Chapter 8

eight

. . .

ADDY

My hope for a swift rescue from this situation dimmed with the setting sun.

The first had gone down hours ago, making the heat more bearable, but now the second followed. I was done waiting, yet there was no sign of Kazm, Fari or Ossad anywhere.

The sound of footsteps alerted me to Alil's approach, but I did not turn to face him.

Part of me was too ashamed, the rest was too stubborn. He had told me to leave him alone, and I would.

He stopped in my peripheral vision and stood there, not saying a word.

"What do you want?" I asked, still not looking at him.

He was silent for a moment.

"Your friends didn't come," he informed me.

I pursed my lips.

"Yes," I agreed. "I gathered that."

There was a long pause and then with a sigh, Alil came closer and sat down at the tree next to mine, facing the open desert with me.

"Where do you think they are?" he asked.

I shrugged, at a loss.

"They were determined to do this. Kazm and Fari were anyway. Ossad and I took convincing... I can't imagine they just gave up. Something must have happened to delay them."

"Do you really think they're coming?"

The uneasy note in Alil's voice finally made me turn to look at him.

He was afraid. Guilt swept me again.

"They'll be here," I promised.

He didn't look convinced, but nodded and turned his gaze back to the open stretch of land.

For a while we sat there, watching the sun set, feeling the temperature drop before I realized that we were going to be sleeping out here, in the open and the cold unless I did something about it.

Alil wasn't made to be roughing it in the wilds, he was a true jewel in my eyes, meant to be cherished and protected, even when he was rightfully annoyed with me.

I pushed to my feet, looking back at the generous oasis we found ourselves in.

Alil glanced at me but made no move to follow as I walked back through the plants and trees, scouting the area.

Near the pond, I found a spot where soft moss had grown, half sheltered by flowering bushes. It wasn't much, but at least it might be somewhat comfortable for him.

"What are you doing?" Alil asked, coming up behind me.

"Finding somewhere for you to sleep," I said.

He eyed the spot dubiously and then shrugged.

"It will do," he said and pulled the shawl from around his shoulders.

I watched him spread it out over the bush so that it hung over the side like a curtain.

He hugged his arms and stood back to look at it for a moment before glancing over at me.

"Where will you sleep?" he asked.

"Don't worry about me," I said, shrugging.

"I won't."

He bent and pulled his curtain open before crawling into the small space without another word.

Once he was seated within, it seemed bigger. It looked like there was plenty of room for him in there.

In fact, there was probably enough room for both of us if we wanted to keep one another warm.

Heat spread through my body at the thought and I turned and walked away.

Alil didn't want anything to do with me anymore.

The way he had looked at me yesterday, the interest and heat in his gaze had made me feel like a king.

Now I felt unworthy to even walk on the same ground as him.

He was exactly the type of omega I had thought he was; respectable, chaste, intelligent, beautiful... the list went on.

He wasn't someone who would invite an unmated alpha into his bed. It was a miracle and a sign of his good heart that he had followed me at all yesterday.

And I had betrayed him.

Sighing, and feeling like complete garbage, I went back to the tree I had been sitting under, facing the desert in the direction we had come from.

Something had delayed the others, but they knew where we were. Any minute now, they would be here.

Any minute turned into any hour and me, curled up against the cold, falling into a fitful sleep.

I only woke up in the early hours of the morning because my body was shaking so hard that it rattled me. The swift drop from the extreme heat of the day was too much to adjust to and I had nothing, not even a blanket.

I should have built a fire.

Perhaps tonight I would to keep us warm—I cut off the thought, realizing that I was planning for another night and another day.

No. They would come get us. They had to come get us.

I stood, stretching my body, trying to get the blood flowing again. Then I walked through the oasis again, trying to find a good spot for a fire.

I wouldn't wait in the cold expecting to leave at the drop of a hat. I would be sensible and take care of both of us while we were here.

On the edge of the pond, near enough to Alil's sleeping spot, there was a flat bit of earth that would do nicely.

I spent a few minutes finding dried twigs, leaves, and broken branches fallen from the trees, collecting a pile.

The first of our sun's lifted just over the horizon, brightening the sky as I worked. But it was our lesser sun, the one that didn't reach the apex of the sky above. The light and heat it offered were minimal.

By the time I was stacking the wood and starter, Alil started to shift from within his makeshift tent.

I heard his movements and then a long sigh before the curtain was pulled open.

I glanced over, but looking at Alil may have been a mistake because the moment I saw him, eyes heavy with sleep, his hair and clothing dishevelled, my entire body felt hot and I couldn't move.

"What are you doing?" he asked sleepily.

Oh goddess, even his sleepy voice made my body feel something.

For the first time in more years than I could count, my cock twitched, interested in what it couldn't have.

I swallowed and forced myself with every ounce of will power I possessed to turn my attention back to the fire.

"I'm making a fire," I said.

Alil hummed, and crawled out of his enclosure to come sit next to me.

"The sun will be above us soon," he said, yawning. "We won't need the fire for long."

He was hugging himself around the waist as he said it, clearly still chilled from the night.

"We'll use it until then," I said, pleased when a flame burst from the twig Iwas spinning. "Come. Sit closer."

He didn't argue, moving himself as close as he could without catching the flames as they danced to life.

"Too bad we have nothing to cook," he mused.

I bowed my head, the small triumphant moment ruined by reality.

My claws dug into my palms and suddenly I laughed at the absurdity of it all.

Alil gave me a look, like I was acting rashly and I supposed I was, but I couldn't hold it in.

"I thought that we would take you omegas and show you what it's like to be with an alpha. I thought that I would treat you so well that you would want an alpha. I thought?—"

"Addy—"

"I can't even feed you! I have you sleeping on the bare earth, hungry, and scared, and…"

The laughter was long gone, at some point replaced by what I could only call hysteria.

I pushed to my feet, heart pounding.

"Addy, wait?—"

I left before he could try to do anything ridiculous like try to comfort me because if I was not mistaken that was exactly what he was planning to do and I didn't deserve any kindness.

I marched to the outskirts of the oasis, chest heaving and fists clenched until my claws drew blood. My tail thumped against the ground in an effort to release some of the tension radiating through me.

And Alil followed me. I should have known he would have. He was too kind to have anyone upset in his presence, even his kidnapper.

"I am such a fool!" I spat.

Alil sighed heavily.

"Yes, you are," he agreed.

Then his hand landed on my shoulder and I looked at him, anguished.

"I can't believe I put you into this position," I whispered and for the first time since I had made this mess, he smiled. It was filled with indulgence but there was fondness there too and I would take it. I would take any of his smiles and touches.

"We are both here now," he reminded me. "Instead of feeling sorry, let's work together."

I shut my eyes because I knew that I didn't deserve any kindness but I could not resist him.

"You're not mad at me anymore?" I asked tentatively.

He shook his head.

"I am mad, you fool. But I'll forgive you... in fact, I think I'm even starting to understand you."

I frowned.

Somehow, I didn't think he meant that he understood what I wanted for omegas and alphas. It was something deeper than that. Something about my heart.