Page 65 of Sweet Omega
Why did it have to be like this?
Silence stretched, taut and heavy.
“I’m gonna go… and…” Luci mumbled, awkwardly backing toward the door before slipping out, leaving them alone.
“Are you okay?” Ludiin asked after a beat. “You were gone when I woke up.”
“I’m fine. Just needed some air.” Tarymn stepped closer to the table, his fingers brushing over Ludiin’s before he took the cup of tea and lifted it. He sniffed, brows knitting. “What are you drinking? I’ve never smelled this before.”
“It’s… nothing. Just tea.” Ludiin reached for it quickly, swallowing the rest in one long gulp before carrying it to the sink.
“And this?”
Ludiin turned to see Tarymn holding the small satchel Luci had left behind. His gut twisted. He considered lying, but Tarymn would find out sooner or later.
“It’s tea leaves. To stop my heat.”
Tarymn froze, studying him as if weighing every word. “Is that what you want? To stop your heat?”
“Yes.” Ludiin took the satchel back, clutching it to his chest. “Weird things happen when I’m in heat. I don’t like it. It’s… better this way.”
They stared at each other for a tense moment. Ludiin looked away unable to hold his stare.
“I’m going to my den,” Ludiin murmured, moving toward the door.
“Ludiin?”
He stopped, pulse hammering in his ears. “Yeah?”
“I didn’t mean to pressure you. I was only trying to help.”
“I know, Tarymn.”
“Okay.”
Ludiin slipped out, each step heavier than the last. His chest ached, but he told himself this was the right thing to do. This way, they could be nothing more than stepbrothers. A family. And not whatever tangled thing they’d been drifting toward.
Chapter 13
Tarymn
Tarymn watched Ludiin walk out of the cooking station, a strange ache unfurling in the pit of his stomach, clawing its way up into his chest.
Ludiin was only doing what was best for himself, choosing his own path. He didn’t have to listen to him.
So why the hell did it hurt? The question burned as Tarymn stalked off to the gym, where he buried his feelings in the punching bag, each blow a desperate attempt to beat out the mess in his chest until his muscles screamed and his legs gave out beneath him. But the harder he pushed himself, the worse it became. The days bled into each other, and soon he couldn’t go a single one without fighting his feelings into exhaustion. And when he wasn’t in the gym, his thoughts were on Deltta and the disaster the planet was slowly turning into.
Guilt gnawed at him, whispering that he’d failed, that he should have seen it coming, should have stopped it before everything went to shit. Should have stopped Pharyi and his friends as soon as he heard them at the sphere, fuck the evidence.
“Aren’t you going to answer that?” Prita asked, his gaze fixed on the connector buzzing insistently on Tarymn’s desk. He shook his head. “It’s Maxus. He keeps asking when I’m coming back.”
The truth was, Tarymn didn’t know. After everything that happened, the thought of returning to work felt wrong. Though going back to work might have distracted him from thinking about a certain omega and his fucking feelings.
He needed a moment, a break from it all. Living in the same house with Ludiin was becoming increasingly hard to do.
His feelings were… with a small shake of his head, Tarymn pushed the thoughts aside not ready to face whatever was brewing in his heart. But still, he made no move to answer his connector. It kept ringing, each note shriller than the last, swelling in the silence.
“Fuck, I can’t take it,” Pitra muttered, snatching the device. He shot Tarymn a reproachful look before answering. “Yes, Alpha King, it’s Pitra.”
