The Four Beta Brothers
Chapter 138

JUNIPER

"I don't know about you, but I need water and sustenance," I said with a lazy smile. Nathan and I had spent nearly the entire day together in bed, and I was ravenous.

As I started to get out of bed, Nathan pulled me back into him. "Don't go," he whined.

I laughed, shaking my head. "We're going to starve to death if we don't get something to eat soon."

"I have everything I could possibly want to eat right here," Nathan said.

He flipped me so I was under him and started lazily kissing my neck. I paused for a moment, unable to resist his touch. Then my stomach growled, reminding me of my mission. I slipped out from underneath Nathan and rolled off the bed before he could convince me otherwise.

"I will go get food and bring it back to us. A small break could do us both good." I started pulling on my clothes, but I felt Nathan's eyes watching me the entire time. I felt his desires stirring, which made it more difficult to want to leave.

After the first time, it was like a beast had been awakened inside of him, and he couldn't get enough of me. I enjoyed every second of it, too. It was a wonderful mix of making love and then talking on repeat. It was the perfect chance to connect and create even deeper bonds.

I still worried about him, though. I knew he was not okay, and he wouldn't be for a long time. He probably even needed professional help to process what happened to him. I probably needed professional help, too. However, that was something for another day. "Come back quickly," Nathan said. "Just grab the first thing you see and run back here."

When I was fully clothed, I leaned over and gave Nathan a quick kiss, making a point to keep it short, so he couldn't s**k me back into bed with him before I came back with food.

"I will get proper food and return after."

I ignored Nathan's whine as I dashed out of the bedroom. The pack house was strangely quiet, and when I checked the time on my phone, it became clear why. It was much past dinnertime. In fact, it was nearing the time most people would venture into bed. I had lost track of time with Nathan, but now that his scent wasn't surrounding me, I started to wonder about what his brothers were up to. I hadn't heard from them all day, which I normally would've found strange, but I had a feeling they knew what I had been up to and were giving Nathan and I a proper chance to connect.

I reached the kitchen and went immediately to the industrial fridge to see if there were any leftovers after the pack meal.

"You have emerged from your cave," a familiar deep voice said from behind me, making me jump. I had been so focused on getting food that I hadn't even noticed Ethan sitting at the little counter in the kitchen.

I shut the fridge, embarrassed I was caught rummaging for food. Ethan had a cup of tea in front of him with folders filled with paper. His hand was stained with ink from all of the notes he was scribbling down. "The need for food became too great," I said, wandering over to him.

"I was starting to wonder if I needed to send supplies," he said, a dangerous glint in his eyes.

I leaned on the counter next to him and narrowed my eyes. It was no secret Ethan knew exactly what Nathan and I had been up to. I was sure he could feel my...elation... through our bond, and he could definitely smell Nathan on me. "Sounds like you were worried." Ethan leaned in, pausing just before his lips touched mine. "Not worried. Perhaps a little...jealous."

"You? Jealous?" I asked, raising my eyebrows. Ethan had never expressed any kind of jealousy before.

Ethan chuckled, wrapping his fingers around my waist, pulling me closer. "Jealous only because I know someone is making you breathless, and it can be distracting. It makes it hard to concentrate on working knowing you are having o*****s. I get jealous that I'm working while you have fun."

I bit my lip and unbuttoned the top button on Ethan's shirt. "You can have some fun, too."

Ethan brushed his lips against my ear. "Oh, I will. When it's my turn, you had better believe the fun we will have." He pulled away. The smirk on his lips was a knowing taunt, because we both knew he could smell my arousal. "But atlas, it is not my turn yet, so I must wait."

I wanted to call him a tease, but that would only confirm the disappointment I felt at the moment. Instead, I changed the subject. "What are you working on?"

"We are meeting with the vampire king next week just to clear the air and make sure nothing comes out of my father's attempts to start a war," Ethan said. His brows wrinkled as his attention returned to his work. "We know there are people out there who were working with my father who are still alive. He might have failed, but we can't risk someone more enthusiastic taking over for him. I suggested we approach the vampire king first to explain everything to him. That way, if anyone tries to start a war, he knows it's not the intention of the majority of werewolves, and he has agreed to our proposal of a meeting."

"I wonder what the vampire king is like. I hope he's reasonable about all of this." I had only heard rumors about vampires, and before meeting Blade, I had never come across a vampire. Werewolves and vampires were pretty strict about living separate lives. "You could come with me," Ethan suggested. "We're meeting with him next week, and it would be good practice for you."

"School starts next week," I said. A heaviness fell between us at the mention of school. Even though Ethan was the one who originally insisted I finish, it still meant months apart from each other.

"So you've decided you're going back for sure?" Ethan tried to hide his disappointment in his voice, but he was unable to hide it from our bond.

"Yes. I'm so close to graduating. I can't give up now," I said. I had gone back and forth on the subject over the past several days, unable to decide if it was worth going back. Nathan was the deciding factor. With him waking up, I knew I had to go back now. "I'll be cheering you on every step of the way," Ethan said, keeping his own disappointment to himself.

I leaned into him and closed my eyes. Leaving Ethan behind was the hardest part of returning to school. I knew with Asher, Axel, and Nathan returning with me, I would be fine. I was already lucky enough to have multiple mates by my side. One less shouldn't have been a big deal, but it still hurt to know Ethan and I wouldn't be able to see each other for weeks or even months depending on our schedules.

Ethan wrapped his arm around my shoulders and kissed the top of my head. "It'll fly by faster than you think, and you can call me whenever you want. I promise to pick up whenever I can."

I nuzzled into him. "I know. I'm still going to miss you, though."

"Me too. But we have a few more days left before all of you have to return. We'll make the most of it. Spend the rest of the night with Nathan. He deserves some extra time with you right now. Then tomorrow, you and I can spend some time with each other." "I'd like that," I said, finding it hard to move away from Ethan. My heart was torn in two. I wanted to spend as much time with Ethan before I had to leave him, but I also wanted to make up for lost time with Nathan. It made me wish I could be in multiple places at the same time.

Ethan helped me make the decision by standing up and being the first to pull away. He went to the fridge and started loading a tray with a variety of food and drinks. "Take this to Nathan. I'm sure he's wondering what's taking you so long."

"Thank you," I said, wondering how I was so lucky to have someone like Ethan be my mate.

As I went to grab the tray of food, Ethan suddenly grabbed the back of my neck and pulled me into a kiss. He kept a firm grip on me as he roughly kissed me. I melted into the touch, suddenly forgetting about everything else. It was clear Ethan had been wanting to kiss me for awhile and couldn't hold back anymore.

Before the kiss turned into anything else, he pulled back enough to whisper, "Have a wonderful night, Juniper. I will see you tomorrow."

"Good night, Ethan," I said, forcing myself to part with him. My body was heated and ached for even more of his touch, but I knew Nathan was waiting for me to return. I grabbed the food and hurried off to my other mate.