Page 98 of Queen of Spades

“Yeah,” she agrees. “The post-heat cramps started. I’m a little afraid to crawl off the bed.”

I frown.

Ward lies next to us, and he rolls over and leans close. “The supplies Grady picked out are in the bathroom.”

Annika nods against my skin. “Thanks.” She keeps my cock inside her but pushes up on her palms to look at me. “Sorry, I’m pretty sure I bled all over you.”

I frown again, feeling quite like an idiot. Then again, I was asleep thirty seconds ago.

“Take your omega to the shower,” Ward growls, elbowing my arm.

“I can—” Annika starts.

Reality finally catches up. “I’ve got you, sweetheart. Let’s shower together.”

“I’ll clean up the bed when I get back,” she says to Ward.

“No, lass. I’ll handle it.” He gives her a soft smile.

Wrapping an arm around her lower back, I scoot us to the bed and stand with her wrapped around me.

“Sorry,” she whispers as I aim for the door. “Being an omega really isn’t as glamorous as the world claims.”

“Are the cramps especially painful?” I pull the door handle and tote her to the bathroom across the hall.

She shrugs. “It’s a few times worse than the periods I used to get before I presented.”

I nod, stepping over to grab towels. I actually remembered that tidbit of information from the alpha-and-omega-dynamics class they forced me into in high school. Before presenting, female omegas have monthly menstruation.

I toss the towels over the glass shower wall and pull the handle to climb us inside. My version at home in Vegas is sleek and modern, but this is what we have available.

Aiming for the back, I turn on the hot water. It comes out cold at first, and I twist so it falls over me instead of her.

She stretches her legs but refuses to look at me as I kiss her forehead. “Well, this is going to be embarrassing.”

I run my hand down her spine. “Don’t give it a second thought. Let me take care of you.”

It’s a little shocking how my heart races at the idea, but it’s true.

I don’t only want her during the good times.

Heat sex is mind-blowing. It’s clear society isn’t exaggerating when they say how quickly and deeply it bonds alphas and omegas to ride out a heat together. But I want to get to know her on a deeper level.

She finally looks up at me, running her fingers over my collarbone. “It’s not always like this, just so you know. I mean, it was with Grady. We’ve always had that instant connection like I feel with you, but I rode out multiple heats and never got attached the way I feel about you, Ward, and Kane.”

I chuckle to cover how warm and fuzzy that makes my chest feel. “Good.”

I’ve never experienced a heat before, but I wouldn’t want my first to have been with anyone but her.

Annika continues to nest during the next four days. She’s cuddly and affectionate, but the way she snuggles to my chest hits completely differently when there’s no sex as the endgame.

Grady and Kane are working out in the garage, but the equipment isn’t quite up to their standards. The amount of complaining they’ve done leads me to believe they’re the princesses. At the very least, they’re spoiled and unimaginative.

Ward and I worked out this morning by jogging the exterior of the property, followed by more push-ups and sit-ups than I could count.

Annika snoozes with her head on my bare chest, and even I’m taken aback by how quickly my feelings for her have grown. We have a fair amount in common, considering neither of us wished to become what our families expected of us.

It’s still a little hard to fathom that she killed Marco Andretti and one of his men. Remembering how she threw that knife in the kitchen helps reinforce that she is capable of looking out for herself.

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