Page 21 of Feral: Part One

Thane’s grip tightens on me, his breath catching in his throat. “Hey, Preston, baby, you’ve never needed someone like this. What’s going on? Are the babies okay?” One of his hands sifts into my hair, lightly tugging my head back so that our eyes meet.

“You don’t feel it? You can’t feel him through the bond? That pulse, that’s how it feels with you and the others. He’s mine. I wanted to see him before when Kael bit him, but it wasn’t strong enough. But now… Thane, please. I won’t ask again. I promise. I just…” Asking this of my Alpha is selfish but I’m not sure I can focus without at least seeing Slate.

Maybe touching him.

Fucking him.

My shoulders fall and Thane just pulls me against him again. “Five minutes, but if he tries anything, I’ll have to break my promise to you. I will hurt him. He will bleed.” The bond is making Thane soft and I love it.

I nod, relief flooding through me. “I promise.”

I move toward the door, but Thane’s hand catches my arm. “Sweetheart, at least put some actual clothes on.”

“Fine.” I stalk to the closet, shedding Kael’s sweatshirt and slipping into a pair of dark green panties that hug my hips and sit just below my belly. Then, I pull a sheer white robe over my shoulders, tying it loosely at the front, letting it drape over my belly. Turning around, I grin, my pheromones teasing the air. “I’m ready.”

Thane chuckles, shaking his head, his eyes warm with amusement. “You’re trouble, sweetheart.”

I step closer, my hand brushing his chest again, a playful spark in my gaze. “You love it.”

“I do. Five minutes, Preston. No more.”

But there’s an uncertainty in my Alpha’s voice, as if these five minutes he’s giving me aren’t just for me.

Preston

Slate’s room is empty when I come upon it, a faint noise echoing from the kitchen, stealing my attention. Thane’s hand is on my shoulder, guiding me but also ready to drag me back if anything happens. Slate’s distress pulses through the bond, demanding that I find him.

In the kitchen, Slate stands at the sink, gulping water from a glass, his hands shaking. His dark curls are damp, sticking to his forehead, and his eyes are glazed, caught somewhere between heat and pain. A small whine escapes his lips, and my chest tightens, the bond flooding with a mixture of confusion and fear. He looks around, lost, his breathing erratic, and I want nothing more than to hold him, to make it stop.

Thane’s grip tightens on my shoulder. “Sweetheart, don’t.”

I twist around to meet my Alpha’s gaze, his jaw clenched tight. “See? I know you feel it, but you’re telling yourself you don’t need him. That’s fine, butIneed him. And I don’t like seeing him like that.”

Thane’s eyes narrow. “I don’t know what’s different between him and the other Omegas.”

“Does it matter?” I snap. “It’s never mattered before when I want something. You said I could have this tonight. Tonight he’s mine. Tomorrow you can fight me over it.”

I pull away, ignoring his warning, and cross the kitchen to Slate. His eyes flick to me as I wrap my arms around him, pulling him into my chest. I draw on my pheromones, letting them flood the air, loving the way Slate relaxes, his breath hitching as he leans into me.

“You’re going to be mine, sweetie,” I murmur, my lips brushing his ear.

Slate tenses in my hold, his voice barely a whisper. “I can’t.”

“Let Preston have you for the night. As long as you don’t hurt him, I won’t step in.” Thane offers.

Slate hesitates and then nods, his lids fluttering closed as the resistance across the bond fades. I lead him back to my room, guiding him into my nest, right in the middle. “You just need cuddles and I’m the master of those.”

My fingers work gently, peeling away his shirt, revealing Thane’s bite on his shoulder. It looks much healthier now after Thane was able to nurse it, the light ident of Kael’s mark on the other side still there. Malik mentioned the scars and nicks littered across his body but I never saw them. My Beta had told me that after Kael had been with him the first time, the marks had disappeared. I wonder why Kael's bite is the only thing that hasn’t healed but I don’t dwell on it.

Slate’s eyes are fixed on Thane who’s standing just inside my room, his arms folded across his chest. Slate’s breath hitches, aflicker of fear in his gaze causing me to frown. I want him to relax, to feel safe with me, not to brace for whatever he thinks is coming.

I slide out of my nest and march to the door, pushing Thane’s chest with both hands. “Don’t come in,” I say, my voice firm as I try to lock the door behind him.

Thane’s eyes narrow as he shoves the door back open. He grabs my chin roughly, pulling me close. “I get that you need him, but you don’t shut me out. I’ll stay in the hall if that makes you feel better, but I don’t like you with him when I can’t see him.”

“Fine.” I lean into his grip as Thane drags me into a rough kiss, his lips claiming mine until I’m breathless. Then he steps back into the hallway, his silhouette looming just outside the door.

I crawl back into the nest and settle beside Slate, who’s now nearly naked, his pants hanging low on his hips. “You’ve got me now.”

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