Page 45 of A Pack of Mistletoe
Her hips grind against mine, dragging that hot, needy center over my now rock-hard cock. The friction tears a growl from deep in my chest. She gasps when I grip her hips, pulling her down harder as I thrust up. The pressure is maddening. I want more—I want her. I want skin. I want every part of her against every part of me.
She moans into my mouth, and I curse every scrap of fabric between us.
A knock on the driver’s side window has us flying apart like guilty teenagers. Rose bangs her elbow on the dash. I nearly crush myself against the seat.
Staring back at us through the glass is an alpha with long brown hair and tattoos up both arms. Jess. One of my brother’s packmates.
“Whatcha doin’?” he sing-songs.
I roll my eyes and let my head thunk back against the headrest.
Rose giggles, traitor, and pops the door open before heading up to the house like nothing happened.
I sigh, cut the engine, and turn… only to jump with a half-yelled, “Jesus Christ!” because Jess isstillstanding there, that shit-eating grin glued to his face.
“Fuck, Jess!” I snap as I climb out of the car.
“That’s my job!” Hunt calls as he ambles up behind him.
“And mine!” Sunny adds cheerfully from the porch.
Rose is wheezing with laughter now as she climbs the steps.
Fantastic. This is going to be a long evening.
Rose
There’s a lot of tittering and foot-kicking when I explain to the girls the same thing I told the pack about Kai being my scent-sensitive match—the scent that awakened my omega. Their faces go from shocked to horrified when I tell them about the aftermath and everything I’m dealing with now.
I’ve resolved never to keep important things from them again. These women are my friends. The kind you build your life around. They’re as important to me as any family I’ve ever had. Maybe more. I want them to know me—all of me.
“So you’re definitely scent-matched to the whole pack, right?” Clara asks.
My heart leaps into my throat. “I don’t… I don’t know. I didn’t even realize Kai was my scent-sensitive match until the doctor spelled it out for me. I thought it was just bad timing—my omega emerging right as I approached him. I didn’t realize he was the reason.”
Thinking back on that night is a horrible mix of longing and fear. I wish I hadn’t turned away. I wish I’d run to Kai. But I can’t take that back now.
“Does it even really matter?” I ask, regret sinking in deeper. “Because I took that drug, my scent may never return. I may never be able to scent them. That’s not… that’s not a real scent-sensitive match.”
“What? Yes it is!” Sunny exclaims, squeezing my hand like she can anchor me with pure force of will. “Scent sensitivity is about way more thanjustscents. Sure, the smell helps—to keep you from accidentally passing your mates in the cereal aisle—but that’s not the point. If they’re yours, they’re yours. You’re made for each other. Full stop.”
I still feel skeptical, but don't say anything. It’s not worth arguing with Sunny when she’s in stubborn mode.
“I guess,” I murmur. Thinking about the alphas makes me feel like there’s a blizzard roaring through my chest—equal parts frostbite and fire.
“I know,” Cali says firmly, not missing a beat. “Sunny’s right. Scent isn’t even the biggest part of what makes a scent-sensitive pairing. You’ll see.” She says it with such certainty, I want to believe her. Ido. But I can’t help thinking about how it was for them—Sunny, Cali, and Clara. The way they described that moment they met their mates. The instant connection. The deep knowing. I want that too.
“It’s okay,” Winnie says softly. “Just give it time.”
We drift into safer waters—Cali’s new kids’ program at the library, Clara’s new book (her first traditionally published!), and her plans to go on a cruise with her alphas after Christmas.
“What about Finian?” Sunny asks the question we’re all thinking.
“As long as I’m there, he can be too,” Clara says. “Since the bond, he’s been able to go wherever I go, though he still prefers the house.”
I glance around the table uneasily. If Clara’s noncorporeal alpha followed her to Sunny’s house, would we even know? I shake it off.
Winnie tells us about her new Christmas window display and then Sunny launches into her plans for this year’s holiday bash. Clara may rule Halloween, but Sunny is the undisputed queen of Christmas. Her grandmother used to host the biggest party in town, and Sunny’s proudly continued the tradition. Pretty much everyone in Lakeside Point shows up.
