Page 20 of Match (Damselverse #1)

Chapter twenty

Halle

P enn refused to let me go during the car ride back from the station, carrying me the whole way like a damsel in distress across his lap.

Only the sound of his soft purring filled the tense silence as Aiden drove us back to the pack house.

They knew. All this time, Pack Hope were aware that I was lying to them and that I had a secret pack all along.

An abusive, secret pack, and one I absolutely refused to return to, but the fact remains…

I am a liar in their eyes.

Being bonded to Penn now means that I am safe from Pack Grim. Well, technically speaking. They can’t hurt me anymore in theory, but I know my old pack…

They won’t give me up so easily. They hate to lose, even if all they’ll lose will be little old me.

They never cared about me. I was their plaything, something they liked to torment when they were bored.

So, now that I finally belong to another, what will they do? A shiver skitters up my spine at the dreary thought.

Penn must sense my unease because his purr deepens, and then I sense his gentle caress through our newly forged bond as he reassures me, not for the first time, that I am safe from those monsters.

“It’s okay, princess. You are safe now. I won’t let anything happen to you again.”

I sigh, burying my face against the juncture of his shoulder and neck as I breathe in his minty, new book scent.

When exactly he acquired the mint scent, I can’t tell, but there’s no missing it now when I brush my nose along his warm, tanned skin.

The Alpha shudders, and then his purr intensifies yet again.“It’s okay, princess. You are safe.”

The nickname is new, beginning back at the jail cell. He just randomly blurted it out during the heat of passion, and I wonder if it has to do with his love of books and heroism in general.

That said, I’m not even sure what his favorite genre of fiction is. That is something I need to rectify soon.

The scent of charred smoke reaches my nose, and I become aware of Dane in the passenger seat of the car.

I don’t mean to ignore him, but I hope he understands that I need this moment with Penn. When he was gone, my Omega was in complete disarray, and she needs to find her equilibrium again.

Dane’s promise still rings through my head. He vowed to bond me, too, but he wants the occasion to be special.

Not sudden and spontaneous as it was with Penn.

Penn and I need to consummate our bond as soon as possible. My core is aching, and I know exactly what my Omega wants.

No, needs. This is a matter of life and death; I could become seriously ill if I don’t get the care I need right away to solidify the bond.

We soon pull up outside the pack house, and Penn whispers in my ear, his breath brushing against the shell. “We’re home.”

I lift my head from his shoulder, peering around the car. Dane smiles at me from the front seat. He gave up the backseat so Penn and I could make up for lost time.

The two of us needed our moment together.

Aiden doesn’t glance my way, though, and his rejection stings.

He's mad at me for lying, and he’s mad at Penn for telling me that they knew I belonged to another pack all this time.

Again, Penn senses my discomfort. He holds me closer, then opens the car door without another word to his pack brothers.

Right now, he will want me all to himself. Alphas get very protective of their Omegas when a bond is new and fresh.

Dane and Aiden continue to give us space as the Alpha takes me into the house, carrying me all the way upstairs, and when we turn down a familiar corridor, my heart pounds faster.

The anticipation gets the better of me, and I can’t help the excited little noise that escapes my mouth.

It's happening .

My old pack refused to touch me, but it seems I may finally get the fairy tale ending I always dreamed of.

The moment we step into my nest, it occurs to me that Penn has never been inside. Only Dane ever popped his head in to check in on me from time to time, but this is new territory for me.

Penn is in my personal space, and my Omega buzzes with excitement.

The Alpha lays me down on my bed gently, as if my whole body is made from the finest porcelain, and my Omega sheds tears for the umpteenth time.

She’s an emotional wreck, but when he was gone, I was convinced—no, she was convinced—that I would never see him again.

But we’re together again. That is all that matters.

Now, it is just me and Penn as he places my head down on a pile of fluffy pillows, gathering several more until we have a full pillow fort.

Then, he starts peeling off my cocktail dress, taking it off over my head. The bra and panties come next. Once I’m naked, he just stares at my body for a while, a lump running up and down his throat.

He doesn’t speak, but I just lie there, basking in his undivided attention. My Omega preens when his gray eyes flicker up and down her body, landing on my pebbled breasts and the wet mound between my legs.

A generous amount of slick pours from my slit, and a low, choked growl vibrates in his throat.

“Holy shit,” he whispers. “Halle…you’re magnificent.”

My Omega melts into putty at the compliment, but it occurs to me that he’s hesitant.

Why?

I mean, just look at him. Even his face looks as if it was sculpted from the finest marble. Strong, angular lines form the edges of his jaw to the fine tip of his nose.

Penn is a work of art, and he calls me magnificent.

I never believed I was beautiful in any fashion. In fact, I’m self-conscious of my body, as my pack always made me feel inferior to other women.

My breasts aren’t big, but I am lucky in the ass department—voluptuous hips and natural curves.

I spy the evidence of Penn’s arousal behind his pants. That has got to hurt. He will give himself blue balls at this rate if he continues like this.

So, it’s best he starts taking some clothes off.

Where has that passionate Alpha gone? The one who beat up a man at a bar for me?

Now, he is shy bookworm Penn again as I reach across, tugging down his zipper as carefully as possible. His fingers curl around my wrist gently, and he shuts his eyes.

He is nervous.

So, I shuffle closer, getting up on my knees so I can brush my hand across his cheek.

“Halle,” he says. “I’m sorry. It’s been some time since I…you know…"

Oh.

Well, luckily, I’m not so green in that department. My Alphas did fuck me sometimes . Just not a lot.

Mostly, they liked to keep me begging.

I shrug. “It’s okay if you’re inexperienced."

His eyes shoot back open. “Oh, trust me. I’ve done it plenty of times. It’s just been some time since it had meaning.”

Now I see.

So, this means I mean something to him. My Omega gets all giddy at the prospect, but I shut her up.

He bonded us. Of course we mean something to him. Get over yourself.

But she just continues to blabber like a happy idiot.

I wish someone had warned me the day I presented as an Omega that I would end up with a dual personality.

Because this is hard work.

My Omega and I don’t always align, but when we do… fireworks.

So, I trace my fingers over Penn’s jawline to silence her. “It’s fine, Penn. If it makes you feel better, sex has never meant anything to me. Just a way to shut my Omega up.”

Something flickers inside Penn’s gray eyes. “I’m sad to hear that.”

I shrug, peering down at the mattress. “Well, that’s just how it is. Some girls have it all.”

Like Hattie, CEO of Hattie’s Nesting Supplies.

She’s only in her thirties, yet her life is so much better than mine.

Now his hand reaches up to the back of my head as he threads his fingers through my hair. “Well, maybe it’s time someone showed you what sex is really all about, princess.”

My heart flutters along with my pussy, and then I suck in a deep breath. “All right… Can I take your shirt off?”

He raises a playful brow. Then he nods, and my fingers work at his buttons. They’re a little tricky, but I manage to get two buttons undone before he says, “Just rip it open. I know you want to.”

Oh, hell yeah.

So, now I tear his shirt apart, letting the buttons pop loose as I finally feast my eyes on his body.

He's as sculpted as his face. More sharp lines and angles as I run my hand down his pectorals to his abdominal muscles.

Damn.

His muscles flex beneath my touch, but his skin is surprisingly very soft.

“Halle,” he breathes, but I shush him as I drag him down to the pillow, and that’s when his Alpha comes to life.

His gray eyes glow silver now as he brushes his mouth across his bitemark, and I sense the sizzle between our bond.

The tether buzzes, and I close my eyes, mini-orgasming just from the sensation of his teeth on my neck as he licks a path across his bite.

Penn takes off his pants, stepping out of each leg as he lines himself up with my entrance. And then he slips inside me so effortlessly, a gasp escapes me.

He hasn’t even started moving, yet he already has me at the edge.

When he rolls his hips, building up a steady rhythm, my mind blanks. My vision clouds as I arch my back, wrapping my legs around his tapered waist.

At this new angle, he changes his pace, snapping his hips faster as we both chase our release.

I see it. A burning hot light at the edges of my vision.

Through our bond, I can sense that Penn feels it, too. And I know the exact moment he reaches it, tipping right over the edge.

I fall right after him, and when the burning light intensities, scorching us both and firing up our bond, I scream.

One that seems to shake the very foundations of the earth.

Our joint orgasm crashes through me, and I never believed in a million years that it could be this way.

Not only does my own pleasure fire up my bloodstream, but Penn’s, too. My fingers and toes curl, nails digging into the taut muscles of his back as I rake my claws across his skin.

It's my very own claiming mark.

Penn roars, sweat dripping from his face as he comes hard, and then his knot swells.

And swells.

It stretches muscles I never knew existed, and I gasp as he expands my insides.

Fuck. I am so full. It’s the best sensation in the world.

We’re both trembling as he knots me fully, and when he presses his forehead to mine, he closes his eyes, brushing a sweet sigh over my sweat-soaked face.

His glasses are completely fogged, and I take them off, folding them up nicely as I know he would appreciate that.

Now I get a full look at his handsome face.

That dimpled mouth tempts me once again, the fairy lights of the nest making his skin soft and dewy as I reach across, biting and kissing his lips.

Penn growls, thrusting his tongue deep into my mouth. His cock flexes inside me, and I moan when it scrapes the right spot.

So, this is what it is like to be knotted?

I wasn’t a virgin before, but I may as well have been where knots are concerned.

Whenever one of my old Alphas were about to knot me, they would pull out and keep me wanting.

Yet Penn just gives me more as he keeps shifting his hips, changing his angle, loving every sound that escapes my mouth.

“How does it feel?” he rasps, his voice hoarse.

I open my eyes, meeting his gleaming silver pair. “Like I’ve been reincarnated.”

It’s true. I have been born anew.

Penn smirks and…holy shit. That wicked grin suits him. He’s always so proper and polite, but in the bedroom…he is wild.

What else will I discover about this clandestine Alpha?

I can’t wait to find out.