Page 11 of Pack’s Prize
“But I–” I said, and stopped. I had dressed carefully, after my long bath, but now the delicate lace of my skimpiest panties, my sexiest, least-coverage bra, felt as rough as sandpaper against my skin.What about our agreement?“I thought–”
“You’d thought that we were, what, justconfirmed bachelors?”Theo said, swirling his wine, staring into the golden liquid. “No, darling.”
He looked up at me, meeting my gaze, his eyes challenging. I didn’t know what he expected; he was an alpha, and I, an omega: I lowered my gaze to the small patch of tanned skin visible above the second button of his dress shirt. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he took a sip of wine and swallowed it, running his tongue over his bottom lip.
“Is that going to be a problem?”
CHAPTERTWELVE
Michael
“Theo,”I barked, irritated at having to reprimand him twice. “If you have an issue with this,” I gestured to the four of us, seated at the table we usually occupied as three, “you can take it up with me. Later. Not her, andnothere.” The last thing we needed was for Ava to cause a scene in the restaurant: if word of our pack’s persuasion got out to the omegas of the city, we would have no chance of finding another omega who would play this part, and I could wave goodbye to that inheritance.
“I thought–” Ava said again, seated across from me. “But what about–” she stuttered, her face going pink. “I thought you said you would–”
My eyes widened as I understood her stammered question. She wasn’t worried aboutourside of the bargain at all. No, it washersshe was worried about. I could have laughed aloud. I opened my mouth, trying to come up with something to say.
Thankfully, Elias cut in. “We’ll be more than capable.” She turned to look, confusion written across her pretty face. “I–” he started, then turned in his chair to face her. I could see his eyes, searching hers for something. “Here, let me… let me show you. Let me–”
He bent down, taking her head in his vast hand, cupping her face with it and drawing her upwards, his eyes questioning as they flicked down to her plush lips, back to her eyes.
And suddenly, I wanted nothing more than that: to see Elias, sweet, dependable Elias, his lips pressed against those of the vision of omega beauty that was gracing our table, glowing in the light of the tea candle on the white linen tablecloth and the thousand drips of golden light from the chandelier.
And then, she was nodding, her eyes fluttering shut, and their lips met, softly at first, then, deeper–the omega’s mouth parting under Elias’s, a flash of white teeth as he nipped gently at her lower lip. The wine turned sweet in my mouth, and I realized it was her–her scent, blooming around us, perfuming the table with honey. My cock was hard and insistent against my thigh, and, for the first time, I realized what exactly I had promised: we’d be taking her home tonight. My pulse pounded through my veins, making my length throb in my dress pants.All for a kiss? Or… was it the promise of tonight that had my instincts on high alert and my cock pressing against my zipper?
“Merde,” Theo cursed under his breath, and I could tell by a glance at his face that he was as affected as I was: the eyes that usually maintained an aloof indifference were now fixed intently on the place where Elias’s lips met her soft, pink ones, his pupils wide and black.
A soft “hem” shattered my focus–the waiter had returned with the first course. Ava and Elias broke their kiss gently, his hand still on the nape of her neck for a moment as her cheeks flushed, eyes caught on his.
I dragged my eyes to my plate, unable to watch a moment longer. I could see the tiny dollop of airy gastrique, a spoon of melting tuna tartare–but I barely tasted it, chewing mechanically, taking another sip of honey-drenched wine.
The rest of the meal passed similarly–I ate, and drank, one hand on my fork and the other clenched tight in my lap as Elias leant in toward Ava and she grew more comfortable in his presence, laughing lightly as he cut slices of meat off his own steak, depositing them on her plate.
It was all going exactly how I had planned it. Anyone who saw us here tonight would think she was ours, that we were hers: the way Elias’s hand snuck sideways under the table to rest on her thigh, the way she started, then relaxed into his touch… she played the part perfectly.
Theo was still being an ass, but that was to be expected, I reassured myself. He’d been the least enthusiastic about this scheme all along, but he’d been the one who’d found her. He may not have liked her now, but he would come around, soon enough. She was good enough to win over even his icy heart.
Then again, she didn’thaveto win him over. She just had to stick to our agreement.
But, I thought, as Elias carefully lifted a small spoonful of crème caramel towards her mouth, and her tongue darted out to swipe away the remnants of sweetness on her lower lip, the way my own body reacted–the way my own senses were fixed on their every move, the way my own heart burned in my chest and my cock swelled at the sight of the two of them together…
That…
That wasn’t part of the plan.
CHAPTERTHIRTEEN
Ava
I knewthat Elias’s kiss was all for show–we were in public, it was part of the act–but as he leaned into me, the way my body reacted to his was all real. His hand cupped my head, tilting it gently, his gaze dropped from my eyes to my lips and my own eyelids fluttered closed as I hung suspended in the moment before a kiss.
His lips met mine, just a brush of skin on skin, really, and then–
A riot of butterflies exploded behind my rib cage, their fluttering wings dripping sticky sweet heat into my belly, and I resisted the urge to moan just barely. Elias’s teeth caught against my bottom lip as my mouth parted silently on a soft sigh, nipping just hard enough to make me feel it, to make the blood rush to where his teeth had been.
And then he was gone, my lips tingling where his had been, and I opened my eyes to see him staring back at me, his blue irises nearly eclipsed by dark, dark pupils.
You couldn’t fake that.