Her scent was on it, and I would have to pretend I was unaffected by the vanilla cream aroma. This entire apartment smelled like her, no one else’s scent present except hints of the housekeeper’s. I would have to make sure I erased all those hints, scent marking this house as mine. I felt a primal need to do so immediately.
“Is there soap?” I asked, peering into the bathroom.
“Yes.”
“Is it scent free?”
She scoffed. “No. I don’t keep scent free soap.”
My nose crinkled. It was like I could already smell the artificial berries and florals of normal soaps. They’d drown my scent and make it impossible to claim her like I wanted to.
I didn’t know why the idea of not being able to rub my scent all over her was so offensive. My instincts raged, though, throwing a fit that culminated in me releasing a low whine.
Leighton’s gaze snapped to mine and I froze.
My heart rate increased until it thudded in my ears. I waited for the spike of her aura, accompanied by a command that I not be so brazen. My father had put me in contact with a few alphas—all interactions supervised and followed by discipline if I did anything wrong.
Any time I’d reacted with a whine or whimper, I’d been intimidated and berated.
I had a flash of memory of an alpha bodyguard with a scent of overpowering cedar. He’d gotten close to me on the cusp of my heat, hours before I was due to take the drugs that put me to sleep. A single touch of his hand on my shoulder had been enough to have me whimpering, unbidden lust rushing through me.
His aura had flared so strongly I’d fought to keep down the tears in my eyes. If I cried in the presence of an alpha, my father’s discipline after the fact was far worse.
“Don’t be so needy,”the alpha had growled.“Alphas don’t want an omega who needs to be attended to like a fucking child.”
I waited for a similar sentiment from Leighton.
As seconds wore on, I chewed on my bottom lip and clutched the folded towel closer to my chest. I itched to touch the firm edge of the knife’s handle but settled for focusing on the feel of it against my skin.
There was no flare of aura to keep me cowed.
In fact, her aura was different in general. The weight of it was like a soft blanket over me, her essence all-encompassing. Her aura was out more than any male alphas I’d met, allowing me to feel her and how she didn’t mean any harm.
“Fine,” she muttered finally. “I’ll get the scent free soap from the master bathroom.”
She spun on her heel and left me reeling.
She was… giving me what I wanted.
No one had ever done that before.
Leighton didn’t know me at all, and she’d listened to my involuntary complaint and took it to heart.
My body had a visceral reaction as I waited for her to return. Every inch of my skin prickled in anticipation of touch. Arousal pooled in my core. That had happened before, yes. But I’d always been scared of that reaction.
I was a needy omega.
Alphas didn’t want that.
This time, I wasn’t scared and there was no sour tinge of fear marring my arousal. I fidgeted with anticipation of Leighton’s return, and I wasn’t disappointed when she did.
Her nostrils flared, sucking in a breath of my heightened scent. She wasn’t furious or disgusted. The bright green of her irises grew smaller and smaller as her pupils expanded.
I loved the heavy dose of vanilla cream I got from her.
It made me almost weak in my desire.
“Here’s the soap.”
