Page 3 of Feral: Part Two
I shake my head, my breathing evening out. Discomfort wells up in my chest as sweat drips down my back. “You don’t get it, do you? He fucking needs you, Alpha, but he’s not going to ask because you haven’t been very nice.”
I saw the way he looked at Kael, the way his scent spiked with want and hurt before he walked away. They’re both so stubborn, but where Slate has been through so much, my Alpha doesn’t have the same excuse. I know he’s protecting me and I want that, but fuck, I don’t want it like this.
Kael runs a hand through his salt-and-pepper hair, his expression hardening as he parks his ass back onto his seat. “I’m trying, Preston.”
“Not hard enough,” I snap back.
I struggle to get off the chair, hating how I woke up this morning. The last day or so in Slate’s den had been heaven, a different kind of Paradise that I quickly fell in love with. But this morning, I was all too happy that Slate wanted to take care of me. Everything hurts. My ankles are swollen more than usual, my chest hurts, and I need to come.
Again.
Preferably twice and maybe even on that knot at the edge of Slate’s cock.
A frustrated whine tears from my throat as I put my full weight on my feet. Kael is there in an instant as he hoists me up into his arms. “I got you, princess. Let’s get you a bath. You’re looking a little swollen.” Concern bleeds into his voice as he starts down the hallway.
I growl, my lips curling as I glare at him. “It’s like my feet decided to say fuck you this morning.”
A soft laugh comes from him, the tension in the air dissipating a little bit. He sets me down on the edge of the tub and turns on the faucet, the water rushing in with a steady hum. He strips off his own clothes and then my lingerie, the sticky fabric peeling away from my skin. I watch as he fills the bath with one of my bubble bombs, a sweet lemon lavender that makes it hard to stay mad at him.
More that I’m disappointed, I guess.
Kael climbs into the tub first before holding out his hands to me, my instincts crying out for my Alpha. After neglecting him for the last several hours, I need him wrapped around me. I slide in and curl up in his lap, my arm against his chest, the warmth of the water easing the ache in my feet. He wraps himself around me, careful around my belly, and I sigh, resting my head against his shoulder.
“Would it really be that hard to love him?” I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.
Kael tenses beneath me as I just sigh, my body melting against his. I can feel the conflict in the bond, the confusion, and a tendril of fear that wasn’t there a few days ago. He can feel Slate through the bond the same way he can me, maybe even more, but for some reason, he’s fighting it.
And it’s going to tear us apart.
I start tracing small circles on his chest, hoping he’ll relax long enough to explain what’s going on in his head. Several moments of silence pass between us as he grabs the loofah from theedge and pours a healthy amount of body wash on it. The only sound in the bathroom is the soft drag of the loofah against my sensitive skin and Kael’s heavy breathing.
“I thought this was it,” Kael finally says, his voice rougher than usual. “A few weeks ago, we were going to be leaving here. We would be a pack, and we were going to finally take downThe Collective. Now? All that bullshit is up in flames.”
I tilt my head to meet his gaze. “And how do you think Slate feels? He was bonded six times and rejected each time, so they could create aFeral. Don’t look at me like that. You guys talk around me like I’m not here sometimes. I know I’m an Omega, but I’m not stupid. Alpha, heneedsyou. He needs all of us.”
Guilt flashes through his expression before Kael rights his expression. “Love is not part of the equation, princess. Not yet, anyway.” It almost feels like he’s trying to convince himself of something.
I grit my teeth together, pushing away from him just enough so that I can twist around to truly face him. It’s a tight fit, but I need him to see my face. “And that’s not what I asked you, Alpha. I asked, would it be that hard to love him?”
Kael’s shoulders fall as he rests a hand on my belly, his fingers splaying out over the stretched skin. I reach up in tandem and cup his face in my hands, feeling the scratch of his beard against my palm. “No, it wouldn’t be that hard. I see the way he takes care of you and the way he looks at Malik. He’s good for you.”
A smile takes over my face at those words, my fingers lingering on his cheek. “He could be good for all of us.”
Kael doesn’t respond to that, but I didn’t think he would. He just keeps watching me, his eyes dark with something I can’t read. Knowing better than to continue the conversation, I shift in his lap, a little whine of discomfort tearing from my throat, my belly tightening in a way that feels off. Kael frowns, his hand stilling on my skin. “What’s wrong? Is it the babies?”
I bite my lip, trying to focus through the discomfort. “I’m not sure. I’ve felt a little weird since yesterday.” My voice wavers, and I hate how vulnerable it sounds, but I can’t really hide it. It’s in my scent, in the bond, and hell, I know Kael can see the way my face is all twisted up.
His frown deepens as he tugs me closer to his chest. “I’m calling Nathan. I don’t like that.” The rest of the bath is silent as I mold against him again, my lids fluttering closed by the time he sits me back on the edge of the tub. “Let’s get you into your nest, hmmm?”
I already know he’s going to hate what I have to say, but it’s the truth. “I don’t have a nest anymore, Alpha. I have a den.Wehave a den.”
Kael grunts at my declaration but doesn’t fight it as he dries me off and then wraps the towel around me. “I really don’t like you crawling under the bed. Either of you. There’s not nearly enough space, and what if something happens? Only Malik can fit down there.”
I turn my nose up at him, trying not to laugh at how devastated my Alpha is at not being able to curl up with me in my nest. “But that’s where Slate feels comfortable.” The den under his bed, with its pile of blankets and darkness, is where he belongs, where I belong with him.
“He needs to build an actual den, then. Something a little bit safer and with more room.”
Kael has always been stubborn, but now he’s just pissing me off, even if that pout currently on his face is a little bit adorable. “A little gesture would go a long way. Why don’t you build him a den and see if he accepts it? Provide him a safe place to be, but big enough for two or three of us.” I glare at him, begging him to take the bait. “He won’t build it anywhere else because you’ve kind of made it clear that the only safe space he has is in that room.”
