5. Vera
5
Vera
The situation at the table is getting strange and I don’t really know what to do.
The moment Riley walked into the restaurant, I immediately noticed her. It was like there were massive arrows pointing at her, screaming ‘This one! Pick this one!’.
After the initial introductions seemed to go fine, things got weird when Riley said that she’d known Jorge for years.
If she did, why was Mathew unaware of her?
Jorge must know that she’s a scent match, so why did he never tell Mathew about her?
Now Mathew is upset with Jorge for keeping such a big secret, which seems to have gotten Riley into ‘protective Alpha’ mode.
Which is very unfortunate because the way Mathew is leaning in her direction —while always making sure I’m between them— and the way his pheromones spike every time she looks at him, he’s feeling it just as much as I am.
That connection, that pulling sensation when you first meet a new scent match, especially when that match is an Alpha.
Only, since everyone here thinks Mathew is an Alpha himself, he can’t do or say anything about it right now.
Before we left the house, Derrick insisted that —since Mathew’s pheromones are so unstable right now— we always make sure there’s at least one of us between him and anyone not part of the pack or not part of his organisation and that he can’t touch anyone in case his pheromones accidentally stick to them.
It’s all to keep up the profile that Mathew has had for the last decade, as a strong and resolute Alpha leader.
It made sense when Derrick gave us the instructions, but we didn’t really plan for a situation where Mathew might want to get close to someone new…
Mathew’s pheromones slip out again and I lean against him, rubbing my head on his shoulder, trying to get as much of my pheromones on him as possible, while making it look like I’m simply a needy Omega.
He slides his arm around my shoulders, nearly pulling me into his lap as he nuzzles the top of my head. “Are you feeling cuddly, my sweet Omega?”
I nod excitedly, sending out extra pheromones, so he’ll be covered in them. Though, as I do it, I notice a floral scent, it’s different from Mathew’s sharp wisteria scent, this scent is deeper, rounder, like sitting in the sun on a warm summer day surrounded by large dark red roses.
As I glance up, Riley is staring at us, her eyes lightly hazy, her cheeks darkening.
Oh, fuck. Not what I was going for. I was trying to hide Mathew’s scent, not turn on Riley.
With a surprisingly loud sound, Caleb pushes his chair back as he stands up. “I’m going for a smoke, who’s joining me?”
I look at him, trying to decide what he’s up to, but the look he’s giving Mathew makes it clear. This is for Mathew’s sake. Neither of them normally smoke, but it’s one of the few ways to hide the scent of pheromones in something repulsive and that won’t make people question things too much.
Mathew lets out a soft hum and kisses the top of my head, but not before giving me a tight hug. “I could use one too.” He slowly stands up, making sure I’m safely sitting in my chair again and then kisses my cheek. “I’ll be right back.”
I angle my head so he can give me a proper kiss and when he covers my lips with his, I can feel him smile. “I’ll be lonely, you know.” I pout playfully, laying on the ‘needy Omega’ persona I’m playing.
He laughs and then gives me another quick kiss. “I’m sure these two can keep you entertained for a while.” He turns around to go outside as I meet Caleb’s gaze, trying not to show my worry.
There’s only so much we can do to help Mathew hide his pheromones, and it seems that Riley is spiking them quite a lot. It doesn’t help that they’ve been unstable since he went into heat, which can have many reasons, and his anger with Jorge probably makes them worse too.
I know that I could make up some excuse so we can all go home, but that’s not going to solve any of the issues. I guess we’ll just have to learn how to deal with them, or we’ll be locked up in that house forever…
Instead of following Mathew, Caleb comes over to me and kneels next to my chair, his hand on my leg as he surrounds me in his calming dark wood scent. The way his and Riley’s scents mix makes me feel comforted and cosy.
“We’ll be right outside. We won’t be long.” He puts his hand to the side of my head and as I lean into it, he gives me a long slow kiss, easing more of my nerves.
He’s right. They won’t go far, and with Mathew out there, at least we won’t have to worry about his pheromones for a few minutes.
Then Caleb gets up and, with a nod to Jorge and Riley, he follows Mathew, quickly catching up to him and jovially putting his arm around his shoulder as he navigates the two of them out of the restaurant.
I smile. I guess we’re lucky that people don’t seem to question why Caleb and I are so touchy with Mathew.
Though, Mathew’s pretty good at playing a ‘reluctantly accepting Alpha’, since I know that he’s very, very, very much into being touched all the time. It’s like he’s been touch-starved for years and is trying to make up for it now.
“Have you been with Caleb for long?” Riley’s question pulls me from my thoughts and I look at her, not able to stop my smile.
“Yeah. We’ve been together for six years.” Talking about Caleb is easy, since there’s nothing in our past that could be a danger to us right now.
“Wow. And you still look at each other like that. Must be a good bond.” Her voice goes soft, together with her gaze.
I nod slowly. “He’s a very good Alpha, and a good person in general.”
“I can attest to that.” Jorge laughs and breaks the odd mood, lightening it. “Of course, I’ve only known him for a few weeks, but from what I’ve learned about him, he’s very good at taking care of his Omega.”
He winks at me, his eyes twinkling, making it clear that he doesn’t mean in general but has a very specific situation in mind.
Riley lets out a deep sigh, rolling her eyes as she playfully pushes at his shoulder. “You horndog. Not everything’s about sex.”
Jorge grins wider. “But some things definitely are.”
Then Riley smiles at me. “Well, if he can stand this one, he must be a good person, or have inhuman patience.”
I’m pretty sure it’s both, as Caleb does have a very high level of patience. Though, I know that Jorge can be serious too, but he tends to act silly to try to distract people from situations that he doesn’t want to talk about.
Riley’s smile falters and she glances to the chair that Mathew just vacated. “I don’t want to bring down the mood, but the way Mathew talked to Jorge just now didn’t sit right with me. I know this pack is very new, but… It feels like things have been moving too fast and might not be very healthy.”
She turns to Jorge and her worries are clear in the way she’s frowning and the tightness of her shoulders. It seems to make Jorge very uncomfortable.
“You said that you were waiting for your scent matched Omega to finally accept you. What happened to your Omega? It’s not Vera. Don’t even try to lie to me. You would have told me if your Omega already had an Alpha. So, what happened? Why were you convinced that you were going to pair bond with one Omega, but you’re now in a pack with a totally different one?”
Oh, no.
Oh, no, no, no.
No wonder she’s being so protective of Jorge.
She has no clue who Jorge’s scent matched Omega is.
Of course, it would make sense that he’d confide in her, at least some things, but she’s totally got the wrong picture of what’s going on here.
Also, Jorge did finally bond with the Omega she’s talking about, but he won’t be able to tell her about it right now because that would reveal Mathew’s secret.
What a fucked up situation.
Tears slowly start sliding down my cheeks and I quickly wipe them away. Fuck. I don’t want to cry, but the whole situation is so messed up.
Things that should have been happy announcements now can’t be, which gives Riley the wrong idea of what’s going on here and… And…
“Vera.” Jorge wraps his arms around me and pulls me against his chest, surrounding me in his cedar scent and letting out a low rumble, trying to calm me down but he’s clearly not that calm himself.
“I’m sorry.” Riley’s hand on my arm is warm, her rose scent tinged with worry. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I’m so clumsy with words sometimes, and I’m bad at knowing when my words are too blunt. I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to imply you’re not good enough or something. It’s just…”
I take her hand as I nuzzle against Jorge’s chest more. Clearing my throat, I glance in Riley’s direction, my vision still blurry from tears. “It’s okay. I know it’s not about me. But it’s good to know that someone has been looking out for Jorge, that you worry and want to make sure that he’s okay. I’m just very emotional right now, I’m sorry.”
The constant worrying, the waking up in the middle of the night and finding Mathew and Caleb gone, only to then find them working hard in Mathew’s office a few hours later, it’s all taking a toll. All the stress of the last hour or so hasn’t made it any better.
“Still, I didn’t mean to make this dinner awkward. Maybe I should excuse myself and wait somewhere else.”
“No.” I grip her hand tighter. “Please, don’t go. I’ll be okay in a few moments. I’d like to talk to you more, learn more about you.” I want to know all about her. Though, I’m sure one dinner won’t be enough for that.
“You know what, maybe I should go out for a smoke before the food arrives.” Jorge kisses the top of my head. “I’ll be right back. You two have fun gossiping about me or something.” He flashes me a grin and then gives me a soft kiss.
“Just as long as you won’t get jealous if I’m sitting in Riley’s lap when you return.” I grin back and he raises an eyebrow, his gaze heating up in a way I’m all too familiar with.
“I’d be disappointed if you weren’t.” He walks off towards the entrance and I catch Riley following him with her eyes.
“So, what good gossip do you have about him?” I wriggle my eyebrows at her and she smiles, seeming to relax.
“Do you want the juicy stuff or do you want things you can embarrass him with later?” She flashes a grin as she leans closer to me, though she still hasn’t let go of my hand.
I don’t know if she notices it, but I’m fine with that, as long as she keeps touching me, as long as I can learn all about her.
She’s definitely part of our pack. Things might be confusing and weird at the moment, but she fits right in. The way she sat down at the table and simply became part of our group makes that obvious.
Though, we better explain everything to her very soon, or she’s going to keep worrying about Jorge and she’ll keep having the wrong idea about Mathew, and that can’t end very well…