Page 92 of One for the Money
Dario takes a step toward her, but stops himself. He rakes his fingers through his hair, a pained expression on his face. “Do you think ‘fine’ is what we want for you? We want you to be happy and content. We want to care for you, Alex. You just have to let us.”
For a moment, it looks like she’s going to move toward him, let him comfort her.
But she doesn’t. She turns to me with a slight shake ofher head. “You don’t need to stay over. I need to be alone. I need to figure out what to do about this.”
I slowly lead her to her room and open the door. “Nothing to figure out, certainly not without me. We’re in this together now, you and me. A team. So go rest, and I’ll see you soon, okay?” I turn her around with gentle hands on her shoulders before placing a soft kiss on her lips. Her body momentarily goes rigid before it softens. “Okay?” I repeat.
She nods, eyes glassy. She’s had a hell of a few days, and she needs time to recover. Truthfully, she needs me and the Alphas to help her through this, but I don’t think she can handle that in her current state.
We need to give her some time to come to terms with everything. Alex is fiercely independent, and if she feels smothered, she’s going to pull farther away than she already has.
Honestly, this accidental bond is a blessing because it means, regardless of what happens, at least I’ll always be able to know if she’s okay. If she chooses to leave us, it’ll hurt like a bitch, but at least I’ll feel that she’s alive. And maybe I can use it to track her down if she refuses to see reason.
Alex nods and slips through the door to her room. I close it softly behind her and spin around, nearly buckling under the weight of four Alpha stares.
“Outside,” I hiss as Quinton opens his mouth. “All of you.” I’m no stranger to asserting my dominance on an Alpha, and they listen to me, dutifully filing out of the door, their faces dumbstruck. As I slip past Jude, he takes a not-so-subtle sniff of my scent, which has already begun to change with my bond to Alex.
“You smell like a chocolate croissant,” Quinton says once we’re outside and he’s wrapped his arms around mywaist. “All sweet and buttery. I’m obsessed. In love.” He dips his head, dragging his nose down my neck again. “Can’t wait to taste you two together. Please tell me you haven’t washed your cock yet.”
Dario makes a choking sound as I push Quinton away, groaning. “Not the time, Q,” I hiss, though his words have my stomach flipping with desire.
“Why did she bite you?” Dexter asks harshly. “Why did you let her?”
I don’t want to have this conversation outside, and I know Alex wouldn’t want me to, so I stride off without answering, heading back to Jude’s trailer.
Once inside, the answer to Dexter’s question becomes clear to all of them.
“Holy shit,” Dario whimpers, palming his cock through his shorts. “It smells so fucking good in here.”
“I told you guys!” Quinton exclaims gleefully. “When I came to get them, I thought my cock was going to explode. It took everything I had to back out and not run in there and join them.” He throws himself back on the couch, adjusting his crotch. “If I had, maybe I’d be the one with a bite right now. But that’s okay, because I’ll get mine next.” He holds his hand up in front of his face, turning it around. “Maybe I’ll have her bite my wrist? I’d love to be able to look at it all the time.”
“What makes you think you’re getting one at all?” Dexter asks, leaning against the kitchen counter. He’s breathing heavily through his mouth, clearly trying to avoid smelling the lingering perfume of our tryst.
“Because she claimed my Beta. She’s ours now. She gave in to the scent match. And I’m going to take her on the next date, and get my bite.” He chomps his teeth before relaxing with a smug smile. His shirt stretched tight across his chest as he reclines on the couch, and his thighsare spread wide. His eyes are a little bloodshot, meaning he had to smoke some while he was setting up the nest, but I can see the tension leaving his body the more he absorbs Alex’s lingering pheromones.
Jude pulls out a chair from the table and spins it around, resting his arms on the back of it as he plops down and narrows his eyes at my partner. “No, if anyone gets the next bite, it’s me. I’m the Prime Alpha.”
“Just because you’re the Prime Alpha doesn’t mean shit,” Quinton replies, narrowing his eyes at our showrunner. “It makes the most sense for me to be bitten in next, since I’m also scent matched to Matteo. It’ll let me feel the bond with him, too.”
Alphas can’t initiate bonds any more than Betas can, but if an Alpha and a Beta are connected through the same Omega, they can forge a lighter, more fragile version of the bond.
I never thought I’d have that with Quinton, but now I want it more than anything.
“Why can’t it be me?” Dario asks from the bedroom doorway. He’s propped up on the frame, clearly soaking up the smell of Alex’s slick. “Since you two can’t decide, I’ll take her on the next date.”
“You? You’re barely more than a stranger to her. She doesn’t even know you,” Quinton says dismissively.
“She does know me,” Dario insists. “We’ve had moments!”
Q ignores him, barrelling through the conversation. “It’s gotta be me. I need it the most. Have we forgotten the Rot?”
“Of course we haven’t,” Jude scoffs, “but that doesn’t mean you get the next bite. You’re doing just fine for now.”
“For now,” my Alpha drawls. “Just fine for now. But I could be better.”
“You come on too strong,” Jude argues back. “You’ll scare her off. It needs to be me. She’ll get better faster with my bond.”
“I’ve already got a date planned!” Dario butts in. “So I’m going to take her on it. Tomorrow. She can bite me next.”
