Chapter 33
Chapter Thirty-Three
Hayden
I can’t help but question my brother’s sanity as we ride over to the club Kodiak found our Omega at. When Declan got the call from Elle asking about an ex employee that was applying for a position in her club, that's when reality sank in.
She really had quit.
Since the night she cut us out of her life, I have only found comfort from her absence with the grainy feed of her living room. The camera’s have been acting up, but things with the club and our side hustles have me too busy to fix them. Breaking into her apartment isn’t my best idea.
“Declan,” I lean back in the second row of the SUV and fight to keep my legs still. I need to see my Starlight, but not like this. “This is just going to upset her.” Trying to reason with my pack lead, while our bond fizzles with anxiety, is a fucking pointless fight.
“She needs to be confronted with what’s between us. We have to show her that she is ours,” Declan says as he checks his reflection in the mirror in the passenger side visor. His gaze meets mine before he looks at our broody brother driving the vehicle. “Just like at Kodi’s party,” he murmurs.
“We just need to make her a little jealous. Show her that she wants us just as bad as we want her,” Kodiak replies as he turns into the parking lot of our biggest rival. I actually really like Candy. She takes care of her employees and does her best to keep them safe. If Tatum was going to end up anywhere, I’m glad it’s here.
“Are we forgetting that Tatum has been rejecting her instincts for years? That her mother–”
“If you don’t want to see our mate ,” Declan snarls, the commanding tone of a pack lead lacing his words with anger and hostility, “then stay in the fucking car. But if you get in the way of us getting our Omega back, I’ll lock you in the basement until we get her back. And when she finally lets us fuck her, I’ll fucking blindfold you.”
His threat hits its mark, but it also…maybe gives me hope? They want her as badly as I do. They don’t know she’s our scent match. I do. It’s not something I could ever forget.
I know Tatum didn’t forget, she’s just protecting herself from the truth.
I know they just want to prove themselves to her. Just like I do, but I know Tatum. This will end badly.
But I won’t let them go in there without me. I need to see Tatum. My Starlight. Even if this is going to be a disaster.
Tatum
Kodiak’s promise rings in my mind for two days. After he came and made me question my sanity, Easton gave me a ride home on his motorcycle. When I said I was too exhausted to hang out, he trotted into my room and stripped down to his boxers. I chuckled when he threw himself down into my bed with grabby hands.
His presence gave me a blissful night's sleep before he slipped away in the morning light yesterday. I worked a short shift at Mom’s to cover the lunch rush. The loneliness crept back in when I came home to my empty apartment.
Last night, I fell asleep alone, curled up in a ball in my nest. Part of me was so fucking miserable, and another part was grateful for the chance to fall apart alone, without someone trying to soothe me. Even the stolen items that line the walls of my space give little relief.
Despite the weighty feeling that distracts me, I’m working again, and the second I walk out on the floor, I find three Alphas sitting right up along the stage in the big spender seats. I can’t contain the growl, as I storm over to them.
“Get out,” I demand, with an Omega growl. There isn’t much volume, but the intention is clear.
They completely ignore me, focused entirely on the Omega on stage, her large beautiful breasts on display for them, and a burning rage I’ve never felt before nearly consumes me. I want to rip her face off. I want to grab a fist full of her hair and slam her face into the pole. Kodiak smirks, probably scenting my fury.
“Can you move, you’re blocking my view,” Declan grumbles, like he can’t be bothered to care if I move or not. Like I’m nothing more than a pest.
It might hurt, if I wasn’t fighting so hard to contain my insanity! He’s here specifically to get a rise out of me. Like Alphas, Omegas are territorial. Our instincts are not made for this. I’m about to fucking murder him. All three of them.
But I have no right to feel possessive over them. I’m the one that walked away, aren’t I?
You know what? Fuck them.
They want a war? Fine, but I fight dirty.
I pick a random customer I recognize as a regular that’s seemed to enjoy my attention over the last week. I don’t waste any time climbing into his booth and sliding right up to him, resting my hand on his chest.
“Hi handsome, want some company tonight?” I blink big doe eyes up at him, and he grins like the Cheshire cat. I can feel three sets of eyes burning into the side of my face, but I ignore them. It takes great effort, but I shower the customer in attention they usually only get if they pay for it. “Tell me about yourself.”
He’s saying something, but I’m not listening, because the dancer climbs offstage, and heads straight for Kodiak.
Still topless.
And sits in his lap.
My eyes go wide as my body heats up like a fucking volcano. His shoulders tense, but then he relaxes and looks over his shoulder.
He smirks when he catches me staring, lacing his fingers behind his head and leans back. She’s just chatting with him, but she’s in. His fucking. Lap.
Al-fucking-right then. Two can play that game. There’s plenty of space for me to climb into this stranger's lap, so I do.
His hands fall to my hips easily, and he doesn’t seem to notice my laser like focus is three tables away.
Hayden is the only one that looks the least bit unsure. I’m reminded of Kodiak’s birthday party, when the scent of an unmated Omega in their home sent me into possessive Omega mode. Hayden scoots away from his brothers, crossing his arms over his chest, and shakes his head.
“Mmm.” I nod my head as if I’m paying any fucking attention to the man yapping away in my ear, as Declan flags down Lady. She grins sweetly, and nods to whatever he says to her. Declan turns his chair so he’s facing me. Lady frowns, but doesn’t notice my death glare.
“I’ll kill him,” I hiss, and the stranger, whose name I don’t know, chuckles.
“That's a bit dramatic. My boss is a dick, but murder?” Oh, he thinks I’m pissed about whatever story he was telling… He reaches a hand up, petting at the golden strands. It irks me, but I don’t pull away from his touch.
Kodiak keeps his fingers laced behind his head, not touching the woman shaking her tits in his face. Which is her job. I remind myself so I stop pondering murder.
But the second Declan’s hands land on Lady’s hips, I growl, showing my teeth.
“Sorry, I have to go.” I shove away from the poor customer who just wanted a little company, and stomp over to three dead Alphas. If I had a weapon, I’d already be attempting to behead them.
Declan has this look of triumph on his face as I storm over to them like a hurricane with a vendetta. Kodiak smirks. Hayden looks fucking miserable. Good. I hope he regrets setting foot in here.
I ignore Lady and my other coworker, since they seem to sense danger, and hustle the fuck outta there. They’re innocent in this, even if my instincts think homicide is the answer.
“You fucking win, okay? You care less than I do. You want me less than I want you. I mean less to you, then you do to me! Now, please, just leave. Stop torturing me and punishing me for fucking destroying everything.” The tears in my eyes spill down my cheeks, and I swipe them away angrily. I shake my head at them, wanting them to remember this moment. My pain and the scent of my anger and heartbreak.
I walked away from them because I had to. Don’t they understand? This is what's best for all of us. What if they fall in love with me, and then I die? It could destroy their pack.
Or if one of them died. I choke on a sob as the thought stabs through me, and my chest threatens to crack open right here in front of them. The pain is intense, and I press a hand over my heart. Can’t they see… Don’t they understand? This… This feeling is so intense just from the thought of one of them leaving me…
“Tatum, we’re sorry. This was a mistake. They took it too far…” Hayden stands, reaching for me, but I stumble back, away from him, throwing my hands up defensively.
“No! No, Hayden. This is too much. I can’t take this… Can’t you see how much this is hurting me? I-I can’t…” I turn away from their broken expressions and stumble my way to the locker rooms.
“Baby, what the hell, are you okay? Do you know those Alphas? Shit, I’m sorry!” Lady rushes to comfort me when I finally make my escape into the locker room.
“Yeah, if we had known they were trying to fuck with you–” my other coworker adds.
“Don’t worry, I know you didn’t know. I’m not upset at you, I swear.” I’m saying all this through my sobs as I head for the sinks.
“We’re all Omegas here. We know how it is. You don’t have to lie to us, Hun,” Lady says as she pats my back, trying to soothe me, but there’s a hint of Declan’s scent clinging to her. I shake my head.
“I’m okay, really, can I just have a sec?” I sniff, grabbing a paper towel to try and clean my tears off my cheeks.
“Of course.” They leave me there, and once I’m alone, I let out a sob. My anger is burning a hole in my heart. My already damaged heart.
I drop to the bench, when the locker room door creaks open. I glance at the door, expecting Candy so she can send me home after my outburst.
“What the fuck? You can’t be in here!” I screech, jumping to my feet.
“We fucked up,” Declan murmurs.
“They fucked up and dragged me along with them,” Hayden offers unhelpfully. He didn’t touch a single girl and kept his eyes on me the entire time. But he did nothing to stop his brothers either.
“We fucked up, but you’re wrong, Tatum. Every fucking word you said is wrong. We lose. Without you, we lose. You don’t mean less, and you never have. We don’t care less. Fuck, we care so much we couldn’t think straight. We were so desperate to prove you cared, that we tried to make you jealous, so your instincts would kick in again like before…” Declan trails off, shoving his hands in his hair, looking at me with pure desperation in his eyes. “We want you. Only you. No other Omega, but you, and we will never fuck up so badly again.” Declan’s words are like an arrow to my heart, and more sobs crack me open before them. I feel like it’s left me bleeding at their feet.
“Please leave,” I beg, because I’m too raw. Too scarred, and too hurt.
“We’ll go, but we’re not giving up, Tatum. Not fucking ever,” Kodiak promises. “I’m sorry for my part in this. But I’ll make it up to you.”
Hayden takes a step toward me, before his brother drags him back.
“You’re the only girl I’ll ever want, Starlight. The only one I’ve ever loved, and the only one I will ever love. You can push me away, but I will always come back to you.”
And with those parting words, the three Alphas leave me there in the locker room, broken and crying. Their instincts must be ripping them up inside, demanding they comfort me.
I want everything they offered, but tonight just showed me how much I can’t have any of it or whether I can trust it. They’ll hurt me. Even when they don’t want to.
Declan
I’m pack lead. I should have fucking known better! But ever since Tatum whispered Broken, our instincts have been so fucked.
Ten days. Ten fucking days of hell.
We gave her space, hoping she just needed a moment to think and breathe. Then she sent that fucking email. I’d sent my laptop flying into the wall of my office, scaring the shit out of a customer who had walked past the door at the exact wrong moment. In response, they knocked on my door.
All the employees know not to knock.
Kodiak found me hiding under my desk just moments later. Normally, a knock on my door would simply startle me. Maybe have me barking at the offender.
Not diving for cover like a fucking coward.
Then Kodiak said he went to see her two days ago, and she’d kissed him. He thought if we were here, around other Omegas, that it might trigger her instincts. Have her climbing all over us, like she did at the house just ten days ago.
Hayden tried to warn us. Said he’d go because he wanted to see her, but that there was no fucking way he was getting near another woman.
He was right. The bond is a live wire of anger, frustration, and pain.
The clinging scent of soured blueberries still burns my nose as we leave our Omega behind.
“How do we fix this?” I murmur. I'm the pack lead, I’m supposed to have the answers. I’m supposed to protect my brothers.
“I don’t know, but we can’t do something like that ever again,” Hayden growls.
“Does she know you’re paying for her mother’s care? I know you wanted her to think they simply lowered their costs, but you should tell her,” Kodiak grunts, his entire body tenses as we climb into our car. I drive, even though I feel fucking numb and not at all alert.
“That's not manipulating her?” I ask, because that was part of the reason I didn’t want her to know. I glance at the bracelet I bought, just for her, still wrapped around my wrist as I grip the steering wheel.
I had wanted her to take it… Maybe to prove she still cared. Now, I just want to drop to my knees at her feet and beg her to forgive me. Beg her to give us a chance, a real one.
If I thought it would help, I’d fucking kidnap her.
But she needs to choose us, or she’ll never truly be ours.
“No. We’ll call it a courting gift. A real one. We’ll make it clear what we want. A bond,” Kodiak says, as he pulls his phone out to start tapping away at the screen. “I’ll have flowers delivered, with a giant teddy bear, and a card that explains her mom will always be taken care of, even if she doesn’t…choose us,” he adds.
Ghost is working on forcing Hamlin to sell. He’s close. On our own, we never could have afforded a business as massive as that one. But Ghost…he’s got more money than my pack combined.
“The look on her face…” I look up and watch Hayden shake his head in the rearview mirror as he speaks. “She was petrified and heartbroken. Her scent said as much, but…it goes deeper than the wound I made three years ago. It’s connected to her mom. Tatum’s dad died when she was just a kid, and it really fucked her mom up, obviously. But I hadn’t realized how much that was fucking Tatum up.”
“Fuck…” I murmur, but Kodiak brightens beside me. “What?”
“She’s scared we’re going to die. That's why she ran.”
“Why is that making you smile, you crazy fuck?” I hiss.
“Because,” he turns to me, the bond igniting with hope for the first time in ten days, “It means she loves us. She loves us, and she ran, not because she thinks we’ll abandon her by choice, but because she’s scared we’ll fucking die and have no choice in leaving her.”
My twin is nuts on a good day, but maybe I don’t give him enough credit.
“How the fuck are we supposed to get her back when we’re fighting against fucking death?” Hayden growls, his frustration matching mine.
“Persistence, little brother. We just keep coming back until she lets us love her the way she deserves.”
Now that , we can do.
Love her anyway.
Love her, until she can love us back.