Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chloe
H eart pounding, I stare down at Blake, my lust-clouded thoughts a tangled mess.
Why is he asking questions now that force me to pause and consider what we're about to do? Now I can't go with the flow and claim I was swept away by the moment.
Should we stop and discuss expectations? Where is this going?
Why is this so much more complicated than in all of my romance books?
Blake leans in to nuzzle against my throat, sending shivers of desire straight to my core. He growls low in his chest, the sound vibrating through me. "Just give me a nod, sweet girl. That's all I need."
Relief sweeps through me. That's easy to do and takes far less effort. My head bobbles like the fate of my panties are on the line.
Which they are.
"Thank the stars," Blake murmurs as he strides out of the kitchen, his long stride eating up the distance to my bedroom.
I cling to him, my legs wrapped around his waist, and stifle my moans against the side of his neck, savoring the sensation of his firm bulge rubbing my core.
My pulse races faster, a flush spreading through my body. It's been a while since I've done this with anything besides my toy collection, and this is my first time with an Alpha. All of my previous encounters were with Betas.
What if I don't do it right? What if I'm disappointing?
We reach my door, and Blake's hold shifts to support my weight with one arm so he can turn the knob, and the last of my brain cells go up in smoke.
Even if I suck, I'm going to suck like a champion. In a good way.
Blake kicks the door shut and strides across the room to lay me in the center of the bed. His and Holden's pheromones rise from the comforters, and I sigh as I melt into them. His big body follows, pressing me into the mattress and surrounding me in warmth.
Tingles rush through me from head to toe, followed by a fresh wave of desire.
"Blake…" Trembling, I reach up to cup his face, his beard scratchy against my palms as I draw his mouth to mine.
Our lips move together, tongues tasting and exploring. His hand glides up the sweatshirt I borrowed from Holden, popping open the front clasp of my bra.
He cups my full breast and groans. "You're so soft."
Pleasure courses through me as he tweaks my nipples into hard nubs, and I wrap my legs around his waist, rocking my hips in response.
Blake pulls back from our kiss and ducks his head under my shirt, causing me to giggle at his playfulness. But the laughter turns into a moan when his lips close over one nipple. He lavishes my sensitive mound with attention, taking his time, and drawing out the sensation.
"Your taste… addictive."
His words caress my skin, and I shiver, my thoughts scrambling.
As he moves to my other breast to give it the same treatment, his hand slips beneath my waistband and into my underwear. Spreading my legs, I open myself to him. He circles my clit, urged on by my whimpers and moans.
Before coming here, I always thought that what I wrote about in romance novels was pure fantasy. But the waves of pleasure sweeping through me are better than I've ever experienced.
His touch dips lower to stroke my slick folds. "God, Chloe… You're so wet for me."
Thick fingers slide inside me, and my hips buck at the full sensation.
"You feel so good." He pulls his head out from under my sweatshirt and lifts his fingers, which glisten from my arousal.
Heated gaze locked with mine, he brings his fingers to his lip and slowly, deliberately licks each digit clean, making my breath hitch.
"Mmm." A purr rumbles in his chest. "I need to taste more of you."
My heart races at his words, and I gulp, nodding like a madwoman.
With a wicked grin, Blake strips me bare, spreading me out before him.
"You're so beautiful." His eyes roam over my flushed skin, lingering on the most intimate parts of me. "So pretty and pink everywhere."
As I lay naked and open to him, Blake peels off his shirt, revealing a well-defined torso covered in a light dusting of chestnut brown hair. It curls around his pecs and narrows into a line, circling his navel, then disappearing beneath the sweats that cling to his hips. My core clenches in anticipation, and I reach for the bulge straining toward me.
"Wait." He catches my hand and lifts my fingers to his lips, kissing each one. "If you touch me now, I won't be able to take this slow, and I want to savor you."
Oh my goodness, this may be more Alpha than I can handle.
A soft whine escapes me as he settles between my legs, lifting one onto his broad shoulder for better access.
The moment his head descends, all coherent thought flees my mind. His mouth and tongue send electric shocks through my body.
I clutch at the quilts beneath me, every gasp drawing in the intoxicating blend of Blake and Holden's pheromones as I surrender to the building pleasure.
Then his fingers join the foray, coaxing more liquid desire from me, and I moan, my thighs shaking. I teeter on the edge of release, the world narrowing to the scrape of his beard against my skin, his wet kisses, and the sweet ache as he spreads my entrance.
"Please…" I reach down to comb my hands through his long hair, my hips rocking. "Please… Don't stop."
He growls in response, the vibration traveling through my core, and I come undone beneath him, my vision blurring with the intensity of my climax.
He continues to stroke me through the waves of pleasure until I'm a quivering, panting mess. Then he moves up my body, lingering on my stomach, leaving a trail of soft bites that raise goose bumps.
At my breasts, he teases my sensitive nipples before continuing up to my neck. My breath hitches as his beard brushes my throat, the roughness contrasting with the softness of his lips.
Blake rises over me and pushes down his sweats, revealing his straining cock. It stands proud and thick, veins crisscrossing its length. Cum glistens at his blunt tip, and his heavy balls nestle beneath. A dusting of hair covers his powerful thighs, and my legs tremble as I imagine them against mine.
His large hand strokes his shaft, and the confidence with which he handles himself sends my pulse racing.
When he bends back over me, I wrap my arms around him, pulling him closer. Long, brown strands fall on either side of my face like a curtain, cocooning us in our own world. He kisses me, my desire on his tongue a reminder of the pleasure we've already shared. A shiver courses through me, another electric shock humming through my body.
He pulls back to brush pink strands from my damp cheeks. "Is this still okay?"
Breath shaky, I nod.
Reaching down, Blake hitches my leg around his waist, and the blunt head of his cock notches against my entrance. Slow and deliberate, he sinks into my body, inch by tantalizing inch. A sweet ache spreads through me as he stretches me open, and my fingers dig into the muscles of his broad shoulders.
He pauses to press a tender kiss to my lips. "Does it hurt?"
"No, it's just…a lot," I admit, breathless from the intoxicating mix of pleasure and slight discomfort.
"Tell me if it's too much." Blake's warm breath caresses my cheek. "There's no rush, sweet girl."
His forehead presses against mine, our eyes locked as he slowly pulls out, then gently thrusts back in, sinking deeper and opening me wider, the sensation both overwhelming and satisfying, like my body was made for this moment.
I moan, raking my nails down his back and reveling in the way his muscles tense beneath my hands. Eager to explore more of him, my fingers wander to his firm ass, kneading the taut flesh. Our bodies move together, my hips lifting to meet his as his pace quickens, driving me closer and closer to the edge.
As I teeter on the brink, he stops.
Buried deep and throbbing inside me, he leans down to kiss me again, his lips tender as they brush against mine.
Frustrated as my release slips away, I whimper and wiggle beneath him.
"Patience, sweet girl." His mouth moves to my breasts, lavishing attention on my sensitive nipples. "I want to savor you."
He moves once more, and the fires roar to life again as he brings me back to the edge. The sensations consume my senses, our desire mingling in smoked applewood and cider scents that clings to his skin, the rock of his muscular body moving over mine, and the sounds of our breathless moans.
My muscles tense, straining toward the precipice of pleasure.
Blake's head dips, his voice rough and hot against my ear. "Do you want all of me?"
His words send shivers down my spine, and my inner walls clench around his hard length. I've never taken an Alpha's knot before, and the thought scares me, but the Omega in me craves it, aching to be claimed by him.
I nod, nails on his ass urging him on.
Blake rises onto his elbow to stare down at me and cups my cheek. "I need verbal consent this time, sweet girl."
My gaze drifts down the lengths of our entwined bodies, watching as his glistening cock sinks into me, his tip nudging my womb.
Instinct shoves away caution, and I find my voice. "Yes, I want all of you."
"Come for me," he commands, rocking his pelvis against my clit.
With a cry, I spiral over the edge, and my inner muscles ripple around his hard length as I surrender to the waves crashing through me.
He groans, thrusting a few more times, drawing out my pleasure before driving in to the hilt and holding still. Pressure builds as his knot swells, more intense than I ever imagined it could be. It burns, edging on pain as it keeps growing, stretching me further than I thought possible.
"Blake," I whimper, my fingers digging into his muscular shoulders.
He holds me tight, kissing me tenderly. "It's going to be okay. Your body is made for this."
A shiver goes through him, and he groans as hot cum floods my channel, his cock pulsing inside me. The sensation draws another orgasm from me, and I bite down on Blake's shoulder, unable to contain the intensity of it all.
Warmth unfurls within me, reaching for this Alpha, searching for a connection beyond the physical. With our chests pressed together, the pounding of our heartbeats fall into sync.
A sense of rightness washes over me, and when Blake captures my lips in a heated kiss, I know he feels the same bond. It should terrify me, but the negative emotions can't find a foothold through the soft glow of contentment.
As our breathing slows, Blake rolls onto his side, bringing me with him, our bodies still locked as one.
"Are you okay?" he asks, his voice gentle with concern.
Warmth spreads through me, and I nod, my fingers tracing patterns on his inked skin. "Yeah, I think I am."
"Good." He presses a tender kiss to my forehead before resting his chin on top of my head.
I lie in his embrace, relishing this new bond until his knot releases, and he slips from my body, leaving me empty and aching. He doesn't release me, though, his arms still cradling me against his broad chest.
"Blake," I begin, hesitating to find the right words. "What does this mean for us?"
He sighs, his hand stroking my back. "It's a bit out of order, but I'll introduce you to the others in the morning. We'll figure out the next step together."
Worry wiggles its way past the rosy glow. The next step is to register our courting, after which we become exclusive as I get to know the rest of the pack.
But on the most technical level, I'm already being courted by another Alpha.
My pulse stutters, my heartbeat falling out of rhythm with Blake's.
He stiffens and touches my cheek. "Chloe?"
I sit up, pulling up the throw blanket from the foot of the mattress to cover myself. "There's something I need to tell you."
"Blake!" A hard pound against my door follows the roar, and I flinch in surprise. "Get your ass out here right now!"
Cursing, Blake scrambles out of bed and yanks on his sweats, then comes back over to press a kiss to my lips. "Stay here, sweetheart. I swear everything will be okay."
Stunned, I watch as he slips out of the room before scrambling to pull on my own clothes to follow. No way am I hiding while Blake gets yelled at for…well, I'm not sure. I'm involved, though, based on what Blake and I were doing when he was so rudely summoned.
Shouts come from the foyer as I step out of my suite.
"How could you do this!" the unfamiliar male voice yells. "You lied to my face and then went and?—"
"I didn't lie!" Blake interrupts. "Can you please keep it down?"
"What's going on? Nathaniel?" Holden's sleepy question comes from above, his footsteps rapid on the stairs as he descends. "Why are you guys yelling in the middle of the night?"
"Were you in on this?" demands the first man, who must be Nathaniel.
On tiptoes, I walk to the edge of the staircase, freezing when I spot a tall, slender man with short blond hair and a clean-shaven, heart-shaped jawline glaring upward.
At Holden's silence, the Alpha rakes a hand over the top of his head. "Fuck!"
He spins back to Blake, who stands with his hands in the pockets of his sweatpants, his shoulders hunched. "We were going to talk?—"
"Talk? Are you even serious right now?" Nathaniel charges forward to stab a finger against Blake's bare chest. "Was the Omega already in our house when you stared me in the face and said you agreed now was the wrong time?"
"I never said that!" Blake slaps the man's hand away.
"You said we were good!" Nathaniel flings his hand out. "You knew how I felt about this, and you went behind my back! Am I the only one not in on this plan?"
"Um, I wasn't." I step out into the open, looking between Blake and Holden as a sinking sensation opens in my stomach. "What plan?"
"No plan." Hair mussed from sleep, Holden hurries down the stairs and takes my hand. "None of this was planned, I swear."
Then, my sweet Holden turns a fierce glare on Blake. "What did you do?"
"I didn't do anything!" Blake throws his hands up in frustration. "We just…" He reaches an imploring hand toward me. "We need to all calm down and talk this out."
"Talk what out?" asks a gravelly voice, one that makes me stiffen with recognition. "Why is everyone yelling? And why did I feel a shift in our bond?"
Dread pools in my gut as I lift my head to stare at the familiar man coming down the stairs. Despite the years that have passed, I still recognize the slender, muscular build and sleek black hair, shaved short on the sides and left long on top to brush his cheekbones.
Gray eyes meet mine and widen in shock. "Chloe?"
The blood drains from my face. "Dominic."
All the years of being bullied in high school come flooding back, and bile rises in my throat. My closest friend turned tormentor, resurrected from my past and in the same pack I was dreamed of joining.