Chapter 14
FOURTEEN
THISTLE
Knox was trying very hard to prove I cared about him so he could rip it all to shreds at the party.
I knew it—he had to be.
He could make my body react, but I’d learned long ago that meant nothing. I was an Omega; he was an Alpha. He could still hate me, and I could still not care one bit about him.
I swallowed, hugging myself and trying to keep calm without Bunny nearby. I’d left him under my pillow hidden away and safe for my return.
The ever present plug was only there to humiliate me. And it kept making me really horny every time I focused on it, which seemed deliberately cruel.
He had his hand around my waist, which seemed unnecessary with my chain attached to his wrist, and I was in a constant battle with an unsettling thrill whenever it caught the light in my periphery.
Stupid, stupid, stupid , because I knew he was about to use that claim to throw it in my face.
The ballroom was huge and looked like it came right out of an old-timey movie, with a crazy expensive-looking chandelier hanging from the middle of the ceiling, a wide marble floor, and a long table running up the centre.
There was a low hum of music playing. Food and drinks were being served along the table by a few staff milling here and there.
There were enough guests in the room that it looked like the party must have been going for a while at least, though I watched as a man entered through two huge doors at the front. Everyone was dressed just as fancy as they were at Ace’s meetings.
I couldn’t help stepping closer to Knox as he led me in, hyper-aware of the eyes on us. It seemed everyone stared as we entered in through a door opposite where most were filtering in.
I hated that it wasn’t shame that turned my stomach, even when I was chained to an Alpha that wasn’t mine.
Instead, I was anxious I didn’t look good enough to be at his side.
Knox wasn’t Ace—not even close—but he held himself with similar poise. Also, like Ace, we were entering a crowd to which it seemed he was king.
I’d rarely been allowed at Ace’s side (and if I was, Glade was often there, too) when I had, I’d always been as anxious as I was excited.
It was a place I wanted so badly, yet never felt good enough for.
Was I good enough, here?
Knox’s hand brushed my waist, almost making me jump.
The touch soothed me, offering a comfort Ace never had as he led me to a seat at the head of the long table and drew me down onto his lap.
This, I reminded myself, was all on purpose so he could shoot me down when he… mingled with other Omegas.
Or whatever horrible plan he had for the night.
There didn’t seem to be any Omega guests like there were at Ace’s gatherings, though. Omegas who were just present to slip onto the lap of an Alpha and take care of them, Ace had never let anyone touch him like that, but a lot of the Alphas he associated with loved that sort of attention.
I’d assumed Knox would be the same.
We sat for a while, though, and he did nothing but rub his thumb gently at my waist. He didn’t even turn the vibrator on to tease me.
I was left to sneak gazes around, making sure to avoid all eye-contact as I watched the party play out from Knox’s lap.
“Who are they?” I asked, at last, as I spotted a slender, masked male placing a tray in the centre of the table. There were a few around the party.
“I have staff,” Knox replied. “They live in the east wing.”
I narrowed my eyes. “And you… own them, too?”
Was this what he was going to taunt me with?
I wasn’t different after all. He had others he could play with. I peered at the slender male, trying to figure out if he was maybe an Omega.
Looked like it.
There it is, Bunny.
He does have other ? —
“No,” Knox replied. “They are paid.” He tugged me closer, lips brushing my jaw. “You and Rogue are my only pets.”
“Oh.”
Not it, then.
I pouted.
And he still had me on his lap, which didn’t make sense. There was no one else around, and he didn’t seem interested in engaging with the guests.
“Did that make you happy ?” he asked, perking up a little, and I glanced at him just in time to catch a flash of smugness.
“No,” I said quickly, then reconsidered. “I mean yes. You shouldn’t be owning people, it’s wrong.”
“I think you’re happy because you’re starting to realise how special you are.”
I pursed my lips, dropping my gaze.
Another few minutes passed, and no one else came near.
The impossible truth was starting to sink in, setting me on edge. Had he brought me here to show me off to the world as his?
To all these fancy-looking criminals—so many of whom were Alphas.
This wasn’t a taunt or proof I didn’t matter.
Oh… Damn…
This… this is a problem, Bunny.
But Bunny wasn’t here, and I hadn’t a clue what to do with any of this, so I tried to stuff it into the back of my mind, far out of reach.
Unfortunately, it kept spilling out, making me warm and fuzzy when it really had no right to.
But I couldn’t deny, stupid as it was, a part of me wanted so desperately for this to be real—for him to truly claim me tonight in front of all of these people, as if I was important, or valued, if only because I’d never had that before.
I shifted closer to him, mind spiralling.
Wrong, wrong, wrong.
Rogue’s gonna hate us.
And besides, is he really so stupid he hasn’t figured out the truth?
I wasn’t an Omega that an Alpha like him could ever truly claim.