Be there in 40 min, Kade texts. On my way out.
Heat sweeps through Felix’s cheeks. I can’t believe you’re doing this for me, he thinks, hugging himself. I’ve hurt you so badly.
But maybe Kade’s hoping for some sex in exchange, and Felix won’t say no to that. Sorry for changing the subject, he types. I really didn’t mean to.
The phone buzzes again. I still have some lube, so I’m not high and dry. But that lube goes quick. Gonna complain again.
Felix dissolves into a fit of giggles. Kade is amazing. He’s funny and handsome and strong. Felix can’t possibly deserve his company. But his alpha will be here soon with a bag of sausages, and he can’t wait.
Felix sinks back into his chair, cradling his phone in his hands.
21
Kade
Kade had been in his bedroom when the text arrived.
He’d bought the giraffe from a department store—Felix had liked the bouquet of lavender from the week before. Kade had wanted to surprise his omega, make him laugh with the toy. So he’d sent a picture of the giraffe, hoping he’d remember the plush toy joke at the gas station.
And Felix had sent another picture right back, except Kade never expected it to be a dick pic. Fifteen years ago, they had flirted on the phone, racking up phone bills until his parents yelled at him. Then they’d got their own phones, moved in together, and there had been no more need to stay up in bed, one hand holding the phone to his ear, the other shoved down his pants.
They haven’t done that since Felix returned to Meadowfall, but this snapshot brings back memories. And the sight of Felix showing him his cock, well... Kade had grown hard. He’d wondered if they’d stay up late again, stroking and exchanging photos, and he’d had every intention of showing Felix streaks of his own cum on his chest, after he removed the chain and ring from his neck.
Then Felix had texted, I need some sausage, and talked about taking a bus, and Kade had cursed, his cock still throbbing in his hand.
It isn’t so bad, he thinks as he flicks on the bike headlights, the garage door pulling open with a whir. I buy stuff he needs, and I get to see his face. Even if we don’t fuck.
Although they probably will. All it takes is Kade shoving him up against a wall. Felix grows hard every time, and he’ll roll his hips up, expectant, wanting Kade’s hand on him.
At the brightly-lit store, he texts, Need anything other than ham and sausage?
Nothing, comes Felix’s reply, unless you want some garlic toast to go with the soup.
Kade drops by the meat counter, then the bread section for some garlic spread, and heads to the registers. It’s 9 PM when he’s done buying the groceries, and when he reaches Felix’s place, the living room lights shine through the window. Kade rings the doorbell.
Felix answers the door, his cheeks flushed, hair tousled. Kade leans in, barely stopping himself from kissing his bondmate. Felix smiles awkwardly. “Thank you. I’m sorry for putting you through all that trouble.”
“It’s fine,” Kade says, following him into the house.
In the living room, stacks of packing boxes sit by the wall. Their presence scrapes at his nerves every time he visits. Kade stares warily at them as they pass, wondering if there are still things in those boxes, if Felix has just left them empty, or if he’s never taken their contents out at all. Which means...
“You’re really leaving Meadowfall?”
Felix glances over his shoulder, his eyes wary. “I’ve told you that, haven’t I? I’m just here for a while.”
I’m not good enough to keep you? Kade’s chest squeezes tight. He shoves his hand in his pocket, setting the plastic bag of groceries on the kitchen counter. “When?”
Felix jerks his thin shoulders. “I haven’t decided yet. Within the next two months.”
“Why?” Why are you leaving me?
The plastic bag crinkles as Felix riffles through it, pulling out the packages of meat. “I just have to leave, Kade. It’s... It’s not right for me to stay here.”
“I’m not right?” he blurts, pulse thudding in his ears. He shouldn’t have said it at all. He doesn’t want Felix to shut him out and tell him to leave, when he’d rather swallow his insecurities just to be near his bondmate again.
“It’s... it’s not you,” Felix says, still looking down. “And as cliché as it sounds, it’s really because of me. I’m not right for you.”
“The hell,” Kade says, incredulous. Felix thinks he’s not good enough? That can’t be right, because Felix is beautiful and funny and kind, and he needs Kade’s protection. “Is that why you left? Five years ago?”
“Can we not talk about this?” Felix snaps, his shoulders taut.
Kade flinches. Felix hasn’t snapped at him since he returned, and the thought of aggravating his bondmate, of Felix finding any reason to leave him... Kade swallows, his heart thumping.
“Okay. Okay, we won’t talk about it,” he says, looking away. But the question sits heavy in his heart, and Kade traces his ring through his shirt. He’s still not any closer to getting answers. Is it the money? Or something else? “What’re you cooking?”
“An Italian meat soup,” Felix says, unwrapping the paper-wrapped packet of sausage.
When he looks closer, Kade realizes that the spotlights above the counters are on, that diced bell peppers and onions are piled on the cutting board. “Teach me how to make it?”
Felix glances up from the speckled sausages. “Why?”
So that I can cook it for you. So that you won’t tell me to leave. “Just something to learn, I guess.”
Felix chews his lip. “You’ve already done so much.”
“If I’m eating, then I should help cook,” Kade says, even if he doesn’t really have any appetite for soup. “At least teach me something before you move.”
“I... suppose.” Felix sets the sausages back down on the waxed paper. “You want to cut the lining of those sausages first. Empty them in the pot. Then chop them up and brown them.”
Kade washes his hands, then runs a knife down the length of the sausages. The sausages thump into the pot, and as the stove heats, the meat begins to sizzle, notes of oregano, marjoram and basil wafting into the air.
Behind him, Felix sucks in a deep breath. “Mm. That smells good.”
Kade waits while the meat browns, glancing at him. Felix has his eyes closed, pale lashes brushing over his cheeks. Kade still finds himself marveling at his beauty. At ten, Felix had stood out at the school playground—too blond, too pale—and Kade had somehow been attracted to him. That was before they’d even known he was going to be an omega.
It’s strange how they’re standing together again, here in Meadowfall, two decades later.
With his spatula, Kade cuts the sausages into smaller chunks, stirring them in the pot. Felix opens his eyes, blinking as he looks around. When he catches Kade staring, he smiles, and maybe the tension between them is finally dissipating.
At the cutting board, Felix quarters stacks of pepperoni slices. “Wish you could eat this,” he murmurs, looking down. “It’s the most delicious. I’ll make it for you when you get older.”
“What?” Kade frowns. When he gets older? Does that mean Felix is staying?
Felix tenses and looks over his shoulders, his eyes wide. “Nothing.”
“You said something.”
“I was talking to myself,” Felix says, a scarlet tint sweeping up his face.
Kade frowns. Felix has been talking to himself lately. Mostly, it’s things he doesn’t understand, but it’s not his place to question it. Above the sizzle of meat, he asks, “You picked this recipe up in Highton?”
“I had it at a restaurant there,” Felix says, his knife slowing against the cutting board. “I was with a group of other artists. We had an exhibition at one of those large halls—there were so many people—and quite a few of us sold paintings. So we went out to a fancy restaurant to celebrate. I found this soup on the menu. It’s... well, a meat soup.
I think you’d like it.”
“Sounds good,” Kade says. “You’re still talking to those artists?”
“Yeah. They’re decent people,” Felix says, smiling. “A little eccentric, but that’s to be expected of creative types. I made a couple of good friends there, too, like Jared—he does oil nudes—and Tom, who’s more of a sculptor, but he does metalwork too—”
“Oil nudes? With models?”
“Yeah. I’ve modeled for him.”
Kade looks up, his mind whirring. Felix led a life without him those five years, and he’s bound to have slept with other people, even if he never received a second bonding mark. Kade swallows. It’s not as if he hasn’t hooked up with random people, either, but Felix is—was—his bondmate, and part of him wants to mark Felix, wants him back. It feels as though he’s lost part of himself all these years. “Huh.”
Felix shrugs, dicing up more ham. “It never amounted to anything.”
But it sounds like he maybe wanted something to happen. Kade clenches his teeth, a spark of jealousy streaking through his veins. His wrists prickle, and he swallows. “So you’re going back to them?”
“Maybe. They may have some new networking opportunities,” Felix says, stepping over to look into the pot. Kade wants to hold him tight and never let go. “You may add the onions in now.”
Kade drops them in, and it’s definitely the sizzling onions making his eyes water. He stirs the food, watching as Felix drifts off to rinse some tomatoes. He wants to say something to make Felix stay in Meadowfall, but he doesn’t know what. His brother? “Taylor’s gonna miss you if you go.”
Felix shrugs. “Taylor’s not around anyway. And it sounds like he met someone he likes... I just hope they’re doing okay. They’re working for different sides.”
“That sucks.”
“It does. But they’re fucking, though, so that’s a plus.” Felix chuckles. He sobers a few moments later, scooping up the diced ham and setting it into a bowl next to Kade. “I’m worried for him. It’s not as though they’ll end up anywhere if they’re on opposite sides.”
Kade grimaces. He’s met Taylor on a few occasions, but he’s always liked Felix’s brother. Taylor shouldn’t have to choose between a mate and his job. “He knows what he’s doing,” Kade says. “You don’t have to worry about him.”
Unlike Felix, because Felix has always been a little less headstrong than his brother. He and Taylor may both be omegas, but Felix doesn’t have the self-preservation instincts his brother does, and that’s probably why Kade was drawn to him in the first place. Felix is someone he can protect, and Kade wants to be needed. It’s not something he can ignore.
“Thanks,” Felix murmurs. He leans against Kade’s arm, resting his head against Kade’s shoulder. Kade wants to sniff at him. Right now, all he smells are Italian spices, onions, and meat, and it’s not enough. Felix shifts. “I’m sorry for snapping at you earlier. I shouldn’t have.”
“It’s fine,” Kade says. “Don’t worry about it.”
“Add the bell peppers next,” Felix says. “We’ll drop all the meat in, then the vegetables and the chicken stock, and bring it to a boil. It’s a pretty simple recipe, really. Oh, and don’t forget the oregano and more Italian seasoning.”
“Sure.”
They take turns scooping ingredients into the pot, before adding cartons of chicken stock. When Kade cranks the heat on to high, Felix says, “I think you’ll make a really good husband, you know. You cook so well.”
Kade’s stomach flips, and the ring sits heavy on his chest. “You think?”
“I don’t think. I know,” Felix says. He turns away, his cheeks flushing, and it steals the breath from Kade’s lungs. Felix isn’t... interested, is he? Because he had accepted the flowers, and he’s talking about husbands now, and... Kade’s heartbeat drowns out everything else.
“Really?” he asks, throat tight.
“Really.” Felix wanders off across the kitchen, his back to Kade, and he’s grabbing his phone, fiddling with it. “I mean, someone out there will be really fortunate to have you.”
But not you? Kade’s nails bite into his palm. He turns back to the pot, stirring the ham and tomatoes and oregano, watching as they swirl before him. “Really?”
“Because you’re strong,” Felix says, his face hidden. “And you’re smart. And you love your bike. And you make all these silly jokes. And...”
Do you hear what you’re saying? It feels like Kade’s chest is gaping open. You’re interested, aren’t you?
“Come see if the soup is done,” Kade says, trying to breathe. He wants his mate closer, wants them to be truly bonded again.
When Felix pads over, his hair falling into his eyes, Kade steps away, fetching a bowl from the cabinet. Felix ladles some boiling soup in, puckering his lips to blow on it. Then he sips the soup, eyelids fluttering shut, and a smile spreads across his face.
“This is delicious,” Felix purrs, sipping again. “It won’t be ready until it sits for another hour or more, but oh, gods this is good.”
He stirs the soup, before scooping a full ladle of it into his bowl, then another. Kade follows him to the kitchen table, watching as Felix sets it on the clean tablecloth.
“It’s not ready, but it’s good?” Kade asks. The rest of the soup is now simmering on the stove, and it’ll be a while before all the flavors meld together. But it does smell savory, like sausage and tomato and rosemary. Felix is almost through with his bowl when Kade reaches out for it. “More?”
“Mm. Yes.” Felix hands the bowl over, dregs of soup swirling at the bottom.
Kade ladles more soup into the bowl. Before he sets it down at the table, he tries a spoonful of red-orange broth, tasting the faint spice of oregano and thyme, the acidic flavor of tomato, the meaty chicken stock. In a few hours, the soup will saturate with the rest of the flavors—the ham, the pepperoni and sausage, and maybe Kade should return for another taste of it.
“It’s good, isn’t it?” Felix asks, kicking his legs out. He grins, eyes bright. Kade sets the bowl in front of him, watching as he slurps it down with a spoon, a smile curving his mouth.
“Not bad,” Kade says, but all he can think about is Felix’s smile. “Probably will be better tomorrow.”
“I wanted to eat it all now,” Felix says, grinning.
“That hungry, huh?”
“Mm-hm.” Felix tips the soup into his mouth.
Halfway through, he slows, licking his lips. “I think I’ve had enough to stop the craving,” he murmurs, reaching up to curl his fingers into Kade’s shirt. Felix tugs on it, pulling him down, and Kade kneels in front of his omega, breath catching in his throat.
Felix kisses him.
It starts off slow, Felix’s mouth brushing over his, nipping at his lips. Kade slides his hand up behind Felix’s knee, the warmth of Felix’s body soaking through his pants. He tastes like tomato and basil, like chicken broth. Felix’s tongue slips into Kade’s mouth, insistent and hungry. Kade slides their tongues together, and Felix purrs, reaching down to fondle his cock.
“Hungry?” Kade growls against his lips, cupping Felix’s knees to spread his legs.
“Maybe,” Felix breathes. He slides forward in his seat, pushing his hips at Kade. Kade hooks his fingers around Felix’s calves, heaving him forward so he’s sitting right at the edge of his seat, his inner thighs pressing lightly against Kade’s arms.
So Kade drags his fingers over the hard line in his pants, a touch just enough to tease. Felix groans, squirming in his seat.
“Gonna have to beg for it,” Kade whispers, leaning in to sniff the musk of his cock. “I’ll make you scream.”
“Fuck yes,” Felix says, and Kade smiles.
22
Felix
It all happens in a whirl: Kade showing up at his door, Kade cooking for him, Kade being perfect husband-material in his kitchen. Felix has been half-hard the entire time, just watching his alpha move.
Kade’s shirt stretches o
ver his chest and biceps, and when Felix’s craving for soup has been satisfied, he grabs Kade like a fool in love and kisses him.
And Kade responds. Which puts them in this situation: Felix’s legs spread wide open, Kade’s face pressed into the crotch of his jeans. Kade’s smelling his arousal, dragging his nose along the line of Felix’s cock.
Felix groans, squirming, needing to please his alpha, but he doesn’t want to move, when Kade’s pulling his pants open, his eyes dark, watching as Felix’s cock juts up between them.
“I guess this is better than pictures,” Felix murmurs, his throat dry. Kade’s gaze rakes over him, heavy and hot, and Felix can’t help the trickle of fluid that rolls down his cock, leaving a wet streak down his skin. He feels exposed like that, under Kade’s stare, knowing Kade enjoys looking at all of him.
“Yeah.” Kade leans in then, catching the droplet with the tip of his tongue, following it up along Felix’s cock, a warm, wet touch. Felix sucks in a sharp breath. Kade laps over his tip, circling the opening of his foreskin, and pleasure winds through Felix’s body. “Much better.”
“I didn’t think you’d send a photo back,” Felix says, breathless. His cock jerks against Kade’s lips, and Kade circles it with his hand, stroking it, so more precum trickles from its tip. He licks that up too, wrapping his pliant lips around Felix. Felix groans, trembling. Kade’s mouth always feels so good, and he always knows what Felix wants.
Kade grins, meeting his eyes. “You liked my pictures?”
“You think?” Felix squirms, feeling as though Kade can see through him, anyway.
“Yeah.” Kade licks over his tip, pushing his tongue under his skin, rubbing against his sensitive head. Felix hisses, grasping his seat for leverage, pushing up into Kade’s mouth. Kade takes him all the way inside.
Kade sucks on him then, slow and even, and pulls off with a wet pop, his lips glistening. Felix groans, squirming further forward on the chair, pushing his cock at his alpha. “More, please. Suck it.”
The Omega's Secret Pregnancy (Men of Meadowfall Book 1) Page 15