Page 12 of Deadly Ties

He smirks, his thumb still on my clit as he lifts my leg over his shoulder and sinks his cock to the hilt. His knot isn’t far behind and we both cry out at the sensation, our bond vibrating with our mutual pleasure. As he pushes it inside me and I fall open under his hands, he grins down at me. “No, now I definitely feel like a god.”

Elvana

The next morning Arben wakes me up with his mouth on my sore pussy, licking away the evidence of a day spent rutting into every horizontal surface in the cabin. The claw-footed tub in his tiny bathroom was my favorite, especially when he filled it with his shower gel and then fucked me over the side, our bodies slipping and slapping in the Arben-scented water. We let our wolves out for an afternoon run – along with some more doggy-style fun in the bushes – and after another shower he showed me a chest of drawers full of clothes in my size. I spent some time modeling his more daring choices, one particularly flirty sundress earning me a place on his lap, his mouth sucking on my bond mark while his cock knotted me to the brim. When we finally settled in his big bed for the night, he tucked my favorite green blanket around us, his big thigh slotted between mine. Every sweep of his fingers down my spine made me shiver. But with his purr under my ear, I was relaxed enough to fall asleep, both parts of my soul content that when we opened our eyes again, our mate would still be there.

One of our mates…

It’s a strange thought to open my eyes to, but it’s quickly lost as Arben’s hungry tongue flicks over my clit, his lips sucking at my folds. By now, he’s an expert at feasting, his appetite seemingly unquenchable despite his many, many meals, and I quickly shudder through a long, whining release. It’s only as I try to slide under the covers to return the favor that he shows some restraint.

“But I’m hungry, Alpha,” I pout, eyeing the impressive tent in the middle of our messy blankets.

He groans, but keeps my hand firmly off his cock. “I promised your father I’d bring you by for brunch,” he tells me, watching as the flirty smile slips off my lips. “We don’t have to go, but I think we should. There’s more to Lucas Ferrier than just the Alpha of Boston.”

I have to admit, I’m intrigued. It’s not like we didn’t talk yesterday, but we stuck mostly to light topics, neither of us keen to be distracted from our more pleasurable pursuits. But now our bond has settled a little, I’m curious about my supposed father. And exactly how Arben knows him. “I’m more interested in getting to knowyou, although I can sit through a breakfast, I guess,” I tell him with a hint of a pout. “But can you give me the highlights now? I don’t want to walk in there unprepared.”

He nods, and we both climb out of bed, sorting through our jumbled clothes as he fills me in. “The main thing is, he’s been working to help omegas for most of his life.” At my skeptical look, he sighs. “I know. Your mom. That’s something you’ll have to hear from him directly, but what happened to her, and being apart from you, it gave him a purpose. He started an organization. A network of supporters, all hidden from the authorities and protected from alpha influence.”

I blink at him. “You’re talking about the Omega Underground? I thought that was just an urban legend.”

“Like the bondlink?” He flashes those perfect teeth at me. “It’s one of the reasons I joined the Night River Pack. New York has always been the center of the illegal omega trade, and we agreed I should get all the way into the underbelly.”

I sink onto the edge of the bed, completely breathless. It takes me a moment to meet his eyes. “I didn’t know. I thought…”

“I was nothing but a ruthless assassin, doing Bisha’s bidding?” He gives me a soft smile, although it doesn’t quite meet his shadowed eyes. “I was that, too. I’m not trying to whitewash my past, my love. It’s just that many of my jobs met two purposes – those of the Head Alpha, while also satisfying the interests of the Underground. Ambitious, powerful men are too often involved in the seedier side of our world, princeshë.”

That’s not a revelation to me, but I’m still looking at Arben in a whole new light. It’s not like I want to remake him into some pure, virtuous image. I like my dark prince exactly as he is. But Ilovehim for his part in helping vulnerable omegas. “That makes me very happy,” I tell him softly. “To know you and Ferrier have been trying to help.”

He nods, coming around to button up my dress, his smile now reaching all the way to his hooded eyes. “Your father is a good man. I wouldn’t have let him near you if he wasn’t. But he’s also a way of getting closer to your missing omega.”

I gape up at him. “He knows where Kelly Prior is?”

“We have our suspicions. I’ve narrowed it down to two properties, both owned by the alpha I believe is responsible.”

“And how does Ferrier fit in?”

Arben brushes a thumb over his bite mark, watching my shivery reaction. “He’s been invited to the Fall Ball at the Crouch Estate this weekend.”

My lip pulls back on my teeth. I might not exactly be a social butterfly, but I’ve heardthatname. “Quentin Crouch is a disgusting slime of an alpha. Why would I want to step foot inside his house?”

He leans down to kiss the snarl from my lips. “Because that’s exactly the kind of man who buys an omega and locks him away from the world.”

I’m not really surprised to learn that Arben’s cabin is located on Ferrier land. Once we’re both dressed in our best brunch clothes – including suitable walking shoes – Arben leads me through the trees to the edge of the estate I caught a glimpse of while in wolf form. She’d taken little interest; with Arben’s hot wolf in her sights, she hadn’t cared much for something as boring as bricks and mortar. Or not until Arben took me back to his den and painted the cozy little cabin with my scent. But in the bright light of a new day, Ferrier’s house looms up through the trees like something out of a fairytale.

It reminds me of the châteaux I saw in the French countryside when I was at boarding school. Enormous, square, with lots of narrow windows, a sloping slate roof, and circular turrets rising up to sharp steel points. To gain access to the house, we have to pass through an ornate iron gate and then walk up a long crushed-stone path, massive trees on both sides. We pass a fountain with a pair of snapping wolves at the center, and I can see formal gardens and gleaming greenhouses through the trees. It’s all very impressive, and for a moment I wonder what it would have been like to grow up here, surrounded by so much beauty and space. Would the house in front of me have felt like a sanctuary, or a prison? Despite this morning’s revelations, I don’t really know enough about Ferrier to hazard a guess. But I’m almost certain it would’ve been a better life for my mom.

The thought churns in my belly as we reach a grand set of stairs, not so different from those outside the auction house. Arben must sense my unease because he stops at the bottom, his hand on my spine. It’s a gentle touch, but grounding, and he bends to rub his cheek across my temple. He doesn’t need to ask if I’m okay – he has a direct line to my emotions through our bond – but he gives me a moment to steady myself. “We can go back to the cabin,” he murmurs, his chin the perfect level of roughness against my skin. “Everyone else can wait.”

Everything, maybe, but not everyone. I want to know more about the omegas Ferrier is supposedly working to help. With a little effort, I keep thoughts of Kellman Prior’s flushed, muddy face away from our bond, but I’m honest enough to that I’m at least partially here for him. “I want to know what Ferrier knows about other omegas.”

Arben tilts my chin, those dark eyes drinking me in as he drops a kiss on my lips. It’s what I think of as his soothing kiss, designed to wrap me in a reassuring haze, and I melt into him for a moment. “As you wish, princeshë, but tonight you sleep back in my bed. Our bond demands it.”

“My wolf would literally tear her way out of my skin if I kept her from your den,” I tell him with a smirk. “And you’ve taken my favorite green blanket hostage, after all.”

His eyes flare – probably because of the word hostage, given who he is at heart. But all he does is lead me up the impressive staircase, his thumb grazing the top of my ass in a way that makes me wonder why we left his den in the first place.

Because omegas have to stick together, Elvi.

An important reminder as we reach a huge oak door that could probably repel an invading horde, although it swings open before we can knock. A tiny, elderly woman waits to greet us. She’s white-haired, her back a little bent, but there’s the faint wisp of omega about her. The word grandmother passes through my mind, but from her starched, formal uniform, I have to assume she’s some kind of housekeeper. I kind of want to roll my eyes at Ferrier. Not that he could take care of this massive house all on his own, but would it be too much to offer the poor woman a pantsuit?

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