Page 100 of Begrudgingly Yours
My body may be sore, but I feel accomplished. When you’re an omega, your first heat hangs over your head like a dangling sword, ready to swoop down and slash you at any moment. A lot of omegas avoid bonding so they never have to experience it. But I lost myself in it, let my omega take the reins, and it was fine. The scariness of it seems silly now as my mates prepare my shower and order food and continue to take care of me.
It’s a beautiful moment to be an omega, I realize. I would never have experienced this as a beta, never would have gained this new appreciation for my alphas or felt this kinship with them. In this moment, I find myself loving my designation (therefore loving myself), completely. I take a breath with my omega as one for the first time, no distinction. No revelation has ever been so sweet.
FORTY-SIX
It’s bittersweet being back at Bensen.
We all knew our safe haven in New York had to come to an end and we’d be forced to go back to our academic lives, I just didn’t expect it to feel like going in reverse. Rory went back to her home with Opal, Jett went back to the dorms, and Dax and my room at Alpha Xi has never felt so empty.
Now that we’re bonded and an official pack, going back to our normal routine is hard. Living apart doesn’t feel right anymore, and I know Dax is thinking the same thing.
“Can I get a caramel macchiato with one pump of cherry syrup, please?” my best friend asks with a straight face when we get to the front of the line. The cashier gives him a weird look. It’s only for a slight second, but the judgment in it makes me snort.
“Yes, sir. Anything else?” she asks, trying to put her professional facade back on.
He orders our usuals and by the time we make it to an empty table outside, Jett and Rory greet us.
“Trying to get a shared cab with this one was awful,” Rorysays while pointing at Jett. “Literally no one wants to pick up college students from campus.”
She gives me a kiss and then leans over to give Dax the same. The casualness of it makes my heart speed up.
“What, no kiss from you?” Dax quips towards Jett but he just hits him in the back of the head in response.
“What is that?” Rory asks as she looks at the coffee Dax just placed in front of her.
“Your drink,” he responds before pushing it closer to her. “Trust me, I think you’ll like it.”
She gives us both suspicious looks, but decides to take a sip anyway. When she lets out an ungodly moan, Dax beams from ear to ear.
“There’s no way…” Rory looks at us like we’re sorcerers.
But, instead of letting the illusion play out, Dax tells her the truth. “Stacia says she’s paying it forward. That it’s fair game because of all the information you gave Ciro last year.”
Rory lets out an actual snort. “Yeah, I was pushing that agenda pretty hard. Not so discreetly. But hey, you saw how that worked out! They’re so in love.” She gets this dreamy look in her eye, then she takes another sip. “It only makes sense that she would try to do the same for me. As long as you guys don’t judge my coffee order.”
I put my hands up in surrender. “We don’t, but the cashier definitely did. That was probably more about Dax in his six foot glory ordering it than anything.”
Our eyes meet and the blue in hers is practically glowing. A rush of emotions that aren’t mine hit me, and I’m left with a massive itch that I can’t scratch on my own. When I realize that Rory is accidentally letting her emotions through the bond, my lips curve.
Looks like my omega is feeling horny.
I can’t help but feel smug. Having an omega that looks at me like that is the universe’s greatest gift.
Being bonded is the only thing that’s kept all of us sane during our time apart. If I couldn’t check in with her at any point of the day by tugging on the bond between us, then I would have moved into her tiny bedroom days ago.
Rory breaks contact from my smoldering eyes and shakes the thoughts away. A slight blush falls over her features as she realizes she let the wall slip. “Do you guys want to take a walk?” she asks as a way of changing the subject and maneuvering the energy in the air.
If Jett and Dax noticed the same thing I did, they don’t comment on it. We all get up from our outdoor table and begin our walk down the peaceful downtown street.
Jett and Rory start telling us about how excited they are for opening weekend, and the mood turns hopeful. The end of the semester is right around the corner, and we still haven’t found where we’re going to live. All of our schedules have been so busy that house-searching has fallen to the side for the time being.
When we walk by a sea of town homes, all two-stories with original brick, Rory lets out a gasp that causes us to flinch.
“Jeez, Rory,” Jett says, holding his heart. “What’s up?”
Her eyes brighten and when she looks over at our state of surprise, she scoffs. “You three need to get used to living with a dramatic omega. I will be making that noise a lot.”
“I sure hope so,” Dax murmurs, but I hit him in the shoulder to shush him before our conversation turns into something we can’t begin or end.
