Page 24 of What A Croc
“Yours,” he whispered, not bothering to open his eyes, his words heavy and slurred. “My alpha.”
Chapter Eleven
Jackson
Leaving Robert in the middle of my king-sized bed had been one of the hardest things I had ever had to do. I hadn’t wanted to leave him, but I knew I needed to take care of some things while his heat was abated for the time being. Since this was our first heat together, I had no idea how much time we had before his next round would hit. When I had tried asking him, while I was cleaning us both up after my knot had abated, Robert had been completely out of it. Mumbling words that made little to no sense, that sounded like “Shouldn’t be happening” and “Never been like this.”
I’d left off trying to get coherent answers out of him, instead quickly packing a bag for Aiden to drop off at Brendan and Ryan’s. I thanked the Goddess for about thehundredth time as I drove out of town to their house that I had lucked into such a great boss and friend.
Surprisingly, Aiden had been awake when I’d arrived, and I realized it was still relatively early for a Friday night, not quite ten yet. Trying to explain to my son why he had to stay with The Sinclairs for a couple of nights was hard, and I wasn’t sure he fully bought or understood my, “I need to help a friend” explanation. But I was in no way ready to have the alpha/omega talk with him, and he wasn’t ready for that either. I also wasn’t going to go into the fact that Mr. Robert and I were fated mates and all that entailed.
I was totally avoiding all of that, especially since I hadn’t exactly told Aiden I was going on a date tonight. I might have fibbed and said I was having dinner with a friend, which I had often done in Connecticut, totally leaving out the date part. That was a delicate subject I hadn’t been ready to broach with Aiden yet.
Glancing at the clock on my car dash as I pulled into Robert’s shared drive and parked by his cabin, I hurried out of my car. I had already been gone for over half an hour. I needed to hurry and get Robert’s things and get back to him. The time between omega’s heat bouts could range from as little as a half an hour to several hours. Levi had leaned more towards an hour and a half between cycles, but Robert’s heat had come on quickly and progressed rapidly.
Everything inside of me was urging me to get back to him. I hated leaving his side, even though rationally I knew he would be fine, and I needed to take care of these things. Aiden needed clothes, as did Robert. Luckily, I had just been to the grocery store, and was pretty stocked up on food. Ryan had offered to drop anything off we might run low on, and I had appreciated that kindness so much.
Once I grabbed Robert's things, we should be all set, and I could get back to my mate.
Forgot one thing, my croc snarked, sounding smug.
What?I opened my car door, shutting it quickly and quietly. Wyatt and Becks’ house was a decent way from Robert’s cabin, but it was shrouded in darkness and they did have a small child. I didn’t want to wake them unnecessarily. I would text Wyatt in the morning to let him know where his dad was and what had happened.
Knotting condoms, my croc yawned, stretching beneath my skin.Or any condoms, for that matter.
My heart hammered in my chest.Well…fuck.
Pretty much,my croc agreed smugly.You fucked him pretty damn good. Sans condom.
How the fuck had I forgotten a condom?
Uh, because you haven’t needed any for how many years now?My croc seemed bored with this entire conversation.Not like you and Levi used them and well…you haven’t exactly been interested in getting your dick wet since hepassed. Well done, Robert. But yeah, birth control wasn’t in your train of thoughts earlier.
Still, none of that was an excuse for completely forgetting. The thought hadn’t even entered my mind to stop and have a conversation with Robert about birth control. Not that he was in any better state than I had been. He’d been less coherent than me. Our bodies’ needs completely taking over any responsible thought patterns we should have had.
As shifters we were immune to sexually transmitted diseases, but pregnancy was a valid concern, especially during heat sex. Omegas’ heats made them extra fertile, the purpose behind them being breeding and procreation.
I definitely needed to stop at the drugstore before they closed, which meant I needed to hurry up and grab Robert's things. And not get sidetracked by any thoughts of breeding, or what Robert would look like swollen with our child. Honestly, I’d had more than one dream about that very thing the past week, and I needed to focus on something else. Anything else.
Silently walking up the porch steps, I was about to unlock the door with the key I had found in Robert’s pants, when the scent of wolf and something else paused my hand an inch from the door.
Turning my head, I saw the two figures sitting silently in the rocking chairs on the porch. Wyatt stood up, all the muscles in his thin frame tight, and Becks, the huge wolfof a mate of his, reached out a hand and placed it on his arm. “What are you doing and where is my Pops?”
“I can explain.” Turning to face them both, I held my hands out, showing them I had Robert’s keys. I wanted to make it clear I had permission to be there and wasn’t up to no good, because having two apex predators face off in a small space never ended well. Becks was the sheriff and Robert's son-in-law, and the way the man’s dark eyes were staring at me, I might just be calling Brendan for bail money if I didn’t start talking. And fast.
“Where’s my Pops?” Wyatt demanded again, and I could hear the hint of concern in his voice.
“Your dad is at my house,” relaxing my shoulders, I jingled the keys to assure them I wasn’t breaking in. Rubbing a hand over my nape, I told them, “He, ah, went into heat at the restaurant.”
“Yeah,” Becks nodded, “I can smell it on you. I’m gonna go to the house. It’s a little too…ah…strong for me.”
Wyatt shook the baby monitor I saw he was holding, and then handed it to his mate. “I’ll be there in a bit.”
Realizing I hadn’t showered, just swiped a cloth over myself before leaving my house, I grimaced.
“Sorry,” I called weakly to Becks’ retreating back, and he just waved a hand at me, moving quickly across the yards.
“So why isn’t Pops here?” Wyatt demanded, arms crossed over his chest, as he gazed at me with narrowedeyes shaped exactly like Roberts. The two of them really did look a lot alike, even if they were built completely differently.
