Page 152 of All Packed Up

“Look at me,” Grif demanded, and his tone gripped Nic by the throat, gave him no choice. “Are you telling me our kiss hasn’t crossed your mind?”

Of course it has, Nic wanted to yell. But so had a hundred other things that had been holding him back for years.

His frustration peaked, and he gritted his teeth, stared up into those swirling dark eyes, and snapped, “How do you want anything to do with me? You’re acting like everything’s fine!”

Grif physically leaned back at the force of Nic’s anger. “Is it… not?”

Nic dragged his hands through his hair, took a step back. “Of course not! I ruined your life, Griffith, and you’re acting like nothing’s happened. Do you not feel anything at all?”

Gravel crunched as Grif stalked closer, eating up the space between them until his arms braced on either side of Nic. The flat truck bed bit into the bottom of his ass, he had nowhere to go.

“I’m going to say this once, and you’re going to listen to me,” Grif said, voice low and rocky like the gravel they stood on.

Nic’s heart leapt into his throat at the alpha’s proximity, his sweet baked scent filling his lungs.

“I don’t blame you. I’m not the one harboring any ill feelings.”

“I—”

“Even if they’re toward myself,” Grif said pointedly, arching a brow.

Nic swallowed.

“In my eyes, Nic, you did nothing wrong.”

Slamming his eyes shut, Nic huffed out a breath and parted his lips to breathe without sucking in Grif’s honeyed scent.

“Clearly you blame yourself for something you shouldn’t,” the alpha continued. “And when you’re ready for me to tell you how stupid you are, I’ll be here.”

Nic met his serious dark gaze, certain the earth was about to fall out from under him.

“But for now?”

Grif crowded closer, until they were eye to eye, and Nic could feel the alpha’s heat where their bodies touched through their clothes.

“For now, we have an omega whose heat could start any day, and I plan to take full advantage of that.” Grif lowered his head suddenly, and Nic froze as he felt the alpha’s breath brush across his neck. “Full advantage,” he promised, pressing their hips together. Arousal flared to life in Nic, and he fought the urge to roll his forward. “Just don’t shut me out completely. Give me a glimmer of hope,” the alpha asked. “Because I get the feeling that we may not have enough time to put everything we want out on the table. Not until after this is over.”

This. Wendy’s heat, taking care of her alphas. No one knew what was going to happen after. But maybe… just maybe Nic could pencil a spot in for Griffith.

There was so much guilt eating away at Nic’s heart, and Griffith had no idea. He needed to tell him why. Why he hadn’t shown, why Nic hated that Grif had sacrificed himself for the beta.

A seed of doubt planted itself, took root. What if when Nic told the alpha, he really lost Griffith forever? What if sharing it with Griffith made him realize that Nic was right and they really were never meant to work out?

That would kill Nic all over again.

That meant this would be his last chance with Griffith.

So shouldn’t he take it?

No great deity appeared to answer his question, so Nic was on his own, he had to stand strong and remember all the reasons why letting himself give in was wrong.

But at the moment, with Griffith so close and his scent surrounding him, Nic couldn’t quite recall what they were.

In fact, he couldn’t think of any reason why it would be so bad to let Griffith kiss him. Why it would be bad to let them take advantage of each other through the heat.

It’s what Grif wanted.

Was it what Nic wanted?