Amusing You - Claire Cullen Page 0,29

idea of a bath, of the chance to stretch out in the warm water, was very appealing. Other omegas might have hesitated to undress, but Harper was confident in his body. Besides, William would be seeing all of him soon enough, one way or another.

“Hey, did I mention I’m a type-S?”

It wasn’t that he hid his status or anything, but having been burned a few times, he didn’t like to talk about it all that much.

“It was in your profile, and I think you mentioned it during our introductions.”

“Oh, right. Well, I’m still active. Just so you know. I’m fully in control, though, so you don’t need to worry about me shifting accidentally.”

There was an awkward pause, and Harper worried it was one difference too many.

“I’m a type-S too.”

There was something in William’s voice—a hesitation, an uncertainty.

Harper turned to look at him, curious. “How’d I miss that, huh?”

“I, um, I left it blank on my application.”

“Yeah, I get it. Most people are dormant anyway, so why complicate things?”

“Uh, that’s the thing.” William rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “I’m… I’m active too.”

Harper stopped and stared. “No. No way.”

William just shrugged. “It’s true. Not something I’d imagine anyone would admit to if it wasn’t.”

“No, I guess not.” He smiled, strangely pleased that this was something they shared. “I wish I’d known weeks ago. We could have shifted together. I’m always alone when I change, except when I can wrangle an invite to Zac’s at just the right time.”

Realizing how needy he was making himself sound, he turned back to the bath and climbed in. He went to his knees at first, giving his body a chance to get used to the heat of the water.

“Do you want some privacy?” William offered.

“No. Unless you’d prefer not to stay?”

“Nowhere else I’d rather be right now.” William moved to sit on the ledge next to the bath, his chin propped on his hand.

“Not even the gym?” Harper teased, uncurling to lie properly in the bath.

He wasn’t sure what William had added to the bathwater, but it smelled amazing and left a sheen of softness on his skin. He stretched out, wiggled his toes, and took stock. There was no doubt he’d moved from unsettled pre-heat to heat itself. His mind was no longer latching onto every negative thought that flickered through his head, and his body didn’t have that same urge to curl up and wait for winter to be over. He was at ease, relaxed, and things were slowly heating up inside him. The only trouble now was how to get things outside to heat up at the same speed. He’d only seen William naked one time, at the gym, which had been more of an unfortunate accident than a chance to ogle the alpha. Not that William wasn’t worth ogling.

He was just trying to think of how best to get William to be a more active participant when the alpha spoke up. “How about I wash your back?”

When Harper looked over at him, he found William holding a sponge in one hand and shower gel in the other.

“Is that the one you use?” he asked. Or had the alpha gotten stuff especially for him?

“Uh-huh. Sandalwood.”

“Oh. Uh, sure.”

So he’d smell like William when all was said and done. That was a very… alpha… move. Possessive, almost.

“Sit forward.”

He drew his knees up, wrapped an arm around them, and leaned forward, giving William access to the long line of his back. The alpha moved to kneel beside the bath, dunking the sponge in the water before touching it to Harper’s skin. Lightly at first, before pressing a little harder. Harper groaned in appreciation, feeling heat blossom across his body. When he got revved up, he was the omega equivalent of a sports car; zero to sixty in three seconds flat.

There was no way William didn’t notice, not with the noises Harper was making or the sharp scent of his growing heat. But all the alpha did was finish washing his back and help him lie down again, tipping his head back. Harper figured it out when William tangled fingers in his hair, scrubbing lightly at his scalp. It felt so good that he moaned loudly, biting his lip to silence himself.

“Be as loud as you need to. You know how much I love your voice.” There was a hint of teasing in the alpha’s deep, rough tone.

Once the suds were washed from his hair, William’s fingers stroked idly up and down his chest. Harper