Page 64 of Sweet Omega
“Luci! You can’t just say that and walk away.”
“I’ll see you downstairs,” Luci called over his shoulder, disappearing through the door.
Ludiin groaned in frustration, then shot to his feet. He rushed through his bath, tugged on fresh clothes, and all but ran for the stairs. The thought of ending his heat forever was like a light in a very dark and depressing tunnel.
“How do I do it?” Ludiin demanded the second he stepped into the cooking station, the aromatic scent of food doing nothing to calm the restless churn inside him.
“Sit down and eat,” Luci replied without looking up.
“Fuck, Luci, quit stalling,” Ludiin growled impatiently. “I need something that will stop this madness. Now.”
Luci finally turned, setting a steaming cup of tea and a small leather satchel on the counter between them.
“I’ll give you this, but under one condition,” Luci said, his tone brooking no argument. “You have to promise me you won’t back out when it’s time for you to go find an alpha for yourself. You’renot drinking this for the rest of your life, Ludiin. It’s just to get you through… whatever the hell is going on between you and Tarymn. It’s temporary.”
“I…”
“No arguments.” Luci’s voice cut like a blade. “Agree to this, or it’s not happening.”
“Fine. Fine…” Ludiin snatched up the cup, steam curling against his face, but Luci held his arm to stop him. “I’ll do whatever you say. Just give it to me.”
“No. Promise me, Ludiin.”
His jaw tightened. “Okay. I promise.”
Luci gave a curt nod. “You drink it every day from now on.”
“And I won’t go into heat?”
“Yes.”
“Good,” Ludiin muttered, lifting the cup to his lips. The tea was mild, with an herbal undertone that wasn’t so bad. “Why didn’t you give this to me before my first heat? I would’ve been happy never to go through it at all.”
“That’s not normal, Ludiin. And this is only temporary. Remember that.”
“Yeah… yeah…”
“I’m serious,” Luci pressed.
“Okay.” Ludiin dragged his plate closer and forced himself to eat, though every bite tasted like cardboard.
The door creaked open behind him, and he didn’t need to turn to know who had just walked in. His entire body reacted before his mind could catch up. His muscles tightened, pulse quickened, heat crawling under his skin.
Fuck.
He wished the tea could numb the damn feelings too.
Tension thickened the air, pressing down on Ludiin with crushing force, as if a giant hand had clamped over his chest,squeezing the breath out of him. He sat stiffly, every instinct screaming at him to run, but he forced himself to stay put.
I have to face this. There’s no escaping it.
They lived under the same roof, shared the same air. They couldn’t tiptoe around each other.
The tea would fix things anyway.
He won’t touch me again,Ludiin told himself, though the thought made his chest ache.
He exhaled slowly, pushing the feeling down where he couldn’t feel it. Still, the urge to cross the room and sink into Tarymn’s arms clawed at him, just to hold him, one last time. Instead, his fingers dug into the edge of the table, nails leaving faint half-moons in the wood.
