Does he not feel anything toward me right now? Not even when we’re this close? Being only a few inches from this beta feels good. It’s right. Maybe I’m wrong . . .
I hide my emotions behind a light smile. Ronan’s body heat keeps me warm as the night breeze cools. The urge to fall back into his arms is overwhelming. I don’t know anything about this man, and it doesn’t matter.
He’s safe. I know he’s mine, and I’ve always trusted my instincts. Well, always until Dash. When it comes to this beta, I’m unsure.
“You two are pack, right?” I ask.
“Yeah, Petal.”
Ronan curls a thick, strong arm around my back and palms my hip possessively. I shudder at the display, his touch sizzling through my dress.
In the blink of an eye, I’m perfuming again, this time too weak to the pull to keep from rolling into my alpha’s arms. We can talk later, maybe when we’re alone and I’ve had time to sit with all of this. For now, I slide my hands beneath his jacket and over his waist, exploring the expanse of his back. My lemon scent is intense, drowning all three of us.
“Briar,” Ronan rasps.
Humming, I roll my forehead along his sternum and rub against his front, marking him. He flattens his hand to my lower back and tugs me in, forcing us flat together.
It’s an intimate hold. One reserved for lovers.
That’s what we are now, isn’t it? Or could be?
I know Dash is still here watching. It doesn’t bother me. His closeness doesn’t freak me out—another sign that there’s more to the story here.
Ronan lowers his mouth to my temple, his lips parting on my searing skin. Arousal shifts through me, drooping low in my belly as more slick fills my panties. If I don’t leave soon, wearing them at all will have been pointless. I’ll be dripping down my thighs.
Knowing that there’s a clock ticking down faster than I’d hoped, I make a move I’ve wanted to do from the first time I scented Ronan.
I move cautiously, shyly, and push forward on my toes in search of his throat. His scent gland is my destination, even though it’s still covered by that damn collar.
A frustrated huff escapes my parted lips, followed by his low groan.
“Yeah, you want to mark me, Petal?” he asks, voice gravelled. He tugs the collar of his jacket aside. “I’m all yours.”
“Ronan,” Dash warns.
I curl my fingers into Ronan’s back and finally bring my nose where I’ve needed it to be. Knuckles trace the shape of my cheek as I nuzzle against his throat, coaxing more caramel into the air while transferring my scent onto his skin.
It won’t last forever, but I’m more than interested in repeating this process multiple times a day for the foreseeable future.
His strength has me in disbelief as he holds me, letting me rub against his neck. Before pulling back, I drift my mouthacross the hot skin and freeze, one flick of my tongue away from tasting him.
“Do it,” he commands.
I sigh happily, my eyes closing as I glide my tongue up the strong column of his throat. The mix of our scents clouds the air, making it sticky. I’m enthralled with the way it makes me feel like I’m weightless. Like there’s nothing but this and us right here.
My teeth scrape at his throat as I teeter, strong fingers holding the back of my head to keep me in place. Ronan hisses a curse and bares his neck further, muscles straining as he opens himself up to me. I could bite him like this. Claim him properly already with more than just my scent?—
“Enough,” Dash shouts, his voice like a smack upside the head.
I jolt back, mortified. Knowing both men are staring at me, I lift a hand to my mouth and try to clear my head. Distance from Ronan doesn’t help. It only makes everything worse.
Swallowing to trap a whine, I tuck my hair behind my ears and take another large step backward toward the building behind us.
My voice is a whisper in the wind. “I’m sorry.”
“We just don’t need any claiming right now. Clearly, there are things that need to be talked about. Our pack needs to hear about this before anything else happens,” Dash says, risking moving between Ronan and me.
I latch onto the mention of their pack. “There are more of you?”