Chapter 25 Jo
twenty-five
Jo
The room does, in fact, have a view of the ocean.
And a bench laid in the window seat that’s nice and cozy as Turnip and I snuggle up with a blanket.
The guys are taking care of everything, and have ordered me to “relax”.
If I were by myself, I’d be checking the security system, making sure all the property boundary sensors are working, and setting up my own backup measures in case the systems fail.
But now?
For the first time since leaving my brother’s home to get myself caught for murder, I feel safe.
Taken care of.
The omega inside me has never been more satisfied.
Except for one thing, and it’s not something I’m used to asking for. Maybe…maybe I can be sneaky about it.
I turn to see West coming through the bedroom door, duffel bags on his shoulders.
Perfect.
“Hey there, Doctor.” I grin, standing up and making sure Turnip is settled in a blanket before approaching the beta.
He drops the bags on the bed and raises his brows at me. “Hey, Siren.”
“Mmmm,” I lick my lips, “I do love it when you call me that.” My fingers reach for the hem of his shirt.
“Jo?” His hands catch mine and he looks at me as I pout up at him. “Is everything okay?”
I was hoping I wouldn’t have to admit it, but the longer his shirt is on his body and not in my hands, I feel like I might start tearing up.
“I…” I clear my throat, blinking rapidly as I try to swallow my embarrassment. I’m not used to being a slave to my instincts. “I was hopin’...couldIhaveyourshirtplease?”
“You…” West’s brows furrow in confusion as he tries to make sense of my word vomit. “You want my—oh.” His expression morphs to one of understanding. “Of course. But are you sure you don’t want one of the alphas? Their scents will be much more—”
An omega growl rips out of me. “No, I want your scent, Doctor Monroe. Don’t you dare for one single second imply that you’re somehow less important to me because you’re a beta.”
West chuckles softly as he peels off his shirt. “That’s not what I meant, Siren. I just meant that they might be more…potent.” He holds the black t-shirt out to me in offering, and I snatch it from him before lifting it to my nose and inhaling greedily.
I swear my eyes must roll in the back of my head as a groan of satisfaction leaves me. West’s scent instantly soothes me, his chamomile-mint signature making all the tension in my shoulders disappear.
“Shit, is she nesting?” Sam’s voice comes from the doorway.
“She is right here,” I snap, then wince at my harsh tone. “I…I might be.”
“You said you’ve never had a heat, right?” West asks, tilting his head as he watches me practically molest his t-shirt.
I shake my head. “No. Dec’s doctors thought my omega never felt safe enough…oh. Shit.”
“And now Mabel’s been rescued, and you’ve scented four true scent matches.” West huffs a breath. “Do you want us to see if Declan can get us heat suppressants?”
Biting my lip, I take another hit off West’s shirt. My omega finally feeling safe enough to have a heat should be a good thing, but all I can think about is the fact that we’re literally on the run. What if I go into heat and then they find us?
I can see Sam holding his tongue. I know he wants to make the executive decision. To point out how catastrophic it would be if I went into heat before this mess is settled. But…he’s not going to fight me on making my own decision.
“Yeah, let me call him though. I doubt he’ll respond well to you talkin’ to him about my heat.”
Sam’s shoulders slump in relief, and West gives a nod before going through the duffels to find a new shirt to wear. “Here, Trouble.” Sam digs the burner out of his pocket and hands it to me. But, I find myself moving to grab his shirt too. Without a word, he removes it and passes it to me.
My cheeks flush at my lack of restraint, and he only winks at me before going into the other room, still shirtless. Funny how I can tell him to his face that I want to get spitroasted by Hayden and Kole without blinking an eye, but the second my omega nature comes out, that’s when I’m embarrassed.
“You’re not used to your omega side being so front and center, are you? Even before you came to Thornfield, you were the one who took care of Mabel. Nobody took care of you, did they?” West asks gently, and I arch a brow.
“Mabel took care of me in her own way, but not in the traditional sense, no.” I playfully scowl at him. “You tryin’ to shrink me right now, Doctor?”
“No—not intentionally anyway.” He sighs, rubbing a hand over his hair. “You’ve gone through a lot of changes and trauma over the last year…well, lifetime. Even if it’s not with me, I think it would be good for you to talk to someone about it.”
“If I talked to you…” I trail off, playing with the fabric in my hands. “Would I be talkin’ to Doctor West Monroe, PsyD? Or would I be talkin’ to my mate who happens to be a very good listener?”
“Which one would you prefer?” he asks, a small smile tilting at his lips.
“I’m always down for a little bit of role play,” I smirk, “but I think I’d like to talk my feelin’s out with my mate.”
“Noted,” West chuckles. “But I’m curious,” his voice drops as he takes a step closer, “Miss Harding, what kind of secrets I could get you to confess in this role play of yours.”
A shiver runs through me at his gravelly tone. “Doctor, you’re gonna send me into heat right this second if you keep that up.” I hold up the phone. “Let me get these suppressants requested, and then we can uh…continue this conversation.”
West shakes his head with a laugh as I pull up Declan’s contact. He answers on the first ring. “Jo? Is everything okay?”
I grin, rolling my eyes at his protective, big brother nature. “Dec. Yeah, everythin’s fine. I have a question though.”
“Shoot.”
“What are the odds of gettin’ some kinda heat suppressant delivered? We uh…we may have an issue comin’ up.”
He sighs heavily. “Fuck.”
A female voice in the background has my ears perking up. “Declan? Who was that?” Pack Gallagher has been putting off finding an omega since I’ve known them, and I know for a fact that they’ve sworn to each other to not mess around with any women—omegas or betas—in the meantime.
“Um…nobody?” I can hear the wince in Declan’s voice. The female voice in the background sounds again.
“Declan, you son of a bitch. I told you to stay away until I could talk to her!” West gives me a look of surprise, and at the shake of my head, he frowns, but then motions like he wants me to know he’s giving me privacy.
He disappears out of the room, and all my attention goes back to my hard-headed older brother.
“Dammit, Jo, listen. It’s not what it sounds like. Maeve called because the security system started acting up—”
“You let me talk to her right fucking now, Declan James Gallagher!”
Declan grumbles, then his voice is muffled like the phone is away from his face. “Maeve, pass this to Mabel, would you?”
A hesitant voice comes on the line. “...Jo?”
Tears sting my eyes at the sound of her voice, and my hand flies up to cover my mouth. “Mabel-cakes.”
“Oh, Jo, it really is you!” She’s crying now, a choked laugh leaving her as I find myself sitting on the bed. And then we’re talking over each other in a high-pitched tangle of apologies.
“I’m so sorry Mabel, I wish I was there—”
“Don’t you dare apologize, Jojo, you got me out—”
“I took too long to get there—”
“You didn’t even hafta come—”
“That’s ridiculous, of course I did!”
She sniffles, her voice growing more serious. “Why? I did it, Jo. I slit their throats in their sleep, just like I said before. I belong there—I’m a killer.”
Huffing, I wipe my eyes. “Did you kill them in cold blood, or did you carry out a deserved death sentence? If they were good alphas, Mabel, then sure, maybe you do belong there. But if they raised a single hand against you? If they hurt you, or beat you, bonded you against your will or…” my voice chokes, “raped you? Then they had it comin’, and all you did was defend yourself.
” There’s so much I want to ask her. How they treated her, what they did.
The exact story behind all the scars on her arms. What made her reach her breaking point after two years with them.
But that’ll have to be a story for later.
I continue, trepidation filling my veins as I admit my crimes to the one person who always saw the best in me.
“I killed thirteen alphas to get admitted to that asylum. I made sure to pick targets that deserved their fates…” I swallow, trying to summon the courage to tell her the one murder that might make her hate me.
“Like…like Daddy. So, if you belong there, then so do I.”
She’s quiet for a moment as she processes the fact that I killed the man who raised us, and in that brief flash of time where neither of us says a word, I’m worried that I’ve finally done it. That I’ve officially crossed the line with her, and she won’t want anything to do with me anymore.
But instead of condemning me, she surprises me. “He had it comin’, Jojo, with the way he was. But…how? We’re just omegas, and you don’t have the patience for waitin’ until someone is asleep.”
“He was the first,” I admit. “It happened right after he sold you. He wouldn’t tell me where you went, then said he was sendin’ me away. It all happened in sort of a blur after that. But the rest of them… well, Declan helped me.” I find myself shrugging.
“Him?” The surprise is clear in her voice, then her voice grows quieter, like she doesn’t want anyone else to hear her. “The ginger? How do you know you can trust him?”