Page 45 of The Packaged Deal
He presses his lips into a firm line.
“While I,” I continue, touching my chest with my fingertips, just to get a thrill when his eyes follow. “Will simply do as I wish to do, and what I really mean when I ignore your caveman orders is ‘I love your concern, but you're wrong, and I’m doing it, anyway’. How does that sound, Adrian? Hmm, wait, can I call you Addy, too?”
“No.”
“I want a nickname,” I grumble and fold my arms over my chest as he pushes open the front door.
Kandi, bless her heart, swings into the porch from the roof, landing heavily behind us. I turn back, fascinated with the way she moves.
“That,” I point out, “was really hot.”
Kandi winks at me and squeezes past me into the house. Her entire front brushing up against me.
“Phew!” I say and fan myself. “Are you sure you don’t want to be with me? I could really use a knot right now? Or a beta with a wicked tongue.”
Adrian swallows hard and jerks his eyes off me. It’s fun to watch the adam's apple in his throat bob so frantically.
“Don't worry, Alpha, I won’t jump you in your sleep. Can’t promise that in a week, though. I've never been through a heat before off the drugs. They normally take the edge off enough that when mum locks me in my room for the week, it’s bearable. This is going to be exciting.”
Adrian, who was reaching for a glass, turns, and the entire shelf falls behind him. He stares at me, uncaring of the glass, but I’m shocked. He doesn’t even notice.
“Adrian, are you all right?” I step closer, but Kandi grabs me from behind and puts me on the table.
“Stay.”
I grumble as the beta goes into the pantry and comes out with a dustpan and broom.
“You okay?” I ask the frozen alpha.
He blinks, really slowly, but still doesn’t respond.
“Hey, Adrian, what’s the matter?” I slide off the table, but he explodes into action, picking me up. I wrap my legs around him and search his face.
“Your mother locked you in your room during your heats?”
I snort a laugh. “Yeah, to keep me pure. When I was alone, the first thing I went and did was find a doctor who prescribed me suppressants, and then I doused my heats. But, alas, the drugs are gone, and it’s coming. I can feel it now.”
He lets out a savage growl and turns. Kandi’s crouched on the floor staring at the glass, but she’s not sweeping it up.
“So, you wouldn’t have any relief?” Kandi asks hoarsely.
I look between the two of them. “Well, no. But it’s okay-”
“That’s not okay,” Adrian rasps out. He peels me off him, opens his mouth, shuts it abruptly, and whirls towards the front door. “I need a minute.”
The door slams shut, leaving me with the beta. She glances up at me and looks away.
I sigh heavily. “I overshared again, didn’t I?”
“Just a little.”
“Will he be okay?”
“Oh, sure, when he stops imagining tearing the throats out of your parents’ bodies. He’ll be fine.” She stands up and empties the glass into the bin.
“I do that sometimes. Well, a lot. I get nervous, and I overshare. It’s uh, a thing.”
Kandi glances at me, and with a tiny smile, closes the distance between us. She grips my hands and holds them. “Apparently, so is twisting those poor fingers into different shapes.”