Page 38 of The Omega Project

Very likely, although it’s obvious she’s also attracted to the rest of my pack. And who can blame her? Soren has dazzled me since the day I met him, and both Finn and Creed seem exactly Emily’s type, which I understand on a primal level. While Finn isn’t attracted to men, he’s generous with his attention, and I enjoy the dynamic between him and Creed.

Am I selfish for wanting to make this work beyond her heat? Definitely, but I’m also a realist, and once Finn sets his mind on something, there’s no way to stop him. He’s always been the most dominant alpha in any room, just as he was when we met in college. I was a few years older, but I knew he owned methe moment I breathed him in, as wild as a feral animal under his iron-clad control. While everyone else on campus was giving him a wide berth, I gravitated towards him every chance I got, and we’ve been inseparable ever since.

“Is this weird?” Emily asks, her fingers stroking through my beard. “Because you’re my mentor, I mean.”

“Not to me.” I tilt my head back, a purr building in my chest at her gentle petting. “I felt a connection to you from the moment we met.”

It’s not lost on me that it’s exactly how I felt when I met each of my packmates, although Creed and his military mentality took a couple of months to get used to. Soren, when Finn brought him to the facility a year ago, wasn’t exactly in a state for bonding moments, but I still knew he was important to me. Call it hormones, attraction, or a soul connection, my life wouldn’t be complete without any of the people in this room.

Which has me looking past Emily as her boyfriend steps out of the bathroom behind her. I don’t need to watch Creed’s surveillance videos to know Derek’s highly protective of her, and I have to admire the way he’s handled himself so far. It can’t be easy facing a room full of dominant alphas who are about to help the love of his life through her first heat.

“Everything okay, Derek?” My hands have snaked up around Emily’s waist, but I hold still as the beta studies me with his cautious, assessing eyes. “In case you’re wondering, nothing that happens here reduces what the two of you have together, okay?”

“I know that.” He’s only wearing a towel, but his chin is up and his gaze steady. He’s not cowed in any way, and his composure just makes me respect him even more. Plenty of guys would be raging against their biology right now, but he says without a hint of hesitation, “I also know Em needs you, and I’m here to support her in any way I can.”

Emily shoots him a soft smile, but there’s no denying the tension humming in her body. As much as he has her heart, she needs a knot and all that comes with it. But Derek shouldn’t feel like a spare wheel when it comes to her heat, and I’m not starting anything until he knows that.

“Remember that your emotional connection is stronger than any of us. We can give her body relief, but she’s going to need you to stay close, okay?” Despite his calmness, relief flashes in his eyes, and I add with a predatory smile, “Plus, I have a thing for big men who can take a pounding, so if you’re interested, I’m in.” I tug Emily more firmly into the V of my thighs and smile up into her hazy eyes. “Especially with a beautiful omega in the mix.”

Derek gapes at me, but covers his surprise with a shrug. “Guess we should just see how things go,” he mumbles, but when his gaze flicks to Finn in the corner, I bite back a smile. I’m not sure if it’s a celebrity crush, since Finn is about as big as it gets in the security world, or if it’s something more, but I’m looking forward to finding out.

Anticipation thrums through my blood, and even in the pheromone-soaked room, I can smell my arousal. “Then come over here and help me give our girl her first knot.”

“Oh, good,” Soren pipes up from where he’s been leaning against the dresser and shooting Creed come-hither eyes. “Professor Fall is about to give us one of his famous lectures.” He smirks at Emily as he crosses the room to climb onto the nest, every lean line of his body flexing for our viewing pleasure. “Not pervyat all, hey, mentee?”

“I’ve been thinking unethical thoughts since the moment we met,” Emily admits. It draws a dirty chuckle from Soren, but her gaze doesn’t waver as she dips her face to mine. “Kiss me, Langston, so I can see if the last time was just a fluke.”

Maybe it was for her, but Emily’s mouth is a soft slide into nirvana for me. The sweetness I remember is there, but as she twines her fingers through my hair and sinks into the kiss, her allure is even more powerful. The first swipe of her tongue is a revelation, calling to the deepest part of me, because she’s not the one who’s falling,Iam.

“Lang,” she murmurs, pressing her body closer to mine. “I want you so much.”

I’ve been through a couple of heats before, so I know that a lot of what she says is driven by instinct more than reason, but how can I resist her when what she’s asking for is everything I want to give?

“Sit on me, sweetheart. Let me get you ready for my knot.”

“I’m already ready,” she frowns, but climbs onto my lap, pressing her breasts against my chest. I chuckle at her pout, but as she rubs her nipples against the patch of hair there, we both shiver at the sensation. I can’t resist claiming her mouth again, which is like plunging into vanilla-flavored velvet. Our tongues tangle together, and when she makes a delicious humming sound, I drink it down with a groan. I’m already addicted to her taste, but as I tilt her chin to deepen the kiss, she starts to squirm impatiently. “Langston!”

It’s such an Emily rebuke, I can’t help but grin into her flushed face. “What is it, sweetheart? Is the kiss not up to your standards?”

“The kiss is perfect, but we can do more of that later.” She looks down, her attention clearly on a different part of my anatomy. “Can I take those off?”

If I was hard before, having her eye my boxers like gift wrap is enough to strain the fabric to breaking point. “You can do anything you want with me.”

Emily’s dimples pop at being given free rein, and the next moment she’s sliding to her knees, her perfect mouth inchesfrom my groin. With a cheeky smile, she leans forward and wraps her lips around my straining head, sucking me gently through my underwear. She makes that humming sound again, and as she licks a hungry stripe down the side of my shaft, I have to grip the comforter beneath me to stop my hips from rocketing off the bed. “Okay,” I mutter, “anything but torture me with your wicked tongue.”

“What is it, sweetheart?” she taunts as she plays with the waistband of my boxers. “Is the kiss not up to your standards?”

Her little act gets a round of chuckles from the others, but two can play at that game. “It’s perfect,” I rumble, pressing my thumb into the corner of her mouth, “but I thought you wanted my knot in your slick little pussy.”

Her eyelids shutter, her perfume spiking as she sucks on my thumb. “Langston.”

There’s now a thread of pain in her plea, and both Derek and Soren move forward to ease her up onto the nest. I scoot backwards until I’m in the centre, giving them plenty of room to cuddle in close as they join me. I focus for a moment on Soren, checking him for any signs of rut, but his eyes are clear, and his alpha scent is like woodsmoke with a touch of spice. Nothing alarming, even when Emily nuzzles into him, her lips brushing over the sharp points of his collarbones.

Damn, but they make a pretty picture together.

I flick a glance towards the two other alphas in the room. Finn is his usual locked down self, but I’ve known him long enough to recognise the flickers of excitement behind his intense stare. As for Creed, there’s no denying the hunger in his eyes, but I’m humbled by the trust I also see burning there. It can’t be easy for him to watch his mate curl around the omega he’s already falling for, especially with so much still up in the air between them, but when he gives me a nod of encouragement, I turn my focus back to the nest.

Emily has untangled herself from the others enough to take in her surroundings, and has my shirt in her hands, her face hovering above the material. She’s breathing in my scent, but there’s a hint of uncertainty in her eyes as she glances at Soren. “What do I do…?”

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