Page 19 of Patiently Yours
It’s the smell. Or rather, the mix of smells. They’re all jumbled together in one big aroma that leaves me lightheaded in the most glorious way.
I can’t tell the scents apart, but I know that I feel at home amongst them. And that kind of familiarity makes my anxiety spike even more.
Ciro looks back at me and smiles, pretending politely that he doesn’t notice my pause in the doorway.
“Does it look okay?” he asks, and I realized he made the place look like this in order to make me more comfortable. My heart beats rapidly at the gesture alongside the assortment of scents in the air.
What is happening?
“It looks wonderful, Ciro.” I finally make my way into the space and follow Ciro to the couch. The fragrancy gets stronger, and it takes everything in me to not let the whine in my throat escape. I roll my eyes at the omega inside of me, begging her to calm down her hormones. She rumbles inside me as her response.
I know she’s trying to tell me something, but now isnotthe time.
There’s faint murmuring coming from the TV as we sit on the sectional. I feel myself sink into the comfortable material, the dim atmosphere putting my nerves at ease as I soak up as much coziness as I can. I turn to look at the snacks when I feel something soft under my fingertips.
I swipe my hand over the white blanket, admiring its fluffiness. Instinctually, I pick it up to wrap around me when the smell of its owner reaches my nostrils. The intoxication of it causes me to pause before I inhale even deeper.Coconut. And the most decadent version of it I have ever smelled.
I clutch it closer to my body, a certain calmness settling into my bones at the proximity of it.
“That’s Kendall’s.” I look over at Ciro; he’s watching me with a strange look on his face, like he isn’t surprised by my reaction to his pack mate’s blanket.That can’t be right. “Out of all of us, he’s the one that leaves his stuff around the most. Hoodies, blankets, books. You name it.”
I imagine finding a hoodie with this insane scent on it. An audible gulp almost escapes me.
“Do you want me to move it?” he asks, but he seems to be saying it out of courtesy rather than trying to take it away.
“Um.”No, I donotwant him to move it. My omega is unsettled at the very thought of it being taken from our grasp. “I’m actually kind of cold, do you think I could use it?”
Even as I say the lie, shame rises to the surface. What kind of person does this? Becomes possessive of a stranger’s blanket?
Before I can take back my question, Ciro nods. “You can definitely use it. Kendall won’t mind.” He tries and fails to hide the smile that takes over his face as he watches me wrap myself up in it. He looks almost joyful at my insistence to use his friend’s blanket.
He turns the volume up on the TV as I bring a corner of the blanket up to my nose and inhale.Gods,it’s even better up close. I feel like an absolute freak. Why does it smell like this?
You know why it smells like this.
No. I refuse to even entertain that idea.
But then the other scents drift to me, including Ciro’s spiced rum with hints of orange. The proximity of it causes me to perfume, adding my own scent to the mix. At first, my omega is pleased at the new sensation, but then I’m mortified.Ciro won’t be able to smell it, I reassure myself. Betas can’t smell omegas or alphas, not unless they’re pack. I think my ability to smell him is one-sided, a weird biological fluke.
But then I hear Ciro groan beside me as quietly as he can, the sound muffled but apparent.
I widen my eyes at him in realization. “You can smell me?”
“Yes.” Ciro looks at me with guilty eyes and I’m baffled. Mind-boggled. Betas normally don’t smellanyone.Except for one very specific case.
Scent matches.
“Can you smellme?” Ciro asks, and I realize there’s a nervousness in his voice. Maybe he was also under the impression this was one-sided, and that causes me to nod.
I wrap the blanket further around me, trying to contain my perfume from further invading their space. “I’m so sorry. I don’t normally do…thatunprovoked.”
This is so embarrassing.
“You seem to apologize a lot for things that aren’t your fault and also don’t bother me in the slightest.” That seems to break the tension. He gives me a gentle smile before continuing. “I think you smell incredible, Stacia. I don’t mind if we’re frank with each other about it. In fact, I’m quite straightforward about things in general, so let me know if anything I ever say makes you uncomfortable. That’s the last thing I would want.”
I nod, feeling a rush of warmth travel through my body. “I’m not uncomfortable right now at all. Thank you for having me over.”
His unease fades as his joy returns. He motions towards the coffee table. “So, I couldn’t quite decide on what to get, so I got a bit of everything. Hazelnut M&M’s, rice cakes, Oreos. I even got”—he grabs a certain green bag—“dill pickle chips. So, what are you in the mood for?”
