Page 80 of Running on Empty

Because as he turned his face to press a kiss into my palm, his eyes held mine, making clear he felt the same as me.

Fuck his mask, his cool, his arrogance. I surged forward, not content with palm kisses, not when my mouth ached for his. I brushed my lips against his, just a featherlight thing, as if dipping a toe into a too hot bath, but his hand slid up my neck, jerking me closer, his lips parting, his tongue flicking out to slide between mine.

Of course, he couldn’t let me just kiss him. He needed to muscle in, force things to move at his pace. But I smiled into the kiss. Because sometimes, just sometimes, when Ash Kelly controlled everything, we all got what we needed.

My need matched his, making the kiss hungry, biting and savage. Our wolves pressed against our skin, not willing to hold back anymore, taking bites out of each other to keep for later, in fear we wouldn’t have another opportunity. But right as my lips swelled, bruised and battered, as I pulled away, seeing his were the same, I stared into his eyes, my most distant of alphas, and told him the things that I hoped would break that mask of his.

“Maybe it could be like this.” My eyes dropped down, focusing on the mouth I wanted to kiss again, rather than those blue eyes that seemed to see every damn thing. “Maybe you could want me as much as I want you.”

“Fuck, if you think I don’t—”

I pressed my finger to his lips, shutting him up for once.

“Maybe we could work out a way through things as a pack, weighing up all the options, taking into account your need to make sure we’re all safe.” I dared to meet his eyes. “And Ronan’s need to tear our enemies apart and Jax’s need to keep us all happy.”

“And you? What do you need?” he asked me, steeling himself for the answer if the growing tension in his body was anything to go by.

So very much came rushing up, every single emotion screaming to be uttered, laid down before him, but I picked through them, choosing this one to share.

“To be a part of something.” I felt the tears burn in my eyes, wanting to be shared, but as I stared at him, I refused to let them fall. “To be truly an active and equal participant in something. Not someone who’s in a group, in a family due to accident of birth, allowed to stay there due to obligation, but someone wanted—”

“If you knew how much you are wanted—” he said, his grip on me tightening.

“I don’t know that, Ash, not yet. But I want to. I want you to wake up and convince me every day, show me in word and deed, in the ways I need it expressed, that I belong with you, that I should choose you and that you choose me.”

Part of me was still waiting for the other shoe to drop, that he would snort, smile and say something sarcastic. That I was just a little sister to him and he would never really see me that way.

So imagine my surprise when he didn’t.

His eyes turned turquoise and then green as he slowly leaned forward, hand on my jaw, as if giving me the opportunity to pull away.

“I’ll always choose you.” The way his voice sounded shredded, coarse with emotion, was everything I never knew I needed. “Always, omega, Stevie. I always have, even if I fucked it up utterly, but…” My heart felt like it skipped a beat as I watched a small smile form. “But I think you’ll find I’m a pretty fast learner, if you can bring yourself to teach me.”

Fucking smirky hot alphas.

The tears fell free as I launched myself at him, the small gap between us feeling like an insult to my honour, one I had to immediately avenge. I slammed my mouth down on his, loving the feel of his fangs and mine pressing against the plush surfaces, the softness of his hair as I finally raked my fingers through it, the sounds of his raspy breaths and then his hands sliding up.

He held me like I was precious, like I was his, his fingers branding my bare skin as they slid up the hem of my shirt, only able to go so far due to the flak jacket, but it was already so much more than I’d expected to feel and my kisses reflected that. I was gorging myself on Ash Kelly, kissing him over and over, the drive feeling like it took only seconds before we were forced to break away at the sound of the car driving into the car park beneath the bunker.

“So you’ve got your head out of your arse.” Ronan peered at his brother from the front seat, a small smile forming. “Good, because I have so many hot fucking scenarios in my head where we work so hard to make shit up to our omega.” His focus flicked to me, those green depths heating up. “Ones where you come and keep on coming, past the point you think you can’t anymore.”

Jax let out a pained sound at that.

“But not yet.” My wolf snarled at those words, unable to believe I was saying them, but when I reminded her that Scarlett was pack adjacent, she was somewhat placated. I stared down at Ash, seeing the blue return to his eyes, unaware he was reaching for that mask again. “We need to work out how we’re going to get Scarlett out of there while the Murder Daddies are brokering deals.”

“Murder daddies?” Came a strangled sound from the front seat, but my attention was on Ash. This was the first test and I wanted, needed for him to pass it.

“You sure you shouldn’t go and rest in your nest?” Ash asked me in that oh-so-reasonable tone.

“Nope.” I straightened up, looming over him for once in the backseat. “I want you to take us toyournest, where you recentre yourself and work out your next step, because this time, you’re doing it with us.”

Chapter48

Jax

The come down from a mission was always hard. The adrenalin that had you pumped up and ready to go left you feeling empty and hollow afterwards, but not this time. I watched my omega take my brother’s hand and lead him to his safe place, the command centre, and then mumbled the only thing that was appropriate.

“Fuck, she’s perfect…”

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