6. Chapter 6
Jace
Today marked the official start of the first competition, and also the first real chance I'd have to interact with my team.
“Alright, Alphas! It’s time to show your omegas just how trustworthy you are,” the producer said, way too cheerfully for someone handing out blindfolds. “We’re starting with a classic - the trust fall.”
A trust fall? Seriously? I tried to listen to the producer, but my eyes kept flicking over to her . Cassie.
She looked exactly the same, but somehow even more beautiful to me.
Her dark curls were pulled up, her jaw set, and arms crossed.
She was practically vibrating with tension and attitude.
But her scent hit me like a memory I’d never stopped craving.
She was all sharp citrus layered with warm sugar. It had haunted me for months.
It had gotten me through most months, if I was being honest. Cassie - the omega I never had the guts to ask out.
The omega whose career I had apparently accidentally nuked because I was too busy staring at her to connect to the correct file.
God. The moment they walked her onto the Reveal Terrace, I thought I was hallucinating. Cassie Woods.
I remembered the first time I saw her, striding into the boardroom with this impossible energy.
She was confident, fiery, and smart as hell.
I’d never seen an omega command a space like that.
Every time she spoke, it was like I was spellbound.
And every time I tried to speak, I short-circuited.
I wanted so badly to talk to her, strike up a conversation, get to know this feisty omega who had captured all of my attention - and truthfully, my heart - since I stepped foot into that job.
But I had to be the first alpha in history that had no idea how to approach the girl of my dreams.
Sure, I was handsome - I’d been called that plenty of times.
I was successful. I was an alpha, for God’s sake.
But no matter how in control I was in every other area of my life, this omega caused my entire mind to turn to jello when I was in her presence, with her absolute perfection and her amazing scent.
I remember that day when she’d run off and quit - I'd been working tech support for the presentation room, covering for someone else. When she’d handed me the presentation to load, I couldn’t even get her name out without stammering. My hands shook.
So yeah. I must have plugged in the wrong file. Then came the pictures, her pictures.
The execs laughed, I wanted to die, and she ran. I tried to explain to the room that it was a glitch, not to hold it against her. But by the time I went after her to make sure she was okay, I found out she’d quit on the spot. And I never saw her again, until now.
I’d joined the show because I’d given up on love. I had a hard time being interested in anyone after Cassie left, and figured I might as well get arranged with a pack and see if it worked. But now Cassie Woods was on my team. And she hated me.
But fate put us in the same place, at the same time yet again, and there had to be a reason. I needed to prove myself to her, and make things right.
“Jace,” Leo said, nudging me back to reality. “You good?” The guy was incredibly upbeat, and I needed that right now. I was glad to have him on my team.
I cleared my throat. “Yeah. Yep. All good.”
Cassie stood about ten feet away with Ash beside her. The other omega was a stunning male, one with a mysterious aura. He was attractive, no doubt. But I couldn’t quite figure him out. And Cassie looked like she’d prefer to kick me than participate in this round.
The producer clapped his hands. “Omegas will fall backward off the platform. Alphas will catch them. No scenting, no nesting. Just good, old-fashioned trust.”
Cassie stepped onto the short platform, trying to glare over her shoulder even though she was blindfolded. “Whose genius idea was this?”
Ash smirked. “Probably the same person who thought putting two omegas into a pack with three alphas was a great idea.”
Rys chuckled, while Leo gave a few encouraging comments, trying to get the omegas to feel safe. And I just kept looking at Cassie. I didn’t realize I’d stepped forward until I was directly behind her, holding out my arms. “I’ve got you.”
She stiffened, but didn’t turn around.
“Oh, you ?” she said. “That’s rich.”
“Cassie, please!”
“You’re not catching anything but these hands, Langston.”
Ash sighed. “Cameras are rolling. Can we please fake chemistry before they edit us out of the episode entirely?”
Cassie crossed her arms. “Fine. But if I die, tell everyone it was Jace who ended me.”
She closed her eyes, tensed her body… and fell.
I stepped in, my arms fully out and prepared to take her weight.
She landed softly in my arms, and even though she was tense and blindfolded, it felt like the most natural thing in the world to hold her.
I adjusted her in my arms, grounding us.
She was warm, her breath coming fast. She smelled like citrus and disbelief.
Cassie yanked the blindfold off and blinked up at me.
“I’m fine,” she said flatly.
“You’re fine, yes.” I said before my brain could form a good response. She elbowed me in the ribs.
And that’s when Leo, trying to show off by catching Ash and spinning him dramatically, tripped .
Ash screamed, and we all turned to watch it, like it was happening in slow motion.
Rys saw, then rushed over to prevent them both from falling.
Rys stepped on Leo’s foot, and the three of them fell forward, taking the sound guy and his boom mic with them.
Soon they were all on the ground, a tangle of limbs and swearing.
Despite all of it, Leo held Ash up from the pile like a trophy, somehow miraculously keeping him from touching the ground.
Cassie burst out laughing in my arms. Something in me finally relaxed as I heard the beautiful chime of her giggle. God, I had missed her laugh.
Maybe I’d ruined it the first time with her, but that didn’t mean I missed my last chance. The cameras were rolling, catching every second of the mishaps. Cassie looked up at me. “Do you think the audience will vote us off? We’re pretty chaotic.” She said with a hint of doubt.
“Cassie, they would be fools to vote us off. We’re only just getting started.
” I said with more confidence than I felt.
I’d just caught the girl of my dreams in my arms. I hoped the show didn’t end now, as this was more than I ever hoped for.
The producers ran over in a scramble to help the sound guy, but I couldn’t pay attention to anything but Cassie.
She talked to me without venom for the first time since we arrived.
It was something - more than I could have hoped for. And I’d take it.