hormones.
Still—they were both still here. Still alive. And that was what really mattered.
Aric needed to keep that in mind as he dealt with what came next, the thing he was really dreading: walking into that room and eating a hot steaming plate of crow.
He put it off as long as he could, and when he finally went to her, he took with him a peace offering of coffee and a simple lunch of bread, cheese, and meat. He found her lying motionless in a twisted mass of bedcovers, her eyes open but her expression flat.
Aric couldn't help stiffening at the sight of her, exposed and spread-eagled on his bed. He had a feeling that he could see her naked for the next hundred years, and never tire of the sight.
But Jo barely acknowledged him, a sharp exhalation the only sign that she was aware he had come into the room. He tested her scent, breathing deeply of shame.
The overwhelming nature of her embarrassment knocked Aric slightly off balance. He'd expected anger—rage, even. But not this.
When he reached the bedside, she twisted her head away from him, avoiding his eyes. "Please untie me."
Aric did as Jo asked, releasing her ankles first, wincing at the red marks where she'd fought her bonds. When he moved up to untie her wrists, he saw that her eyes welled with tears.
Shit.
"Jo," he tried, but she cut him off with a shake of her head.
"Just untie me," she whispered hoarsely. "Please."
The moment her hands were free, she snatched up the stained sheet and clutched it to her chest, hiding her beautiful body from his sight.
"Are you hurt?" he asked, wishing he could wipe her regret away along with her tears.
"No."
"Sore?"
She shook her head.
"I'm sorry I had to tie you up. There was no other way."
Jo shook her head harder, her tangled black hair falling over one red-rimmed eye. "Don't."
Aric felt the stirring of resentment. He knew that his omega was feeling fragile, that the aftermath of a first heat was no walk in the park, but he had suffered too, his own needs brutally ignored.
Besides, he was a goddamn alpha, and everything inside him bristled at being ordered around…even by his omega.
"Jo, I know—"
"I said, don't!" She pierced him with a furious gaze that belied the tear tracks on her cheeks. "Don't you think I've had enough? First, you change me into an omega. Then you ruin me for every other man in the world. Then, when you aren't satisfied with me, you tie me up and leave me begging for days."
Not satisfied? What the hell was that bullshit?
"That's not what happened, Jo."
Her lips tightened into a hard, flat line. "Don't give me that shit, Aric. I might not have been acting like myself, but I was still here. I know what happened."
"All right," he conceded. "All of those things happened. But not because you didn't satisfy me."
She glanced at him from the corner of her eye. Aric could tell she wanted to believe him, but she didn't…not yet.
He reached for her, and she scuttled away from him. But he was quicker, and caught her in his arms and dragged her back.
He wasn't about to let her get away. Not now—not ever.
"I didn't leave you because I wanted to. I had to. During our second night together, someone shot at us. The bullet came right over our heads."
Jocelyn stiffened in his arms. He sensed her mind recoiling, her flight instinct flaring, but he held her tight.
"John," she whispered, twisting her head to look up at the wall. "There are two bullet holes."
"Yes," he admitted. "You were in the middle of your heat, Jo. If I hadn't tied you up, you would have followed me when I went after him."
Her gaze snapped back to him in horror.
"You went after him? What the hell were you thinking? That man is a trained killer!" She rubbed at her eyes in disbelief. "Dozens of people have died at his hands. You could have been the next."
Aric shrugged. "He had his shot, and he missed."
"Did you find him?"
A muscle ticked along Aric's jaw. "He must have seen me coming. He was gone before I could reach him."
"Oh God," Jo mumbled, the color draining from her face. "Aric, you have to know he's going to come back."
He nodded. "I know."
"That means we have to go. Now."
Jo struggled to free herself, but Aric didn't let her. It was still too soon after her heat. Her body and mind still needed time to recover.