Chapter 40
FORTY
The car ride to Lupine’s headquarters is quiet. I don’t know what to say to Puck after everything that has unfolded between us.
I recognize that he thought he was doing what was right, even if it was selfish. I wasn’t in the same danger as other Omegas daily. I can also accept that he hid his Alpha status because, ultimately, he’s used that to save others.
What kind of person would I be if I held that against him?
But I still feel like shit knowing that my scent match was beside me for so long.
We could’ve been happy together all this time.
The back of my neck itches, and I rub it absentmindedly as I stare out the window.
“Is it bothering you?” Puck asks softly.
He doesn’t have to say what he means.
“Yeah. It’s been feeling hot and itchy lately. At first, those couple of doses of fizz I had seemed to fade it. I entertained the idea of taking a bunch of it to see if it faded entirely, but I knew he’d bite me again as soon as he found out.”
Puck’s large, warm hand circles the nape of my neck, and I immediately relax into it. “There are potential side effects to a blighted bond that I worry you may be experiencing,” he says with a measured voice. “Namely, heat dysregulation and rejection syndrome.”
“Heat dysregulation?”
“Your body will start to go into heat more erratically, or more intensely, to try to burn the bond off or cement it. From what I can tell, your heats are pretty regular, so I have to imagine they’ve been getting more intense, haven’t they?”
I squirm uncomfortably. Just because Puck is my scent match doesn’t mean I want to jump into discussing my heats with him immediately. Of course, he knows the schedule because I take time off work, but damn, can’t there be a little mystery in our relationship?
He notices how uncomfortable I look and continues. “And rejection syndrome happens when a bond is repeatedly not reciprocated. It can make you feel off-kilter, tired, and weak. Kind of like a cold that won’t go away. Some reports say there are psychiatric symptoms associated with it.”
“But it’s been four years. Why is it happening now?” My heats have been steadily getting more intense, but I thought that was because I was getting older. And everyone feels tired and weak when they work two jobs like I do.
“You’re strong, Crystal, but even you aren’t strong enough to hold the negative effects at bay forever.” He pulls us into a spot at a run-down strip mall and parks the car. There are signs for a dry cleaner, a tattoo parlor, a dog groomer, and a weight loss clinic.
I scramble out of the car after him and follow him into the doors under the sign that reads, “Pet Paradise Salon.”
Inside are tables with leash hooks, big industrial vacuum hoses, razors, shears, and even shelves of treats and shampoos to take home. This is a functioning business to the naked eye, but I know it must be more since we’re here.
Puck doesn’t speak as he leads me behind the counter. I already hear a buzz of male voices.
“I understand, but I made the call,” I hear Wyatt say over a sharper voice. “They’ll be here in a minute.”
“Nah, they’re here now.” Just as we turn the corner, I lock eyes with a man who’s got a brutal scar covering half of his face. He’s reclining back in a chair, the untouched part of his face tilted up in a smirk. Curious eyes flash as he stands up, extending a hand to me. He’s an Alpha and wearing a motorcycle cut with dirty denim. “Hello there, beautiful. I’m Harvey.”
“Crystal,” I say with a smile. “Nice to meet you, Harvey.”
“Crystal?” a familiar voice says, shocked. “No fucking way.”
I spin and squeal with delight as I lock eyes with Atlas. I fling myself into his arms as Puck swears behind me. “What are you doing here?”
“I’ve been working with Lupine for a while now. The real question is, what are you doing here?” He hugs me tightly to his chest and looks at Wyatt. “Are we finally getting her out of Prism?”
“How the hell do you two know each other?” The sharp voice Wyatt cut off earlier belongs to a pale Alpha with monolid eyes and straight black hair that swoops across his forehead. He’s shorter, with a defined jaw, and dressed impeccably well.
“Atlas used to date my friend Tyler,” I tell the strange Alpha. “He’s helped me out several times when I went into heat.”
Puck snarls and yanks me from the Beta’s arms. Atlas snorts in amusement at the possessive caveman’s behavior. “Oh no, did I touch your toy?” He rolls his dark eyes at the enforcer. “But Crystal, can I assume you’re why this meeting was called?”
“I guess so.” I try to shrug, but it’s hard when Puck has his arm pressed tightly across my chest. “But honestly, I don’t know what’s happening here right now.”
“Right, right,” Wyatt’s drawl interrupts. “Let me introduce you to everyone.” He points at the Alpha with the scarred face. “You just met Harvey. He’s in the Hawks, the MC club, and one of my packmates.” Harvey winks at me and ticks two fingers off his temple in a salute. Wyatt nods his head at the Asian Alpha. “That’s Charles, also in my pack, and an asshole, so don’t let him get to you. He’s the money behind this operation.” The Alpha in question looks annoyed and rolls his eyes. “And then you know Atlas, it looks like.”
“You’re in their pack?” I ask him. It hasn’t been long since he was with Tyler, so this is a surprise.
His laugh is loud and, if anything, a little exaggerated. “Nah, not at all. Wyatt’s brother is a friend of mine, and he thought I could be of some use. So here I am. Trying to earn my keep.”
Puck’s arm finally relaxes from around me, and I take a small step away from him. “Well, I’m Crystal,” I say to the two new Alphas, holding my arms out wide, “also known as the Queen of Prism.”
* * *
“And you trust this group?” Emmanuel asks softly as he pulls me into his lap. We’re in the nest, just the two of us, while Maverick is at a gig. Gage tagged along to support him.
He was all nervous as if it were a first date. It was adorable.
“Honestly, I do,” I say. It surprised me how quickly I trusted these men, but I think part of it was Atlas’s inclusion with them and Puck’s association. My soul trusts Puck despite everything that’s happened.
Meeting Pack Lupine today helped me see his actions in a better light. They rescue Omegas who are being raped and abused daily, beaten and caged.
That’s not me.
That’s never been me.
I am being held against my will, under threat of my family being harmed, and I have the blighted bond, but that doesn’t compare to what the other Omegas are going through.
And okay, sure, I know that you can’t compare traumas, and someone having it worse doesn’t mean I don’t have it bad, but in this situation, it makes sense why I was left in Prism.
I was relatively safe. Others needed Lupine’s coordinated efforts more than I did.
I have to believe that eventually, Puck would have gotten me out. If he hadn’t been my scent match after this beating I took, he would’ve called Pack Lupine and developed a plan.
Puck made choices that maybe I wouldn’t have, but that doesn’t mean they were wrong .
“It’s a solid plan, I think,” I continue. “Puck has a pharmaceutical hookup that will get Atlas synthetic Omega hormones, and he’ll be presented as the male Omega Kieran wants. Lupine will then stage some chaos to get us both out. Atlas is trained and can protect himself if things get bad, and being inside with Puck should make it easier for him to get the girls from the pleasure dens to safety.”
“What’s next, though? Say they get you out. How do we keep Kieran from coming after all of us?”
I always knew that it would take a body bag to get me out of the Conglomerate.
I just thought it would be mine.
Do I tell Emmanuel that Puck is planning to kill Kieran and hand Prism and the Conglomerate over to the Hawks, Lunarcrest’s most notorious motorcycle gang? Despite Harvey’s friendly demeanor, there is a dark side to the organization, and he’s convinced the club can rein in the Conglomorate and get it out of the flesh trade if they can get rid of the current figureheads of those divisions.
“They have a plan,” is all I say to my gentle Alpha. “I trust that Pack Lupine, Atlas, and Puck will help free me from Kieran’s clutches once and for all.”
I bury my face in Emmanuel’s neck, letting his sweet custard and caramelized sugar scent fill my lungs and make my mouth water.
Would he taste like crème br?lée, too?
My tongue darts out and licks his pulse point, and he shudders beneath me. “What’re you doing there, Omega?”
“I wanted to see if you tasted sweet, too,” I say casually, licking his neck again. Emmanuel and I haven’t taken things further than kissing, and I am eager to break past that barrier with him.
We’ve been taking things slow, but honestly, the more I’m around my pack, the more I ache for them.
He squirms beneath me in a way that makes me wonder if I made him uncomfortable. I sit back, gazing into his dark eyes. “Are you okay, Emmanuel?”
“I am, yeah. I just… I don’t date, Crystal.”
“Me neither,” I remind him. “Kieran would’ve killed anyone who was around me regularly.”
“Yeah, but people have been helping you through heats, right? I’ve never…” He looks up at the ceiling, his cheeks darkening. “I’ve never been with an Omega. And it’s been a long time since I’ve been with anyone.”
“That doesn’t bother me.” I sling a leg over his lap and straddle him, wrapping my arms around his neck. “I like knowing that I’m your only Omega. But I also don’t want you feeling pressured by me.”
His hands rest lightly on my hips, and I can feel him thickening between my thighs. “I’m not feeling pressured.” His voice is soft and quiet as he traces small circles on the skin under my shirt. “Is it wrong if I don’t want to take it slow?”
“Emmanuel, some base instinct that made you smell like dessert told us we were meant to be together. The moment I met you, I knew I had met my forever. And yeah, we need to get to know each other better, but we will spend our whole lives doing that. Nothing about having a scent match is slow.”
“When you put it like that,” he says with a chuckle, “it almost seems like taking it slow is an insult to our match.”
“You said it, not me.” He chuckles and captures my chin in his hand before pressing his lips against mine gently.
Kissing Emmanuel is like drinking cold water on a hot day. It’s a balm on my soul. His kind, gentle nature makes me feel safe in a way that I never thought I could since I met Kieran.
His tongue pushes between my lips and moves with mine in a languid dance. My hips move against him as I chase his taste, and his hardness juts into me from beneath me. It provides a perfect place for me to rest my throbbing pussy as I explore him with my mouth.
I kiss down his jaw, neck, and collarbone before pulling off his gray shirt. He’s soft, not muscular, like Puck, or lean in the way Maverick and Gage are. No, Emmanuel is comfortable and easy to wrap my arms around and snuggle. The softness of his lower belly begs for my hands to stroke across the light brown flesh.
He shudders under my touch but lets me stroke the top of his pants and slip my fingers under his waistband.
In the back of my mind, I wonder if I am so eager to be with him because of the fear of our plan going wrong and something happening to me.
But I try not to dwell, slipping off his lap and pushing his shoulders to the base of my nest.