Page 47 of The Runaway
It didn’t? Why not? Connor didn’t move, still propped up on one elbow as he debated what to do. Gabriel had closed his eyes again, but opened them a moment later. He regarded Connor placidly, seeming not the slightest bit annoyed – either at Connor’s continued presence or his reluctance to follow Gabriel’s instructions.
“Stay,” he said again, tugging on him gently. “We both need some sleep. I’ll call for some water for us to wash in the morning.”
Tentatively, Connor lay down again, keeping an eye on Gabriel for any sign that he was going to suddenly change his mind. He didn’t, instead draping his arm over Connor’s waist again and nudging his foot between Connor’s ankles. He closed his eyes and let his breathing slow. His big, hard body was relaxed, and despite having spent the last twelve hours in a hormone-fuelled mating frenzy, Connor felt his own body stir again. The impulse didn’t last, but it came as a shock, nonetheless.
Gabriel opened his eyes again, amusement tugging at the corner of his mouth. “I can hear you thinking.”
“Sorry,” Connor said, slightly embarrassed that it came out sounding breathless.
Gabriel chuckled. “Just for tonight, let’s forget the rules exist. You get to sleep in an alpha’s bed. No questions asked, nothing to fear.”
Just for tonight. Connor was right; this paradise was not to last. But he was helpless to resist a last couple of hours in Gabriel’s arms. Tomorrow, he would have to leave. But just for the moment, tomorrow could look after itself.
???
Heavens above, what the hell had he done? Gabriel woke suddenly in the morning, entirely aware from the moment he opened his eyes what had transpired the day before. Connor’s heat. And what a heat it had been. Far from the tepid and perfunctory mating he’d been intending when he’d agreed to Antoine’s ill-fitting request, he’d indulged in a flagrant feast of sensory delights. Touch, taste, smell, the lyrical moans of his omega ringing in his ears while he’d sated his every desire, eyes captivated by pale skin, fingers inching to stroke and tease and arouse.
God help him, how was he to cure himself of the sudden addiction to Connor’s body, to the smile that had played across his lips, to the glittering happiness in his eyes? This was a cruel world, and allowing Gabriel to experience such heady pleasure was a stark cruelty. Connor had chosen him, trusted him to be gentle and kind and to keep his omega’s fears and limitations in mind as he’d performed a purely biological function. But he’d crossed not just one, but dozens of lines, wringing orgasm after orgasm out of his omega’s body, while heedlessly succumbing to his body’s own desires. Even now, barely twelve hours out of the heat, his cock was attempting to awaken. And that was a complete disaster. He hadn’t felt even a sliver of sexual desire in nearly a year. After Helen’s heat, his interest in her had evaporated the instant her pheromones had signalled that her need for him had ended. But the slightest hint of scent from the warm body asleep in the bed beside him, the lightest touch of skin rasping against his own, and he was about ready to roll over on top of Connor and mount him again. Fuck, what a goddamn mess.
A memory from the heat came back to him, and he flinched involuntarily. Connor had told him he loved him. Gabriel felt a wave of sorrow for the omega, of pity, even. Everyone knew how badly the heat hormones messed with the participants’ minds. And the poor kid had been so far gone that he’d actually fancied himself in love with Gabriel; with an alpha, the exact same breed of asshole who had made his life a misery for so long.
No doubt Connor would be glad to be rid of him this morning, eager to be away from someone who’d taken advantage of the situation so thoroughly. Connor had had a panic attack at the beginning of his heat, induced by the mere feel of Gabriel’s cock inside him, but by the end of it, Gabriel had been mounting him from behind, thrusting hard into that warm, eager body, paying no attention to the warnings that had been so prominent just hours before. And the fact that Connor hadn’t resisted, had in fact urged him on, did nothing to assuage his conscience. He should have known better. Hedidknow better. And yet he’d done it anyway.
Connor stirred beside him, and Gabriel held his breath. Please let him sleep a few minutes longer, if only so Gabriel could get a handle on the violent thoughts rampaging through his skull.
But luck was not going to favour him today. Connor sighed deeply, then gave a weak groan. His nose wrinkled and his eyes fluttered open.
Gabriel could tell the instant Connor realised where he was. His body tensed. His breath stuttered to a halt. His eyes opened wider, an unspoken question on his face as his mouth opened but no words came out.
“Good morning,” Gabriel said, aiming for a calm nonchalance. As if waking up with a tempting angel in his bed happened all the time. “Did you sleep well?”
“Um… yes. Very well. Thank you,” Connor said, carefully polite, but thankfully the mundane question had derailed his initial panic.
“I’ll call Carolyn to bring us some hot water,” Gabriel said, reaching up to pull the cord for the bell. “Once we’ve washed, you’ll need to go and see Antoine,” he went on. “He’ll have some herbs for you to take to prevent a pregnancy.”
Connor’s eyebrows rose at that, but then he nodded eagerly. “Yes. Excellent. I’ll do that.”
Carolyn came and went, and ten minutes later, she and another beta brought a large basin and a bucket of warm water, along with two wash cloths and a bar of soap.
Gabriel got up and washed himself, keeping his back to Connor – not for the sake of modesty, but to avoid catching a glimpse of that tempting skin again – and then he dithered about getting dressed and straightening the room, dragging out the tasks to give him something to focus on, to have somewhere to look that wasn’t at Connor’s naked body while he washed himself. It was just the remnants of the heat, he told himself firmly. Connor’s scent still permeated the bedroom, and would do so until Gabriel had opened the window to let the room air and changed the sheets on the bed. This lingering need to touch and soothe his omega was just a consequence of stray hormones. Nothing more.
Finally, having run out of menial tasks to do, he turned to face Connor. The young man was lacing his shoes, dressed and as presentable as could be expected. Gabriel felt a powerful urge to step closer to the omega and pull him into his arms. He resisted as well as he could manage.
“Are you all right?” he asked, dreading the answer, but needing to ask it anyway. If he’d actually harmed Connor, he wanted to know about it, rather than hiding behind a pleasant lie.
Connor looked up at him in surprise. A shy, innocent smile brightened his face. “Yes,” he said, and God damn it, did he have to sound so breathless? His voice was just a touch husky, sending shivers down Gabriel’s spine.
“I didn’t hurt you?” Gabriel asked, needed to confirm the truth.
“No, not at all. It was…” Connor looked away, a blush turning his face red. “It was actually really nice. So much better than anything I could have imagined.”
God help him, he didnotneed to hear that. Not when he was fighting an ongoing battle not to just tumble Connor back into bed and kiss him senseless. A question rose in his mind about whether Connor might like to do this again sometime… and he ruthlessly squashed it. The whole point about omegas, and one of the main reasons why Gabriel had had no desire to mate with one for so long, was that they couldn’t consent. By even asking the question, he would be backing Connor into a corner in which he was obligated to say yes, and given Connor’s tumultuous past, he might even feel compelled to pretend he was enjoying it. It would be impossible to know the real truth of the matter, and so it was a situation that Gabriel was therefore honour-bound to avoid at all costs. He would not force an omega to mate with him. And particularly not one who had been so poorly used in the past.
He managed a weak smile at Connor’s reassurances. “I’m glad,” he said. He crossed the room and opened the door, and Connor took the hint, walking ahead of him out of the room. It was just about time for breakfast, and Gabriel would head down to the dining room, while Connor returned to the kitchen in the omegas’ quarters. Everything was back in its place, slotting neatly into the established routine. It was only a matter of time before Gabriel wrestled his emotions back into the box they’d somehow escaped from as well.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
“All right, spit it out.”