Chapter Text
“Where are you off to, again?” Rose asks Rey as they start to pack up their things for the day.
It’s past six and the associate pen has thinned out considerably. Rey takes a deep breath, determinedly ignoring the discomfort in her abdomen.
“Dinner with Ben.”
She took her top up suppressant an hour ago and it’s definitely kicking in. It’s left her feeling pretty average – as per usual – but it’s a necessary evil because she knows she’ll need all the help she can get. Hours of close proximity to him will test all her Omega’s forbearance.
Rose arches a brow.
“Hot date?”
Rey scoffs and prays to the universe she’s not blushing. “Hardly. Just a work thing.”
“Yeah sure. Where is he taking you?”
“The Skygarden.”
“Umm, excuse me? The Skygarden? That sounds like a date to me.”
Far out, she doesn’t have the energy for this.
“Well it’s not. What’s so special about this place, anyway?”
“Are you kidding? The Skygarden is the place.”
“The place to do what?”
“Anything! Planning on proposing? Do it at the Skygarden. Celebrating your fiftieth anniversary with your mate? Take them to the Skygarden. Your IPO just dropped and you want to splash some serious cash? Skygarden, baby!”
“Is this one of those places with a creepy bathroom attendant?”
“Rey, you could probably get someone to wipe your ass for you there,” Rose laughs.
“Dear lord…”
“Exactly. So yeah, I’m sorry, but there’s no way you’re gonna convince me Mr Big-hands-big-everything doesn’t have a reason for taking you there.”
Rey rolls her eyes.
“It is one hundred percent not a date, Rose. We're meeting the Cloud Corp CEO behind the Millennium Aviation buyout.”
“Ahh, Leia’s friend?”
“That’s the one.”
Rey thinks back to this morning, when Ben had asked her to run interference in his office with his unknown guests who turned out to be none other than his mother and wannabe godfather.
It had been so strange seeing Leia for the first time since she’d overheard that ominous after-hours conversation between her and Snoke. It had been churning in Rey’s mind ever since, her photographic memory replaying the discussion word for word ad nauseam as it tried to make some sense of it, with indifferent results.
That Leia is being blackmailed by Snoke had been clear enough. But why? What does he have on her? Leia mentioned documents that he’s using as leverage, but what kind? She also has something on him, knows something that he did, something bad. And she’s kept quiet until now, they both have, for mutually beneficial reasons.
Then there’s the “him” mentioned. Someone Leia is trying to protect. Someone Snoke has taken advantage of. Someone who is more inclined to believe Snoke’s lies than Leia’s truth.
There, at least, she can make a calculated guess.
And that’s where things get extra complicated.
Because it’s got to be Ben, right? Who else would fit that bill? And if it is Ben, well, then according to them and unbeknownst to him, he’s mixed up in this mess too. And if Snoke has something on Ben that he’s using to blackmail Leia and he’s openly declaring he’ll throw Ben under the bus in retaliation if he is exposed…
Yeah, some mentor Ben has found himself.
She already knows Snoke is a monster, and she’s personally seen him throw Ben under the bus before, so she shouldn’t be surprised, but hearing verbal confirmation of this callous exploitation of his protégé had still been shocking.
Her next question had been, of course, what should she do with this information?
Her first instinct had been to tell Ben, but she’d quickly dismissed it. If Ben wouldn’t believe Leia - who would be able to give him all the particulars – why would he believe Rey, who knows literally no specifics whatsoever.
Quickly she had decided her best course of action would be to add this mystery to her ongoing investigation regarding all things “evil Snoke”. There will be little point in discussing it further with Ben until she has some concrete evidence to startle him out of his blind loyalty to the devil incarnate.
Thinking about Ben and Hux at the mercy of that predator made her skin crawl. Lately she’s been getting the feeling that even Hux has been having misgivings about his position as Snoke’s loyal foot soldier.
One afternoon a few weeks ago she’d found herself alone with Hux in the breakroom and had seen fit to throw some passive agressive barbs his way for his involvement in the Ducain debacle, but she’d found him quite contrite and he’d responded with so much humility that it completely took the wind out of her sails.
Then he’d shown her where he kept his secret stash of raspberry bran bars and invited her back to his office for a cup of tea and Rey had been sure that Mustafar was freezing over.
She still has trouble believing it wasn’t just a fever dream.
Since that fateful afternoon where they shared that pot of Earl Grey and bonded over their preference for full-bodied blends, things hadn’t been the same. It had been the start of an unlikely friendship.
“Are you going home to change?” Rose asks as Rey pulls her compact out of her purse and flicks it open to assess the damage.
“No, I don’t have time. I’m meet Ben in less than half an hour. They’ll just have to take me as I am.” She’s certainly grateful she wore one of her favourite dresses to work today.
“Well, lucky you already look hot.”
“Please. More like tepid,” Rey says, looking back down at her drawn, ashen reflection as she wipes away a smudge of mascara from under her left eye.
“Here, let me.” Rose pulls out a soft pink lipstick from her purse and dots some on Rey's lips and cheeks before blending it in. “Just to give you a little colour.”
“Thanks.”
Rey runs her fingers through her hair to zhuzh it up a bit. It takes her a moment to realise the silence between them has stretched longer than it should.
“You feeling okay?”
Rey’s shoulders tense at the question, sensing Rose watching her carefully.
“Yeah, fine.”
Rose’s eyes narrow in suspicion. She’s like a bloodhound who can sniff out bullshit.
“Is it the suppressants?”
Rey shrugs as lightly as she can. “The doctor did say there would be side effects.”
“Yeah, but do you think the dosage is too high?”
“No. It needs to be this strength. They're barely working as it is.”
“Rey…”
Rose has that look on her face. The one that mirrors the anxiety she’s feeling herself. It doesn’t do anything to quell the trepidation churning in her belly.
“I’ll be fine,” Rey says, standing, slinging her purse over her shoulder and plastering on a bright smile. “Besides, I’ve thought of a new one to add to your list. Feeling under the weather and fending off abdominal cramps? Skygarden, baby!”
***
“You’re early,” Ben says as Rey walks into his office with five minutes to spare.
“Wouldn’t want to keep your future stepfather waiting.”
“How conciliatory of you. How do I get you to show me the same courtesy?”
He’s still tapping away at his keyboard so she has a moment to look him over, and what do you know, he looks good. Real good. He always does, but considering he’s been here all day, it’s impressive how fresh he looks.
“Lando may have had a point about his money and hair being quite the drawcard.”
“Well, that’s a bold-faced lie. My father might be no match for Lando but my hair is glorious and trumps his any day and we both know it.”
He really does wear a suit well; the crisp white of his dress shirt contrasts against his obsidian suit perfectly mirrored in the way his inky black waves frame his alabaster skin.
As Rey opens her mouth to reply she hears the door behind her swing open again and Hux walks in with a stack of papers. He smiles – actually smiles – when he sees her, something he surely wouldn’t have done until recently and even though it looks foreign on his face and he’s clearly out of practise, this softer side of him nice to see.
He gives her a quick, amicable nod in passing before reaching Ben.
“Ren, I’m glad I caught you-”
“You didn’t, Hux. We were just leaving,” Ben interjects in a bored tone, but Hux continues unperturbed.
“This will only take a moment,” he says, dropping the papers on Ben’s desk. “The Bar Association needs your certification for the legal aid hours. Try to sign it legibly for once so I don’t have to come back.”
Ben throws him a saccharine smile as he reaches for his pen. “And here I thought you enjoyed our little visits. I’ll try to keep the ink within the lines just for you, but no promises, I am in quite the rush.”
Hux stands like a soldier at attention before tilting his head towards Rey.
“Are you enjoying your box?”
“Very much so, thanks.”
“What did you think of the Ashwagandha?”
Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Ben’s pen pauses mid-scribble. He looks between them, his brow furrowing as if they’re speaking Huttese.
“It was okay,” she tells Hux. “A little earthy for my tastes.”
“Perhaps you’re steeping it for too long. You should only leave it for three minutes. Five max.”
“What is he talking about?” Ben interrupts.
“Hux signed me up to his monthly tea subscription service.”
“His what?”
Ben’s bewilderment is very much on par with what her own had been when Hux had first informed her of it.
“The tarine tea was my favourite. And apparently next month's box features a saucy little oolong from Calodan,” Hux gushes, his cheeks glowing with excitement for a moment before he recollects himself and snaps back into his customary rigid, military-esque posture.
Rey meets Ben’ wide-eyed stare and he silently mouths; What the fuck?
Rey bites her lip, trying her best to contain a snort of laughter.
“Perhaps we could take tea together in my office one day and sample the new box. I might have some time late next week-”
“We are away next week,” Ben interjects again.
Hux turns back to him.
“Away?”
“Yes, we have our business trip to Corellia to finalise the MA acquisition. You know, the one you nearly ruined.”
Hux stiffens.
“Ah yes... well, i am glad to see everything worked out in the end.”
“No thanks to you.”
Rey shoots Ben a glare, which he steadfastly ignores.
Hux swiftly retrieves the papers from Ben’s desk, not bothering to look them over.
“My intentions were noble, I assure you. I only wished to do right by the firm. But I can see why you would resent my actions. Do have a good trip.”
He nods a quick goodbye to Rey and she gives him a sympathetic smile as he leaves. Then she whirls back around to Ben.
“What is wrong with you?”
“What?”
“He was trying to be nice.”
“Hux? Nice? Now that’s an oxymoron.”
“You’re the moron.”
“Clearly I am, because I completely missed the memo that you’ve been having tea parties with my sworn enemy,” he drawls, but it doesn’t have the same bite to it as his prior jealous outbursts have.
“You are so dramatic, Benjamin.”
His piercing gaze drips with embellished scepticism.
“What’s the goal, Rey? Are you trying to certify a class action? Amassing enough adverse testimony until you finally have standing to take me down?”
She lets a small, amused smile tug at one corner of her mouth at his rant.
“What are you going on about now?”
“Oh nothing, just having an epiphany.”
“That sounds serious.”
“Oh, it is. Mutiny is no laughing matter.”
“So, we are jumping from tea to treachery, I take it?”
“How will I ever sleep soundly again knowing there is such a traitor in my midst?
“Ben,” she can’t hold back her laugh now, rolling her eyes at his histrionics.
“Yes, it’s official,” he finishes with a solemn look plastered to his face that doesn’t quite conceal the twinkle in his eye. “I think we can safely say you are determined to befriend every goddamned person on this planet I despise.”
“Or you’re just a terrible judge of character and you like all the wrong people.”
Rey says it lightly, but there’s more truth to her statement than she wants to let on.
She can’t help but think of Ben’s distrust of his mother, disdain for Chewbacca and blind hatred of Hux, versus his constant defence of Snoke, the man with an ugly face and even uglier personality. A man who, if her gut instincts are correct, groomed at least one vulnerable young man (more than likely, two) and carefully made them into his own personal self-destruct button to keep himself safe.
Ben watches her for a moment before abruptly standing, the sudden height of him overcoming her that way it so often does. He buttons his suit jacket and saunters across the room, coming to a halt before her.
“I like you…”
The words hang heavy between them, her throat drier than the Jakku desert as she scrambles for purchase while he continues to study her through heavy lids.
Any prior thought in her mind evaporates in an instant, only to be replaced with a wave of pure, unadulterated desire.
Alpha.
Despite her suppressants, her top up and her best intentions, the air is thick with his scent, with that raw, Alpha dominance and it threatens to overwhelm her to the point of madness.
She finds it hard to meet his intense gaze as he continues, his voice silky soft.
“What does that say about my judgement?”
Rey wets her lips and clears her scratchy throat, but still she can barely manage more than a whisper.
“Even a broken clock is right twice a day.”
The corner of his mouth lifts in amusement.
“Mmm. On second thought, perhaps you had it right the first time, because you can be awfully bratty, little Omega.”
Oh god.
Alpha.
Alpha, please.
Ben cocks a smirk before walking past her to the door.
“Let’s go; the car’s waiting.”
Rey, half dazed and desperately willing her heart to ease its hammering against her ribcage, shakes off her stupor and trails after him.
Perhaps one top up won’t be enough, after all.
***
Ben doesn’t like waiting.
Patience isn’t his strong suit. Never has been.
It’s uncharacteristic of him. And yet that’s what he’s doing. Despite his wants, despite his needs.
Ben sits across from Rey in the back of his town car and waits.
This woman.
This one. His one.
His.
Fucking.
Woman.
Is driving him crazy.
She wants him. He knows she does. The tell-tale pheromone spike betrays her every time.
Like just moments prior, in his office, the delectable flush of her cheeks had been indication enough that he’d affected her, but even if he’d been blind, he’d still know.
Excitement, anticipation, lust; they had been all over her scent signature. It had been fainter than usual for some reason, but still there, present. Unmistakable. To him, anyway.
It’s addictive, her desire for him. A dream come true, really. He has this irresistible compulsion to test it over and over again, just to be sure he isn't imagining it.
But he has to tread carefully. Rey is skittish. Like a thoroughbred filly about to bolt. He can’t let himself get too carried away.
She isn’t ready yet.
She isn’t ready to admit what is going on between them. He supposes, if he really thinks about it rationally, it’s understandable. With her upbringing, which somehow manages to trump his own in the childhood trauma department, combined with her limited knowledge on designation biology and complete lack of experience, it’s no wonder that she’d be in denial and have a hard time recognising their relationship for what it really is.
Right now, she wants to live in denial, play pretend and ignore what’s going on between them. For his part, he doesn’t want to make this easy for her, but for the time being, he’s going to let it go.
He’s going to bide his time.
A tactical error on his part at this crucial juncture could ruin everything. He needs to be patient. And he will.
Ben’s not a patient man, but he can learn, with the right motivation.
And the motivation is right.
He cannot afford to fuck this up. Not this.
Rey may not realise yet what is happening between them, but he does. He knows. He can read the signs. He can feel what has clicked into place between them. He remembers reading all about mating bonds as a teenager and thinking it sounded like a load of shit, but now that it’s actually happening to him…
The complete and utter rightness that settles over you when you find that person. Your person.
It’s textbook.
And it’s happening to him. He’d never given much thought to the sanctity of mating bonds, let alone believed in them, but even if he had suspended his disbelief long enough to believe that kind of magic could really exist somewhere in the universe, he never, not in a million years, would have imagined it could happen to himself.
And yet, it has. It is.
Well, almost.
She’s just not there yet.
Rey has always been fairly open about her rejection of her biology. It makes sense that she would resist any pull she feels from that direction. Her education on the matter being what it is, she may not even know what’s happening to her and why. What it means.
But she will. A mating bond isn’t something you can ignore for long.
He should know. He’s seen the studies on unrequited mates. The tragedy of it all seared in his mind. A fate worse than death.
And that won’t be happening to them. Not if he has anything to say about it.
He must be careful. This requires a delicate touch. And tact. Lots of tact.
But Ben Solo is not known as the best closer in the city for nothing. And this might be the most important thing he has to close in his life.
“So, where is this place?” Rey asks him, looking over at him from her side of the backseat.
“Corner of Fourth and Barbican, just past Andrasha. They do the best seafood in the city. Make sure you order your own lobster tonight because you won’t be stealing any of mine.”
“Rude. Sharing is caring, Ben.”
“I have a big appetite.”
He does. He is hungry. And not just for lobster.
“And what’s the reason for this dinner?” Rey asks as the bright city lights whip past them. “Do you anticipate any trouble? Could Lando have ulterior motives?”
“Ulterior motives? One hundred percent. But nothing sinister, I assure you. Lando’s desire to have dinner with us will be out of a love of gossip and mischief.”
“Sounds sinister to me.”
“He’s harmless,” Ben grins. “He could sell ice to a Hothian, but he has a good heart and cares more than he lets on.”
“You guys sound close.”
“Yeah, I suppose we are, in our own way. Lando’s just… easy. He doesn’t go looking for what I can’t give him. He knows who I am and let’s me be. And even though we don’t see each other that often, no matter how long it’s been, it always feels the same with him.”
Rey beams at him, warm and wistful.
Ben had always liked Lando the best out of his parent’s friend group. With enough charm to draw the lonely kid out of his shell and enough wit to engage him then on. Easy going like his dad, but without the foot in mouth syndrome Han Solo often fell victim to that so grated on a young, insecure boy who always felt so small compared to the larger that life characters around him.
“It’s a shame he didn’t live closer. It would have been nice to see more of him growing up.”
Lando always had the knack for making Ben feel comfortable. The guard he had up with his biological uncle who was always looking for faults, always quick to critique, would melt away around Lando. Ben could just… be. And Lando, in turn, could get away with cheeky banter, because the barbs held no real sting.
Who knows how different things would have been if he’d had Lando to turn to on a regular basis.
“I’m sure he would have loved that, too,” she smiles.
Lately, when he’s with her, he thinks back to his old fear of workplace relationships that stemmed from watching his parents drift apart when they no longer had work as a common denominator to fall back on. It almost makes him laugh, because Ben could never imagine running out of things to talk about with this woman.
“He’s a good boss, too,” Ben adds. “Committed to results, but pretty easy to work for. A real leader. Quite the role model.”
“Unlike your boss?”
A ha. Another Snoke jab. Does she not realise her own transparency?
“Our boss, you mean,” he replies with a pointed look and feels her change tact immediately.
“I know, I know, I’ve heard it before.” She gives a dismissive, circular wave of her hand, an eye-roll already halfway prepped. “He’s a stand-up guy - I just don’t know him well enough.”
“I’m not sure if I’ve ever gone that far...”
Rey’s hands twist in her lap a moment, before she turns to him with a lighter disposition.
“Well, I suppose you’re right. I don’t know him. Not like you do... So, why don’t you tell me a bit about him.”
His eyes narrow on her.
“What do you want to know?”
“When’s his birthday?”
“Why, do you want to get him a gift?”
“Tell me something about him that will humanise him to me. Does he have any kids? Grandkids? Emotional support animals?”
And now it’s hard to bite back his smirk.
Because he’s said it before and he’ll say it again. She’s too damned clever for her own good.
Too bad for her that he’s clever, too. Too clever not to see right through her. Too clever to bite and indulge her reconnaissance mission.
“Not to my knowledge,” he says instead, “but then again, I would have said the same about old Ben, and yet here you are…”
His permits his eyes to roam over her at leisure.
She’s so fucking beautiful. From her bright, brilliant eyes to her sweet, smart mouth, he just can’t get enough of her.
Although, upon closer inspection, she does look a little paler than usual. Not quite as bright. Tired, perhaps? Overworked?
Part of him feels guilty for bringing her here with him tonight, but then he knows if he hadn’t, she would be plugging away at the office instead until some ungodly hour, and at least here he can see that she’s fed and heading home at a decent time.
But that’s only a temporary fix. A band-aid on a gaping wound. It doesn’t solve the main problem.
He grinds his jaw.
“Have you given any further thought to my suggestion earlier about getting you some help with your workload?”
Rey stiffens in her seat.
“Ben…”
“You’re working too hard.”
“Don’t be so dramatic.”
“You are, and as your boss I appreciate it, but you need to take better care of yourself. You’ll be no good to anyone if you fall in a heap.”
Rey scowls.
“I’m fine, Ben.”
“If you say so...”
“I’m sure I’m not working any more hours than you did as a first-year associate.”
“True, but I’d still like you to be careful. We both know what a little... overachiever, you can be.”
There it is again. That flush of pleasure. She likes it when he praises her like that. She’s practically preening for him. It’s delicious.
His clever little Omega.
Fuck, that scent of hers is maddening. He still doesn't understand how he is the only one aware of it. Whenever she's in the vicinity, it's all his brain registers, leaving him incapable of proper thought, making him do stupid things.
Rey clears her throat, but when she speaks, her voice is thin.
“You're one to talk.”
Ben grins and runs a hand through his hair.
“Are you telling me that I exceed expectations?”
Rey rolls her eyes again.
“Among other things.”
“Go on...”
“Just when I think your ego couldn’t possibly get any bigger, you somehow manage to outdo yourself.”
Ben shrugs.
“Bigger is always better.”
God, he needs to stop. He must. But it’s so hard to resist the temptation when the result is so rewarding.
“Is it?”
“You tell me.”
She blushes and he knows exactly what she’s thinking about.
“Ben...”
“Rey...”
“I thought we don’t speak about that,” she whispers, head lolling back against the headrest, unable to look away from him.
“Speak about what?”
“You know what...”
Of course he does.
The Weekend ™.
“You’re right. My apologies.” He let’s that hang in the air for a minute, tossing up his next move. Every move needs to be carefully considered before he plays it. He doesn’t want to make a fatal mistake now. But there are times when some nerve is required, so he boldly adds, “It’s hard though, not to think about it sometimes.”
He can hear her sharp intake of breath as she stares deep into his eyes.
“You- you think about it?”
He can’t help the small, indulgent smile that escapes at the corner of his mouth at her stutter.
“Sometimes.”
The impulse to touch her is constant and damn near overwhelming at the best of times, so how, how is he supposed to resist it now?
Now that she’s here, sitting right next to him, staring at him like that.
Like he is the only thing in the entire world that she has ever dreamed of.
Omega.
He feels himself lean towards her, their bodies softly rocking from the movement of the vehicle.
He is drawn to her, inexorably, unable to fight the pull, the need to taste her overpowering all logical thought.
Mate. Mate. Mate.
She must feel it too, because her movements are a perfect mirror of his and he knows, with no uncertainty, that he isn’t alone. Not in this.
Mine. Mine. Mine.
“We’re here, sir,” his driver announces from the front seat as the car comes to an abrupt stop.
Well, fuck.
They repel from each other like two positively charged magnets and Rey is out of the car before Ben’s even collected his wits enough to move.
That hadn’t been bold; it had been reckless. Evidently, he’d lost his head for a minute because that had been way too much, way too soon.
She isn’t ready yet.
He needs to cool it. He can’t afford to spook her when she needs more time to come to terms with what’s happening between them.
Restraining himself may be one of the hardest things he has ever had to do, but he will.
If it means being with her, he’ll do anything.
***
“An eidetic memory! How incredible,” Lando gushes over Rey, champagne in one hand and foie gras popsicle in the other.
“She’s really something,” Ben says, locking eyes with his associate across the table.
They hadn’t had time for a debrief over whatever had happened back in his town car.
Rey had fled straight to the restroom upon arrival and hadn’t returned until ten minutes into dinner. For Ben’s part, he had taken the brief reprieve from her intoxicating presence to recover from the pheromone overload and get his head back on straight, all whilst ignoring Lando’s teasing. But ever since she’d made it to the table, Lando’s focus had been solely on her.
“Does that mean this whole Millennium Aviation buyout spark of genius was your idea?” Lando asks her. “Don’t tell me this kid is just taking credit for his associate’s work.”
“Oh no,” Rey replies with a soft laugh. “I can’t take any credit for that one. That was all Ben.”
She looks back at him, her eyes shy yet glimmering with pride, causing his heart to thump painfully in his chest.
When the waitress comes round to take their orders for their main meals, Ben selects the lobster as planned and waits in quiet anticipation to see what Rey will order. He’d never admit it to her or anyone, but he receives an inordinate amount of pleasure from exposing her to culinary delights she’s never been able to experience before.
He watches her fuss with the menu for a while, turning it back and forth, before politely ordering the consommé of heirloom vegetables.
Ben blinks at her.
“You’re ordering a consommé? For your main?”
She looks up at him in surprise.
“Yes, what of it?” she asks, a faint blush appearing on her pale cheeks.
“The servings here are small. Are you sure you don’t want to order something else?”
“I’m sure.”
“Did you see the lobster? The olive-fed Wagyu?”
“Yes… I just don’t feel like that tonight.”
“Okay, why not go for the wild mushroom and truffle pithivier if you’re intent on a vegetable dish?”
“I’m more than happy with the consommé, thanks,” Rey nods firmly to the waitress, confirming her order.
The back of his neck prickles.
Ben waits for their young server to leave before pressing on.
“Who are you and what have you done with my associate?”
“Ben…”
“I thought I warned you I’m not sharing tonight.”
“Yes, I remember. Eidetic memory and all…”
“So, is there a reason you aren’t opting for a proper meal?”
“I’m not that hungry.”
“You? Not that hungry?” he scoffs. “Now that’s a first.”
In his head, alarm bells are ringing.
While logically he knows it isn’t appropriate for a senior partner to question his associate’s meal choice like this, least of all in front of an audience, all reason abandons his brain under the glaring realisation that something is wrong with his Omega.
“There’s nothing wrong with eating light on occasion, Ben.”
“A vegetable consommé? That’s practically water, Rey. You’ll starve.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“You know old moneybags is paying tonight, right?” He jerks a thumb in Lando’s direction. “No need to scrimp on his account.”
“Ben!”
“He’s not wrong,” Lando chimes in. “Just think of me as a handsome ATM machine.”
“Thank you for the unsolicited advice, Ben, but I am more than capable of ordering for myself,” Rey states with a cold finality that has Ben slam his mouth shut.
His inquisition over her order clearly put her in a mood, because she is short and snippy with him for the rest of entrée – of which she eats none – and well into mains, though she manages to aim some of her customary sweet charm in Lando’s direction when required.
When their meals come out and sure enough, Rey makes no attempt to swipe some of his premium, butter-poached lobster, Ben’s concern only grows. He watches her prod at her own dish, a liquid gold consommé with three tiny, precision-cut pearls of turnip and a single, translucent ribbon of blanched leek sitting at the bottom.
“Are you unwell?” he asks her in a murmur when Lando is momentarily occupied with the next drink order. She just shakes her head and refuses to meet his eye.
Her whole scent signature is off. If she’d seemed a little tired and drained earlier that night, she is now broadcasting distorted distress signals that have him shaken. When the server comes to clear their table, he finds he’s left half his own plate untouched.
Lando orders a selection of sweet petit four for the table, all of which Rey declines, before excusing herself again halfway through dessert.
Ben glares unblinkingly in the direction of the restrooms until, upon feeling Lando’s knowing eyes upon him, he drags his eyes back to the older businessman.
“You’ve got it bad for your girl there.”
“She's-” Ben’s throat tightens. “She's not my girl.”
“Mhmm. Do yourself a favour, champ; give the denial a rest.”
When ten more minutes pass and she hasn’t come back, he can’t sit there waiting any longer. He’s not quite sure what he’s going to do as he storms down the hallway to the ladies’ room, but thankfully he doesn’t find out, because Rey steps out just as he reaches the door.
She looks truly unwell, now. It does nothing to sooth the panic bubbling up in his chest. He steps right up close and clasps her shoulders to steady her.
“What’s going on, Rey?”
There is a sheen of sweat across her face.
“I’m fine, Ben.”
“Don’t give me that. What’s wrong?”
Rey sighs.
“Nothing, i just need to get out of here.”
“You are unwell, aren’t you.”
Ben feels her forehead for a fever. She feels cold and clammy.
“Why do you care so much?” she asks, her blown out pupils desperately searching his face for answers.
Ben cups the side of her face.
“Let me take you home,” he says, imploring her to not deny him this one request. “I’m worried about you.”
“God, why do you have to make this so hard?” she huffs, exasperated, which is ironic, because fuck, he could ask her the same thing.
He is an Alpha. His Omega is in trouble. It is literally his biological imperative to help her, and she won’t let him.
The helplessness is crippling.
Jesus, this is fucking torture.
In spite of how unwell she looks, Rey seems to somehow collect herself.
“I’ll be fine, Ben.” She looks up at him, her eyes glassy but firm in their conviction.
“Rey-”
“I think about it sometimes, too,” she confesses in a whisper and his heart stops altogether. Her hazel eyes shine with something akin to hope, the glimmer of a brighter future, but before he can bask in it, she shuts them tight and gives her head a little shake. “But I can’t. We can’t. I’m gonna go. Don’t walk me out.”
With his heart in his throat and his stomach in knots, Ben can’t do anything but stand there as she pulls off her third disappearing act of the night, leaving him alone in the empty hallway.
After he staggers back to the table, Lando looks him over, his expression telling him in no uncertain terms that he looks like shit.
“You’re in trouble,” Lando sighs matter-of-factly, pouring them both another drink.
Trying his best to suppress his rising panic, Ben can’t help but agree.