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CHAPTER FORTY-TWO

NOVA

T he first thing I notice when I wake is warmth. Not the oppressive kind that’s plagued me for days, but a steady warmth that envelops me as though I’ve plunged into a deep tub. My cheek presses against firm, tattooed skin, rising and falling with each drag of his slow breaths. My lashes flutter open, and I blink against the soft fae lights signaling morning.

The spell is still active—his features remain just as warped as before, hand-plucked outlines of perfection that my wolf purrs over but my logical mind refuses to assign too much meaning to. His scent—familiar now after days spent drowning in it—envelops me, and fuck if I don’t want to take it with me. There’s that refreshing coolness, that sweetness that lingers like a whispered memory on my tongue. I hate how good it smells. Hate how it makes me want to stay wrapped in it forever.

He shifts beneath me, his muscles flexing as he stretches, and I realize with a flush of heat that I’ve draped myself over him like some clingy blanket. My arm is slung over his chest, my leg tangled with his, and my face buried against the curve of his neck. I jerk upright, trying to untangle myself without too much fumbling.

“Good morning to you, too,” he drawls, the modulator still softening the edges. He doesn’t move to sit up, just rests his hands behind his head like we’re sharing some lazy morning after nothing at all happened.

“Morning,” I mutter, avoiding his heated stare as I shift back to my side of the nest. My fingers curl in the blanket, the scent of him still potent in the fabric, and I bite the inside of my cheek. “Thanks for staying.”

“Didn’t really have much choice, did I?” His tone is teasing, but not unkind. “You were very … persuasive.”

So I might’ve had a little heat spike in the middle of the night with some intense cramps. He’s the only solution to that problem.

I narrow my eyes at him. “Don’t make me regret this.”

He chuckles, a sound that’s warm and irritatingly pleasant. “I’m only teasing. I’m more than happy to help, and now I can stop taking suppressants if we make this a regular thing.”

“Wait.” I still. “Alphas have to take suppressants?”

“In addition to our bracelets.” He adjusts his hold on me so he can get a better look. “The urge to rut is near-constant otherwise. As long as an alpha can help an omega through her heat periodically, the overwhelming need to rut goes away, and shots aren’t necessary.”

“And you’ve just been doing shots this whole time?”

He nods.

“What changed? Why did you decide to go to a heat clinic? Anonymous sex too enticing to pass up?”

He smirks. “Without getting into too many identifiable details, let’s just say I moved, and was tired of the horrible side effects of the shots. I was pretty apprehensive about this, but now? I’m glad I did it.”

A small part of me preens at the compliment, but I shove it down. “So, this is the part where we just … leave, right?” I pull the blanket tighter around me. “No awkward goodbyes, no unnecessary exchanges?”

He clutches his chest with the hand not already gripping me to him. “You wound me.”

I roll my eyes, but a smile tugs at the corner of my lips. "Somehow, I think you'll survive."

He grins, his eyes sparkling with mischief. "I don't know, you're pretty unforgettable. Might take me a while to recover from your rejection.” His tone is playful, but there’s a hint of sincerity in his eyes that catches me off guard.

“There’s always your fist.” I grin up at him.

He barks out a laugh. “There will be plenty of that to tide me over.”

“There’s always her ,” I whisper, tracing the tattoos on his chest with my fingers.

“Her?” He glances down at me.

“Whoever I look like.”

He’s quiet for a long moment before dropping his head back onto the pillow. “That’s not possible.”

“Why not?”

“She’s forbidden.”

“Ohhh, is she your best friend’s mate?” I drop my chin, pretending to clutch my pearls.

He chuckles. “Nothing like that.”

"Then what is it?" I press, my curiosity getting the better of me. "Why is she forbidden?"

He sighs, his gaze drifting towards the other side of the room. "It's complicated. Let's just say she's ... off limits. Completely unattainable."

“Sorry to hear that.”

“What about you?”

“You mean, who do you look like?”

He nods.

I give him a shit eating grin. “A mashup of several males, I think.”

He laughs, the sound rumbling through his chest. "So, I'm just a generic template, huh? No one specific comes to mind?"

I shrug, tracing lazy patterns on his skin. "Maybe bits and pieces. The eyes of one, the smile of another. But really, you’re like a cryptid.”

“Just a regular ol’ Frankenstein, I suppose.”

“A who?”

He shakes his head. “Nevermind.”

I glance around the room, taking in the state we’ve left it in. “This place reeks of pheromones. There’s come and slick everywhere.”

“Let’s hop in the shower, then I’ll feed you before we go.”

Reluctantly, I extract myself from his warm embrace. The chill air hits my bare skin, making me shiver. He notices and pulls me close again, rubbing his hands up and down my arms to ward off the cold.

“Why the fuck is it so cold in here?”

“Heats and ruts are hot, so the temp stays low.” His eyes shoot to the low, fae light-decorated ceiling. “Beta, can you warm the room, please?”

The automated voice I’d completely forgotten about answers. “Temperature set to seventy-two degrees. Please let me know if you need anything else.”

We make our way to the en suite bathroom, the warm air a welcome respite from the still-freezing bedroom. The shower is spacious, with multiple showerheads and a built-in bench. He turns on the water, adjusting the temperature until it's just right, and I step under it when he gestures for me to give it a go.

The hot spray of water feels heavenly against my skin as we take turns getting our hair wet.

Our alpha likes us.

Go away. You got your knot.

I want it again.

I suppose that’s something we can both agree on, but I’ll never admit it out loud.

The alpha tries to keep things perfunctory, but even I can’t miss the sexual tension between us. It’s really fucking hard to ignore a man who looks like the amalgamation of every single hot guy I know.

His hands massage my scalp, fingers threading through my wet hair as he works the shampoo into a lather. I lean into his touch, my eyes fluttering closed, and a soft moan escapes my lips as I rest my forehead on the tile wall.

“Careful, Omega,” he warns, fingers stilling.

“You’re the one giving me a freaking orgasm.”

“I’m lathering your hair,” he deadpans.

“Same difference.”

He spins me around to face him so fast I barely have time to register it before he’s got my wrists pinned above my head. His grip is firm but not painful, his eyes boring into mine with an intensity that makes my breath catch in my throat. Water cascades over his broad shoulders and down his chiseled chest, droplets clinging to his skin like dew on a morning leaf. A really sexy one.

"You trying to trigger another rut? Because this is how you do it.”

“How’s that?”

“Perfuming this whole bathroom, your little moan, talking about making you orgasm.”

I meet his gaze defiantly, lifting my chin. “Pinning me against the wall like this isn’t helping either. If anyone’s triggering something, it’s you, Alpha.”

His nostrils flare as he inhales deeply, no doubt scenting my growing arousal. Slowly, he lowers my arms, his touch lingering on my wrists before releasing me.

“Apologies, Omega.”

“I didn’t say I didn’t like it,” I grin up at him before stepping back under the spray and rinsing the shampoo out of my hair, all the while I ignore the heavy erection between his legs.

I turn my back to him, letting the water sluice over my face and down my body. I can feel his eyes on me, tracing the lines of my curves, the swell of my ass as I run conditioner through my hair. The tension between us is a living, breathing thing that threatens to lay waste to us both.

When finished with the bottle, I hand it to him, and he keeps his eyes on me while he shampoos and conditions his hair.

Our heavy stares never leave each other as he drops to his knees with a small container of body wash. He squirts a bit into his hand.

“Can I wash you? My wolf is riding my ass about taking care of you, and it doesn’t feel right to just pump you full of come and not do this.”

I nod my consent, my heart galloping as he begins to lather the body wash over my skin. His touch is reverent, his hands gliding over my curves with care. He starts at my shoulders, massaging the tension from my muscles before moving down my arms, his fingers trailing fire in their wake.

He takes his time, worshipping every inch of my skin as if committing it to memory. When he reaches my breasts, his breath catches, his pupils dilating with desire. Gently, he cups them, his thumbs grazing over my nipples until they pebble.

“Are you sore?” he rasps.

I nod, watching as droplets gather on his lashes as he kneels before me. “I did take your knot. Multiple times every morning, noon, and night.” Grinning, I run my fingers through his wet strands, pushing them out of his eyes. “I tried to use healing magic, but I’m not very good at that, apparently.”

He shakes his head. “Healing magic won’t work. Wolf fae biology—what better way to secure the attachment between alpha and omega by giving the alpha the one antidote to his omega’s soreness?”

“What’s that?”

“Saliva.”

Fire licks my spine at that single word. My breathing grows shallow, and my perfume fills the shower.

Yes .

“Do you remember your safe words? Red, yellow, green?”

I nod as I lean my back against the cool tiles.

“And where are you now?”

“Green,” I whisper.

His eyes flash before he’s falling onto his back, magic aiding him to bring me with him. I land with my pussy right over his mouth, my knees resting on either side of his head.

“Sit,” he commands.

“I don’t want to hurt you?—”

“I don’t give a fuck if I can’t breathe, Omega. Kill me if you must, but when your Alpha tells you to sit on his face, you sit on his fucking face and ride it, do you understand?”

I don’t have to be told again. I lower myself onto his waiting mouth, gasping as his tongue parts my sore folds, lapping at my slick arousal. He purrs, the vibrations resonating through my core, and I can feel his healing saliva beginning to work.

I can barely keep myself upright, so I brace myself against the wall above his head as he grips my hips, near bruising as he guides me to rock against his skilled mouth.

He alternates between broad strokes of his tongue and precise flicks against my sensitive bud, stoking the flames of my desire higher and higher.

My breath comes in short, desperate pants as I grind against his hungry mouth, chasing the release that's building inside me. His grip on my hips tightens, urging me on, demanding more. I'm powerless to resist, lost in a haze of pleasure and need.

The heat inside me builds to a fever pitch as his tongue works me into a frenzy. I ride his face with reckless abandon, my inhibitions shattered, my only thought to reach that peak. His growls reverberate through my core, the primal sound pushing me closer to the edge.

I come undone with a keening cry, my body shuddering over him. My thighs clench around his head, trapping him as I ride out the intense orgasm, slick drenching his face.

I can’t operate my legs to climb off him, so he lifts me as he sits up, and I slide down the front of his chest to rest on his lap. We stay under the spray of the shower for a long time as he purrs for me, and I purr for him in return.

While I’ve regained enough strength to stand, the alpha carries me bridal style out of the shower. He takes his time running drying magic over me before helping me dress.

He parks me in a spot we didn’t manage to completely ruin with come and slick while he grabs drinks and snacks from the fridge.

“You’ll want to eat something to replenish your energy.” He settles next to me, placing the tray of food and drinks on the cushion between us.

He watches me dig in, my appetite roaring to life now that the edge of need has been sated. With a mouthful of some pitted kind of fruit, I still, wiping the juice dripping down my chin. I swallow, gesturing to the food.

“Aren’t you starving?”

“I ate while you were passed out.” He grins.

I pop another piece of fruit into my mouth before plucking the pit off my tongue and laying it on the plate. I’m well aware I’m eating like a monster, but it seems to thoroughly entertain him, judging by the amused expression on his face as he hands me another.

He props himself up on an elbow, tilting his head as if studying me. “You feeling better?”

I nod. “Much.” My wolf growls in the back of my mind. Say something, she nudges. At least give him a way to stay in touch.

Before coming here, if I suspected there was any way the alpha would catch feelings for me, we wouldn’t have a repeat heat together. But he’s in love with his dream girl in the real world, so there’s zero chance he’ll fall in love with me.

I swallow, using a napkin to wipe my mouth. “The clinic has that app,” I say finally. “We can use it. If I—” My throat feels tight. “If I need someone for my next heat, I’ll reach out. Through that. Okay?”

“Please do.” He sits up fully now. “I’d like to check in to see how you’re doing. My wolf would probably turn feral if I didn’t.” His smirk makes my own wolf stir, but I ignore her.

I frown, ignoring the way his proximity seems to amplify the scent of him, teasing me. “No real names. Nothing that’ll identify us. You shall always be known as Alpha to me.”

“Agreed.” He smirks. “Whatever makes you comfortable, Omega.” His eyes soften. “If you’re not careful, you might end up liking me."

The way he says omega sends a shiver I don’t want to acknowledge racing down my spine. I stand quickly, clutching the blanket around me as I try to steady myself. “Right. Well, I guess this is goodbye.”

“For now,” he agrees, climbing to his feet. His movements are lazy, but there’s a confidence in them that feels unnervingly familiar, as if he’s completely at ease despite the circumstances.

My wolf paces in the back of my mind, restless at the thought of leaving him, but I shove her down with a muttered curse.

He walks me to the door, but before he opens it for me, his giant palms cup my face as he draws me in for a searing kiss I feel all the way down to my core.

My knees go weak, and I clutch at his broad shoulders to stay upright. His tongue sweeps into my mouth, claiming me, and I melt into his embrace. It's a kiss that feels like a promise, a vow, and my wolf howls in triumph.

He pulls away slowly, neither one of us wanting it to end, but knowing it must.