Page 20 of A Hal for my Heart

“Ah, you did say it wasn’t regular; I just assumed you’d feel the signs leading up to it.”

“I didn’t,” I admitted. “I thought I was getting sick at first.” It felt so strange, yet so right, lying with him in my bed, both of us naked. He hadn’t been naked when he took me, I knew as much. I’d longed to feel his skin on mine, but I was too consumed with pain and longing to ask.

We were silent for a few seconds, Hal petting my hair in the gentlest way, healing a part of me as he did so. I’d always wondered what it would feel like to have my hair petted and my scalp massaged. It was better than I thought it would be. “How are you feeling?” he asked softly.

“Wonderful,” I whispered, afraid that by speaking too loudly I’d ruin this moment of bliss. My eyes burned with tears of happiness. “But my stomach is starting to pinch.”

“Are you hungry?” he asked.

I shook my head. “I think another wave is coming.”

“You think?” he quirked a brow, like he was trying to understand how this worked for me. Had he ever helped another omega through their heat? I felt nauseous at the thought of Hal being with someone else.

I shook my head, forcing back the thoughts of Hal with others. “I just feel pain until the heat ends.”

He turned me in his arms. His eyes flashed with something, anger perhaps, before he crushed me against his strong chest, and I had to fight my tears. I was being hugged. I hadn’t been hugged since I was a child. I shook in his arms, but I didn’t care. I’d enjoy this for as long as it lasted, taking everything Hal was willing to give. I had no idea how he’d survived my touch, but he had, which meant I was keeping him forever if he wanted to be mine.

As if he could read my mind, he whispered against my neck, “Your touch didn’t harm me, Briar. I knew it wouldn’t. You could never hurt me, silly omega.” Silly omega.

“You’re the silly one,” I murmured. “You risked your life to be with me. To help me.”

“I’d risk it a thousand times, sweetness.”

I pushed away from Hal’s chest. I needed to kiss him, to taste that word on his lips. I was just about to, when a flood of pain rushed through me, so intense that I screamed out in agony.

Hal didn’t even falter as he rolled me onto my back, sliding his cock back inside me, numbing the pain. He fucked into me in long, soothing strokes, one arm wrapped around my thigh, the other petting my hair.

“Hal,” I moaned, feeling his warm chest, his lovely chest hair rubbing against my skin, tickling me in the most delicious way. His cock thrust into me over and over, and a constant feeling of pleasure lingered in my core. It was amazing. If this was the way heats were supposed to be, then I finally understood why everyone always looked forward to them. Hal was making me feel things that seemed impossible. How was it possible to feel this good, this euphoric?

“My omega,” Hal rumbled against my ear, the sound lighting me up from the inside. Was I glowing? Thousands of tiny butterflies fluttered their wings inside my chest. At least, it felt that way. My omega. I’d never thought I’d be anyone’s.

“My alpha,” I whispered back, surprised by my own boldness. I basked in the sound of Hal’s approving grunts. His hand smoothed over my stomach as he continued to fuck me, his movements languid and unhurried, like he was savoring this just as much as I was. His hand snaked down and rubbed my balls, and I threw my head back in ecstasy, keening. I rolled my hips, fucking into his fist as my ass gripped his cock. I was chasing my own pleasure, using my alpha to reach my release.

“Fuck, Briar,” he groaned, then his hand stilled as warmth filled me. He’d come; I’d made him come. Pride filled me as I placed my hand over his, feeling his knot form around my rim. I needed to come, so I urged him to keep stroking my dick. “My greedy one,” Hal chuckled against my neck, then resumed stroking my cock. “Come for me, Briar. Come for your alpha,” he coaxed, and that was all it took before I called out his name, my cum coating his hand.

We panted against each other, our breaths mingling.

“I’m too heavy,” Hal chuckled, then rolled onto his back, taking me with him, his knot keeping us locked together. Exhaustion pulled at me, so I rested my head against the soft cushion of his chest. Closing my eyes, I smiled dreamily, my alpha’s scent enveloping me, his arms cradling me tightly against him. I was knotted, safe, and happy.

Chapter Ten

Hal

“One more.” I nudged the grape against Briar’s lips, but he shook his head.

“I can’t. I’m full.”

Full. Gods, the feeling of being inside Briar was everything. My knot had gone down a little while ago, and I’d taken the chance to grab some food. Briar’s heatwaves came with shorter intervals now, and we needed energy for the next one. I already missed the feeling of being locked inside his pulsing hole. It was everything. Nothing in my life could’ve prepared me for how it would feel to be with Briar through his heat. As much as I’d yearned for it throughout my adult life, I’d always told myself not to wish for things that weren’t possible. Like a mate and a family of my own. Children who were the spitting image of me. Of Briar.

“You’ll need your strength.” I leaned in and kissed his forehead, and he shivered against me. “One more. For me.” Something shifted in his eyes, the green becoming soft and calm, almost, compared to how his eyes seemed to burn when he was deep in the throes of passion.

“Alright,” he relented, then wrapped his lips around the grape, biting into it, fruit juice bursting from it. I imagined how Briar’s mouth would feel wrapped around my cock, his plush lips suckling the head, his moan vibrating against my skin. Would he still want me when he wasn’t consumed by his heat? I knew I’d want him, always. I’d wanted him from the moment I’d held his small hand in mine and felt the loneliness pouring off his body. I’d known he was mine, at least my alpha had, because Briar’s loneliness had mirrored my own. It was a need deep within, like a greedy little animal that had lived off scraps for too long. Now it wanted everything.

Briar licked his lips, then smiled, all sleepy and content. His face looked serene, his features relaxed, but I knew soon his face would be distorted with pain and need again. He’d want me, need me, and he would become the only thing that existed in my world.

“Noooo,” he whined, making grabby hands at me as I scooted from the bed. I couldn’t help but chuckle at how adorable he looked, his blond curls all messy and damp, his pecs swollen from his heat, his stomach bloated with my seed.

“I’m just getting some water.”