Faith & the Dead End Devils (Sweet Omegaverse, #8)(32)

I opened my mouth, but I didn't like the answer in my head.

"We stole you from the men who bought you," Bear said. "They're gonna give us trouble for it. And I think we can handle them, but it might get ugly. And Butterfly, you haven't told us what else is coming. I can't say for certain that King will risk the club, and I can't say for certain that Chance and I alone can handle the trouble, although I do promise I will try my fucking hardest."

My heart sank in my chest. He was right. I was fighting to survive, clinging to Bear and Chance, trying to drag them into my tornado as if it might calm the winds, when in reality, it might just leave them in as much shit as I was.

I whimpered and Bear rolled us, settling me into the mattress, brushing my long dark hair off of my face.

"What I will promise is that as long as I am the best alpha to take care of you, that is what I will do," Bear whispered, cupping my jaw in his huge hand, tipping it up to feather a kiss over my lips. "And I am absolutely the best alpha for your heat, Butterfly. That I do know."

My breath hitched, and his thumb swiped over my bottom lip. Sometimes you have to be vulnerable first. Adam's words echoed in my head.

I blinked up at Bear, his purr still thrumming through my bones, his hand on my back holding me tight to his chest and hips.

"Faith," I whispered. He was quiet above me. "My name is Faith."

It was a small kernel of truth—useless, really. Bear was right that I needed to tell him about Omikron, and I knew I was being selfish and cowardly by not saying anything. Omikron could be on their way, for all I knew, and the thought gave me shivers.

But I settled as Bear offered me more of his weight, head bowing to nuzzle against my cheek, marking me with his soothing scent, a false sense of security washing over me.

"Faith," he whispered, kissing my jaw. "Hmm…Courtney."

I blinked and he drew away, staring down at me. "Courtney?" I asked, lips twitching.

He laughed. "Yeah. Why, you think everybody just sticks with Bear around here?"

I grinned and Bear growled, ducking down and nipping my jaw again, drawing out a giggle and a shudder of pleasure. "I like it," I said.

"Mmm, I like Faith," Bear purred. His tongue flashed out, and I gasped at the searing flick on my throat. "Like the way she tastes. How she feels under me."

I whined, spreading myself beneath him, arching into his huge frame on top of mine. I'd had a couple of rushed experiences with sex, both with betas, trying to hide my activities from Adam in the next room. They'd mainly been brief, and while one of the betas had gotten me off, the anxiety of hiding, worrying, had made the orgasm a little dissatisfying. Every instance of being touched by Bear, his weight on top of me, his fingers and mouth on my sex, was more powerful than either of those connections.

"Like these little sounds she makes too," Bear purred in my ear, and I blushed but couldn't restrain the next soft whimper in my throat as he rocked on top of me.

"Bear!" I hiccuped and then tried again, pleading, "Courtney!"

He laughed and paused, arms cradling my neck and hips. "Kinda funny hearing that, actually. Sounds pretty from you, though. Again?"

He surged back and forth and I called his name, drawing a groan from his throat and a twitch of hardness against my thinly-covered sex. "Your voice gets me hard, Butterfly," Bear growled. "Don't care what you call me."

I licked my lips, squirming under him until he raised himself up enough for me to pull my T-shirt off over my head. Bear's purr thrummed as I bared myself, and I stretched on the bed, arching my back a bit to present my breasts to him.

"A-alpha," I murmured.

Bear groaned, his hips landing squarely against mine, cock thick and hard, pressing perfectly against my clit. "Goddamn, Butterfly." He lifted himself again and I whined, trying to chase the pressure. His hand pressed to my stomach, pushing me down, and even that force was arousing in the moment. "You still upset about this morning?"

I blinked and shook, trying to think through the throb of my cunt and the tight ache of my nipples. But the mention of the morning made me tense, and I nearly rolled away before thinking through my reaction.

"A little. I forgive you, but it scared me," I admitted, trying to clear my head.

Bear hummed in agreement. "You feverish? Hot?"

Suddenly, I understood what he was asking. Was I horny because of my oncoming heat? Was I still angry with him for this morning, but also in need of release? It mattered to him what I was asking for and why. I was hot, but it was cooling quickly. The uncomfortable itch and clawing sensation that came with Omikron's drugs was missing. There was an ache inside of me, but it was just a familiar sexual craving. My heat might be coming, but my body was content in this moment to find its own natural needs.

I sat up, my face close enough to Bear's to make out some of the bristle of shadow on his face, the thick line of lashes on his eyes.

"This is just how you make me feel," I said, rubbing my cheek against Bear's. "I need you. I want… I want this between us before the heat hits."

"This?" Bear rasped, but he was leaning in, driving me to my back again.

I licked my lips, and his purr rattled against my throat as he pressed a kiss to my pulse. My previous experiences had been urgent crashes, just desperate moments that needed an outlet. I hadn't needed to spell out what I wanted, because I hadn't had a chance to really speak.