Page 305 of Omega for the Pack

“I’m in heat,” I gasped out.

“Carry her inside. Now,” said Caleb, panic written all over his face.

Twenty-Nine

JADE

Iwas in Dravin’s arms, delirious with pain as he bounded up the stairs.

We were in Caleb’s room, and he gently placed me on the bed. Dravin, Nick, and Bruce surrounded me as Caleb attended to his mother outside. I groaned as a wave of pain squeezed down my belly and my core.

“Let us give you some relief Jade,” said Dravin.

“No,” I said harshly, up in pain as another wave of pain struck my body.

“Caleb isn’t here,” said Bruce, knowing that I felt reluctant about their pack leader. The thought of relief from these relentless attacks that Argon brought on was appealing.

“I can’t,” I cried out when my stomach clenched again at the emptiness within me. “I’ll ride out the heat, and if I’m about to die, I’ll let you know.”

“Jade, don’t do this,” Dravin said, sitting beside me. His voice was thick and full of pain. He laid a comforting hand on my back. “Don’t hurt yourself over your differences with Caleb. We care for you deeply. This is hurting us as much as it’s hurting you.”

“Please give me time to think about this,” I gasped. “I’ll call for you if I need you. Argon didn’t listen to me, so will you?”

“Fuck that hurts,” said Dravin. “We’ll leave you alone for a little bit and give you space to think. I’ll be right downstairs.”

I nodded slightly.

When they all left the room, guilt hit me. I shouldn’t be feeling guilty. But they sounded sincere, unlike Argon.

I needed a shower badly. I smelled like smoke and ash. Argon’s touch and caress had to be erased. With immense strength, I got up from the bed, the dirty sheet dropping to the ground. I didn’t have my towel or anything. I desperately needed to get under the water. I limped to the bathroom while holding my middle. I was slow, but I made it inside, shutting the door behind me. With one hand gripping the counter, I twisted the golden faucet until the shower came on.

Standing under the running cold water relieved my stress but not the pain. The pain worsened in my belly as I scrubbed my hair with Nick’s coconut-scented shampoo. I tried to rinse my hair quickly but doubled over in pain, letting out a small yelp.

God, my first heat was too much. I hated this.

“Are you okay in there?” said Caleb, bursting into the bathroom, seeing me sitting under the spray of water, curled up in pain. “It’s your heat, isn’t it?”

He came over to me, pushing my wet hair back from my face, calmly squeezing and rinsing the remainder of the shampoo from my hair. He rubbed soap down my back, carefully washing it in circles.

“What are you doing?”

“I’ll finish washing you. Just relax,” he said close to my ear.

I was self-conscious of my naked state, but it wasn’t like he’d never seen me naked. I held my middle, sitting in the bathtub as he washed and rinsed me.

“Thank you,” I said in a low voice, and he kissed me on the forehead. His kiss felt like a warm hug. An oasis of protection and safety. I couldn’t let the warm feelings overwhelm me. Hehelped me stand as he carefully wrapped a clean towel around me, drying me off.

“You’re trembling,” he said, studying me as I stepped out of the tub. “What did that bastard do to you?”

I shook my head silently. Then unable to contain it anymore, tears rolled down my face as a feeling of helplessness struck me.

Caleb hugged me to his chest.

His scent of the trees filled my senses, giving me life again. The feeling of hope again. He hugged me tight as I cried and shuddered against his chest.

“I’m sorry,” I blubbered, but he only hugged me tight.

“You’re safe with me, baby,” he muttered. I felt the vibrational wave of his purring as he softly comforted me as I cried. When the tears stopped, I pulled away embarrassed, wiping my eyes with the towel.

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