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“How long do we have?” Cary asked. “Because we need to get cleaned up.”
My face flamed with embarrassment, but Nick just grinned at us all.
“It’s a few hours’ drive. But you know Lexie, she doesn’t hold back, and Sam has a chopper at his disposal.”
I almost swore, remembering her calling out to him for the chopper yesterday morning, but I swallowed it down.
Cary had no such hesitation. “Fuck, I’d say we have half an hour at most. Lexie and Maia will definitely hijack that chopper if they think something is up with Ava.”
Wolf jumped up and picked me up easily, before he started jogging back towards the Palace.
“I’ll get Ava to the shower, if you guys can grab the supplies and make sure the fire’s out.”
“I can walk, you know.”
“I know, but I’ve wanted to do this for years,” Wolf said gruffly as he looked down at me. “Just find you, pick you up, and carry you off. It was my favorite daydream. Give me this, okay?”
I felt myself blushing again.How could I refuse when he put it like that?
sixteen
Thehotshowerdidwonders for my spirits. Not that I was sad or upset or anything. There was just something about being clean that always made me feel good.
Yet, the shower also made me determined. I’d taken being clean for granted before the Crash, like everybody. I hadn’t really suffered since then, not compared to other people out there. The hot water was still working at the Palace, and at the farm. I’d only really missed showers when we were hiding out in the library. I knew I was far luckier than most.
I didn’t intend to sit around and enjoy it without attempting to make life better for other people out there, too. There had to be some way. It was the reason I’d insisted on joining the Honey Badgers. I’d needed to help. But right now, what I really needed to do was get dressed, or I’d be no help to anybody.
I wrapped my towel around myself and peeked out into the bedroom I’d slept in the first night. I really didn’t want to put the clothes I’d been wearing back on if I could help it. My eyes widened when I saw Cary by the ornate wardrobe. He jumped and fumbled something when he noticed me watching him.
“Sorry, I didn’t think you’d be out so quick. These are some of your clothes from your old room. I was putting them away in here. I figured you’d prefer to sleep in here from now on.”
“Thank you, Cary,” I said as I tentatively stepped out into the room, wearing only my towel. His eyes strayed to my bare legs and darkened before shooting back up to my face again. I could feel myself blushing and inwardly cursed my pale skin.
I’d had one orgasm. One thrilling, intense orgasm. Yet Wolf and Cary had barely touched me. I wanted more, but I didn’t know how to make it happen. I didn’t think I could be as bold while I was awake as I appeared to be while sleeping. Plus, Cary seemed more tense now that we were back inside.
Cary stepped towards me and wrapped his arms around me. I sighed and leaned into him instinctively, and he relaxed at the contact, too. It felt like nothing could ever hurt me as long as I was in his arms.How had I ever gone so long without this?
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“Yes, of course,” I answered automatically. The Palace had drilled the importance of being pleasant and obedient into me. I’d never bought their teachings, but I’d had to pretend. Apparently, the training was harder to shake than I’d anticipated when I’d arrived all doe eyed and innocent.
“Ava,” he chastised me gently. “I can tell you want to say something, or ask for something.”
“You can?” I looked into his eyes, something I’d denied myself for so long. They were a lighter shade of green than mine, and they seemed to hold the entire world within them. They looked intent and serious right now.
“I’ve been watching you for a long time. You were damn good at being their perfect student. But sometimes, when no-one was watching, I’d see you look out the window, yearning for something. Whatever it was, I want to give it to you.”
I felt a rapid flutter in my chest, knowing he’d been paying such close attention. “I wanted to be outside, climbing trees, sleeping under the stars, free.”
“That’s why you were so comfortable last night, and this morning,” he said with a slow smile. It was so rare to see him smile. I’d gone years never seeing it, just watching that stern, aloof glare from a distance. This one flowed out of him like warm chocolate sliding over strawberries. I wanted to taste it. “And why you came alive at the farm?”
“Yeah.” I admitted, trying to focus on my thoughts and not on the way my body reacted to him. “I lived in the city with my mom, but I spent every school holiday at my uncle’s farm and I loved it there.”
I hesitated, and he held me while I gathered my thoughts. “More than that, though, I wanted to be able to touch the people I loved.”
“Yeah,” he murmured, his voice going hoarse as his arms tightened around me.
I sucked in a breath. We’d been holding hands, and he’d kissed me during an intensely erotic moment this morning, but we hadn’t talked about what we meant to each other at all. Everything we had learned about the other had come from watching at a distance. We’d hardly even spoken until a day or two ago. Yet I knew he frequently protected not only me, but other omegas too, including Maia. He’d been our strong, silent sentinel.
