Chapter 19
CHAPTER NINETEEN
TALIANA
I sit in the middle of Oros’s bed.
Naked.
And evaluate the blankets around me.
We’ve slept in these sheets the last few nights, making them smell like us. But I need more than just these blankets and sheets.
Hmm.
I crawl out of the pillowy haven to go in search of new linens. It takes a few tries—his closet is huge—but I finally locate them in a cabinet near the corner.
Grabbing everything I can find, I carry them through the closet and out into the main suite to set the items on a bench at the foot of the four-poster bed.
My wolf paces eagerly inside me, pleased with this development. We’ve denned before, but we’ve never truly nested.
Rubbing my hands together, I suppress a squeal.
Then I get to work.
Strip the bed.
Re-dress the mattress with fresh sheets.
Blankets.
Now… the edges.
I roll the used sheets until they form perfect lines along every side of the massive bed, creating four soft walls to roll between.
And then I grab the pillows to bolster those walls.
Except I don’t have enough pillows.
Frowning, I pace around the space, searching for more items I can use to strengthen the edges.
Towels. Only two of those work, the plush fabric meeting my needs. The others don’t smell right, so I ignore them. Probably because they don’t have enough of Oros’s scent.
I find some shirts that remind me of bonfires and add those.
Then I return to the closet to see if there are any more pillows.
None.
Growling, I wander to the living area to investigate the couches there.
No.
I can tell he doesn’t sit anywhere in here often.
His office, I decide, almost sprinting for the balcony.
I’m halfway down the stairs when I remember that I’m naked.
Pausing, I listen for anyone nearby.
Hearing nothing, I continue downward and go straight for his desk.
His chair is leather. Not plush. Absolutely unacceptable material for the nest.
The chairs across from it smell more like Voice than Oros, making those definitely not okay. “Ugh,” I mutter to myself, frustrated. I don’t need that much more, just a few items. Maybe a pillow and a shirt. Or… or…
A cloak!
I run toward his closet, wondering if he has any extras in there. Only to freeze as someone clears a throat from behind me.
My eyes widen.
Then my… my nose twitches.
Sickly sweet.
Omega.
The one Oros called Bella…
I spin toward the familiar blonde, my wolf growling deep inside at the unexpected and unwelcome intrusion in my Alpha’s office. My space. My male. My intended mate.
“Sorry,” she squeaks. “I just saw Onyx downstairs, and he said Prince Oros was out. I… I assumed with you. I… I just… I have…” She blows out a breath and closes her eyes like she’s striving for patience or maybe confidence. I don’t know.
Because I’m too stuck on something she just said. “Prince… Oros?” The words leave me slowly, the pause unintentional yet entirely necessary. Prince Oros. That’s what she called him, right?
“Y-yes,” she stammers out, then shakes her head and releases a huff.
“I’m sorry. I’m not normally this inept.
I…” She releases a little snarl that has my wolf instantly on alert.
“This is ridiculous. I’m just flustered because I wasn’t expecting to see you, and this is the second time I’ve fucked up. ”
Her eyes widen, and she covers her mouth like she can’t believe she just spoke those words.
“Sorry,” she mumbles behind her hand. “Gods, you must think I’m not only inconsiderate but an idiot, too!” Her cheeks turn a bright pink, making me frown.
“Why would it matter what I think?” I ask her. I’m just a wolf, I nearly add. Meanwhile, she’s a gorgeous dragon. Maybe a bit… odd. But stunning nonetheless.
“Because you’re Prince Oros’s chosen Omega,” she says reverently. “My future princess.” Her eyes widen. “Oh, crap, I should have curtsied.” She proceeds to do so, and I realize it’s as awkward as my own curtsying abilities.
I blink at her, waiting for her to stop.
She doesn’t.
I look around, trying to figure out what the heck she’s doing.
Yet all she does is hold that damn position and cast her eyes downward.
“Please forgive me, Your Future Highness,” she whispers.
Now I… I just gape at her. “Stop,” I say, and it comes out a bit shrill.
Which makes the female jump backward. “I’m sorry. I… I didn’t mean to… Fuck. I mean damn. I mean, crap…” Her eyes widen, and if she didn’t look so terrified, I may have laughed at her rush of words. “You’re going to have me exiled, aren’t you?”
“What? No! Of course not. Why the hell would I do that?” I ask, astounded by her claim. “I don’t have that kind of power, nor would I ever do that to anyone. Especially not an Omega.”
Her shoulders fall, and her bottom lip begins to tremble.
“Really? Because I… I stupidly propositioned your Alpha. But I didn’t know.
I swear I didn’t. Prince Oros has always been kind to me, and I…
I like him. But not like that. Well, yes, like that.
” She grabs her head. “Oh, damn it, Bella, stop yapping!”
A laugh bubbles out of me on impulse, one I don’t mean to voice or display, but I can’t help it.
This is the strangest conversation I’ve ever had.
And I no longer feel like challenging this woman. All I want to do is hug her.
Because I understand her. That fear. That need to apologize. That desire to survive.
Her blue eyes are wide as she stares at me, her terror somewhat quelling my giggles. I’m not actually amused at all; it’s just a nervous response.
But after a beat, she joins me. And suddenly we’re both simply… laughing.
It’s insanity. Yet it feels good. Like an emotional explosion that simply needed to happen.
At least until I realize the real reason I can’t stop giggling. It’s because the alternative is crying. Or losing my damn mind.
Prince Oros.
I knew he held a high position. His suite. The call with Riordan. The way everyone stared reverently at him in the kingdom.
Deep down, I suspected this. I even asked him about it. But he sidestepped his response, saying we would return to the discussion later.
Only, we never did.
And now I know why.
Oros is the Gold Sector Prince.
Oh, Gods…
“Why do you think I’m your future princess?” I ask after a beat of silence, my focus returning to Bella.
“Because Prince Oros is formally courting you,” she replies, a little frown marring her porcelain-like forehead. “He’s taken you all over the sector and adorned you with gold.” She looks pointedly at my necklace and my cuff. “You’re wearing his symbol.”
I glance down at the bracelet and the fiery lotus embedded in the metal. I never asked him what it meant, but I noticed it when I first put it on. “This,” I whisper.
“Yes.”
I meet her gaze again and note the confusion in her expression. “I didn’t realize he was a prince,” I tell her. “I… I suspected he might be, but he never…” I trail off, not wanting to confide more than I already have. “Anyway, I… I can let him know you stopped by?”
She shakes her head. “No. I just needed to drop this file off from the Kuanos Quarter,” she says, digging in her bag and pulling out a folder. “It’s a request for supplies.”
“Oh. So you’re… you help Oros?”
“Um, not really, no. I help Kuanos Quarter. It’s the human village. I think you visited the other day?”
I nod. “He didn’t tell me the name but explained that they’re descendants of the Infection survivors.”
She smiles. “Yes. They have some fun tales, not of that period, but other mythology stories. You should visit again. I’m sure they would love to have you over for coffee sometime.” Her eyes widen like she can’t believe she just said that. “I mean, if you… if you want. I know you’ll be… busy.”
“You don’t have to worry about what you say to me,” I tell her, hating that she’s so nervous.
Because I know how that feels. As a wolf Omega, none of the dragons wanted to talk to me. They saw me as lower than them. Unworthy. A burden, not a being.
“I like talking to you,” I add, smiling a little. “It’s… refreshing.”
“Refreshing?” she repeats.
“Yeah. It’s different. New. Good, I think? I don’t know. But now I’m the one rambling.” I grin again. “What’s your name?” Oros called her Bella, so I’ve been doing the same. But I really don’t want to use Oros’s endearment for her. Just thinking about him calling her—
“Bella,” she says, interrupting my thoughts and making me frown.
“Bella,” I repeat, unable to hide my confusion.
“It’s short for Isabella,” she murmurs, blushing a little. “But I prefer to go by Bella. Or Bell, if you like.”
My lashes flutter. “Oh.” Ohhh. “It’s not… I mean, right. Okay. I’ve only ever heard bella as an endearment.”
Her eyes widen. “Bella is an endearment in your homeland?”
I nod, then frown. “Well. Kind of. Yes.” I don’t really want to explain that the Alphas used it interchangeably to call for Omegas there. “Um, I’m Taliana,” I tell her instead of elaborating on Obsidian Sector practices. “But you can call me Tali.”
That last part just sort of falls off my tongue. I haven’t told Oros my nickname. But that’s because I rather like the way “Taliana” sounds when he voices it.
As well as “printesa mea.”
I shiver just thinking about it.
“Tali,” Isabella—whom I’m definitely calling Bell, not Bella—repeats.
“Yes.” I smile. “And I think ‘Bell’ is beautiful, by the way.”
Her lips curl as well. “Thank you.” She steps forward to place the envelope on Oros’s desk. “And thank you for not hating me. I know it’s probably hard, given my past with Oros and all that.”
I stare at her. “But that was before I met him.” Not to mention the fact that I have no right to feel anything about his former or current lovers.
Gods, he’s a prince…
He also said he only wants one Omega, another part of me whispers. He’s yours and only yours.
Except he hasn’t tried to do more than kiss me all week.
“It doesn’t matter,” Bell says, grabbing my attention once more. “You have every right to feel possessive.”
My wolf huffs with approval inside. Or maybe it’s agreement. I’m not sure.
“But you should know that the second I heard him purr, I knew he wasn’t mine,” Bell goes on. “It’s such a strange thing to say, so I’m sure you find it odd as well. But it gave me a unique sense of closure the other day when he purred for you. The sound didn’t soothe me at all.”
“You don’t like his purr?” I ask, confused because I love that sound. It’s one of my favorites despite being new.
“It’s not that I dislike it, but that purr is only for you.” She smiles. “He never purred for me. Not once. He also barely ever kissed me. But with you…” She gives a dreamy sigh. “I only saw a glimpse of you both on the balcony, but it was all I needed to witness to know that he’s yours.”
I swallow, wishing I shared her confidence.
“Well, anyway, I should go. And you…” She glances over me. “I assume you were in the middle of something important.”
Frowning, I look down.
And remember that I’m naked.
“Oh. I…”
“It’s fine,” she says, waving it away. “I know the signs of an oncoming heat. And besides, we’re all shifters here.” She starts to leave, then pauses. “Do you need anything? Blankets? Water? Food?”
“Um.” My frown seems to deepen. “No, I think I’m okay. But thank you.” All I really need is Oros, wherever he is. I glance at the balcony platform, almost hoping he’ll appear.
He doesn’t.
“If you change your mind…” Bell trails off as she jots something down on a paper that she pulled from her purse. “That’s how you reach me.”
“Oh, thank you.” I don’t bother telling her that I have no idea how this number works. I’ll either figure it out or ask Oros. Assuming he comes back.
Bell mentioned being told that he wasn’t here.
So where is he?
I don’t ask Bell. Instead, I say goodbye, then head back up the stairs to his suite.
Why isn’t he here? I wonder, looking at the nest I’ve created and experiencing an unexpected sense of dread. I’m not sure where it comes from, maybe my own insecurities.
But I suddenly feel like something is very wrong. To the point that my insides begin to churn.
I walk over to the nest and crawl inside, my limbs beginning to shake.
Deep breaths, Tali, I tell myself. But all that does is worsen the sensation.
I’m clearly panicking.
It’s ridiculous.
I just need to be patient.
Wait for Oros.
Also known as the Gold Sector Prince.