“Want to grab lunch later?” I ask Emily through the mindlink. I haven’t talked to my bestie properly in days, and I need to update her on what’s been going on with Luca. If I’m honest with myself, I think I might have been avoiding her. I wasn’t ready to tell her that Luca and I had progressed from fake dating to a real-life fuckfest.
And I definitely wasn’t ready to tell her it’s gone to even more than that.
Now that I actually am ready, butterflies erupt in my stomach. Damn, I’m not used to getting nervous over a boy—or anyone, really. I haven’t felt this giddy about someone since my first girlfriend when I was sixteen. And it didn’t last very long before I realized I didn’t want anything serious.
“Could we do tomorrow?” Emily responds, her sweet voice warm with joy. “I can’t wait to check in and see what’s happening with you, but Jackson took the rest of the day off, and I’m packing a picnic for us.”
“Damn, you two are disgustingly adorable! Who did he rope into covering omega training?” I ask, smiling to myself at how happy she sounds. Romantic picnic dates aren’t exactly my scene, but they're perfect for Emily and Jackson.
“Luca is covering for him.”
My smile evaporates. My fists clench of their own volition. Why the hell is Luca going to take omega training? And what is that hollow sense of impending dread that just washed over me?
Emily doesn’t get jealous about Jackson training the other omegas, but she is there when they train, too. And she’s an omega. A strikingly beautiful omega that you’d have to be a monster to dislike. The other omegas are friendly with her; she fits in with them.
Not like me. I’m not petite and soft the way they are. I’m strong, tall, sarcastic, and I guess I don’t know them so much. My only real connection to omegas was when Katie used to babysit me when I was a kid, and she was always so lovely to me, but my interactions with other omegas were limited to the ones Ryan, Jackson, and Luca dated.
I’m not sure what was worse—when they acted friendly or when they were obvious about how much they didn’t want me tagging along.
And I’m supposed to be okay with my mate—myunmarkedmate—training them? Fuck that.
I turn on my heel and head straight back into the training arena, finding Jackson and Luca talking about the plan for the day.
“Were you planning to tell me about training the omegas?” I snap, stalking towards Luca. My temper is simmering so hot I can almost see steam curling off my skin.
Luca’s eyes lift to mine, a spark of amusement dancing there. “You have a problem with that, Princess?”
“I don’t know; what do you think? Should I have a problem with you being surrounded by a bunch of stunning she-wolves knowing you have fucked at least half of them, and the others would only love to have a go?”
“Careful, Fia, you’re sounding a little possessive there,” Luca responds, a playful smirk on his face that is doing nothing to tamp down my rage. Jackson chuckles and tells us he’ll leave us to it.
I shoot him a glare. This is as much his fault as it is Luca’s. I’m about to tell Luca there’s no way I’m letting him be alone with a bunch of females when the door opens and they start to spill in.
Luca grins and greets them. My arms are crossed in front of my body as I silently seethe.
“Hi Beta, I was so excited to hear you were leading training,” Annie calls. She’s a stunning redhead who dated Luca for a couple of months, maybe a year ago. She walks straight towards him, rolling her hair around her finger, and I let out a low growl that has her jumping back and scurrying back to the others.
I don’t even know if she was being flirtatious or not. And she would have to be an idiot to make a move on a shifter mated to an alpha wolf. But still. He’s not claimed yet, and nothing is official until he is.
Fuck this, I don’t need to stand here and watch them throw themselves at him.
“I’m going; enjoy your training,” I say to Luca. My tone is snarky, but I can’t help it. I don’t want to leave him here, but if I stay, I’ll end up ripping out someone’s throat.
“Wait, I need to do something before you go,” Luca says, grabbing my wrist and pulling me back into his chest. He cups my face and stares into my eyes before leaning in and crushing his lips to mine. One of his hands moves to the back of my head while the other bands around my waist, molding my curves against the hard planes of his muscular body.
My heart is pounding, and I’ve zoned out everyone else by the time he stops kissing me. My lips are swollen and tingling. And I’m breathless as I stare at him.
“I’ll see you at home in an hour,” he says, and then, through the mindlink, he follows up with,“and you better be naked.”
My face flushes as I take in the dark, seductive way he looks at me as he sends those words of anticipation into my mind.
I’m soaked waiting for Luca to return. I came straight back here and showered, styled my hair, and well, waited. Naked. For my male to come home and do whatever he has planned for me. Part of me is deliriously excited—every time he has punished me up to now has been nothing short ofeuphoric.
But I don’t deserve punishment. Not even the fun kind. And as much as yes, I did follow his directions about being naked, I’m not letting him get away with thinking I’ve done something wrong.
Luca’s fresh scent invades my senses as he opens the front door. I step out of the bedroom. My arms are crossed in front of me, and my skin is bare. Luca licks his lips as he takes in my body. He kicks off his sneakers and strips off his own clothing before taking a step towards me.
“Stop right there,” I say, holding up a hand. “If you think you’re going to punish me for getting possessive of you after your insanely possessive displays over the last couple of weeks, you can think again. You’re the one who attacked Simon in wolf form.Youthrew me over your shoulder and carted me out of training.Youwere the one insisting I smelled like you all the damn time! And you’re… why the fuck are you smiling?”
