Lola & the Millionaires: Part One (Sweet Omegaverse #2)(29)

“Just pizza,” I said.

Something wild and abrasive that roamed constantly under my skin went still as Leo smiled in answer. “Just pizza it is. We’ll have it delivered.”





Ten





Lola





I couldn’t be certain, but I was pretty sure Matthieu ran interference with Rake while Leo helped me grab my things from my station before we made a quick escape from the rapidly crowding backstage. We rode in quiet in the dark car, but it was peaceful instead of tense, and Leo didn’t ask if I was all right. Either he didn’t want to make me uncomfortable or he was learning the truth—I was never all right.

I used to be.

But it wasn’t pizza waiting in the brown bag in front of my door when we got back to my apartment.

“I hope you don’t mind. I called in a favor,” Leo said, bending and grabbing the bag. He opened the bag and pulled out a bottle of…shampoo. I blinked at it. “It’s scent canceling. They make it for omegas and Rake’s used it before, but I used it for a while… Well, we’ll get to that.”

I stared at the bottle. There were others in the bag too, a whole collection from the size of it. “Which of them brought it?” I asked.

“Caleb knows the brand, but it was probably Wes that brought it here,” Leo said.

I swallowed and unlocked my apartment door as I processed the information. This was probably going to be how things went. Whatever happened to me, if one of the pack was there to witness it, the others would know. They were a pack, so that was probably a given. I needed to decide if I was okay with that.

But the decision seemed unexpectedly simple.

“Will you tell them I said thank you?” I asked, stepping aside for Leo to join me.

His shoulders dropped in relief. “Of course, don’t worry about it. I’ll put them in the bathroom, yeah?”

It struck me all at once, the roles this pack had already found themself taking in my life.

Cyrus sticking up for me against Wendy. Rakim’s playful flirtation and teasing. Matthieu stepping in against Odette. Caleb, who I hadn’t really even spoken a word to, scooping me up during my panic attack, his scent putting me under. Leo’s eternally patient dedication to caring for me despite our time together consistently colored by my fucking issues.

Leo had told me from the beginning. These men weren’t out to hurt me. I was starting to believe him and, more than that, I was really sick of being the problem. I rolled my shoulders, imagining the heaviness of the afternoon dropping to the floor.

I watched Leo’s back as he headed toward my bathroom by the bedroom. “Yeah. Actually, I wouldn’t mind a shower.”

“Sure,” he said, over his shoulder as he slipped through the door. “I can order for us and pick something asinine for us to watch. Unless you prefer artsy shit?”

My lips quirked at the offer and I slipped my comfortable sneakers off, tiptoeing down to pause in front of the bathroom door.

“That sounds good. Or you could join me?”

Bottles of scent canceling body washes and sprays and hair care and perfume went clattering across my tiny sink counter as Leo fumbled the bag in his surprise. He whipped around, head cocked, and I fought my laugh at his stunned expression.

“In the shower?”

I raised my eyebrows. “That’s where I was thinking of heading for my…shower, yes.”

Leo swallowed, and his surprise settled into a slow-growing smile. “Are you going to wear my coat?”

I laughed and shrugged out of his coat. “Pretty sure this beauty is dry-clean only, so no?”

I tucked it on the hook on the other side of my bedroom door before returning to the bathroom. It was tiny, and together Leo and I barely fit in the space. I had a tub that I just managed to fit into, but it would be a squeeze with Leo. Which was kind of the point, wasn’t it?

“How about this shirt?” I asked, tugging lightly on his button-down. “How’s it do in the shower?”

“Oh, no, this is silk. It prefers natural rainstorms,” Leo said, reaching for his buttons.

I squirmed on my tiptoes as I watched him start to undress, happy the game I’d started was shifting the mood away from the shadowy one we’d been carrying since he’d found me after the fashion show.

“Your socks?” he asked, lips twitching.

I laughed “My socks? Yeah, they’re cashmere.” They were fucking cotton. I took them off and shucked them outside of the bathroom. Leo pulled his shirt off and my hands stroked a greedy pass up his chest, tracing the grooves of muscle with my fingertips.

Leo wasn’t a huge guy, but he was bigger than I usually went for. Instead of intimidating, it made him feel sheltering, like I could lean into him and let him block out the world for me. My hands trailed back down to his hips and I stepped closer, Leo’s gaze darkening. I plucked at the waistband of his trousers.

“What about these?” I asked.

“Buffalo wool,” Leo said, the dry teasing turned into an almost growl as his voice lowered.

I snorted. “Buffalo?”

“Mhm. Very specific washing instructions. Better not risk it.”

He grunted as I reached to the front of his pants, one of my hands reaching down to cup him through the ‘buffalo wool’ while the other undid the top button. His cock jumped against my palm and Leo stumbled against me, our bodies bumping together. He slipped his fingers under the hem of my sweatshirt, skimming over my skin, and my breath caught.