Page 21 of Taming The Omega

“Me neither. I spoke with Andrea about this earlier. She said Seth’s malnourishment could work against his ability to go into heat. We have that going in our favor.” A look of pride crossed his face. “On the other hand, I did send my mate into his first heat within an hour of meeting him. I’ll give Seth a wide berth to be safe.”

Thanks, Alpha, on all fronts. I’ll keep you posted on how things go.”

As he watched Lorcan leave, he couldn’t help but wonder what the guy would think of the kind of care Caleb had given the boy that afternoon. And, how might stimulating an omega affect his reaction to the alpha’s proximity? Was it irresponsible of him to awaken that dormant part of the omega’s body?

Being gamma, Caleb had no idea how omega physiology worked. He knew they were mindless when in heat, desperate to be mounted and conceive a pup. Everyone knew that. It was the kind of thing gammas joked about with sly winks and lascivious laughter. They never discussed whether omegas had sexual needs any other time or even if they needed to climax to become pregnant. There was nothing amusing in that topic, he supposed.

He could always consult with Andrea. He tried picturing talking to the kindly, older woman about arousing Seth and making him come. The “ick” factor was high. Never comfortable around females to begin with, he couldn’t imagine having such a personal conversation even with someone trained in healing.

No, the only answer was to put the brakes on that kind of activity or risk putting Seth into heat. Maybe with this added incentive to do what was right, he could actually keep his hands to himself. Seth was strong enough to take care of himself now, and although Caleb had a duty to stick by the boy’s side, that didn’t necessitate playing with his dick.

Resolved to keep his distance, Caleb returned to the shed and found Seth sitting naked on the pallet, brushing his hair. The sight of all that tempting skin threatened to derail his new plan. It didn’t help that his cock was already eagerly awaiting a new jerk-off session. Fortunately, he was wearing a T-shirt sufficiently long to cover his burgeoning erection from Seth’s sharp eyes.

He forced a casual expression onto his face. “Hi. I bet you feel better after that shower, eh?” Gods, how lame he sounded. Too cheerful by half.

Seth nodded and putting his brush down, started braiding his hair. “Do I have to leave?” He asked the question looking at the floor, and his fear was obvious.

“No, sweetheart.” Damn, why did that word keep popping out of his mouth? That was so not the way to put distance between them. “Why would you think that?”

He moved into the far back of the shed and settled down on a rug that the sigma had put down. It wasn’t going to be as comfortable as the pallet, but no way he was going to share that bed with the omega.

“Because I growled at the beta’s mate.”

“Oh, well, yeah, we’ve already been over why that was a bad idea. And, I’m not going to lie to you and say the subject didn’t come up with the alpha just now, because it did. Finn, Will’s mate, scented his stress, so that’s not good. Sires get really pissy when their breeding mates are threatened.”

Seth sniffed and dropped his hands into his lap. “So, the beta’s going to beat me?”

The question pained Caleb. “No, he’s not.” He tried to convey reassurance while not making a big deal over how heartbreaking it was that Seth’s brutal past made him assume something like that.

Seth angled his head and looked at Caleb with the saddest eyes he’d ever seen. “You’re going to do it?”

Well fuck! That did in his new vow to maintain distance. “No one is going to beat you.” Opening his arms, he added, “Come here.”

After a brief hesitation in which Caleb could see Seth’s doubt over his answer, the boy crawled to him. He trembled and cringed a bit when Caleb embraced him, but he didn’t resist. It was only a matter of a few seconds of gently cradling the omega before he relaxed.

Caleb rubbed slow circles on Seth’s lower back. The skin was even softer now that it was completely clean. Seth’s hair smelled faintly of strawberries from the communal shampoo. That was the sigmas’ doing. The females in particular liked flowery-scented human products, and Lorcan indulged them in it. No harsh commercial stuff for the Rogue Pack. Sniffing it now, Caleb wondered if the alpha allowed the extra expense because he enjoyed smelling it on his own mate.

“I can’t promise you that there would be no occasion in which a beating wouldn’t be administered.” He chuckled lowly. “I’ve been on the receiving end myself when I was younger. But, the Rogue Pack is a fair one. Lorcan understands that you’re adjusting to pack life and is willing to cut you some slack. If you screw up, though, it’s going to be my hide at risk. So, do your best to behave. Okay?”

Seth nodded. “I will, I promise. And, I am sorry about Will.”

“I know that. He does, too, because you apologized to him. It’s forgiven and forgotten.”

They stayed in that innocent embrace for a few quiet minutes. Even Caleb’s dick seemed to understand it was an offer and acceptance of comfort, nothing more. It subsided to a low throb. Then, Seth blew up all that calm with a single question.

“Caleb?”

“Hmm?”

“Are you going to sleep with me tonight?”

Chapter Nine

Seth woke having slept more peacefully than he could remember having done in a long time. The reasons why were obvious. He was in a safe place, cocooned deep within pack lands that welcomed him. Even his unconscious mind understood that he didn’t have to worry about being attacked and run off. He was welcome here, albeit for an indeterminate amount of time.

He was also snug within Caleb’s embrace, the large, strong gamma body entwined with his. It felt like an impregnable shield guarding his all too vulnerable self.

Their sleeping together on the soft pallet had been a near-miss. The moment he’d asked Caleb if he’d sleep with him, the big guy’s cheeks had turned red and he’d sputtered a bit. Seth’s stomach had dropped when it appeared certain the answer was going to be no. He shouldn’t have cared. The fact that his lapse with Will wasn’t going to lead to being run-off too soon or even a beating had been great relief. He hadn’t deserved more. Yet, he’d wanted it, specifically for Caleb to stay with him. After so long alone, he’d grown dependent on another pretty damn, and embarrassingly, fast.

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