Chapter 10
CHAPTER TEN
Romeo Ballet Academy, Sanctum
W hen the last piano chords of “Dance of the Knights” dies away into the shadows of the practice room, I take another step closer to the beautiful male pianist.
The Omega’s eyes are closed. His elegant hands are finally stilled, resting on the mahogany piano’s keys.
He still hasn’t realized that he’s not alone.
How is it possible to be that lost in your own world?
He’s smiling. It’s a beautiful smile. His lips are full and kissable.
I shouldn’t be getting wet for a man who may have been hired to work in the academy…or worse.
But he’s so fuckable.
There’s something about a talented man that turns me on more than money, power, or good looks.
He has a spark inside him that burns like mine does. It calls to my soul.
“You’re incredible,” I breathe.
Behind me, Swan claps.
To my horror, however, the male Omega startles violently. His forest green eyes snap open, wide and panicked. He flails his arms but can’t catch himself, before he tumbles backward off the stool.
I wince at the crack, as he hits the wooden floor.
“Fuck,” Swan cusses, uncrossing his arms and rushing forward.
The male Omega’s gaze is dazed. He cradles the back of his head that he caught on the floor.
Have I just given him concussion?
Way to go, Juliet. Great first impression.
The perfect meet-cute.
My cheeks flame.
“Shit, I didn’t mean to…” I hold out my hand to help him up.
The male Omega flinches.
“JuJu.” Swan squeezes my shoulder, shaking his head.
I know what he means.
Don’t touch. Don’t get too close.
I take a step back to give the male Omega space.
He lets out a relieved breath. His shoulders become less stiff with anxiety.
Occasionally, a Beta will enter the academy who acts like this.
They’ll flinch from touch or easily startle.
I didn’t understand at first, but Swan always spends more time with them, gentle and understanding.
Swan later explained to me that they were the ones who’d been traumatized by their packs, and perhaps, being sent to the academy to create a new found family would actually be safer for them.
It’s a sad thought that Romeo Ballet Company is more of a safe space than where they came from.
I wish that I could reform the company so that it truly could be safe.
Perhaps, if I win Ambrose as mine on Friday, then I can also convince the CEO to change the way that the academy is run.
After all, I always aim high.
The male Omega pulls his knees up to his chest and wraps his arms around them. His waterfall of brunet curls fall over his face, but through it, his eyes that are bright with intelligence peek at me.
But he never looks me directly in the eye.
He fidgets with the edges of his suit jacket, stroking over the velvet like it’s soothing him.
“You’re not meant to be here.” The man’s voice is educated, English, and honeyed.
My lips part in shock. I could fall into the man’s voice forever.
Next to me, Swan lets out an involuntary growl. I know that he’s affected too.
This beautiful Omega is so sweet that he should come with a cavity warning.
Only, someone’s hurt him.
My lips pinch.
When I find out who it is, I’m going to hand them their ass.
Somehow.
If he’s English, however, does that mean Ambrose may have brought him back to America with him?
The thought makes me feel sick.
In England, Omegas have less rights than here in America.
As in, they have no rights at all.
They’re essentially the property of their packs with no protections.
If Ambrose is a good Alpha, why would he claim an English Omega under those conditions?
Anxiously, I scan the Omega’s neck, looking for a bond bite scar. But if it’s there, then it’s covered by his fancy cravat.
But what if he’s not Ambrose’s, but is here because he’s bonded to Dimitri? It would explain the flinching.
My stomach feels like it’s filled with rocks.
“You’re right,” I say, quietly. “We’re students and we’re breaking the rules because we wanted to fit in some extra practice. We didn’t think that anyone would be using this room. They never have been before.”
The Omega’s brow furrows. “You shouldn’t break the rules.”
Swan huffs. “We’ve just discovered the anti-Rebel.”
“Play nice.” I nudge Swan with my shoulder.
“I’m always nice.” Swan bares his fangs in a wicked and definitely not nice way. “Here’s how it is. I don’t blindly follow rules that clip my wings. Or that cage and hurt us. Anyway, I see them more as…guidelines.”
The Omega looks at Swan warily. “The rules will hurt you…?”
“So, if you don’t want to hurt us, keep the fact that you saw us here a secret, okay?” Swan arches his brow.
The Omega bites his lip. “You shouldn’t keep secrets.”
Swan glances at me, helplessly.
This male Omega isn’t going to last a day in the academy. From Omega solidarity alone, as much as how much I fucking desire to feel how silky his curls are and sniff his scent, I’m going to need to protect him.
Whatever he was taught in England, will get him killed in America.
When a thought strikes me, I smile. “Have you met Laurent yet? He’s the other male Omega in the pack. He can explain shit to you.”
“Shit?” The male Omega blinks, even though his expression has brightened at Laurent’s name. “I know what that means. And Laurent is my best friend. Do you know him?”
I stare at the man in shock.
His best friend?
Isn’t he new here?
Swan and I exchange a glance.
Who the hell is this Omega?
“Laurent is my friend too,” I say, carefully. “I’m Juliet, and this is my mentor, Swan.”
Swan sweeps a dramatic bow.
To my surprise, the Omega pulls himself to his feet and returns the bow with equal formality.
How does he pull off looking stylish and suddenly like our hot English professor when he does that?
“I’m Benedict. Delighted to meet you.” He clasps his hands behind his back, as if to avoid shaking our hands. “Laurent calls me Bec. If you’re his friends, does that mean you can call me that too?”
Confused, I reply, “Ehm, that’s up to you.”
“Is it? Well, I rather like the name Bec. So, you may call me that. Laurent is my only friend, and he says that people may like me more if I’m less formal. Apparently, people are here in America.”
His only friend?
My chest tightens, as sadness blooms through me.
Didn’t Benedict have any friends in England? Or is it simply that he’s been dragged here and forced to leave all of them behind?
He must be lonely. I hope that I can help him.
“Just be yourself,” Swan advises. “People will like you for who you are. And if the assholes don’t, then they weren’t worth knowing in the first place.”
I know that he’s thinking of Remington. That wound still hasn’t scarred over.
Benedict bends over to brush the dust off his trousers with a grimace like he’s trying to gain the time to process what Swan’s said. “Be myself… Well, that will never work. I’m a bad Omega.”
Pain surges through me.
Bad Omega.
It’s the worst thing that you can call an Omega. It shames and marks them, as much as being labeled defective or a Reject .
No Omega is bad.
No Omega is beyond redemption.
And every omega is worthy.
Next to me, Swan’s eyes are blazing like he’s ready to tear out every Alpha’s throat who’s made this incredible Omega feel like that.
Benedict isn’t young. He’s clearly lived a difficult life, before he’s arrived here.
It may be a long list.
“You’re not bad,” I reply, softly. “I hope that we can get to know each other well enough for me to prove that to you.”
Benedict’s shoulders stiffen. “You truly aren’t meant to be here. You’re not on my schedule. They’re always rather clear about my routine. They help me and they’re very particular. I don’t want to get my new friends in trouble because that’s wrong. But I’d have remembered, if I’d been scheduled to meet…” Benedict’s gaze raises to assess me. His cheeks tint a pretty pink. “…my soul mate.”
I gape at him.
Swan splutters with laughter. “He may be the anti-Rebel but he’s a charmer. Can we keep him?”
I glance at Swan, surprised.
I expected him to be possessive. But then, I notice the way that Swan’s tongue darts to wet his lips, while he assesses Benedict’s sculptured body and slim waist.
I should have known that Benedict would call to Swan’s protective streak. He’s as interested in adding this male Omega to our pack as I am.
Except, that’s impossible, isn’t it?
I steel myself.
Perhaps, it is.
But I can allow myself the fantasy for one night. I’m good at that.
In the quiet of this abandoned practice room, with the moonlight bathing us, the silent forest watching through the glass wall, and endless versions of ourselves reflected back in the mirrors, we can lose ourselves in the dream.
“It’s a fact.” Benedict raps his gold Rolex, which is studded with diamonds like stars. “I was hired to work here as a pianist. I needed to get in some practice before I start tomorrow. I’m meant to be playing here for one hour precisely. Alone.”
“Do you want us to leave?” I offer.
Please say no.
“I’ve never spoken to a female Omega.” Benedict’s sparkling eyes dart to my face and then quickly away. “I don’t want this to stop. This is better than I imagined. You make me feel…” He hesitates like he’s struggling to understand the emotion. “…like my whole body is purring silently inside, my bones, and blood, and every cell.”
I stare at him.
That’s the most romantic thing that an Omega could say to another Omega.
But he says it like it’s scientific fact.
My pheromones burst out involuntarily, and I don’t even care that Swan smirks knowingly.
I’m desperate to nuzzle against Benedict’s neck like Omegas often do when they greet each other to know what he smells like, licking his scent gland.
He must have made an effort to suppress his scent or possibly, like some Omegas, his is fainter because of an issue with his nervous system.
From this distance, I can’t smell him. And that’s making me lean back against Swan desperate for someone to touch me at least.
Swan understands, wrapping his arms around my waist. He strokes my hip. At the same time, he pulls me against his hard body, and the feel of him grounds me.
“Tomorrow, I will be playing for each of the pairs of dancers who are taking part in the contest.” Benedict wanders to the piano, resting his hand on the top tenderly like it’s a lover. “But only two at a time because I don’t like groups.”
“I hear you,” Swan mutters. “I hate class too, or it could be that I simply hate being with Rem…or my instructor.”
“It’s the noise.” Benedict wrinkles his nose. Leaning against the piano he looks like a spread from Alpha GQ Magazine , showing the stylish Omega at home of the latest Alpha tech celebrity. “Too many people who may shout or…you never know what they’ll do. It’s frightening. Too many scents at once give me migraines. Then people ask questions that they don’t mean or that they don’t actually want an answer to like: How are you? Or, do you think it’ll rain later?”
Swan chuckles. “That weather obsession may be an English thing.”
I bite my lip, however, because now I can guess why Benedict is wearing the Rej bracelet.
Is he neurodivergent?
In my class at high school, there’d been an Omega boy, Mason, who’d had similar responses to large groups. He didn’t meet your eye either, and rarely spoke.
He was also the smartest and kindest boy in the year.
The school called in his parents one term. His parents left the meeting looking grim faced, dragging Mason after them by his arm.
Mason’s head had been ducked and he’d been shaking.
The next day, when he returned to school, the ugly Rej bracelet had been bound by doctors around his wrist for the rest of his life.
He was marked as defective.
Everybody knew that Mason had been courted for months by a female Alpha who was planning to become a surgeon. He would add to her status and prestige.
As soon as she saw the Rej bracelet, however, she broke up with Mason in front of the whole class. She coldly demanded that he hand back his Promise Bond ring.
I spent the remainder of that lunch break comforting Mason, while he sobbed behind the dumpsters.
He was broken.
What could I say to him? His future had been stolen from him.
Why?
Because he was different ?
I wanted to kick the ass of that Alpha who’d rejected him as much as the entire school system and his own parents.
But now, I’m marked as a Reject too.
I won’t let that stop me achieving my dreams. I’ll show everyone just what a Rej is capable of, and it seems like Benedict is trying to do the same as well.
No Rej has been hired by a ballet company before. He has an actual paid role here.
I glow with pride on his behalf.
I celebrate the success of every Omega because it helps us all.
Benedict takes an excited step toward me, pushing his curls out of his eyes. “Will you dance for me? I’ve never had another Omega dance to my music before but I’ve dreamed about it, many nights.”
I grin. “I’d love to.”
He slips his hand into his pocket, pulling out a keyring with a cute but cunning looking fox dangling from it, which is made out of the same velvet as his suit.
In fact, the fox reminds me of Benedict.
He may appear beautiful and formal in a Bridgerton way, but there’s a wily intelligence underneath.
Benedict strokes over the keyring like a fidget toy. “I don’t like hardness. I was trapped in a hard place for a long time with only my music to escape into. Piano keys can be pushed against. You control them. And I love soft things. I love nests. Do you?”
I wince.
Fuck, I wish that I had a nest.
I’m happy that Benedict does.
I’d give anything to be able to wrap myself in warm, soft blankets and roll around in a proper nest.
But that’s the dream.
I make the best of reality.
I nod.
Benedict tosses his fox to me. I fumble, before catching the keyring and clasping it to my chest.
Hell, it’s soft.
Benedict looks delighted. “You can stroke it too. An Omega needs sensory input, and you don’t have anything. You’re dressed in those horrible thin clothes, while I have this lovely jacket.”
“Flatterer.” Swan smirks.
“Fact.” Benedict blinks. “The keyring is from my nest. Special.”
Wow.
For an Omega to share their actual nest items is a big deal. Some are meant to be territorial. Is Benedict serious about this soul mate stuff?
Adrenaline spikes through me.
“I have bigger ones in my nest,” Benedict declares.
“Foxes?”
Benedict’s lips quirk up at the side. “And Alphas. They feel nice to touch. Parts of them are soft. Parts are hard. And others feel as velvet as my foxes…”
Swan covers his face. “FYI, I bet that they’d fucking hate that you’re telling people about their velvet cocks. But don’t stop. This is getting interesting. Plus, has anyone ever told you that they could come from the sound of your honeyed voice alone?”
“Feathers…” I hiss, blushing.
“Yes,” Benedict replies, unfazed. “And they have.”
Swan’s lips curl, wickedly. “Well, have they ever told you how much you could make with that voice alone on OnlyFans?”
“What’s that?”
I wish that Swan would stop sneaking onto Dimitri’s computer. He doesn’t appear to be gaining a balanced view of the world outside our academy.
Now, I glare at Swan. “Or you could make from a career being turned over my lap and spanked until your ass is hot?”
“Why not until it’s maroon? It’ll be prettier.”
“Deal.”
I run my fingers over the fox, shivering at the sensation of the velvet. I wasn’t aware how touch starved I was.
I need this, desperately.
My skin is tingling, and I’m feeling actually sleepy in a way that I haven’t in years.
Is this why I can’t sleep properly? Because I’m not surrounded by the soft bedding and textures that I need as an Omega? Because my nesting instincts are being denied?
I raise the fox to my nose, taking a deep sniff of it’s scent: honey, as sweet as Benedict’s voice.
Instantly, I’m wet with slick.
My pupils dilate. My breath stutters to a stop.
Benedict is my Omega soul mate!
How is he sensitive enough to have sensed it so quickly?
I take desperate breaths of the scent, as it weaves around me. I burst out purring in joy.
Benedict looks blissed out.
He’s finally lost his wary stiffness. “You have a beautiful purr. It’s like the Heaven Chord. Do you want to hear mine?”
I only just have time to nod, before Benedict’s striding straight up to me and yanking me into his arms to nuzzle against my neck.
I didn’t expect that he’d take it as literally as this.
On the other hand, being this close to Benedict is what I’ve hoped for and imagined from the moment that I saw him playing on the piano like an elven lord stepped out of his realm and into mine.
An elven lord with foxes on his gold threaded waistcoat, sparkling green eyes that have bewitched me, and an intoxicating honey scent.
He’s alluring. Talented. My soul mate.
And only that Rej bracelet marks him out as anything but perfect.
Fuck that.
Benedict doesn’t appear certain what to do with his arms as he attempts to embrace me like he hasn’t given many hugs in his life. Definitely like he hasn’t received them.
Without saying anything to draw attention to it, Swan simply rearranges Benedict’s arms, before he can feel uncomfortable. He shows him how to wrap his arms around my shoulders as I like.
Then he pats Benedict on the shoulder. “That’s perfect. Good Omega.”
Benedict gives a full body shudder.
Praise kink is definitely his thing.
But what Omega can resist being called good , especially if they’ve been made to believe that they’re bad?
When Benedict purrs directly against my ear, my eyes flutter closed in pleasure.
My own purr becomes louder in response.
Benedict’s purr is as aristocratically beautiful as he is, deep and rumbling.
The vibrations against my ear, as he alternately ducks his head to lick and daringly suck against my scent gland is enough for me to almost come from that alone.
“He is my soul mate,” I whisper to Swan.
“Wow, scent matches and soul mates in one day.” Swan whistles. “Christmas has come early.”
“Soul mate.” Benedict holds out his hand and waggles it at Swan. “I choose you as my Beta soul mate.”
“I’m not sure they exist, but sure, why not.” Swan grips Benedict’s hand, letting go the moment that Benedict flinches.
Benedict gives my neck one final lick. “May I kiss you?”
“Where?”
“On your pretty lips.”
“Please…yes. But are you allowed to?”
Benedict’s brow furrows. “You’re Juliet.”
“Yes…?”
“And Swan.”
“Well remembered.” Swan moves to cage Benedict from behind, until he’s caught safely between us.
I wish that we could take him back to our bed. Vito as well.
We could create a nest for all of us.
“Then I’m allowed to,” Benedict replies, firmly.
Swan frowns. “Bec, what pack do you belong to?”
When Benedict raises his hand to his neck, instinctively pushing down on his cravat to touch the revealed bonding scar, disappointment slams through me.
He is bonded.
Of course he is.
The question is, who is he bonded to?
“One who loves me.” His eyes are flooded with a fierce, protective love. I recognize it from the way that Swan talks about me. “One who saved me. My Second Alpha is brave, fun, and kind. But my Chief Alpha is the best man in the entire world.”
He says it so fervently that there’s no doubt he means it.
“And he is?” I prompt.
Benedict puffs out his chest with pride. “Ambrose Romeo.”
My throat is dry.
I can’t make myself speak.
Ambrose.
This is Ambrose’s Omega…and he’s mine, as much as he’s Ambrose’s.
Perhaps, I don’t need to focus on winning Ambrose. Instead, I should court his gorgeous mates and sneak them over to Swan and my pack. Then Ambrose will follow them like hooked prey into my arms.
Is this how courting is done? Nobody teaches Omegas.
Oh well.
“I’m going to kiss you now.” Benedict studies my lips for a long moment, raising his finger to trace over them.
My chest is rising and falling.
I’m breathless with anticipation. I’ll be kissing the same lips that Ambrose has.
It’s close to kissing Ambrose himself.
I’m soul mates with his Omega.
“My Queen,” Swan warns in a low voice, at the same time that he rests his head against Benedict’s hair, pressing their bodies together. “Are you sure about this? Once we claim Bec, then there’s no going back, at least for me. We protect what’s ours.”
I know what he means: if I kiss Benedict, then it’s a promise that we’ll become his pack.
And as much as we intend to make that happen on Friday, now I have my doubts.
Swan is still thinking about the way that Benedict flinches.
Because if Swan joins the Romeos, he’ll protect Benedict as courageously as he protects me, even if that means kicking Ambrose’s ass.
“I’ve never been so sure about anything in my life.” I brush a curl that’s falling over Benedict’s translucent cheek behind his ear.
Then Benedict kisses me, slow at first like he’s unsure but also, wanting to enjoy the new sensations.
This is my first time kissing another Omega. I bet that it’s Benedict’s as well.
Is it his first time kissing a woman?
He makes a pleased sound against my lips. I moan, deepening the kiss.
When Benedict purrs, I gasp. I didn’t know that it was possible to kiss at the same time as to purr. The combination of the thrusts of his tongue and the deep vibrations is heaven.
Everything about being with another Omega is amazing.
I kiss Benedict more passionately, while Swan buries his hand in Benedict’s hair, holding him in place.
Swan whines in pleasure at the sensation.
“That’s it, good Omega, keep kissing our Queen.” Swan tugs on his hair again.
Benedict redoubles his efforts, and I clutch at his shoulders.
His honey scent winds around me.
At last, Benedict draws back, peppering kisses over my lips and jaw.
“You taste like mine,” he murmurs.
My eyes smart with tears. I’ve always wanted to meet my male Omega soul mate.
I’ve dreamed about this.
If Benedict is Ambrose’s Omega, however, then won’t that make it less likely Ambrose will hand me a rose on Friday night?
He has Vito as a Second Alpha and then he has this gorgeous Omega.
I’m not upset that Ambrose has bonded. We made no promises to each other. We only knew each other as kids, and he’s lived in another country for years.
I’m happy that he wasn’t lonely.
If anything, I’m pleased that he’s discovered love. His mom is cruel. I doubt that he’s experienced much of it before.
But it means that Ambrose has already found himself a scorching hot, fascinating, and talented pack for himself.
It’s the type of pack that I’d die to be a part of: Vito and Benedict are interesting, kind, and smart.
They’re more than simply my scent match and soul mates.
They’re the type of men who I thought only existed in my daydreams.
Yet it means that all Ambrose needs is a Beta to complete his family.
Why would he need me?
If Swan and I lose on Friday night, then we’re not only losing the chance to bond with Ambrose but we’ll also be losing Vito and Benedict.
The entire alluring Romeo pack.
And that’s devastating.