Chapter 212: Sweetheart, I Want to Kiss You

It was only after he’d kissed her that Miles Sherman realized how sudden his action had been.

Seeing her so focused and serious had made his heart stir, and her neck was right there, just a slight dip of his head away.

Hearing the tremble in Zoe Pierce’s voice, he rested his head on her shoulder. "I’m sorry."

Zoe Pierce didn’t want to blame Miles Sherman. It was just a kiss, after all.

She just couldn’t forget what the two of them had done earlier in the Mech Bay. That was why a single kiss from him was enough to rattle her.

"A kiss is a kiss." She cleared her throat, her gaze fixed outside as she piloted the Mecha.

Miles Sherman lifted his head, his gaze sweeping across her neck.

A transparent suppression patch peeked out from the back of her collar. The instant his finger brushed its edge, he felt Zoe Pierce tense up like a startled cat, the hairs on her neck standing on end.

"Miles Sherman, don’t touch that..."

The gland was an incredibly sensitive spot; even the area around it could trigger a strong reaction.

Miles Sherman’s finger paused at the edge of the suppression patch. "Erin’s pheromones... they’ve pretty much faded by now, haven’t they?"

It had been well over three months since Erin Xavier’s marking.

Zoe Pierce considered the question. "Probably. But just to be safe, Teacher Reid gave me an inhibitor shot. He said the pheromones in my system are no different from a normal Omega’s now."

"I don’t really feel anything, though. Aren’t Omegas supposed to imprint on an Alpha, even with a temporary mark?"

Supposedly, the one who marks and the one who is marked are supposed to feel a closer bond.

But Zoe Pierce didn’t feel any deeper dependence on Erin Xavier. She knew, with perfect clarity, that her affection for him stemmed from his past actions and the atmosphere they shared when they were together.

’There was none of that fated attraction.’

"Maybe my pheromones haven’t fully recovered yet," she added, muttering to herself.

Miles Sherman asked, "What about the first time I marked you? What did that feel like?"

Technically, he was the first one to ever mark her gland.

’That was a long time ago,’ Zoe Pierce thought, ’but it’s hard to forget that scene.’

After all, that punch from Chase Shaw had left her dazed.

As for the actual sensation, when his canines sank in, there was a strange, sharp sting that immediately made her think of vampires.

"It hurt a little, but the feeling was gone after a few seconds."

If the doctors hadn’t said she needed pheromones, she might not have ever thought she did.

To her, the gland felt more like some abstract medical metric. She couldn’t feel anything wrong with it, but she knew it was important.

That was why every treatment was based on those metrics.

Her slightly raised gland, carefully shielded.

"But I read on the forums that a full marking hurts more. Is that true?" The topic was venturing into intimate territory.

Zoe Pierce had been curious, but had always kept the question to herself.

Now that she and Miles Sherman had grown so close, and since the topic had come up, asking felt natural.

Miles Sherman said in a low voice, "It doesn’t."

Zoe Pierce nodded slightly.

’Zoe Pierce can never be fully marked,’ Miles Sherman thought.

’A full marking would mean she’d belong completely to one person. What would the rest of them do then?’

’It was their unspoken consensus: no one could be allowed to fully mark Zoe Pierce.’

’So Zoe Pierce might never know what it felt like to be fully marked.’

’Only temporary markings.’

’Because only temporary markings wouldn’t hurt her, and they would satisfy everyone’s desires.’

But he couldn’t tell Zoe Pierce any of this.

All he could do was tell her it wouldn’t hurt.

He didn’t even have the courage to ask who she liked best. It might not be him.

But he was the one by her side now.

This was, without a doubt, like drinking poison to quench his thirst.

His fingers left Zoe Pierce’s gland. Miles Sherman looked out at the Empire’s Mechas, which were now maintaining a steady speed. It seemed they had agreed to leave this sensitive area first.

"Miles Sherman." The silence lasted only a few minutes before he heard Zoe Pierce say his name.

Miles Sherman leaned closer. "Hm?"

"If I can’t choose... if I just want to keep things the way they are... would you all resent me for it?" she asked, voicing the selfish thought she’d kept hidden in her heart.

"You’ve all given me time and a chance to get to know you." Each one was different, but at their core, they all loved her. "I’m just too greedy. I..."

’I want them all.’

The two of them had just talked about this before the exhibition match.

Back then, she’d said she would take things one step at a time. But now, having crossed a line with Miles Sherman, Zoe Pierce could no longer deceive him.

She wasn’t as good or as noble as they thought she was.

She had her own shameful desires, too.

Miles Sherman froze, but his eyes softened. "We wouldn’t."

"In fact, it’s what we’ve been hoping for."

Zoe Pierce swallowed hard, unable to believe what she was hearing. She turned halfway toward him. "What?"

"Zoe, we hope you’ll keep things as they are."

Hearing her say she wanted to keep things as they were, Miles Sherman felt a wave of relief wash over him. Nothing could have been more relaxing to hear.

"You don’t have to choose. Just like this. Every one of us wants to treat you well," he said.

If Erin Xavier had said it, Zoe Pierce would have just thought he was being shameless.

But coming from Miles Sherman, Zoe Pierce was simply stunned. The implication was so obvious it was practically spelled out.

She opened her mouth, wanting to ask, ’You wouldn’t mind?’

’She felt like a player, being intimate with all of them.’

"Would you be more comfortable if it was like this... one person at a time, for a certain period?"

’Even Miles Sherman wouldn’t be able to stand everyone being together at the same time.’

’The possessiveness written into his DNA could tolerate a sequential partner, but not sharing one simultaneously.’

So he even proposed a feasible plan. "Each temporary marking could be a milestone. You’d be exclusively with that person for its duration."

"A temporary marking lasts for about three months."

’Once Erin Xavier’s pheromones completely faded, her body would return to its normal state. That would likely be the cycle, the pattern.’

In that moment, Miles Sherman’s thoughts aligned perfectly with Nathan Lockwood’s.

One year. Four seasons. Four people.

Without interfering with one another.

Zoe Pierce was floored by Miles Sherman’s words. She couldn’t believe they were coming from him.

Miles Sherman seemed to notice her astonishment. His expression filled with apology and concern. "Sorry, I... I’ve scared you."

’He’d gotten carried away after hearing what she said.’

’He’d assumed she wanted a solution, so he’d just blurted all that out.’

’Miles Sherman apologizes far too easily,’ Zoe Pierce realized.

She bit her lip and grabbed Miles Sherman’s arm. "Don’t apologize."

"Miles Sherman, don’t apologize to me." He was always so careful around her.

"Let me think about it..." He had just dropped so much information on her; she naturally needed some time. "I’m not saying no..."

But she wasn’t saying yes, either.

They both understood what that meant.

Miles Sherman’s voice was low. "We won’t pressure you, Zoe."

Zoe Pierce turned back around. "I know."

"And... don’t you like calling me your good girl?"

’His own special name for her.’

The sound of his breathing by her ear grew heavy. "Good girl," he said. "I want to kiss you."