Chapter 34

DOE

I could feel his ribs under my hands. The realization made me gasp. Ace was still muscular and built like a brick wall, but I had never been able to feel his bones before.

I pulled back just slightly. “Ace…” I cupped his face, studying him with horror. “What—?”

He grabbed my wrist, tugged on the bracelet there, and hissed, the silver burning him just slightly.

“Can I take these off?” he said. “Please, I need to ~feel~ you. I need to be connected to you again through the mate bond. Just for a bit, and then you can put them back on if that’s what you want.”

I nodded, sniffling. There was no reason to block our bond anymore. “Yes. Yes, take them off. I don’t want them anymore—”

Before I could finish my thought, Ace grabbed the bracelet on my right wrist and ripped it in two before flinging it across the room with a growl.

It hit the wall with such force that I was surprised it didn’t leave a hole there.

He did the same to the one on my left wrist.

~So much for his offer to let me put those back on later.~

Instantly, it was like ten thousand pounds had been lifted from my shoulders.

While my goal had been to cut off our connection so Ace couldn’t feel me while I was away from him, I realized now that I had also been weakening myself.

~I thought silver didn’t affect humans the same way it did werewolves. Guess I didn’t take into account my omega side.~

The world felt right now that I could feel the connection with my mate again.

Ace kissed the slightly reddened skin of my wrists where the silver had been and let his eyes fall shut, probably out of the same relief I was feeling.

“Fuck. ~Yes.~ Thank the fucking moon goddess. I missed this so much, Doe. I missed you so much.”

I dug my hands into his hair, pulling him closer. “I’m done running from you. I want us to be together. I…I love you. I never stopped loving you. I think we both just got a little lost.”

Ace melded his forehead to my head and wiped a stray tear of mine away with his thumb. “I love you too,” he whispered.

His lips came down on mine, leading me in a deep and passionate kiss. “Doe,” he murmured against my mouth. “My Doe.”

“Your Doe,” I agreed. “And you’re mine. I’m sorry for running. I know I scared you—”

“Shh.” He caressed my cheekbone. “I know why you did it. It’s okay. I’m not mad. It killed me a little every day we spent apart, but you needed time away from me, and I wasn’t ready to give you that.”

He paused, searching my eyes. “Are you mad that I’m here? I’m sorry, I should have waited for you to come back on your own, but I was just worried that something horrible was going to happen to you—”

“It’s okay, Ace.” It was my turn to reassure him. “I get it now. We’re not meant to be apart, are we?”

“No,” Ace exhaled. “No, we’re not. I thought you were going to hate me forever. I wouldn’t blame you if you hated me fore—”

I slammed my mouth down on his, silencing him. I didn’t want to listen to him beat himself up anymore. I was done dwelling on the past. I was ready to move on to the next part of our lives.

“I forgive you. But that was your one screw-up,” I whispered. “Mess with my memories again, and I swear that’ll be the last time you see me. Not even the mate bond will stop me from running from you.”

I could tell Ace didn’t like the threat of losing me again, but he gave me a stiff nod anyway.

“Deal.”

I smiled and sealed my mouth over his once more, unable to resist him now that he was right in front of me. All my worries disappeared with that kiss. My mind went blissfully blank.

Ace’s hands tangled into my hair, his tongue seeking entrance into my mouth. I instantly parted my lips, allowing his tongue deep, smooth, and hot strokes against my own.

He kissed me until I was out of breath and my brain was fuzzy with lust. Pangs of regret hit me—regret for staying away from him—from ~this~—for so long. We had wasted so much time.

Time I was gearing up to make up for.

~Like, right now.~

The thought made me moan and press my aching breasts against his hard chest. I ran my hands down his stomach, and Ace groaned, his cock shifting enticingly against my ass.

“Mmm, Doe…” Ace’s hands pulled gently at my hair as he attempted to remove his lips from mine. “Hold on a second, baby.”

~What? No!~

A high-pitched whimper escaped my throat. I tried to tug him back to me, but he kept a firm grip on me.

His eyebrows tugged together. “You just whined,” he stated, sounding surprised and maybe a little concerned.

Now it was my turn to frown. That was the second time someone had said that to me today. “I wasn’t ~whining~—”

“No, I don’t mean you were whining like some child throwing a tantrum. You whined like an omega.

“It’s a defense mechanism, a sound only omegas can make when they need something or are distressed. Werewolves, especially alphas, respond to it on instinct.”

It occurred to me that I had made the same noise in front of Kyle earlier. That must’ve been how he’d figured out I was an omega.

Ace brushed his thumb over my cheekbone, his expression thoughtful. “You’ve never whined before.”

“Maybe I’ve never had a reason to whine before. I’ve never been away from you for so long.”

The corners of Ace’s lips turned up just slightly, and it caused my lower stomach to do a flip. Even in his exhausted state, he was so damn beautiful.

“I’m sure that’s part of it, but it also means you’re fully mature now. All your omega tendencies are finally settling in.”

He must have felt my nerves spike because he quickly added, “It’s a good thing, sweet girl.”

I loved it when he smiled at me. I loved it when he was happy.

Before I could think through my actions, I leaned forward and licked his upturned lips, needing to taste him.

The growl that Ace released was laced with desire. It had my stomach doing flips and flames licking up the back of my neck.

Ace put his hands on my shoulders and gently pushed me back. I whined again.

“Shh, I know,” Ace said. “It’s hard for me to stop, too, but this isn’t the time or place. We need to talk. I need to know when the last time you took suppressants was.

“Your scent…” His nostrils flared, and his eyes flashed. “Well, you smell fucking ~edible~.”

Crap. Right. It was no wonder I was acting so…needy. Of all the days I could’ve forgotten to take my suppressants, I just had to choose the day I reunited with my smoking hot, panty-dropping mate.

“Today is the first day I forgot to take them. But they should still be in my system from yesterday. Is it a problem if I miss a day?”

I didn’t feel like I was going into heat or anything. I suppose it could’ve been a spike he was smelling, although I doubted it. I felt perfectly normal. I was just happy to see him again.

Maybe my mind was a little hazy from smelling him and feeling his body against mine and, oh, ~God~, his lips…

“No, it’s not a problem. You’re just acting a little out of it. Letting your instincts drive your actions. And you smell like your heat is approaching. You’re close. Really fucking close.”

I nuzzled against his neck while he spoke, loving that I could feel his purrs vibrating against my head. “Because I missed a single day of suppressants?”

“No, I think it’s because I’m here. We’ve been apart for too long. Your body is trying to ensure that we stay together. Sending you into heat is the perfect way to do that.

“It’s not happening now. But we’ve probably only got a day or two, maybe three if we’re lucky.”

“Oh.” I slumped against him, unsure of what to do with that information. “Being an omega is exhausting.”

For once, I just wanted to enjoy being with my mate without turning into a sex-crazed animal. Was that too much to ask for?

Ace’s answering chuckle warmed my chest. I’d missed that sound.

“I know, sweet girl. It’s not always like this. You just have to make it through your first heat.”

He massaged the back of my head, pulling a quiet moan from my throat. I wiggled closer and licked the side of his neck.

Yeah, I could see what he meant now about my instincts driving my actions.

Ace cleared his throat. “Hold on, Doe. I need to talk to you before we start anything. There are ways to make it stop, you know. Your heat, I mean, if you’re not ready—”

“No,” I said. I already knew what he was going to say, and the thought made my heart climb up my throat in a panic. “I don’t want to be away from you. Ever again. Please don’t go. Please.”

Ace exhaled in relief and pulled me tightly against him. “I’m not going anywhere, baby. Not if you don’t want me to. You don’t have to worry.”

He pulled back and brushed my hair out of my face. “But you know what that means, right?”

I nodded and set my chin back on his shoulder. “That I’m officially going into heat.”