Shhh

Rose’s POV

The word left my lips like a prayer and a surrender all at once—“Alpha”—and the air between us changed. The bond flared so bright I felt it behind my eyelids, golden fire licking along every nerve, chasing the last cold edges of my daytime terror. Jason’s silver eyes darkened to molten mercury, pupils blown wide with hunger and something far deeper, far more possessive. His thumb stilled on my cheek for one heartbeat, then slid down to trace the line of my jaw, slow and deliberate, as if he were memorizing the exact shape of my surrender.

“Brave little omega,” he murmured, voice a low rumble that vibrated straight through my chest and settled low in my belly. “Asking your alpha to steady you when every instinct is still screaming to run. That takes strength, Rose. More than you know.”

He didn’t rush. Never rushed. That was part of what undid me every time—the way he gave me space even while claiming every inch of it. His other hand came up to cup the back of my neck, fingers threading gently into the loose strands that had escaped my braid during the frantic walk here. The touch was warm, callused, grounding. I leaned into it without meaning to, a broken little whimper slipping free as the scent of him—pine smoke, cold iron, aged leather and hearthfire—wrapped around me like a blanket I’d been freezing without all day.

The wards hummed softly around us, a shimmering veil that sealed the world out and us in. No footsteps in the corridor. No distant laughter from the training fields. Just the crackle of the low hearth, the rustle of parchment on his desk, and the wet sound of my own ragged breathing. My skirt felt too tight, the high collar of my blouse suddenly suffocating against the claiming bite that pulsed like a second heartbeat. Fresh slick threatened again, hot and insistent, soaking through the thin barrier of my panties despite the double layer of blockers I’d slathered on. The room filled with the mingled scent of us—rose and honey and wild need tangled with his pine-iron dominance—thick enough to taste.

“I’ve got you,” he said, the words velvet over steel, thumb brushing my lower lip. “Right here. No board. No Marcus. No whispers. Just my mate asking her alpha to make the fear quiet.” His gaze dropped to my mouth, then lower, to where my jacket hid the mark he’d left on my throat. “Let me remind you who we are.”

He closed the last breath of distance and kissed me.

It wasn’t gentle. It was *necessary*. His mouth claimed mine with the same unyielding certainty he’d used when his teeth had sunk into my throat last night. I gasped into the kiss, hands flying up to fist in his shirt, the crisp white fabric bunching under my fingers as I pulled him closer. He tasted like coffee and smoke and *home*, tongue sliding against mine in a slow, thorough stroke that made my knees buckle. One strong arm banded around my waist, holding me upright as the bond sang—bright, golden, triumphant—flooding me with flashes of his wolf: massive silver form curling protectively around my smaller russet one, rumbling *mine, safe, together*.

My wolf answered with a needy whine, pressing so hard against the inside of my ribs I felt her fur brush my skin from within. *Yes,* she purred, tail lashing with joy. *Alpha. Mate. Let him knot the fear away.*

I broke the kiss just enough to breathe, forehead resting against his, tears slipping free again. “Jason… what if someone smells me leaving later? What if Marcus is waiting in the cloister? What if—”

“Shh.” His lips brushed mine again, softer this time, then trailed along my jaw to the shell of my ear. “The wards will mask your scent until you’re three corridors away. I reinforced them this afternoon—old border-pack trick. And Marcus?” A low growl rumbled through his chest, vibrating into me. “If that pup so much as looks at you sideways again, I’ll remind him exactly why I rewrote the statutes on alpha challenges. You are *mine*, Rose. Marked. Claimed. Protected.” His teeth grazed the claiming bite through my collar, just enough pressure to make me moan, slick flooding hot between my thighs. “Let me show you.”

He walked me backward until the edge of the heavy oak desk pressed against the backs of my thighs—the same desk from last night. Papers scattered; the leather folder of preemptive documents slid sideways, but he didn’t care. Neither did I. His hands slid down my sides, thumbs brushing the undersides of my breasts through blouse and jacket, sending sparks straight to my core. I arched into the touch, a broken sound escaping me.

“Off,” he ordered softly, already unbuttoning my jacket with deft fingers. “I need to see my mark on you, little one. Need to feel it under my tongue while I steady that pretty cunt.”

Gods, the words alone nearly made me come. I shrugged the jacket off, fingers trembling as I fumbled with the high buttons of my blouse. He helped, patient but hungry, pushing the fabric open until cool air kissed my skin and the claiming bite was bared—two perfect crescents still faintly bruised, still *his*. His silver eyes flared molten at the sight. A reverent growl left him as he leaned down and dragged his tongue slowly over the mark.

Pleasure slammed through me like lightning. My head fell back, a keening moan tearing free. The bond lit up white-hot, carrying his satisfaction, his love, his absolute possession straight into my soul. My nipples tightened painfully against the thin lace of my bra; more slick soaked through my panties and began to trickle down my inner thighs.

“Beautiful,” he breathed against my throat, sucking lightly on the bite until my knees gave out completely. He caught me, lifting me effortlessly onto the desk, papers crinkling beneath me. “Look at you. Already dripping for your alpha. So good for me even when you’re terrified.” One big hand slid up my thigh, pushing my skirt higher, fingers tracing the wet trail on my skin. “This is what the bond wants, Rose. This is what *we* are. Not scandal. Not ruin. Just two mates who fit like the stars aligned us that way.”

I clutched at his shoulders, nails digging in through his shirt. “I’m still scared,” I whispered, voice cracking, even as my hips rolled helplessly against his palm. “The assembly hall… your title—”

“I know.” He kissed me again, deep and slow, swallowing every fear until only heat remained. “And we’ll face every single one of them side by side. But right now, little omega, you’re going to let me take care of you.” His fingers hooked into the waistband of my soaked panties and dragged them down my legs, letting them dangle from one ankle like last night. Cool air hit my slick folds and I whimpered, spreading my thighs wider without thinking.

Two thick fingers slid through my folds, gathering wetness, circling my swollen clit with perfect pressure. My back arched off the desk, a cry tearing from my throat. “Jason—*Alpha*—”

“That’s it,” he praised, voice wrecked. “Let me hear you. The wards will keep every sweet sound just for me.” He sank one finger inside me, then two, curling immediately against that spot that made stars burst behind my eyes. The stretch was perfect, but not enough. Never enough without his knot. My walls clenched greedily around him, slick coating his hand, dripping onto the desk in obscene little sounds that should have mortified me but only made the bond sing louder.

He worked me open with slow, relentless strokes, thumb never leaving my clit, mouth latched back onto my claiming bite—sucking, licking, scraping teeth just enough to remind me who I belonged to. The guilt tried to rise again, a distant roar, but every thrust of his fingers drowned it out. *Together. Together. Together.* The bond chanted it with every heartbeat.

I came with a broken sob, vision whiting out, body convulsing around his fingers as pleasure crashed through me in waves. He didn’t stop—kept stroking me through it, drawing it out until I was shaking, oversensitive, tears streaming down my temples.

When I finally sagged back against the desk, panting, he withdrew his fingers and brought them to his mouth, licking them clean with a low, satisfied growl. “Perfect,” he murmured. “But I’m not done steadying you yet, little one.”

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