Page 43 of Alpha Mates

“I’m trying to sleep,” he grumbles, tugging the sheets higher.

“Not hide?” I shoot back.

A dry laugh. “We both need our sleep,” he informs from his sacred corner, “especially you. You have to wake up at four for the search.”

“And I’ll sleep right after,” I murmur, eyeing the strands of blonde escaping his self-made cocoon. They’re easy to spot in the dark, and unfairly coaxing. I reach out and touch. It’s soft.

“Have you already forgotten that you’ve just volunteered to attend a certain institute that’s open five days a week, six hours a day, serving barely edible food occupied by hormonal, human teenagers?”

I make a show of groaning, and the mattress shakes with Julian’s laughter.

“Do I really need an education?” I mutter while I toy with the single strand. Mine isn’t nearly this soft.

Peeking finally, he looks over his shoulder just as I snatch my hand away.

“More than anyone I know,” he chuckles, oblivious.

“Shut up,” I grumble, even though I want nothing more than for him to keep laughing. He does, rolling onto his back, smile wide, and eyes bright. They stand out in the night, like his hair, and my fingers twitch.

“You don’t have to come,” he reminds me, tilting his head to look at me.

“I already told you,” I whisper, meeting his gaze. “I want to.”

Julian’s laugh dries out and his smile wavers. His eyes dart between mine, and something shifts. He turns like he’s about to roll back over and hide again, but I’m faster. I slip an arm over his stomach and curl my hand around his waist to keep him in place before I close the remaining space between us.

Julian’s hand falls over mine as he sucks in a breath that he doesn’t let go. Blue eyes dart to mine, the only part of him that moves with the rest of him locked, but he doesn’t push me away.

“What are you doing?” he whispers stiffly.

“Sleeping,” I say. “Trying to,” I amend before my gaze drops to his neck. His scent rises like a spell. “You said we need our sleep,” I mumble before I lean in, and greedily fill my lungs with it.

Julian’s next breath shudders out of him as his hand tightens around mine. I wait for the shove, but when it doesn’t come, I swipe his hair away from his neck so I can scent him properly. His body melts, fitting against mine like a puzzle piece. His fingers loosen, and I tug him closer. He tilts his head up to breathe me in too, and I groan because I instantly want more.

I thread my legs through his, forcing one over mine, and still, Julian doesn’t push me away. He’s wonderfully,intoxicatinglypliant for me, which is not something I ever imagined Julian Heil to be, but I adore it.

We shift closer, inch by inch, until breathing without touching is impossible. Then I feel a tentative arm slide over my waist.

Pleasure strikes my nerves like lightning, jolting every corner of my soul and demanding that it notices this moment.

Thisis what I wanted. This touch, this warmth, and not just from my mate, but from him—from Julian.

Alarms ring in my mind, but I’m quick to shut them down. They can ring all they want when morning comes, for now, I want to savour the pleasure of having him so close.

“Good night, Aiden,” he whispers against my skin, and Goddess help me.

“Good night, Jewels.”

Chapter 9

Aiden

In my humble opinion, nobody should be doing anything at four in the morning, least of all dragging their ass out of bed. But alas, duty calls.

Well, duty tries to call. It knocks against my skull like a gong, but it goes unanswered as I once again look at the guy curled up against me. Right on schedule, my heart swells, and I don’t even try to fight it.

I’d set my alarm an hour early, thinking I’d have enough time to get my shit together before heading out. I’d figured Julian would turn it off if I couldn’t, and hopefully fall back asleep before he noticed anything. But when my phone started it’s ringing, I reached over and switched it off, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

When the night terrors first started, my parents had tried everything to stop them. But there’s no simple cure for an ingrained fear response, and if there is, they wouldn’t have found it in the shadows of our home. But everything had to be kept hush-hush. They couldn’t let the pack know about their alpha’s biggest failure, so the night terrors endured.