23. Mila

Chapter twenty-three

Mila

W e eat lunch after painting my room, and to my surprise, Lachlan and Barret actually cook.

What has changed?

The best Oliver and I can do is humor them.

They're not the best cooks, but we will try to appease their sensitive Alpha natures.

"What do you think they have in store for us, Mila?" Oliver teases.

I smile, nudging him with my elbow. "Lay off, Oliver. Your Alphas are trying."

He rolls his eyes. "Yeah. I can't say the same for all my Alphas…"

My mood sours, and I curl inward when I think about Gryphon.

Because of me, Oliver and Gryphon are no longer talking.

Oliver severed his bond with the Alpha, and it's all my fault.

I bet Gryphon hates me even more now.

Though he hasn't bothered to show his face. He leaves early every morning to train at the academy, and it's like he can't stand to be around me.

It hurts. I understand why he hates me, but I never had any intention of stealing away his Omega.

My only goal here was to do what I was trained for, and that was to protect this pack's Omega.

I just never expected that the Omega would start protecting me...

Oliver is doing everything he can to make me happy and comfortable, and I am ever so grateful.

I know I don't deserve his kindness, but he is making an effort.

When we were painting earlier, I felt this draw to him. It was magnetic, and all I could think about doing was leaning in and kissing his perfect plump lips.

Those lips of his were just meant for kissing, and I'm pretty sure the air around me sweetens when I think about exploring his body, gazing straight into his stormy blue eyes when he enters me for the first time.

There's a reason why I chose blue for my room.

It reminds me of the color of Oliver's eyes…

Oliver stirs, and he glances up at the guys.

Lachlan is stirring a pot of pasta. Barret is cutting up hotdogs.

"Are you guys making something sweet over there?"

"No. Just our specialty meal. Penne pasta with hotdog chunks," Barret smirks, wiggling his brows.

I try to hide the grimace on my face. While not exactly what I would call fine cuisine, I suppose the pasta and hotdog chunks will fill a void.

I'm starving.

Oliver purses his lips in thought. "Funny. Could have sworn I smelled gingerbread for a moment. Fuck… I could do with a gingerbread latte..."

"On it," Barret says, ditching the hotdog chunks for the espresso machine.

Oliver glances at me. "You want anything, Mila?"

I chew my bottom lip. "You have any honey-flavored lattes?"

Barret smirks, and his lone dimple shows. "You fancy something a little sweet too, sunshine?"

Oliver scoffs. "Ignore him. Just make her the latte, Barret. That's an order."

Barret whistles. "And who made you the leader, hey, Ollie boy?"

Oliver bares his teeth. "I did. When I cut Gryphon off from the pack bond. So, now I'm the one in charge. Like it or lump it."

Lachlan giggles, and I never thought I'd see the day an Alpha giggles.

"Looks like someone's getting grouchy …" he peals again.

"Oh, shut up, Lachlan, and hurry up with my pasta."

I glance at Oliver. He really is getting grouchier. While he's sweet with me, he's short-tempered with his pack.

His cheeks are flushed, and his scent comes and goes in waves.

So, that's why I was craving a honey latte…

The room smells like the inside of a beehive now.

Oliver is getting closer to his heat.

Fear spikes inside my veins, and I try to hide away the anxiety lest Oliver picks up on my mood.

I will have to make an effort to leave the house when his heat begins.

I can't stand the thought of him being needy and in pain while I sit alone in my room touching myself. It's bad enough when he is alone with any of his Alphas.

His delicious moans fill the house whenever any of his Alphas please him, and I am sick of changing my underwear throughout the day.

Barret finishes our coffees, and now he brings them over, placing them down on the table.

He touches Oliver's head, and a low whistle escapes his teeth.

"Damn. You're burning up, Ollie. I think Lachlan is right. Your heat is just around the corner."

Barret's dark eyes immediately go to me. It passes quickly, but there's no missing the spark of desire.

Why does he look at me when he talks about his Omega's heat?

It makes no sense.

Oliver grumbles, pushing his hand away, and he's so adorable when he's moody. "Get back to my hotdogs."

The desire intensifies in Barret's eyes, and now he grips Oliver's cheeks, keeping his focus on me the whole time. "Now that's no way to talk to your Alpha, Ollie boy…"

Oliver pouts, trying his best to drink his gingerbread latte.

But Barret keeps his hand on his chin.

"L-let go, Barret…" he gasps, losing his breath.

He's getting hotter.

Barret only smirks. His dark gaze remains on me the whole time he touches his Omega.

I can't stop looking at Oliver.

The Omega is panting, loving the way his Alpha controls him. His eyes become hazed, pupils wide and dilated, and it's becoming painfully obvious that his heat is fast approaching.

Barret squishes his cheeks, and it puckers up Oliver's lips, making them look even more plump. Then he drags him in closer for a kiss, and now I watch as the two of them suck on each other's tongues.

The Alpha's eyes are trained on me the whole time. My fingers grip my coffee cup, and I'm pretty sure the ceramic is about to crack beneath the pressure.

I can't look away from their passionate kiss.

The way Oliver goes limp in Barret's hold… My heart can't take it.

It's almost beating out of my chest.

And don't even get me started on my pussy. She's thumping pretty hard too.

I have to squeeze my thighs together.

The pot boils over, and my eyes drift over to Lachlan by the stove.

His gaze is fixed on me too, and there's no missing the flames of desire burning inside his own eyes.

Both of them are watching my reaction.

They want to see what I will do as they please their Omega...

They know I am attracted to him. There's no missing the way my perfume blooms whenever Oliver steps close to me.

Alphas are usually very good at detecting these things.

Fuck. Lachlan has an erection. It's tenting his pants, and finally, I tear my gaze away from all three of them, trying to catch my breath.

My skin is hot and sweaty, and I have a sweat mustache.

I try to wipe it away before any of them notice.

Finally, Barret stops kissing Oliver, and the poor Omega has never looked so befuddled.

His face is red and his lips are swollen. Several soft brown curls fall in front of his face as he gasps, trying to catch his breath.

I can't stop stealing glances at him from the corner of my eye.

He's beautiful…

Finally, he drinks his gingerbread latte, his arms shaking, and it seems he's afraid to look at me now.

His honey perfume fills the kitchen, and I'm not going to last a minute of his heat.

Even if it is going on down the hall and far away from my room.

Lachlan and Barret finish cooking, and now they return to the table, placing a pasta dish in front of me and Oliver.

They tuck into their food right away, wolfing it down.

The pasta's actually pretty good, and who would have thought that hotdog chunks actually tasted good with penne?

Barret offers to feed Oliver, but he declines, saying he can feed himself.

I suppose Barret is just offering in Gryphon's absence, trying to be a good Alpha.

Speaking of Gryphon, he has just returned from the academy, and my good mood vanishes instantly the moment he enters the kitchen.

He doesn't look at any of us. Instead, he goes straight to the pot and fills a bowl.

Oliver doesn't acknowledge him. He just pretends as if Gryphon is a ghost, and things have never been so awkward.

Again, I can't help but feel responsible.

Oliver should have all three of his Alphas for his heat.

I catch Barret's and Lachlan's eyes, communicating with them silently on whether they should interfere, doing something about the rift in their pack.

They're all pack. They should try to mend the bond between Oliver and Gryphon.

It's obvious Gryphon is hurting. His gaze keeps trailing over to his Omega, but Oliver acts as if he doesn't even exist.

I actually feel bad for the guy.

Gryphon's eyes fall on me briefly, but I look away before he can send a hurtful dagger.

It's okay. I already know that he hates me.

The pack is broken.

And it's all my fault.

What have I done?

Finally, Gryphon scurries away, and I never thought I'd see the day an Alpha scurries out of a room.

Normally, they dominate any room they enter.

But what's an Alpha if he doesn't have his Omega?

Oliver finishes at last, placing his fork down as he rubs his belly. "Ah, that was actually quite nice. What did you think, Mila? Out of ten?"

While the food can never be described as anything inspired, it filled a hole.

So, I decide to be generous. "Eight."

Lachlan visibly glows. Barret smiles on the inside, but there's no missing the satisfaction in his black eyes. He even winks at me and I flush.

Though I think I will cook tomorrow. ***

Oliver's heat finally came in the middle of the night.

I woke to the sound of Lachlan and Barret carrying him up to the nest from the living room, and I had never heard a more mournful sound from the Omega's lips.

Poor thing. I've heard heats are unbearable for Omegas, and I hope he gets everything he needs.

I cannot stay.

That is why I prepared the cot in the shed in advance.

It looks as if I will be staying in the yard tonight.

And for the next few nights after.

I grab my overnight bag, gazing back at my room.

Oliver really went out of his way to make my room as blue as I asked. Now the room resembles a scene from beneath the ocean.

He even painted seaweed and several schools of fish, but now… now he is in pain.

I wish there was something I could do to help, but I am useless.

I would only be a spare in the nest.

I would only get in the way.

Just as I sneak down the hall, and away from the glorious sounds of an Omega getting thoroughly knotted by his Alphas, I freeze.

Someone stands guard at the door.

Gryphon.

Well, it looks as if I won't be escaping just yet.

Crap.