Chapter Twenty-Three

The dark shape of someone in her room woke Tiffany. She bolted upright, a scream already in her throat, before the scent hit her.

She swallowed down the scream. “What do you want, Kieran?”

His body language gave nothing away, especially with the darkness. Neither did his voice when he answered. “Did you know you talk in your sleep?”

She shook her head and brushed her hair from her face. “You didn’t come into my room in the middle of the night to watch me sleep.”

“Are you sure? Because if you are so determined to leave, that may be all I get to see of you.”

“If you’re trying to make me feel bad, don’t bother.” Even as she said it, the guilt clawed at her. And why was that? Why should I feel guilty when he is the one who doesn’t want me? Just because I walk out, that doesn’t change that he’s holding the door open.

Still, facts didn’t matter against her wounded feelings and his still-distant voice.

A sigh left him, deep and unhappy, before he sat on the side of the bed. “I don’t want you to feel bad. Whether you believe it or not, I’ve always wanted what is best for you.”

“If you try to tell me that’s why you won’t even try us, that it’s for my own good, I swear I’ll scream.”

“I suppose it doesn’t matter now, does it?”

“I guess not.” Tiffany inhaled and grew wet at the scent of his arousal. Then again, that didn’t surprise her. Kieran might try to hide how he felt, he might not want her for anything serious, but he’d proven again and again that he wanted her body. “Strip,” she ordered.

Even in the darkness, even without being able to see his features, she could swear she felt his eyebrow lift. “Excuse me?”

“You’re not here for conversation. You didn’t come in here to talk me out of leaving because you know you won’t give me the only thing that would make me stay. You’re here because you want me one last time.”

“Won’t this make it harder to leave tomorrow?”

“Probably, but what does it matter? I’m not leaving because it’s easy, after all.”

“I don’t want to make it more difficult, though.”

Tiffany couldn’t help the dark and humorless laugh that left her at that, as if Kieran had nothing to do with her leaving, nothing to do with why she had to in the first place. She wished she could see him. She wanted to stare into his eyes, to see his strong jaw, his dark hair and solid frame. How pathetic was that?

Instead of arguing it—What’s the point?—she ignored it. “You’re in my room to fuck me, Kieran. Let’s not pretend it’s anything different than it is. It’s what it’s always been.”

The silence between them was full of anger, of lust, of all the things they wanted but couldn’t have. She dared him to deny it, but no matter how much of a bastard Kieran could be, he wasn’t a liar.

Sure enough, he stood to remove his shirt, then shucked his pants and underwear in a quick motion. Even in the darkness, the width of his chest, the outline of his body sped Tiffany’s heart. How he could make her want him, she didn’t know.

She was worn out from Kane and Marshall, sore from taking each of their knots, their scent still clinging to her, yet all she wanted was to pull Kieran against her and have him, too.

Kieran’s body covered hers as he pinned her with his bulk, his warm skin against her still nude form. His cock, hard and leaking pre-cum, pressed against her stomach like a tease. “This isn’t just about fucking you.”

Tiffany reached down, her hands curling around his hips, her nails digging into him as if she could punish him with them. “Don’t talk. Don’t explain.”

“You seem to think you’re in charge, but as I recall that isn’t how this has ever gone.”

She wrapped a leg up and around his thigh. “And you’ll risk this for some proof that you’re in charge? I doubt it.”

He lifted his body enough that he could stare down into her eyes. It looked as if he’d say something, but Tiffany didn’t want to hear it. She wrapped a hand around the back of his neck and pulled. When he wouldn’t budge, she rose to take a kiss, to silence him with it.

She didn’t want to talk. She didn’t want to hear his excuses or his reasoning or anything else.

Those things weren’t going to change his choice or hers. He wouldn’t even try to promise her a thing, and she couldn’t stay.

So, she turned the kiss aggressive to distract him. Let him have the rough sex he craved, and he’d stop trying to talk, stop trying to fix things, stop leaving her with words that would only repeat in her head for years. She pressed her demanding tongue to where his lips were together, and, on a groan, he opened for her. Traces of beer lingered on his tongue, and she stole them.

His cock slid along her stomach as he rocked his hips forward, rutting against her without finesse or though. Instead, he did it like he couldn’t not do it, as if the need to have her ran so deep he couldn’t stop the motion. Wetness was left on her skin from his cock, and she moaned at the waste. She wanted to taste it, didn’t want to lose a drop.

Kieran broke the kiss, breathless and panting. His silhouette above her, chest heaving and lights catching the reflection of light from the window, made him look like a monster.

That was fine by her. She’d let him consume her. The less of her left, the less there was to hurt.

Her thighs spread for him as if she had no part in it, as if she didn’t need to even consider it. He ran a thick finger roughly up her slit, then pressed it into her. She moaned and arched her back, sore after Kane and Marshall but unwilling to ask him to stop.

She wanted him with a strength that made discomfort a trivial concern she wouldn’t listen to.

He hooked his finger up then withdrew it, stroking against the front of her pussy as he pulled free. “Marshall and Kane both knotted you.” When he stroked again against her folds, she knew his fingers held not only her own wetness but also the cum from the other alphas Tiffany nodded, despite it not being a question, and gasped when his slick fingers found her hardened clit.

“You’re too sore.” Even as he spoke, he traced her labia, sliding against her and teasing each part of her entrance without pressing inside her. “Taking three knots in a single night when you’re not in heat would be too much for you. No matter what you think of me, I don’t want to hurt you.”

His words didn’t register at first, not with how warm he was, with how deftly his fingers stirred that need inside her. Wait? He’s turning me down?

She forced her sluggish brain to work, then took her lip between her teeth as an idea came to her. A shove to his chest had him pulling back enough for Tiffany to twist, rolling onto her stomach beneath him.

His growl from behind her made her cunt tighten down, a whine from the deep ache inside her.

His hands cupped her ass, large and impossibly strong. “You said no last time. I don’t want you doing something you don’t want to.” Even as he spoke, he kneaded her ass, spreading her like he had when she’d been over his lap.

“If I didn’t want to, I wouldn’t have suggested it.” Venom dripped from her words, laced with hurt.

His hands slowed, as though he heard it and didn’t care for it. Still, he didn’t mention the tone before pulling back.

Her breath stilled at his retreat. Would he leave, now? Would he walk out on the last chance they had? How could he steal away this last night?

He delivered a swift swat to her ass, the sting pulling a strangled yelp from her. “Stop overthinking, girl. If I’m going to fuck your ass, I can’t do it dry, now, can I? I’ll be right back, and I expect you to be in this same position when I return.”

His fingers, sure and confident, ran up her cunt in a slow and possessive stroke before sliding across her ass like a threat.

She shuddered at his dark chuckle before he rose from the bed.

What did I get myself into?

Kieran held the lube when he re-entered Tiffany’s room to find her where he’d left her. Her legs were spread slightly, her feet hanging off the end of the bed, her cunt visible in the light from the bathroom across the hall.

Damn, she was beautiful. The thought of her walking out, of him never seeing her again, dug deep. He didn’t want that. He didn’t want to watch her drive away with an FBI agent, to sign the paperwork to relinquish any claim to her. It made him consider how it would feel for her to have a new alpha.

Not Kane or Marshall, he’d not only accepted that but had come to be pleased by the thought. Some other alpha, though? His sweet, feisty little omega with some faceless alpha instead of him?

He clenched his hand into a fist at the thought, at what he might do to any alpha who touched her.

No. She won’t be mine, and that’s where it was heading anyway.

If he kept thinking about that, he’d ruin the moment, and he refused to do that. Nothing would take the night from him, especially when he had no future to expect. That night had to last him for a long time.

He tossed the lube onto the bed beside her, then stripped down. He didn’t want anything between them, not a scrap of clothing to keep him from each inch of her soft and giving skin.

Tiffany tensed as he crawled back onto the bed, the muscles in her thighs tightening. She didn’t twist to look at him, not even when he set his knees on the outside of her thighs. Her arms were folded, her chin rested on them, her long blonde hair bound and tossed over her shoulder to reveal her bare back.

If he could have picked a mate, any mate, he doubted he’d have picked a single thing she didn’t have. She was fun, wild, brave, and would never let him get an upper hand for long. He never had to worry about life getting boring, because she wouldn’t allow it. Each trait he’d have wished for in an ideal mate Tiffany had in spades, and yet it came in a package too young for him to trust.

She’d grow into herself and realize she wanted to explore, wanted to see what else there was out there. Hadn’t it happened before? Any alpha and omega living in such close quarters would give in to instinct and biology, but that didn’t mean they were meant for anything more.

Her ass fit into his hands perfectly, the muscles flinching as he kneaded them with his strong fingers. It wasn’t right, but a part of him thrilled at the idea he’d be her first. Not just with sex, but the first alpha to take her ass. Even when she’d moved on, when she’d ended up with anyone else, he’d always be her first.

He couldn’t have her forever, but at least she wouldn’t forget him. That was something, right?

He used the grip on her ass to spread her cheeks wide, enjoying that same subtle squirm she’d done before. He released one hand to pick up the lube, flipping the bottle open with a thumb before drizzling some onto her.

His cock hardened at the sight, at the way she clenched against the chill of the lube. He pressed his thumb to her ass, and, despite the tightness, the way she resisted, a steady push let him sink his thumb into her.

Her whine came out thin and needy, a sound that only made him want her more.

“Relax,” he growled out, not trying to soften his voice. She knew who he was by this point, knew his personality. No reason to pretend he was a soft person when he wasn’t. “You’ll enjoy it.”

“How can you be sure?”

He fucked her slowly with his thick thumb as he leaned in to press a kiss to her shoulder blade. “Because you’ve already enjoyed any time we’ve played with your ass.”

“A finger is a lot different from your dick.”

He laughed softly at her tone, at the sharp way she snapped out the words. Her attitude would never fail to amuse him. “You can take me, girl. Don’t forget, this was your idea.”

She huffed a disgruntled sound but didn’t argue. Her sound came out less sure when he pulled his thumb from her, when he added additional lube and stroked some over his cock. The last thing he would ever want was to hurt her.

He wrapped his hand around his cock and used his other to spread her, placing himself against her ass. “Do you want this?” He held himself still, giving her the chance to think about it.

A shudder ran through her small body, and it highlighted how well she fit against him, beneath him. Would she turn him down? Would she say no?

No, Tiffany was never a girl to give in to anything. She shifted her hips back to push against him. “I want this,” she said, voice strong.

Kieran groaned then rocked his weight forward. Her body fought him, tight and unyielding. Still, with the continual pressure, her body gave. He slid into the hot tightness of her ass, only a shallow inch at first before he stilled, allowing her the time to adjust to his width.

And that took more control than he’d known he had to hold still while her body clenched around him, while he knew he’d have her moaning before long. Even so, he didn’t move. He held her hips, his body poised above hers, his aching cock buried too shallowly in her snug body.

She breathed in deep lungfuls of air, her back arched, her toes digging into the blankets of the bed as if it gave her some sense of control. She twisted beneath him, the almost frantic little motions enough for him to slide another hair deeper.

“Easy,” he growled into her ear as he lowered himself closer to her back, remaining the same depth inside her. “Take a deep breath, Tiffany.”

Her name seemed to sink into her, and she followed the direction. She pulled in a single deep breath that shuddered from her, along with some of the tension. Her ass loosened around him, a surrender she couldn’t fake.

“There you are.” He retreated, then pressed forward again. She didn’t fight him, and her whines transformed into moans as he continued, as the pleasure outpaced the nerves. It had never been about pain, not for her. She’d only been afraid, unwilling to trust him to not hurt her.

Funny that now, after he’d hurt her in worse ways, she was giving in to this.

Perhaps that was it? She’d realized this wasn’t so risky a thing when he’d already done far more damage.

Kieran ignored the thought, unwilling to let it ruin anything. His body pressed against hers when he’d filled her entirely, when his cock was buried so deeply within her that only her panting moans could be heard.

He nuzzled her throat, drawing her scent into him, wanting it to brand onto him. She might be leaving, but he’d never lose the memory. No one could change their mind or take that from him.

“You’re so tight,” he whispered to her, his lips brushing her ear as he spoke. “I won’t last long, not with how you’re squeezing down around me.”

She lifted her hips off the bed, thrusting herself back toward him. Always the demanding omega, wasn’t she?

He gave her what she wanted, pulling back, sliding into her fully. He took her with sure and deep strokes, fucking her in a way she wouldn’t forget, in a way he sure as hell would never forget. Each time he withdrew, she pressed against him again.

“Stay,” he said, voice low, the request one he hadn’t thought about before asking.

“I can’t.”

A snarl broke through his lips as his balls tightened, as he neared his release from the snug grip of her tight ass around his dick. “Stay,” he said again, more demand in his voice. “Don’t leave tomorrow.”

A hollow whimper left her, and it had nothing to do with how he stretched her, with the way she’d be sore come tomorrow. “What are you offering me?”

“This?” His hips came forward on a rough thrust. “You’re happy with me, I know you are. I’d protect you, take care of you.”

“For a year?”

He opened his mouth to deny it, but the words stuck. He couldn’t lie to her, and no matter how much he did not want to see her walk away, he couldn’t commit to anything more than the contract. It was too risky.

She turned her face from him, the pillows pressing against her face to muffle her voice. “That’s what I thought.” Had any words been filled with more pain than those?

Kieran brushed his lips against the nape of her neck as he gave himself over to the sensations. Physical pleasure, that he understood, that was easy. He let the tension that filled him, the tightness of his balls, the need to fill her take over. He wrapped an arm beneath her, above her breasts, his hand grasping her shoulder to hold her still.

If only he could keep her still…

His hips pistoned, fucking her hard and deep until he couldn’t hold his release back. He came on a vicious snarl against her neck, teeth bared. He filled her, his cum like some claim she would never wipe clean, a part of him she’d always carry. She could leave him, but that at least would remain.

By the time he came down, when his energy waned and he wanted nothing more than to pull her against his chest and bask in her scent and warmth, he pulled his softening cock from her tight ass.

Her whine was broken, and he reached down to touch her, to stroke her clit until she came undone for him.

A shove of her hand stopped him. He frowned as she rolled to her side, her back to him, and curled up as she had been when he’d entered.

“Tiffany—”

“If you care about me at all, don’t. Don’t explain, don’t apologize, don’t say another word.” Her voice cracked. “Just go, please?”

Kieran moved numbly to his feet, backing away from the bed, the omega he’d always seen as feisty and strong lying so broken there.

He’d done that? He’d been the one to tear her down?

The tears that left her, nearly silent as if she’d tried to hide them, took layers of his skin with them.

How could he have done that to her?