Chapter Text
There was something in the air. He could smell it, even from his office on the third floor. It was soft. Fallen rain and fresh cut grass and damp earth and floral? Maybe Tracy was trying out a new perfume. It smelled amazing, whatever it was, and Alex hoped he’d remember to ask her about it later, if going over the ledgers didn’t melt his brain out of his ears.
The ranch was doing well, he was happy to see. The cattle were being well tended to, the crops were going for a decent price, and his hands seemed happy when he spoke to them. He still made a point to get out there when he could, to put in some hours tending to the animals or the fields. He couldn’t very well call himself a rancher if he didn’t know how to take care of what was his.
A knock pulled him from his thoughts, and he looked up to see one of his foremen leaning against the open door, a leer on his face. Alex plastered on a polite smile, even though Hunter irritated him to absolutely no end.
“Hey, what can I do for you?” Alex asked as he closed his ledgers.
“Do you have a minute?” Hunter asked. “The boys and I have something for you in the parlor.”
“Sure,” Alex said as he pushed away from his desk. “What is it?” he asked as he followed Hunter to the stairs.
“A late birthday present,” he said with a grin that unsettled Alex.
As they descended, the smell got stronger and stronger, and it almost made Alex’s mouth water. He nearly told Hunter to fuck off so that he could try and figure out what it was, but then he realized that Hunter was leading him towards the incredible smell. The floral was stronger now, orange blossom and lavender, and he wanted to roll around in it. But as they hit the first level of the house, a final scent came forward, one that nearly made him recoil. Why would someone need to smell so afraid in his home?
And then they entered the parlor, and Alex’s heart practically stopped.
Kneeling on the rug in front of his fireplace was a man. A distant part of Alex’s brain recognized that he was the prettiest fucking man he’d ever seen in his life, but more pressing knowledge made its way to the forefront of his mind, which was that this man was an omega. And he was in heat. The smell that had Alex so captivated was obviously coming from him, which meant the fear was coming from him.
Then again, if Alex found himself naked, arms tied behind his back, in the middle of a rut and in a stranger’s house, he’d probably be pretty fucking afraid too.
“The fuck is this?” he hissed quietly, looking from the man on the floor to Hunter, who was standing next to a couple of other ranch hands, all looking smug.
“I told you! It’s a birthday present!” Hunter exclaimed, his tone light. “We know you’ve been so busy lately, I’m sure you’ve not been able to really get your dick wet, and you’re the only rancher in the state without one, so we thought why not get you your own?”
“My own?” Alex repeated, his voice full of derision, and the smile slowly slipped from Hunter’s face.
The man on the floor gave a shudder, and in an instant, Alex’s focus was redirected. He looked around and grabbed the large quilt that sat on the back of his couch before slowly moving forward, not wanting to scare him. As he knelt down in front of him, he took stock of his condition. He was well built, muscled and strong. His blond hair was mussed, and he was slightly dirty, as if he’d not been allowed a bath for a while. He was also extremely hard, and a shine on the inside of his thighs indicated just how much slick his body was producing in his heat.
“Hey there, sweetheart,” Alex said softly, not wanting to startle the man. “Can you look at me for a second?”
The man, who had been gazing at the floor, slowly lifted his head, and Alex was blown away by beautiful blue eyes, even if they were slightly hazy from the hormones raging in his body.
“Yes alpha,” the man muttered, and Alex flinched.
“Just call me Alex,” he insisted gently. “What’s your name?”
“H-Henry,” the man stuttered quietly, and Alex nodded.
“Okay Henry. I’m going to untie you now, and get you squared away. Are you hurt anywhere?” he asked, trying to keep his voice low and soothing. Henry nodded quickly.
“Please,” he gasped. “I’m so empty. I need… I need…”
“I know,” Alex said sympathetically as he gently pulled Henry forward to lean against him so that he could reach around and untie the ropes. “I know. I promise I’ll get you someplace where you can take care of that.”
As he worked at the knots around Henry’s wrists, the omega leaned further into his chest, nuzzling at Alex’s neck. Alex could feel him inhale deeply, could hear the low whine bubbling up from his chest, and he tried to work quickly, ignoring his own bodily reactions to the enticing smell of the man in front of him. Finally he was able to cast the ropes aside and grab the quilt, moving to drape it around the man. Henry whimpered at the feeling of the material on his skin, and Alex made an apologetic noise.
“I know, I know, I’m sorry,” he said softly. “Come on, let’s get you up.”
He helped Henry to his feet carefully, but when the taller man swayed dangerously, Alex simply scooped him up into his arms, anger coursing through him at the realization of just how lightweight he was. He was definitely under fed, something Alex would be sure to remedy as soon as he was able. Before he could leave the room, he turned to face Hunter and his hands.
“I’m going to go take care of this,” he said, his voice a near growl. “I’m giving you as long as it takes for me to get him set up in a room to get the fuck out of my house and off my ranch. And if I have any reason to believe you’re still around, I’ll sick my dogs on you.”
And with that, he turned and walked out the door.
Henry had buried his face into Alex’s chest, and Alex made a split second decision, skipping the guest bedrooms on the second floor and moving straight to his room on the third. Nora had told him once that when she was in heat, being around an alpha scent helped her. It was why, when she and June were courting, June gifted her a few of her handkerchiefs before her heats started.
Nora, as usual, seemed to be right. The second that Alex entered his bedroom, Henry relaxed against him. Alex moved over to his unmade bed and gently lowered Henry down, trying to keep the quilt tucked around him in an attempt to give him a shred of privacy. He then perched on the edge of the bed.
“Henry, how long have you been in heat?” he asked softly, and Henry frowned.
“I don't know,” he murmured, rolling into his side, tucking his knees as close to his body as he could. “I-it’s been….oh my God you smell so good,” he whined as he pressed his face into the pillow, and Alex sighed.
“Alright. I'm going to go and take care of a couple of things, and send for my doctor. If you need anything, you holler, okay? I'll be able to hear you.”
“No!” Henry cried, a hand shooting out to grip Alex’s wrist. “No, don't leave, please,” he begged. “I need-”
“Henry, I'm not going to touch you,” Alex said sternly. “Not like that. I'm not going to take advantage of you.”
“Please, alpha,” Henry whimpered, and Alex shook his head.
“No, Henry. It's not going to happen.” He brought a slightly shaking hand up to cup Henry’s flushed cheek. “You need to take care of yourself, and I can't be here when you do. So like I said, I'm going to go downstairs, I'm going to call for my doctor, and I'm going to settle some things. If you need absolutely anything, call for me. I'll hear you.”
Henry made a pained sound in the back of his throat, and Alex hated standing up, hated stepping back. But he had to. If being around this omega triggered a rut, who knew what Alex would do. He was usually pretty level headed, even during his ruts, but he’d also never been around an omega that smelled so goddamn tempting before.
He took a couple of steps towards the door, but stopped, an idea forming. With quick, jerky movements, he unbuttoned the shirt he’d been wearing all day. It was a little dirty, covered in dried sweat from tending to the crops in the mid-afternoon sun, but he knew it would smell like him. He shrugged it off of his shoulders, then rubbed it along his scent glands before moving back to the bed and handing it to Henry, who snatched it and shoved his face into the material, breathing deeply. He thought he heard a mumbled “thank you”, but Alex was too preoccupied with leaving, closing the door quietly behind him.
He made his way down the stairs, willing his body to calm down. It was a natural reaction to seeing an omega in heat, especially one that smelled so fucking good, but he needed to get a grip on himself before he continued. So he stopped on the second floor and pressed his back against the wall, taking deep, lung stretching breaths. Finally, after a few minutes, his cock deflated, and though his heart rate was still a little high, he felt more in control of himself, and headed to the first floor and into the kitchen where his cook was stirring a pot on the stove.
“Where’s Spencer?” he asked, and Tracy looked through the window above the sink.
“In the barn,” she said before giving him a curious look. “Why do you look weird? And where’s your shirt?” she asked, but Alex was already heading out the back door and across the yard to the barn.
Spencer and Liam were there, giving each other lovey eyes as they stacked sacks of feed against the far wall, but they both stopped when Alex entered.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” Liam asked, frowning at the look on Alex’s face.
“Spence, I need you to grab Nora,” he said as he addressed the smaller man. “Tell her to bring her kit.”
“Are you okay?” Spencer asked, but Alex turned to Liam.
“Get word out to the other hands. Meeting tomorrow morning at the house, in the parlor. I expect everyone to be there, understand? And if anyone sees that sack of shit Hunter or his friends, they’re to tell me immediately.”
“Yeah, sure thing,” Liam said with a nod as he looked over at Spencer, who was currently saddling one of the faster horses.
Alex returned the nod before turning on his heel and heading back to the house. Leaving Henry alone made his skin crawl, and though he wouldn’t go into the room, there wasn’t anything wrong with sitting in the hall, was there?