Page 25 of Forbidden Taste
Hawk shrugs, stepping a little closer, his fingers brushing along my arm. “I didn’t know until after I accepted. Almost told Delilah no, but it was a code red request.” His eyes hold mine, something lingering in his expression as if he isn’t telling me the entire truth.
Instead of asking him what he’s hiding, I direct the conversation to address the elephant in the room. “Are we going to talk about the mate thing or pretend that it doesn’t exist?”
“Doyouwant to talk about the mate thing?” There’s no pressure behind his question which honestly makes this so much easier to address. “I didn’t come in here to ruin things between the both of you.”
“You didn’t ruin anything. Might not have been the way I wanted us to meet another mate, but…” I trail off, my voice faltering. “I just don’t know where this leaves us.”
“It leaves you where you are,” he purrs, his hand traveling up my arm to cup the side of my neck. I lean into the touch, my body melting as his scent fills my nose. “With him, with this bond, and… maybe with me, if you want that.”
“Leo just…” I start, my voice faltering, worry coating my words. “I don’t want to terrify him with all of this. He’s just coming to terms with him and me being mates, and I know he noticed how he responded to you, but I just…” I didn’t think it would be this difficult. Stand up to Benjamin, a few fights with my Mom—that’s whatI was prepared for. Not navigating an accidental bite and a new mate who happens to be a senior classmate.
Hawk’s fingers squeeze my neck softly as he leans in, his lips brushing against my forehead. “Sweetheart, I’m not asking you to jump into the deep end. And maybe this is asking too much, but would you consider—if you have another heat spike—calling me instead of the service?” His tone is careful but I can feel the desperation in it.
“Yeah. I don’t think either of us would want anyone else,” I confess.
“We can work on everything else one step at a time.” His attention shifts to the hallway, gaze lingering on my bedroom. “Is Leo going to be okay?” His eyes flicker with concern, and I shrug, my shoulders slumping as I lean into his chest, needing the contact.
“He’s really new to all of this.” Hawk’s touch falters and a small, nervous chuckle falls from my lips as I clarify, “No, not scents—you saw his knot. You’ve probably read some of the school boards. He’s not treated nicely.” I remember Leo’s freakout when I first called him my mate, the way he didn’t quite believe me. “When I told him we were mates, he freaked out. But he’s mine. Him and I are a package deal with all of this.”
Hawk rumbles a soft sound, pulling away just enough to look at me. “Hey, I wantbothof you, and I have no intentions of splitting you up. Biologically, you need him more than you need me right now.” A playful smirk plays on his lips at the confusion that floods my expression. “Please don’t make me give you a biology lesson right now. Jesus Christ. Sweetheart, a mating bond has to be nurtured and cared for. It’s almost like an open wound— heals best when the Alpha… Omega takes care of it. It’ll fester otherwise. Only takes a few days, maybe less.”
A low groan tears from my throat, my head tipping back as I slump on the stool. “Never really thought of that side of things,” I mutter, my hand lifting to brush the bite on my shoulder. It already aches, my desire to just step into the shower with Leo growing, like he has a piece of me and in order to get it back, I have to be with him.
Hawk draws me back against his chest again, pressing another kiss to my forehead before he steps back and pats the counter. “Let me leave before I somehow convince you to let me in your nest one last time. If you decide this is something you both want, you know where I am.” He raises an eyebrow, waiting, and I laugh—a soft, breathy sound that surprises me.
“I said something similar to Leo last week when we started,” I admit, my lips curving as I remember that moment, telling Leo I’d be here when he was ready. The dance studios are down the opposite wing to mine, Hawk was so close to us and we never knew.
“Go take care of your Omega,” he states, a quiet command as he heads for the door. “Let him nurse that bite.”
I hop off the stool, hurrying toward the hallway and then turn back to Hawk. “Just like… let him suck on it or whatever? We didn’t really get this training in biology class.”
“It’s a natural instinct.” Hawk leaves me with that and slips outside before I head for the bathroom and strip the shirt over my head.
Hawk mentioned ‘one step at a time’ and that’s what it is going to take to soothe Leo’s worries. For right now, though, I just want to cling to him, to wrap my arms around him, and bury my head in his chest. I need him, probably as much as he needs me, some primal part of me claiming him as well when he bit me.
Leo all but melts when I step into the shower, still mumbling sorry as he walks me back into the tile, his hands cupping my face, expertly avoiding the bite on my shoulder. “Sweetie, hold on just a minute, okay? If you knew you could give me a mate bond, would you have wanted to? Maybe not now but at some point?”
He pauses, searching my expression for something. “Yes.” His voice shakes but there’s no hesitation in his answer.
“Then let’s pretend that this was all that was. I know it was accidental but I want this. I want you. I’m so fucking glad you’re mine and if I could claim you, I would.”
Those few words seem to be exactly what he needs to hear, the panic ebbing away until there’s just a bout of uncertainty. If I didn’t think he would freak, I’d tell him I loved him.
Maybe not today but soon, definitely.
eighteen
LEO
The morning’s a mess—thoughts and emotions crashing through me like a storm I can’t outrun, guilt and confusion twisting tighter in my chest with every breath. My hands are clenched on my palms as I sit at the kitchen table, unsure exactly what happens next. It’s barely five am, the campus still sleeping but there’s no rest for me, not now, not for the foreseeable future. Riley says it’s okay, that although it wasn’t planned, that he wanted it.
At first, I didn’t believe him but the happiness he keeps pushing through the bond tells me he isn’t lying. It’s the only thing keeping me from spiraling completely, his quiet strength threading through the chaos in my chest. But then he told me all I had to do was suck on the bite on his shoulder to help it heal—and I just stared, confusion and worry and apologies surging up all over again, choking me. My gaze dropped to the mark, red and raw against his pale skin, reminding me of what I took without asking.
I think back to all the times Alphas wanted to claim me—demanding, trying to make me submit, make me theirs—and now here I am, the one who took that choice away from Riley. It doesn’t make sense, doesn’t fit, an Omega like me biting, bonding, marking another Omega. I don’t even know how long it’ll last, if it’ll fade or stay forever, but it’s there, etched into him, and I can’t undo it.
The worst part—the part that twists the knife—is how I’m still reacting to him and Hawk’s rich scent clinging to the edges of the room, stirring something in me I’m not ready to face. Riley explained it earlier, his voice soft over the sound of the shower—said it wasn’t a full-blown heat, just spikes, violent and unpredictable until our pheromones settle. But knowing doesn’t make it easier.
Riley huffs out a little sigh as he hands me a plate with cold pizza on it, reminding me of yet another failure from last night. “Sweetie, talk to me. The bond only does so much. What are you thinking about?” He reaches up to run his fingers along the hair at the base of my neck, his touch grounding me in a way I desperately need.
