Chapter Twelve
Jensen walked with Liam back to the clinic to pick up the picnic basket and a blanket. Liam was calmer, smiling and laughing as Jensen told him a story about one of the kids bringing him an injured bird that they kept insisting was a shifter. He’d sedated it and splinted its leg and the bird had woken and panicked, flying around the room, knocking things down and causing mayhem.
“Was it a shifter?” Joe asked.
“Nope. Just a bird. Couldn’t convince Homer of that though. He believed it was a shifter, long after we let it go and it flew away.”
“There are a lot of different shifters here.”
“Yeah, I can see why Homer would be so sure. We’ve got lots of small shifter animals.”
“Lions and bears aren’t small.”
Liam was referring to Jensen himself and Hunter, the two permanent alpha presences in the den.
“No, we’re not, but as you’ve probably noticed, there aren’t many of us here.”
Just two of them there full time, though Seth and Max were frequent visitors. And in the past few weeks, Axel had been living there too, spending time with Joe.
“Most packs only have a few alphas though, don’t they?”
“That’s true. Too many would cause trouble, just as much as too few. How many in your pack?”
Liam mumbled something, stumbling over his answer, the words inaudible to Jensen. His head was down, his eyes on the ground. He got like that whenever Jensen or anyone else asked about his past. Jensen did his best not to pry too much, though sometimes curiosity got the better of him. He hoped, in time, Liam would feel like sharing more about himself than just his name.
“What’s over there?” Liam asked, pointing to their left, away into the distance. Jensen glanced at what he was looking at.
“That’s the northeastern corner of the den, there’s a cottage there.”
“Who lives there?”
“Oh, no one lives there, exactly. It’s just a place for people to stay in case they need some space, or peace and quiet, or privacy.”
“Privacy for what?” Liam seemed curious.
“Mating, usually.”
“Oh.” Liam’s cheeks turned a pretty pink color. Though they weren’t even walking in that direction, Jensen made a point of being clear about their destination.
“We’re going east, over by those oak trees.”
Liam seemed happy with that, though he cast a few glances at the cottage as they walked.
Jensen spread out the blanket and they sat and unpacked the food.
“I made some sandwiches and brought some of those pizza slices from last night’s dinner. Oh, and there’s fresh fruit and cream. And some rocky road.”
Liam’s eyes grew bigger and bigger as they unpacked the food.
“How many people are coming to lunch?”
“Just us.”
“There’s so much food.”
“We don’t have to eat all of it. You could try a little bit of everything.”
“What’s that?” Liam pointed to a bottle of red liquid.
“Apple and raspberry cordial. Ollie made it.”
With some coaxing, Jensen got Liam to try a bit of everything on offer until it came to dessert.
They took a little break, lying back on the blanket and watching the sky, their heads side by side.
“Why are we out on a picnic?” Liam asked.
“I thought maybe you’d enjoy it.”
“I am enjoying it.” Liam turned onto his side and Jensen turned his head, so they were face to face. “I’m enjoying being here, with you. Being alone with you.”
It was a bold statement, the words stammered out while Liam’s fingers twisted nervously in the blanket beneath them.
“Being with you makes me very happy,” Jensen replied. “I’d like us to spend more time together, if you wanted to.”
He stroked a hand across Liam’s cheek, the omega arching into his touch even as he nodded at Jensen’s words.
“I like the way you touch me.”
“What way?”
“Like you care how your touch makes me feel.”
Jensen reached for Liam’s hand, taking it in his and holding it tightly.
“There are so many different ways to touch someone. A simple touch can help someone feel safe, or feel wanted, or loved.”
He let go of Liam’s hand and brushed his thumb across Liam’s lips. “It can make them feel desired.”
“Desired? Like… like the way an alpha feels about their mate?”
“Like the way someone feels about the person they’re falling in love with.”
“Falling in love? What does that feel like?”
They were whispering by then, even though they were alone, no one around to overhear.
“When you’re falling in love, you feel amazing. You think about the person all the time. Their face, their scent, their body. You want to be around them every moment of the day. You ache to touch them, even just your fingers to theirs.”
Jensen held out his hand and Liam lifted his palm, pressing their hands together.
The omega shuddered, his eyes closing, and he let out a little needy sound under his breath.
“How… how do you fix it?” Liam stuttered out. “How do you make it go away?”
A wave of cold threatened to wash over Jensen, dousing the growing flame of his attraction, but he held fast to it. They were taking this an inch at a time. Leaping three feet forward wasn’t going to get them anywhere. Liam’s way with language meant he wasn’t always asking what Jensen thought he was asking.
“What do you mean?”
“How do you go from thinking and falling to mating?”
“Well, that one’s easy. You do what your body tells you to do. You touch and kiss, you let your bodies press together like they’re aching to, give in to all that temptation, over and over again.”
“Until it’s all gone?”
“It never goes away, Liam, not when the love is true. It only gets stronger, gets better. And you find love comes through in other ways.”
“Like obedience?”
Jensen shook his head, keeping his voice firm without letting any of the anger he felt show through.
“Like friendship. Like family. Kids. Like the sharing of a home and a bed.”
Too many emotions flickered through Liam’s face for Jensen to pick each one apart. The omega seemed to like what he was saying. It certainly wasn’t scaring him away.
“What if two people don’t feel the same way?”
Jensen felt another cold sensation, just a trickle this time.
“That depends. If they mostly feel the same way but one is a little scared or uncertain, then they just take things slower so that they have time to be sure. If they feel very differently, then they’re probably not the right people for each other.”
If anything, his answer seemed to relax Liam, the omega sinking down against the blanket with a lazy smile.
“How do you begin to fall?”
“What?”
“You said you had to give in to the falling. I don’t know how.”
Liam stretched his arms out above his head, the action pulling his shirt up and exposing a tantalizing strip of skin along his stomach. Jensen had the sense he was being teased and yet there was an aura of innocence about it that told him Liam was acting on instinct and not art.
“Maybe we could help each other?”
Liam nodded eagerly, beaming at him. “Would it be fun?”
“Lots of fun.”
Jensen started with the fresh fruit and cream.
He could see Liam wasn’t convinced that more food was the way to go. Jensen had him sit up, his back against the tree throwing shade over them, and then casually dipped a strawberry into the cream and held it up to Liam’s lips.
Liam took a cautious bite, licking the cream from his lips and smiling. “It tastes sweet.”
He took another bite, making a little sound of contentment that was music to Jensen’s ears. His lips were stained with juice and dotted with cream.
Jensen caught Liam’s chin between his thumb and forefinger, holding him still and closing in slowly. Liam went still, his eyes wide as Jensen brought his lips to meet the omega’s. The sweet taste of strawberry was overtaken by a deeper taste that was all Liam. He kept the kiss slow and gentle, giving Liam room to pull away or control the pace. Liam didn’t seem to know how to react and, worried he’d pushed too fast too soon, Jensen pulled back. Only for Liam to follow him, chasing his lips for another kiss. It was a little forceful, a hint of desperation behind it, of need.
Jensen pulled back enough to speak. “Easy, easy. There’s no rush. We have all the time in the world.”
Liam’s eyes were bright, his lips gone a deep red that matched the flush of his cheeks. He looked gorgeous and Jensen felt another rush of heat fill him. There was no doubt in his mind that they were meant to be. The passion was there. He was sure the love would grow behind it.
Leaning in for a second time, Liam met him halfway. The kiss started like the first, slow and careful. A press of soft lips. Jensen cupped a hand under Liam’s jaw, wanting to do nothing more than give in to their feelings. Instead, he gently let go, pressing one last kiss to Liam’s lips.
Liam looked dazed, smiling and sighing.
“And that,” Jensen said softly, “is how you begin to fall in love.”