Page 86 of A Nest of Maple & Mist

My alpha couldn’t stand it any longer. I maneuvered through the crowd, trying not to snap when some stranger’s hand landed on Mia’s hip as he moved past her. Dominance seeped from me. The other alphas in the area gave me a wide berth. I didn’t have to snarl or growl; my pheromones were enough.

When I reached the back of the booth, I didn’t say a word. I reached out, my hand finding the small of Mia’s back, pulling her gently away from the griddle.

“Fern and Sienna have got it, baby girl,” I murmured, my voice dropping low enough to make her shiver.

“You’re a menace.”

“Only for you,” I hummed, kissing her knuckles.

Dense canvas brushed against my fingertips as I pushed it aside, revealing stacks of syrup crates. I positioned Mia and me behind it, away from prying eyes. A possessive part of me wanted my omega to myself, refusing to share her with anyone.

The noise of the festival dimmed. My heart hammered, the sound of it on my ribs the only thing I heard. Mia tilted her head, the smile fading from her face. My hands cradled her cheeks, my thumbs sweeping away the smudges of flour under her eyes.

“Jason?” she whispered, her eyes searching mine. “What’s wrong?”

Fuck. Her scent soured, a burnt hint of maple stinging my nostrils. My lips peppered kisses over her forehead until her scent returned to its sweet base. I met her mouth in a tender, slow kiss, savoring how she tasted on my tongue.

I pulled away. A dazed expression made Mia’s eyes sparkle, and I restrained myself from kissing her again. From tossing her over my shoulder and carrying her back to her nest to knot and bond her.

“No. Nothing’s wrong. I just wanted a minute alone with my omega.”

Her body went lax in my arms. I palmed the back of her head, my fingers threading through her curls. Those dark eyes stared at me, so full of warmth. Mia was everything. I’d thought I was complete, but I didn’t realize how wrong I was until I found Mia Birch standing with tear-stained cheeks in the wreckage of her childhood home. She lit up a place inside. And now that we had her, we would never let her go.

There had been very few times in my life where I had been genuinely scared. I almost forgot what it felt like.

I ignored the leaden weight in my chest. Instead, focusing on the brilliant eyes that stared at me like I was the reason for the moon and the stars.

“I love you, Mia. I have loved you for a long time. And I’m still in awe that you have chosen our pack. I will do anything for you, baby girl.”

Her breath caught, her eyes shimmering with that beautiful, watery light.

“Jason.” My name sounded like a prayer. Like an angel whispering my name to the gods. “I love you. You’re mine.”

Mine.

If she only understood a fraction of it. I belonged to her. To Ty. I’d do anything for them. They owned me. And the fact that she offered herself to me—I didn’t feel worthy.

Slender arms draped around my neck. I lifted her, and her legs encircled my hips. My scruff met her smooth skin as I marked her. She perfumed, and her scent exploded. My tongue flicked over the gland at the juncture of her neck and she whimpered, exposing it to me.

The sight of her submission filled me with so much pride.

“You’re mine too, baby girl. My omega. My Mia. My everything.”

THIRTY-TWO

MIA

My head spun, every nerve vibrating with the echo of Jason’s words. I’d spent the hours since the pancake breakfast in a blissful daze. It reminded me of one of those romcom movies where the entire sky illuminated in a dusty rose color, mirroring the happiness in the main character’s demeanor.

After Fern released me from pancake duty, I disappeared into the bookstore, hidden behind stacks of books with my laptop. I opened the blank word document that had mocked me for months.

Before I knew it, I’d filled up dozens of pages.

What I had originally intended to be a horror romance turned into a cozy alien romcom. Perhaps I had been trying too hard to be something I wasn’t. To write something that wasn’t meant to be.

My head fell back and I closed my laptop with a snap.

My phone vibrated. I opened the group text with my pack.