Chapter 18
EIGHTEEN
OCEAN
It had been torture sitting at this table with Jag.
I was supposed to be focused on our discussion, learning the details of my next job and further cementing my place here.
Jag had even hinted I might be introduced to Thaddeus himself if I did a good job.
The man was in the suite with us, but it would be foolish to approach him without a proper invitation.
But I kept getting distracted by her. Had she been so touchy with everyone yesterday like she was today? Every time I looked, her hand was on someone’s shoulder or around their waist. She stroked arms and even sat in people’s laps.
Rationally, I knew it was why alphas came here. Touching a duchess was a powerful way to balance your aura if you didn’t have an omega of your own. But irrationally, I wanted to tear everyone in this room apart for tainting her beautiful scent.
She wouldn’t look at me properly when she came over, her eyes not making contact with mine. And after witnessing her blush in an oversized hoodie with no shoes last night, seeing her like this felt so wrong.
Was I the only one who could detect how her scent was off? It had a bite to it here, a sharpness that was putting me on edge. I wanted to watch her, but I had to keep talking with Jag.
Finally, the fights ended, and Jag downed the last of his whiskey. “You all set for tomorrow, then?” he asked, and I grinned.
“Have I ever let you down?”
“Not yet,” he said with a laugh, and I watched as he left.
Finally, I might have a chance to talk to her. I was supposed to leave her be, but I had to at least tell her that, right?
I couldn’t spot her at first, winding my way through the pillars and crimson curtains. I rounded a corner and froze. A giant alpha was crowding her against one of the pillars. My lips curled as I moved closer, trying to see if she was in trouble.
Did she do this every night? Put herself in the arms of these dangerous alphas? Some omegas would thrive in this position, but the cracks in Laurel’s mask showed discomfort. Finch and Kaos weren’t convinced, but I believed there was more to her than the Crimson Duchess.
“Ocean.” Finch’s voice sounded in my ear. Apparently, his message was important enough to risk speaking directly. “Stand down. You need to—”
The rest was drowned out as I heard her cry out in pain.
No.
Protect her.
My aura split the air as I surged toward them.