Page 37 of Shattered Trinket
“We can… We can try. I’m not… very good at this. I don’t know what I’m doing, or even much about being an omega, if I’m beinghonest. I’m also a huge mess inside. Physically, I want you. I want you all so bad, it hurts. But mentally, I’m still so broken, which means I don’t think so highly of myself, and alphas are a touchy subject for me. It’s a little easier to not be so afraid of you when you have Mama Valley’s support, though,” I ramble, awkwardly smiling at them and blowing a curl out of my face.
Manny’s got a brow raised at me with his arms crossed and a blank face, so I can’t tell what he’s thinking. Zeke is much more open, however, his emotions worn plainly on his features, and right now he looks hopeful, which is also how I feel now.
“I guess what I’m trying to say is, I would really like to get to know you. I’d like to… What is it? Courting?” I whisper to Zeke, and he laughs.
“Ay, ye wee minx,” he says with a grin, and I nod seriously.
“Yes, I would like for you to court me. If you want, that is,” I say, quickly adding in the last bit as a default.
Now I’m standing in front of them both, biting my lip like I’m a starved animal, and waiting for them to pick the ball up and shoot their shot… again.
Zeke looks like he’s about to lunge and wrap his arms around me, but halts himself and stands up straight. He runs his fingers through his hair nervously and looks at me sheepishly.
“Can I hug ye, lass? Is that okay?”
My heart flutters as my mouth nearly drops completely open and I nod, almost in a daze. Because it’s the first time, other than Mama Valley in the beginning, that someone has askedif something they do is okay with me. And I think it would have been fine if he’d hugged me without asking, but it’s something I appreciate immensely.
Before I know it, I’m in the air, my feet dangling as a pair of massive, strong arms crush me in their hold. My head reaches Zeke’s shoulder, so I gingerly wrap my arms around his neck and, after a moment’s hesitation, lay my head on his shoulder.When his chest vibrates against my stomach, a purr rumbling out of him, my body goes limp in his hold and oh my gods, this iseverything.
He presses his forehead to my shoulder and breathes a content sigh. My eyes close as my arms squeeze around his neck tighter, face involuntarily moving to the crook of his neck as my instincts take the driver’s seat, and I shove my nose there, nuzzling against him. Then Iwhimper,because his sugary sweet and cinnamon scent makes my mouth water… along with other places that I’m absolutely not ready for. When my perfume sneaks out and tries to wrap around us until we’re in a little cocoon, I lift my head up and pat him on the shoulder softly in a way to tell him to put me down.
Reluctantly, he does, but not without grumbling and giving me a playful scowl as he pulls back and places me back on the ground. Something compels me to lift on my tiptoes as I tilt my face up for him to come down to my level, and when he does, putting his face just close enough to mine, I press my nose to his and affectionately rub it against his, despite the fire burning on my cheeks as I do.
With blazing cheeks, I can’t help but sport the silliest smile on my lips as I pull back. Zeke is frozen in place, bent over, his eyes wide and lips parted as he gazes at me in utter disbelief, and he still doesn’t move when Manny slaps him on the back, making me laugh lightly under my breath.
Manny moves to stand in front of me, blocking me from Zeke’s view and him from mine. I’m about eye level with his chest, so that’s where I stare for a long moment, gathering my courage to look him in the eyes again. He waits me out patiently, and when I do finally look up at his face, his features are soft and his eyes are full of warmth as they take me in.
“Courting comes with gifts,Sirenita.You gonna let us spoil you like we desperately want?” he murmurs, reaching up to tuckthat pesky loose curl behind my ear, then gently running his knuckle down my cheek.
My eyes close on their own as I lean into his touch until he’s cupping my cheek, and I nuzzle into his rough palm with a sense of joy filling my heart. I open them again and smile up at him with closed lips. He smiles back with a huff, shaking his head.
“I like presents,” I tell him with a shrug.
What I don’t tell him is nobody but my parents has ever given me a gift before, and that alone makes them wanting to give me gifts exciting.
“Yeah? Tell me something you want,princesa,and I’ll see what I can do when we next meet,” he murmurs, his voice getting lower.
I bite my lip and pretend to think, but honestly, I’m a pretty simple girl.
“I’ll like anything you bring me, but I like… I like plushies, especially the squishy ones. And blankets, but soft ones. Candles are nice, too… if t-they smell like you guys.” I finally tell him, whispering the last sentence out as I begin to blush furiously again.
These alphas are going to make me turn permanently red at this rate because it’s all I seem to be doing around them.
Manny grins, and I can’t help but smile back despite how embarrassed I feel because his smile is beautiful and contagious.
“I’ll get ye all the candles that smell like me yer wee heart desires, lass. Ye’ll have a room full o’ them immediately,” Zeke replies seriously, popping up beside Manny and making me chuckle.
Manny rolls his eyes, but his smile is still there, and I listen to the voice that pops into my head, urging me to wrap my arms around him and nuzzle against his chest for a moment. I surprise him, but he doesn’t let that stop him from gingerly wrapping his arms around my shoulders and hugging me close to him. Isigh when I press my nose to the center of his chest and inhale deeply, my bones turning to jelly as I try to embed both of their scents in my brain.
“What’s going on?” I hear at my back and when I turn my head, I see Ridge standing there.
Aeon and Shep rush past us with full arms as I hear the truck that brought my things start up and begin to pull out, neither of them glancing in our direction as they rush inside. I clear my throat and reluctantly release my hold on Manny, though he’s much slower to let me go. When he does, I step back and give both him and Zeke a smile, and then I take a deep breath and fully face the last alpha that’s supposed to be…mine.
Ridge is the only one I haven’t spoken to, but as I stare at him, standing only a few feet away from me now that I’ve edged closer to him, I can feel it. I can feel the way part of my soul is calling out for him, how much it desperately wants a connection to him if I’ll allow it.
He’s only a couple of inches taller than Manny, and not as large as Jeremiah and Zeke, but he’s not a small man by any means. Where Jeremiah’s muscles are well defined from working out and Zeke and Manny’s are more normal from years of manual labor or working out in the outdoors, Ridge is burly. He has muscle definition, but his muscles are softer from what I can see, more rounded out.
Husky. That’s the word I’d use, I suppose. He looks like if I were to lie on his chest for a cuddle, he’d be soft and comfortable. And I want to do that someday. Just crawl onto his chest and lie down as he wraps his arms around me and holds me tight. Maybe some head kisses because that sounds nice, but I’m not too particular.