower to capture her lips. The kiss is sweet torture, and it's intoxicating. Our tongues twist together, setting off fireworks behind my closed eyelids.

I trail my kisses down her neck, carefully avoiding leaving any marks. It's an alpha instinct to claim your mate with a physical sign of possession. My body craves to do it, but I resist until she gives her consent and is ready for that level of commitment, which definitely isn't now in the middle of her heat.

Her nails dig into my shoulders as she arches up into me. "Please, Liam. I need you now."

As much as I'd love to linger, I'm not letting her down. Nestling between her thighs which she spreads wide for me, I grab my cock and tease her clit gently, unable to stop myself from covering the tip in her slick.

"Fucking hell," I grunt as I slide into her pussy, hearing the sound of her slick coating me and pooling out underneath her.

She gasps, a sharp intake of breath that melds into a moan as I bury myself deep inside her. The world outside her nest could be falling apart for all I care because right now, nothing matters except the way Zara's pussy clenches around my cock, and the look of pure ecstasy on her face. Her body is a perfect fit, like she's been made for me, and the thought sends a bolt of possessive pleasure through me.

Setting a rhythm that has us both gasping for air, every thrust is met with a whimper or a cry from Zara. She matches me move for move.

"More," she breathes out, her voice tight with desire.

I give it to her, picking up the pace until I'm pounding into her with all the pent-up need my rut had blessed me with. Her perfect small breasts bounce with every movement, and I can't resist leaning down to take one of her nipples into my mouth.

Zara's hands are in my hair again, tugging slightly, trying to pull me even closer. Her body tightens, and she convulses intensely, her mouth open in a silent scream. It's my cue to give her what she really wants, and I don't make her wait. The knot at the base of my cock, designed to lock our bodies together, bulges as I shoot my cum into deep into her and she lets out a strangled moan which turns to a purr when I growl. Her pussy clutches my knot tightly, almost painfully, clamping down around me like she is possessed.

"Fuck, princess. Good girl. You make my knot so fucking huge with your gorgeous pussy, your slick coating me. Fuck, princess. You feel so fucking tight."

She gasps, her glazed-over eyes widening at my praise.

Her breath comes out in ragged bursts now, and her grip on my hair loosens as the intensity of her orgasm starts to wane. She's still purring, a sound that vibrates straight into my soul, making me feel like the luckiest bastard on earth.

I'm knotted inside her, both of us locked in the most intimate embrace possible, and I can't bring myself to care about anything other than the omega beneath me. Her green eyes have softened, the raw need replaced with a dazed satisfaction that fills me with pride. I've done that; I've taken care of her.

"Fuck, Liam," she whispers after catching her breath, "That was so much more than I expected."

"I know," I murmur in her ear. "We're meant to be." I say it lightly in case she scoffs at me and rejects me as nothing more than a cock with a knot, but she doesn't. She doesn't say anything, though.

I brush a sweaty strand of hair from her face and smile.

We're silent for a moment, our breathing the only sound in the room. It's comfortable, this quiet between us. It feels like we're the only two people in the world right now.

Eventually, the tightness around my knot lessens slightly, and I can feel our connection starting to ease. But I don't pull away yet; I stay nestled between her thighs, savouring the afterglow that wraps around us like a blanket.

Her fingers trace idle patterns on my back, and it's bliss. Despite the craziness of our rut and heat-induced tumble, there's a sense of rightness that settles deep in my soul. She has to feel it. She has to. It's like all my life, I've been waiting to fit with someone just like this.

Zara yawns then, a small, exhausted sound that makes her seem impossibly more adorable. "Stay," she mumbles, the word slurring slightly with her weariness and the aftershocks still coursing through her body.

I don't need telling twice. "I'm not going anywhere," I reply, my voice laced with a contentment that's new to me. I'm used to caring for the omegas during their heat, but this is different. Zara isn't just another omega; she's mine in a way that has nothing to do with biology or instinct and everything to do with the way my heart races at her smile.

Her response is a contented sigh, and slowly, her breathing evens out, but before she drifts off to sleep, she murmurs, "Meant to be."