18. Melanie
Melanie
T here was another thud and a knock on the door to my flat.
I stood two feet back from it, hands on my hips, elbows pointed outwards as I sighed. I didn’t need to look through the peephole to know what it was. It was the same thing it had been for the past four days since I left the party.
Because Sin and Kai wouldn’t stop sending me gifts.
And I loved it, I absolutely did, but there was a chance they were only sending them because of the insanely awkward car ride home after the party where Sin helped me and a drunk Kai into the car, both of us soaked, horny, and drenched in slick.
Sin stared at me nonstop, saying nothing, while Kai purred and kneaded my chest and stomach like a cat.
All while I was high on the new bond with Kai.
I’d explicitly told Sin I wasn’t joining his pack, and then I’d turned up hours later with fresh bites all over my neck and chest.
So, maybe they were all apology gifts, and they weren’t actually courting me.
First, it was a bouquet of flowers and a box of chocolates, which had my omega instincts sailing with happiness.
But now, I flicked my gaze to my blue circular dining table overflowing with enough vases for a hotel, along with boxes of chocolates and truffles and any kind of expensive snack I could imagine.
And really? It was a relief. The biggest in the world.
Because I’d dreaded being in my nest alone. Sin had offered to walk me all the way up to my flat after the party, but I didn’t want him to smell the bleach and anxiety which hung around my nest.
And I still wanted to hurt Zania.
It wasn’t just from the rage that had torn me up when Zania broke into my nest. It was a genuine urge to find her and punish her and make her beg me for forgiveness.
It was like this dark monster living inside me that surfaced every time I let my guard down. I’d wake up growling and snarling, or I’d suddenly snap at the smallest thing.
I was wound up, ready to spring, ready to leap for her as if she might show up at any second.
I was constantly on high alert and exhausted because it felt like she could attack at any moment even though all I’d done since I got back from the party was stay in my nest and visit my mum.
But she was a constant presence, under my skin, goading me, promising me I’d never be safe.
And I couldn’t tell if this need to attack her was mine, or if it had transferred into me when Kai and I exchanged bites.
The only thing that calmed me was their scents. Making sure each room smelled of vanilla and amaretto was so much easier when they sent me scent-marked fluffy toys and blankets.
I went over to the table, sorting through the piles of presents. Everything was already neatly stacked and organised, but I pushed it all back to make room for whatever was coming next.
After the toys and blankets came the food deliveries in the evening from restaurants so expensive I felt guilty eating them.
Though it was amazing not to have to cook, I was a single person living alone and they were ordering everything on the menu.
It was so obvious what they were doing, but I was too weak.
I needed my nest covered in their scents, so when more blankets had arrived yesterday and Caspian’s scent drifted up from the box, I caved.
I would never admit I actually squealed as I threw all the blankets on my bed, snuggling up in them.
I bathed in caramel for the first time in days.
I’d even wondered if they’d forced Caspian into the blanket just to get his scent for me.
When I first bit Kai, the craving was so deep I thought I couldn’t breathe without him—without all three of them.
But, this time, going to sleep smothered in their scents with my nest filled with presents from them made the pain bearable.
Because it felt like they would come back for me. That they would protect me from Zania.
I wished I could pretend things were normal.
As if I’d always been an omega, as if I’d found my pack the usual way, and I hadn’t messed everything up so badly that I didn’t know if it could be fixed.
Like sleeping with Sin, causing Kai to have a breakdown, and then fucking and bonding with Kai all in one night.
And not even thinking about Caspian at all.
Selfish wasn’t the right word, but it felt close enough…
Or maybe that was what being an omega was all about. Where my instincts were more important than being a decent person…
I narrowed my eyes at the door as I waited for the delivery person to finish scrawling the ‘we left your package in a safe place’ note (which was literally in front of my door in an open corridor).
It sounded heavy enough that I was going to have to drag it in across the floor. But I was still buzzing with excitement at what might be next.
I pulled out my phone, unlocking my screen, still weirdly shy about texting Kai so easily.
“What did you get me this time?” I messaged him. He’d stolen my phone number from Sin a few days ago and we’d texted nonstop since the party.
He read the message as soon as it arrived, shooting back straight away: “You’ll love this one. I swear I’m going to hunt you down if you don’t.”
A smile split my lips as I slipped my phone into the back pocket of my shorts.
Whenever I even thought of him, my nipple tingled. The white circle of his bite stood proud against my skin, and I loved how I could feel it with the beat of my heart.
He’d bitten me all over my chest, but it was my nipple that felt most special.
With no air con and a flat built in the ‘70s, it was its own sweatbox, so I’d been wearing shorts and vests for days, and I barely had any clean clothes left. I didn’t want to use the communal washing machine when my scent screamed ‘omega’.
My bites were completely exposed, and whenever I caught sight of myself in a mirror, I stopped and admired them because they felt so natural.
My brow furrowed as the doorbell rang again. Normally, the delivery people dropped the parcel and left. They didn’t care enough to knock twice, unless it was a special delivery.
Even though it was boiling in the flat, I still grabbed Caspian’s blanket from the pile, wrapping it around me as the doorbell went again.
Alertness slinked through me, and my back straightened. Maybe I was being paranoid. Maybe it was a signed delivery. It was probably nothing. But my instincts started warning me.
But I unhooked my keys from the rings next to the door and tucked them into my jeans pocket in case Zania had sent someone to put me in a car and I needed to scratch them.
I clicked open the door, and my excitement came crashing down. The chain went taunt as my body stiffened as I looked through the gap to find my alpha landlord staring down at me.
I instantly leaned back from him, as if that could stop my scent. Even though it had become more potent since Kai bit me.
I was expecting this. My landlord had let Zania into my nest in the first place, so there’s no reason she couldn’t get him to kick me out.
It was why I’d been calling Rosa repeatedly, but she ghosted me the entire time.
“Hi,” I croaked through the crack in the door. “Can I help you?”
I looked at what little of him I could. He’d dressed in a burgundy corduroy suit with a huge gold chain around his neck and thick rings on his fingers. He leered at me as he folded his arms and, when he grinned at me, a gold tooth glittered from between thin lips.
I could just feel the sleaze dripping off of him.
“Melanie, we’ve been getting complaints from your neighbours about all the packages, and—”
He stopped dead as he took in a breath, his nostrils flaring, his beady eyes narrowing. His expression twisted instantly into a cruel smile.
His folded arms loosened, a dangerous glint in his eyes as he stepped closer to the door.
“Well, well. Looks like someone’s been hiding a juicy little secret,” he said, baring his yellowed teeth. “I thought I smelled something when I let that woman into your flat. Guess I was right, after all.”
I swallowed, my throat already too dry, trusting the chain to protect me from him as I drew back even further.
“What happened?” He smirked. “Your scent blockers run out?”
Even if it hadn’t been my heat, it was illegal for me to purchase scent blockers unless I was a registered omega, and it took months to get an official designation title. The only reason I hadn’t been caught out so far was everyone in the building was a beta or kids who hadn’t presented.
“If you mean the scent, it’s from an omega friend,” I said, refusing to bow my head as his alpha aura pressed at me, trying to make me submit. It was nothing compared to the rage-fuelled pressure of Caspian’s aura.
He leaned towards the gap of my door, taking another deep breath.
“Then why can I smell two omegas?” he hummed.
“Two friends,” I replied shortly.
That was the only excuse I had.
I’d spent so much time snuggled up in all three of their scents that Kai’s scent must have transferred to Caspian’s blanket.
But I was surprised my landlord could even smell anyone else when his own scent was so strong.
It was nothing like the Rislers’ or Rosa’s alphas, or even any of the alphas I’d met at the parties.
Because it was rich in the worst possible way. He smelled of sour milk: off, bad, and so wrong that even Caspian’s blanket couldn’t stop my nausea. I had to get away from him and his stench as soon as possible.
“I’ll stop ordering things then,” I said, averting my gaze. “I’m sorry to be rude, but I’m really ill.” I tried to hold my breath, but the stench was soaking through my skin.
His annoyance travelled out through his scent and goosebumps erupted as I shivered in disgust.
I could get the delivery later. I wouldn’t keep talking to him when I didn’t feel safe.
I went to close the door, but he slammed his wide palm against it.
I flinched back, but kept my weight fixed to the door. If I let it go, it might be easy for him to ram it open, and then I don’t know what might happen.
I’d already had Zania and her alphas invade my nest. I don’t think I could cope if anyone else entered without permission.
I adjusted the blanket over me, hiding my shoulders and my skimpy tank top, praying Kai’s bites were hidden.
“You smell more than just ill.” He leered, sniffing the air. “How long has it been since you had your heat? Your scent’s still ripe. You been hiding it all this time?”
I shook my head, but he wasn’t buying it.
“Are you on heat blockers? An omega hiding as a beta. Hmm…I could take you to court for that, you know? What will they do if they find out an omega’s been living here illegally? I’m guessing you’ve got fake documents and all that?”
I’d had to show papers proving I was a beta when I first signed the lease for my flat. Unregistered omegas could be arrested for reckless endangerment. Going into heat in public was considered assault, especially if there were alphas around.
“Tell you what,” he said, blowing out a breath, drenching me in grime.
“Being such an understanding guy an’ all, I’ll make you an offer.
” His milk-stained breath was so rank that I pressed my palm over my mouth so I didn’t gag.
“You come visit me tonight like a good omega and I’ll make sure to give you what you need.
” He sneered. “I normally have to pay for it, so this works out perfect for both of us.” He smirked.
“I can fuck you raw—that’s a promise.” He laughed to himself.
“Or I contact the police and have you booted out of here tonight. Your choice.” He shrugged.
My mouth dropped, horror ripping as he held my gaze. “You know where I live. See you later.” He chuckled as he walked away, as if he was telling a joke and not threatening me.
I didn’t know what was worse, Zania’s death threats or this.
I watched him go, making sure he actually left before I closed the door. I clicked both locks in place and made sure the chain was secure.
I kept telling myself these were all minor blips, that I could manage this. I could take care of it like I had to take care of everything else in my life.
A wave of nausea hit me and I leant forward, banging my forehead off of the door. Hands clenched around my caramel blanket, I drew it tighter around me, praying it could somehow protect me like I thought it would.
My phone pinged, a small buzz on my thigh which momentarily pulled me out of my shock, hoping it was Kai.
My breaths sped up, wheezing, growing harder. I had told myself to expect it, that I was going to be discovered, eventually. I couldn’t hide that I had presented forever.
A growl rumbled deep in my throat, my hands shaking as the anger I still wasn’t used to surged.
The landlord had basically already known I was an omega, and Zania could have easily pushed him to make that ‘discovery’.
But there was no way I could prove or even confirm it was her.
But arrested? That was a totally different thing.
That was a whole other level than losing my nest. If I went to jail, the chances of ever living a normal life were minuscule.
Even though I’d paid for Mum’s care and I still had the money from Zania, it wouldn’t last. And I’d never know if I was safe.
How did I deal with someone like my landlord? Could I afford to bribe him? Was it possible to pay someone like him off?
I could imagine myself getting stuck in a situation where he would keep asking for more and more money. Or sexual favours.
Staying in a hotel would be the best, but my omega instincts were already shouting at me. They knew what to do. The best option was right in front of me, but I still didn’t know if it was okay to take it.