Page 6 of Operation: CuddleDom (The Port Haven Omegaverse #9)

THEO

I stared at the boxes stacked by the door of my apartment.

I had taken everything sentimental or necessary on previous packing trips, but I had lived here for about six years and was shocked at the amount of stuff I’d collected.

Like veggie peelers. I had four. Who the fuck needs four veggie peelers?

The living room was eerily empty now, nothing but a few dust bunnies where my couch and coffee table had been just days ago.

“All picked up by the Center?” I asked, knowing the answer but needing to fill the silence somehow.

“Yeah.” Ren leaned against the tiny kitchen counter. “They were really grateful. Said the furniture would furnish their new transitional housing.”

I nodded, oddly satisfied that my things would help omegas escaping bad situations.

The kitchen felt hollow without my mismatched appliances, but Justice had gone on a buying spree that could only be described as manic.

Chef knives, copper cookware, a stand mixer were all already delivered to the penthouse, along with a pasta roller attachment I had mentioned exactly once.

“Donations can be written off as a tax deduction,” I said, trying to sound practical about giving away most of what I owned.

Ren laughed, pushing himself off the counter. “That man hasn’t thought about a tax deduction in a decade. He’s got people for that, who I am sure jump through every loophole imaginable.”

The bedroom had been the first thing that I had emptied. Now, with the furniture gone, it was a blank slate for someone else to build a life on. I paused at the second bedroom door, my hand on the knob. It was the only room I hadn’t let anyone touch.

“Hey.” Ren put a fingertip under my chin and turned me to face him. “You okay?”

When Ren looked at me like that, when all his attention, his sharp wit and discernment were focused on me, everything melted away. Even the parts I didn’t want to admit were there.

“I feel like,” I struggled to find the right thing to say, “maybe I didn’t really know the person who lived here. It’s only been weeks, really. So much has changed.”

“Do you want to do this another day? Maybe with Mackenzie?”

“No. We’re giving up the lease next week. It’s just shocking that this doesn’t feel like home anymore.” I pushed the door open to my nest and stepped inside, Ren following close behind.

The room was crowded with furniture, almost claustrophobic.

Nothing matched. I had been lying to myself and calling it “shabby chic”.

A chaise lounge pushed against one wall.

A giant bean bag chair covered in too many throw pillows.

Several small side tables of varying heights and styles, all jammed together.

In the corner, a mattress was set low to the floor, surrounded by a mountain of stuffed animals.

The overhead light was harsh. I’d always meant to replace it with something softer.

Ren whistled low. “That’s a lot of stuff.”

“Yeah.” I ran my fingers over the back of the chaise. “I just kept buying things. Trying to make it… right.”

Ren said nothing. He sat on the arm of an overstuffed chair.

“This room never felt like me. It was always just… trying to be some idealized version of what an omega’s nest should be. Soft things. Fluffy things. Comfortable places to curl up during heat with…” I let my voice trail off.

I gestured vaguely at the room. “But it never worked. It never really felt safe or comfortable. Just cluttered. I’d buy something new, thinking ‘this is it, this will make it feel right,’ but it never did.

” I picked up a stuffed rabbit with floppy ears.

“It always made me feel like a failure. Like I couldn’t even do this one omega thing correctly. ”

I kept my eyes on the stuffed animal in my hands, not wanting to see judgment or, worse, pity in Ren’s eyes.

“I don’t even like stuffed animals.” I huffed out a laugh.

Ren plucked it from my hands and tossed it over his shoulder. He pulled me close, wrapping his arms around my waist. It was like being drenched in muscle relaxers. Everything eased, like all my edges were filed down.

I closed my eyes and sighed. In my wildest dreams, I couldn’t have imagined how good it felt to have your alpha just hold you. Minutes later, I opened my eyes. The look of satisfaction on my alpha’s face was practically feral. It was like he needed this contact as much as I did.

“So,” he drawled, squeezing me tighter, “we have options. We can pack up all this stuff exactly how you want. We can get movers to come in, or staff from the Center. Or…”

“Or what?”

“I could fuck you senseless and give you new memories of this room.”

I smirked. I knew he was more than serious. And more than capable. I took a cleansing breath.

“Does it make me a terrible person if I want someone else to do it?”

“Absolutely not.”

“Okay, let’s do that.”

“So, we’re not fucking?”

“Oh, no, I totally want you to fuck me. But in my nest. My real nest. Where it feels like home.”

He pushed my head to the side so he could nip at my bite mark before tugging me out of the room. I shut the door firmly without looking back.

“We’ll have to be quick, though,” Ren said, locking up my front door.

“Wait. What?”

Ren showed me his watch and then flung his arm over my shoulder, tucking me next to him.

“Justice will be home around six. And the state you left him in with that bento? I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s been picturing how to fuck you all day.”

My cheeks burned, but I felt a purely omega sense of pride burn even brighter. Knowing that I could completely undo my alpha with a simple gesture was the best feeling in the world.