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His gaze swung from the frowning, grizzled face of Dr. Obi to a handsome omega standing beside him, and his heart stopped. Sheer beauty assaulted his senses: pale skin, dark hair, green eyes, and flesh that smelled like bliss. The omega stood tall and sharp-dressed in navy trousers, a black belt, and a moss-green oxford shirt, and he gripped the arm of a tall, muscular alpha in a tweed jacket. One moment Jason had his arm around Xan, and the next his life as he knew it ended. A raw, musky scent flooded Jason’s nose
Energy trembled inside him. He wondered what his omega was doing, where he was now, how he felt about what had happened.
Somewhere on Oak Avenue was a man who was Jason’s. A man he knew nothing about. A man his parents saw as a threat.
The thrumming undercurrent of alpha instinct searched constantly. (Where, where, where is he—he was right here last night—where has he gone?)
Vale lifted his arms. “And what do you think?” Jason’s throat clenched. “You’re beautiful.” “I’m much older than you must have been expecting.” “That doesn’t make you less perfect-looking to me.”
“What’s your favorite dessert?” “Cherry tart. Yours?” “Rhubarb pie.” “Oh, my. That’s sour. You must have a very sweet heart. That’s what my pater always said: a taste for sour foods reveals the sweetest heart.”
your pater…?” “They’re both long gone. It’s just me in the world.” “Not anymore.” Jason approached the window again to reach one hand inside, palm up. “I’m here now.”
Newspapers were for people who wanted to see all the ugly things in the world. Poets needed to see beauty or they’d never get a word down that wasn’t ruined by tears.
Vale was a marvel, and Jason had so little to offer him that was his own. He squeezed his eyes shut. Why did he have to be so young? Why hadn’t he been born when Vale needed him? Then they could have grown up together, developed their tastes as one, and lived the entirety of their lives, side by side.
Jason slammed his fist against his desk remembering. He hadn’t been enough. He should have been dashing and strong. He should have told Vale that he had…that he wanted…wolf-god, he still didn’t know what he should have said to the man, but it should have been something.
Vale’s voice was delicious. Jason wanted an entire bathtub filled with it so he could luxuriate in that honey for hours.
He’d wanted to be first in hopes of capturing a few precious moments alone with Vale. Even if it was on the front porch for propriety, it’d be amazing to have his undivided attention.
Vale was much more important than idiot alpha schoolyard posturing.
Jason bristled beneath the alpha quell, but in the space where there was room to dance, he kept it from showing as he stepped into the kitchen.
He thought about Rosen’s assessment of Vale’s voice when he was unhappy, and he wondered with a combination of joy and dread just when he might have the opportunity to hear it. Anger seemed such an intimate thing in a way. Something new to learn about Vale.
“I thought you said they dosed you.” “They did. Maybe they need to dose you with something, though, because you’re soaked for me. You shouldn’t suffer when I know what I want.”
He sipped tea, read a few pages, dozed a bit, dreamed of Jason’s fingers in his ass, and woke aroused all over again.
“It’s a good thing I dosed up on more alpha quell before coming in here, huh?” Jason lifted a brow. “Or I’d have failed the test for sure.” “It wasn’t a test.” Vale stood up, his body a livewire of denied arousal. “I wouldn’t do that to you.”
Urho stood on the walk halfway to the house, brows lifted in confusion and surprise. He wore a jaunty bowtie that made Jason think of Xan.
“I don’t care. I had to get out of there.” Xan set off toward the piers. “I hate Monhundy. I hate him so much. And I hate myself. I hate everyone.” He darted a glance at Jason. “Except you. I just wish I could hate you.”
Jason tried not to think of why Vale had an entire box of alpha condoms. Though of course he knew. Vale must have needed them plenty of times over the years, and it was good that he’d used them diligently. They’d kept him alive and safe for Jason to find him.
But life kept proving to him, over and over, that it didn’t give a damn what was supposed to happen. ‘Supposed to’ was for fairytales. No, Vale was here before him, on his knees, begging, after hours of pain. That was reality. Maybe it wasn’t romantic, or dreamy, or sweet. But it was real. It was his. Vale was his. To claim, and take, and soothe. To mark and fill. To forgive and love. Screw contracts, screw the chomping teeth of death, and most of all screw the fantasies he’d spun before he knew any better. This was his life and his omega. His Vale. He aimed his cock and covered Vale’s back,
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He gasped when Jason placed his hand around his throat—gentle, but masterful—and murmured, “Grab hold of the sheets. I’m going to fuck you now.”
“Give me your knot,” Vale begged. Jason leaned forward, laughing in Vale’s ear. “I took alpha quell. You’re going to have to wait a while.”
As Jason clung to him, Vale licked his lips, suddenly sure, and whispered the rest of the omega’s sacred words. “We are alpha and omega, the beginning and the end.” Jason lifted up to gaze down at Vale earnestly, sealing the vow with the alpha’s response. “We are alpha and omega. The everything.”
“This is the way life works. You’re young, so you don’t know that yet. But horrible things happen alongside wonderful things all the time. And if you let the horrible things detract from the wonder of the good things, you’ll never really feel true happiness.
Vale’s chest tightened as he watched Jason’s parents dote on each other. His had been the same. He knew over time his bond with Jason would only strengthen, and, eventually, they’d be like that as well. Jason’s hand sought his on the coverlet. Or maybe they were already there.
“This is my favorite slide right now. Let me show you.” Jason removed the sand dune grass slide and attached the other, bending over the microscope long enough to adjust the magnification. “There. Look.” “Oh! It’s like one of Rosen’s paintings.” “How so?” “The colors and the strong lines.” Vale leaned back from the microscope to look up at Jason with happy eyes. “What is it?” “Dust. Like the stuff all over your house.” He grinned. “Well, our house now, I suppose.” Vale laughed, his shoulders shaking, as he bent to gaze through the microscope lens again. “Just what are you saying, darling? I
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The blue sky stretched above, the world spun on around them, but on the roof outside Jason’s bedroom, they were all that mattered. Alpha and omega, coming together, full circle. The beginning and the end.
“Wake up, baby. Come swim with me. The water’s perfect.” He kissed Vale’s mouth. “Like you.” Vale laughed, grabbed hold of his happiness and didn’t let go, splashing after his future into the cerulean blue sea.
Wow 🩵
