“Drink your tea,” Jessie said, though he hadn’t touched his.
“Drink yours,” Zoey sighed. “Oh, wait, you don’t even like tea!”
My heart fell into my stomach. Somehow, I hadn’t even kissed my Alpha and was already felling at cooking for him. It hadn’t even crossed my mind that he didn’t like tea.
“I’ll put coffee on,” I stood up too fast and my chair fell.
Jessie caught it right before it crashed into the hardwood floor and set it upright.
“It’s okay. I’m fine,” he said.
“No, I can put coffee on,” I blushed. “Unless of course, you don’t like coffee either.”
“This is really fascinating to watch,” Zoey said.
“Shut up, Zoe,” Jessie said. “I’m fine. Let’s get the brat on her tour.”
“Are you sure? I don’t mind making coffee or whatever you want,” I said and instantly feared I sounded like a house-omega straight out of the nineteen fifties. I wanted to cook for him and know how he took his coffee. Should I have broken out the brandy I keep for special occasions? That’s what the rest of the Hemlock Alphas always seem to be drinking.
“It’s okay,” Jessie placed his hand on mine and my worries melted away. If this was the effect he’d always have on me then true-mates certainly made everyone crazy.
∞ ∞ ∞
We decided to walk the tour instead of driving. Being locked in a metal box with Jessie would have driven me mad. I wanted him. Every instinctual, primitive, and soulful part of me wanted him, but I couldn’t wrap my mind around him. In my love life, Alphas always came and went, but he was my true-mate. I didn’t know what to think of an Alpha who promised forever without knowing me. Hell, even if he knew me, I wouldn’t know what to think.
I’ve always thought of other omegas as hopeless romantics like me. We’re out in the world searching for our true-mates and dreaming of the homes we’ll raise our pups in. On the other hand, all the Alphas I dated in the past only thought about finding a private spot to sink into my most private places.
“This is the main administration building,” I said.
“I know that. This is where Darian works,” Zoey rolled her eyes.
“Don’t roll your eyes at him. He’s taking time out of his day to show you around and he doesn’t have to.”
“Geez, don’t go all cave-Alpha. I rolled my eyes. It’s not like I slapped him.”
“Zoey, today isn’t the day to push my buttons,” Jessie said through gritted teeth.
“While you two work this out I’m going to the restroom,” I said.
“Relax,” Zoey said. “If he’s your true-mate it’s not like I can chase him off.”
“Shut-up, Zoey. We’ll walk with you,” Jessie said and took my hand.
Goosebumps rose on my arms as his strong warm hand cradled mine. I concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other and not looking at him for too long.
“I’ll be okay,” I said opting for the omega bathroom, instead of just the normal guys’, to be sure I had a moment to myself. Darian put them in a few years back. They had everything a pregnant or nursing omega would need. They also had a magical barrier to keep Alphas out and I really needed a moment to myself.
Just long enough for my heart to slow down before it beats right out my chest and into Jessie’s hands.
I had to call Wrynn. I needed someone to tell me I wasn’t crazy even if I clearly was.
“Hey!” Wrynn answered the phone.
“Tell me I’m not crazy,” I said.
“Do I need to send Darian over to get a leash on Zoey? I know she was mad when she left, but I thought the excitement of the tour would calm her down.”
“It’s not her,” I bit my lip.
“Is Jessie being an asshole?” Wrynn asked. “I’ll go get Darian.”
“No don’t!” My face flushed red again. “He’s sweet. He’s perfect. He’s. . .”
“Ooooh!” Wrynn said. “Did you guys?”
“Yes,” I groaned.
“Don’t make it sound like a punishment. This is a good thing, right?” Wrynn asked.
“It’s supposed to be, isn’t it?” I bit my lip. “But I’m not sure.”
“Don’t be silly! Of course, it’s a good thing. He didn’t run out on you like Monta did Ross, did he?”
“No, he just about jumped my bones in the living room in front of Juda and all of creation,” I gave a weak laugh.
“And Zoey was there so it didn’t happen. I’ll send someone to pick her up. You two should have some time alone. We all know how hard it is to have to wait to be with your true-mate,” Wrynn said.
“No! Don’t do that!” I paced the length of the bathroom.
“I’m confused,” Wrynn said. “Talk me through this again.”
I told him every detail of what happened after I answered the door leading up to the phone call we shared.
“Okay,” he chuckled. “So, you’ll wait until you’re ready.”
“What if he gets to know me and doesn’t like me?” I blurted out. “What if he gets bored with me like all of the other Alphas I’ve ever dated?”
“Logan!” Wrynn said. “It’s not like that anymore. They moved on, because they weren’t your Alpha. Jessie’s your Alpha.”
“Jessie’s who’s Alpha?” Darian asked.
“Logan’s,” Wrynn said.
“Huh? Didn’t see that one coming.”
“Me neither. Now, go away and let me solve this! Shoo! Go! This is omega talk. You wouldn’t understand it.”
“Are we alone again?” I asked him.
“Yes, we’re alone. Well, the triplets are here, but they’re more interested in their apple slices than your love life. He’s not going to get bored of you. Do you know it just broke my heart to shoo Darian out of my kitchen? Like literally, I want to glue myself to his side and never be further away from him than that. And we’re about to have our second litter.”
“But you’re an omega,” I bit my lip.
“I think Darian would let me glue myself to his side,” Wrynn chuckled. “Or at least, some more practical version of that.”
“But you’re interesting too.”
“You are interesting. I don’t have boring friends,” Wrynn said. “This is a good thing, Logan. You just have to let it be a good thing. Now, go out there and be happy.”
“Thanks, Wrynn,” I ended the call, but wasn’t sure anything changed.
∞ ∞ ∞
Zoey kept her sarcastic remarks to herself for the rest of the tour. She didn’t ask about true-mates or how Jessie and I felt. She didn’t say much at all. I didn’t know what Jessie said to her while I was on the phone with Wrynn, but I felt bad for her. She was here to explore the campus and continue her education. Today should have been magical for her, but our true-mating response took over everything.
“Wait here by the mailbox,” Jessie told her when the tour was over, and we finally reached my house. “Look that way.”
“You can’t tell me where to look,” Zoey sighed.
“Well, look anywhere that’s not us,” Jessie said. “Or I’ll make sure you never see a Giggling Howler’s concert.”
“It’s the Grim Howler’s, butthead!” She stomped her foot but turned away from the house.
Jessie didn’t say anything but took my hand and entwined our fingers. As we walked up the drive I realized as soon as we reached the door he’d leave and take Zoey home. He’d be somewhere else. Somewhere I wasn’t, and I didn’t want him to leave. My wolf pawed at my chest demanding to be closer to my Alpha. I concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other until we reached the front door.
“Sorry today was crazy,” Jessie said before I could speak.
He brought my hand up and pressed his lips against it.
“It’s okay. I think this sort of thing is a little crazy for everyone. It’s certainly mind-boggling,” I said stumbling over the words that I wasn’t sure were the right ones to say in this
situation.
“Do you want me to come back after I take Zoey home?” He asked.
His brown eyes pleaded for a yes.
“Um. . .”
“It doesn’t have to be for sex,” he added.
“I know. I just think I need some time to unboggle my brain,” I bit my lip. “Don’t get me wrong. I want to open the door and yank you inside. We could call Ross or Darian to pick up Zoey and no one would blame us, because we just found one another.”
“No, they wouldn’t,” he laughed and took a step closer.
He wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me in. I rested my forehead against his chest and reveled in listening to the steady beat of his heart for a second.
“But you’re not ready,” Jessie gave me a sad smile.
“I’m sorry. I know this can’t be how you imagined the day you met your true-mate would go. I know. I just. . .”
“It’s okay,” he kissed my forehead. “It’s really okay. Finding your true-mate isn’t just about the mating and the pups and all of that. Sure, it’s definitely part of it, but when I look into your eyes it’s not the first thing I think of.”
“What is?” I asked unsure if I really wanted to know the answer.
“I want you to be the happiest man alive,” Jessie smiled. “I want to find a way to make you forget every jackass who ever hurt you or broke your heart. I know that takes time, but I’m not going anywhere. Whether, I’m here or over at the guard house. I’m not going anywhere. And if you ever need me, not just tonight, but anytime, night or day just call.”
His words sent a chill up my spine.
“I don’t have your number,” I laughed buying myself time to think of what to say. He was sweet, kind, sexy, and my Alpha and I was sending him away. I couldn’t stop myself. Maybe I’d really lost my mind.
“I’ll make sure you do before I leave,” he leaned in closer for a kiss, but stopped short.
For one split moment, I gave myself permission to give into everything I felt for him. I surrendered to the primitive urge of my wolf and parted my hungry lips for my Alpha to claim.
He hesitated only a second, but when our hungry eyes met the shared gaze was all the consent he needed. His soft lips claimed mind demanding my surrender and marking his territory. I stumbled back against the front door and he followed me in a single long step. My arms moved around his neck as if they grew brains of their own.
His muscular body pressed against mine and his cock came alive trapped between our bodies. Warmth traveled over me stroking the fire slowly building in my belly coaxing my own body’s reaction. I was hard and wet and wanted him to strip me right there on the porch and take me like we were cave-wolves with nothing to lose and no one to answer to.
When the kiss ended our lips lingered together. Both of us unwilling to be the one who ended it. I waited for him to ask again if I wanted him to stay or just to pull my keys out of my pocket and let himself in. I wouldn’t have stopped him.
“My card has my number on it,” he took it from his pocket and put it in my hand. “Call me if you change your mind.”
My knees shook like saplings in a thunderstorm as he walked down the driveway and got into his car. I brought the card up to my nose reveling in his scent until the car was no longer in sight.
“Jessie Hemlock. Tracker.”
The card was short and to the point, but it smelled like him and I never wanted to let it go.
Chapter Six
Jessie
“How bad was today?” Ross asked moving Baby Syra from one arm to the other.
“Not as bad as you’d think,” I laughed.
“He true-responded to Logan,” Zoey interrupted.
“Darian called everyone,” Ross said.
“Go unpack or something, Zoey. Don’t you have boyband posters to hang up or someone to text or something?” I poured a glass of brandy.
Not that the stuff Ross kept around was enough to buzz an Alpha. It was more like amber-colored sedation for our wolves and right now sedating him was my best option. It was my only option if I wasn’t to charge into Logan’s house and mark my territory.
Zoey went to her room and I downed the liquid amber. I didn’t like drinking in front of my younger omega siblings. They’re biology would never allow them to handle liquor like I drank it and I didn’t want to set that example for them.
“I’m surprised you’re still here,” Ross said pulling his hair free from Baby Syra’s yanking grasp.
“Me too,” I sat down across from them.
“What’s wrong?” Ross asked.
“What? You didn’t already see it?” I teased him and poured another glass of brandy. I swirled it around the cup the amber reminding me of Logan’s blonde hair.
“Visions don’t come on command,” Ross sighed as Baby Syra yanked his hair again. “Are you trying to pull Daddy bald?”
She let out a high-pitched giggle and yanked on his earlobe instead.
“She learned this,” he moved her hand away from his ear and she settled down for a second, “from the shifting doll Wrynn bought her. Every time you yank its hair or ears it shifts into a wolf. Then you yank on it again to make it shift back.”
“She just wants to shift,” I smiled at my little niece and she hid her face in Ross’s chest.
“That’s how she prefers to nurse,” Ross sighed.
“Do I need to give you guys some privacy?” I asked him.
“She just ate before you got here. We’re trying to wean her and she’s not having it.”
Shifter pups often advanced more quickly than the average non-shifter baby. At just a few months old usually they’d switch to baby food instead of their carrier’s milk or formula.
“She just likes being close to you,” I stroked her soft crown of dark hair.
“Well, her teeth are coming in so she’s gotta find another way to be close to Daddy,” Ross laughed.
“Want me to take her?” Monta asked entering the kitchen.
“Yeah, I’ve got to get these kids on the right track,” Ross laughed and handed off Baby Syra to Monta. In his arms, she didn’t wiggle or squirm. There was no hair pulling or ear tugging. She settled against his chest and closed her eyes.
“Look, if you didn’t run out of the house when you met him you’re already off to a better start than we were,” Monta said.
Despite the brandy, my wolf growled inside my chest. I still owed Monta an ass-kicking for running off on Ross like that and as soon as he slipped up I’d deliver it.
“Stop it!” Ross slapped my arm when Monta and Baby Syra left the room.
“Why are you hitting me?” I arched a brow.
“It’s over. It happened and we’re okay now. So, now it’s time to mind your own business,” Ross said. “And since you’re sitting in my kitchen the day you met your true-mate it seems to me you have a lot to mind.”
My wolf grumbled in my chest and I took another swig of brandy to settle him down.
“What’s going on, little brother?” Ross asked when I didn’t snark back.
“I’m not sure,” I admitted. “He’s been fucked over in the past by someone or someones and he claims he’s sworn off mating.”
“Don’t worry, he won’t be able to keep that up for long. I mean, Monta was my first. I abstained longer than anyone else I’ve ever met,” Ross laughed.
“He said he didn’t want me to come back to his place tonight,” I sighed.
“He does,” Ross said.
“But he said,” I started, but Ross held up a hand to stop me.
“He does. Believe me. He wants you there right now. I don’t know a lot about his past.”
“Should I ask Darian?”
“No,” Ross shook his head. “Don’t do that. It’s a cave-Alpha action. Logan has a job and a life of his own. So, don’t expect him to respond well to all sorts of old-fashioned notions.”
“I’m not old-fashioned,” I took another swig of brandy.
“Asking D
arian about his past instead of talking to him implies the notion that you don’t think he can communicate his own past and whatever problems he may or may not have to you. It’s old-fashioned. Ask him or wait for him to bring it up.”
“I didn’t think my true-mate would be averse to being close to me,” I sighed.
“You and me both, little brother. You and me both, but Monta and I worked it out. True-mates have a way of working things out. I know it’s cheesy to you Alphas, but just follow your heart. Your wolves already know each other and you two will catch up to them soon.”
“I hope so, because I want to rip everyone apart who ever hurt him. They’re causing me one hell of a headache today.”
“Don’t say that too loudly. You’ll be working with some of the people he romped around with before abstaining.”
“I thought you didn’t know anything about his past,” I tilted my head.
“I don’t, but I had to explain to Daisy that some Alpha’s like male and female omegas,” Ross sighed.
“Lucky’s mate Daisy?” I gritted my teeth.
It’s like the whole group Darian brought to Hemlock Mountain are nothing but trouble.
“From what I pieced together, he must have been one of the last Alphas Logan dated before swearing off mating. From what Daisy said Logan broke it off with Lucky, because he knew it would end just the same as all of his other relationships.”
“Is Lucky even that old?” I asked.
“Lucky is going for his Ph.D. He’s almost thirty,” Ross said. “And before you go pick a fight with him, I don’t think he hurt Logan and he’s definitely not interested in him now. Daisy is due with their first pup next month. And even if you want to kick his ass you leave him alone. He helped Monta bring Kimi home.”
“I’ve heard about this kid, but never met her,” I laughed.
“She’s still shy around strange Alphas,” Ross sighed. “She’s in therapy now and we’re hoping she’ll do better. At school, she had trouble with Alpha teachers, because she wouldn’t go into their classrooms unless they told her it was okay each and every time.”
“Poor kid,” I sighed. “I can’t imagine what she’s been through.”
“Well, I know more than I want to. If Monta wasn’t attending the academy I’d take her home to Hemlock Mountain and let her see what a real family is like.”
Omega Magic Page 3
