Chapter 13
Thirteen
Strat
T he investigating detectives had been less than impressed when I told them we didn’t have enough to charge the only person picked up in the cockfighting raid who’d actually been in possession of a rooster, but once I’d explained her statement, and the corroborating evidence, they’d eventually come around.
However, they’d had a single proviso, one that I’d agreed to, merely because I wanted to see Otillie-James Baler and Truett Heathstone one more time.
The phone line rang, and I tapped my fingers against my desk as I waited for them to answer.
“Heathstone.” The gruff, one-word greeting was exactly what I expected from Truett.
“Truett, it’s Strat Wilmington.” Silence. Surly fucker. “I just wanted to let you know that Miss Baler’s charges have been dropped completely. However, the Rock Hill PD has requested that she come down and look at a lineup of possible suspects to see if she can place any of them at the scene of the cockfight.”
“We politely decline,” he answered almost immediately.
I sighed. I should have known he’d say that, just to bust my balls. “You don’t want to talk to your client about it, perhaps? Maybe I’ll just give her a call myself.”
The idea of talking to the gorgeous Otillie-James Baler made my dick throb. I wish I knew what it was about her that made my Omega purr, but it was something. And unlike an Alpha, who was all angsty about choosing their one mate, Omegas could choose as many as we damn well pleased, and if you wanted to be part of that, you’d just have to get on board, whether Alpha, Beta, Omega, or Unshown.
It was one of the few freedoms that came with the designation.
“Isn’t it unethical to lust after possible defendants?” He sounded so snarky and high-handed, it made me smile. I loved cutting him back down to size.
“Obviously, you weren’t listening. All her charges have been dropped. What goes on now is between yourselves and the police department.” I almost purred as I delivered the next line. “But it is still my job to put the rest of those scumbags away, and I think I’d like to work very closely with Otillie-James to achieve that. Maybe I’ll take her to dinner to discuss it.”
The noise he made down the line was borderline rude. “Over my fucking dead body, Wilmington. Leave OJ alone.”
Oh, that sounded possessive. Maybe I’d read it wrong, and they were together. “Is she yours? I didn’t hear anything about you or Edison Chalmers claiming another Pack member, but I’m not exactly hooked to the grapevine, you know.”
Maybe they had an Omega already. The thought made something that felt a lot like jealousy churn in my chest.
Silence again. “We’re still in the early stages of courting.”
I’d been an ADA long enough to know that he was full of shit, but I let it slide. “I see. Well, as her Alpha and her lawyer, I’d be happy to discuss it with you also. Say, tonight? At Le Luxe?” I rattled off a fancy French place downtown, even though I was more than happy with hot wings at my local dive bar. His pride would demand that he come, and his need to impress both Otillie-James and me would mean he’d probably pay and burn about it the whole time.
“I’ll make a reservation. We’ll see you there at seven.” He hung up on me, and I laughed. Alphas were so predictable.
Although it was suit and tie attire, I dressed down a little in tailored dress pants and a white dress shirt, with two buttons left undone. Washing out the hair gel, I just ran my fingers and a little mousse through the tousled lengths. It made my hair shine gold in my bathroom lights.
I looked less like the ADA and more like a man. No, more like an Omega.
I’d hated my designation when I first presented. My parents had wanted an Alpha, of course, and they’d made their disappointment very clear. When Elizabeth had designated as an Omega too, their parental disappointment had been all-encompassing.
Not that I gave a fuck what my parents wanted. But I’d had a dream since I was a kid, and it was to be a Supreme Court Justice. Being an Omega would hinder that if I let it. If I showed an ounce too much compassion or empathy—if I was anything but a cutthroat asshole—they’d shunt me to some backwater office and let me live out my little career, until an Alpha could come along and take care of me.
I didn’t want that. I wanted to earn my place. I wanted to be competitive. I wanted to take on my peers and win, fair and square. Truett had been the first of my classmates who hadn’t given a shit. Even now, he didn’t care that I was an Omega—only that I was a worthy adversary in the courtroom.
Handing my keys to the valet, I walked into the restaurant. Smiling politely at the ma?tre d’ , I gave her Truett’s name, and she directed me toward a table by the windows. I spotted Truett immediately, his dark hair shining almost mahogany under the chandelier. He stood as I arrived, and I took in his outfit quickly. In dark blue dress pants and cream cashmere sweater, he looked like he just stepped off the pages of GQ.
I’d spent many a heat with nameless heat helpers, imagining they were Truett Heathstone. And Henry Cavill. And Kate Beckinsale, particularly in that vampire film from the 2000s. But you know, an Omega could dream.
He thrust out his hand, and I took it immediately, shaking with as much firmness as you’d expect from an Alpha. It wasn’t a dominance thing. No, it was a confidence thing. The power of a handshake couldn’t be underestimated.
He grinned at me, all teeth. “Glad you could make it.” We both knew I’d backed him into a corner.
“Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” I snarked back, then turned toward Otillie-James.
And stopped dead, my lips parting gently. She looked…
Wow.
“Otillie-James, you look beautiful,” I said softly, and I meant it with every fiber of my being. She was in a soft, champagne-colored silk wrap dress. Its pretty embroidered bodice was tight across her breasts, and the skirt skimmed her hips, somehow making her curvier and more delectable. I wanted to unwrap her and eat her for dessert.
She stood and smiled, taking my hand. I shook it only a tad less firmly, because I wasn’t about to treat her like she was anything less than a capable woman, especially when I’d been struggling to fight past my own designation bias all these years.
“You look very handsome too, Strat.” Her voice was husky, and I moved behind her as she retook her seat, tucking her chair back in before she realized just how attracted I was to that voice. Its very physical effects were rapidly becoming an obvious bulge in my pants.
Truett gave me the stink-eye, obviously knowing exactly where my mind went. Whoops. I grinned unapologetically at him and took my own seat. “Thank you for coming, both of you.” If this wasn’t a business dinner, I would have them both coming in a different way. “I’m delighted that your charges are officially dropped, Otillie-James, and that deserves a glass of champagne.” I signaled the waiter. “I don’t know if your Alpha told you, but the detectives have asked you to attend a lineup and see if you can place any other suspects at the garage that night. We’d appreciate your assistance in getting anyone who attended punished.”
The burning sensation told me Truett was glaring at me. Otillie-James raised her eyebrows. “ Truett told me, yes. I’d like to help. Anything to get the ringleaders put away, and the people who profited off the misery of those birds punished.” She didn’t deny he was her Alpha, but she still seemed surprised.
The waiter appeared, and I ordered champagne. A bottle of their best vintage, of course.
Beaming at her, I nodded. “I knew you would, Otillie-James. You have that look about you.”
She smiled. “What look is that?” she flirted back.
“Audaciousness?” Truett suggested sarcastically, and she gave him an annoyed look.
Shaking my head, I held her eyes. “Empathetic. A defender of the weak. That’s why I became an ADA—I wanted to protect the people of the city. It doesn’t pay the best, but I don’t need the money.”
Her lips curled softly at the corners, her eyes dancing. I wanted to steal those small smiles from her for the rest of the night. Maybe the rest of the weekend. I gave her my own lopsided grin in return.
As the champagne was poured, I told her that I’d contacted Elizabeth, who’d wanted me to tell Otillie-James that she said hello, and that she was doing wonderfully. I’d happily talk about Elizabeth all night; that’s how proud of her I was. After she’d quit modeling, she’d become a fashion designer with her partner, Alexandra, and they were taking the West Coast fashion scene by storm—part grunge, part sustainable high fashion. I couldn’t be more proud of my sister and her flourishing business venture.
Shaking my head wistfully, I was trapped in Otillie-James’s eyes. “She did it without the support of our parents, or their money, or even mine. She went over there and worked hard, and everything she has, she built herself.” I loved my sister. She was the best person I knew.
Beaming, Otillie-James grabbed my hand. “I knew she’d be amazing, no matter what she put her mind to. Though, I’m not going to lie, I’m glad she went into fashion and not destabilizing governments, like she wanted to when we were seventeen.”
I threw back my head and laughed so loudly that several diners turned toward our table. “I’d forgotten about that. I’m happy she didn’t become a guerilla too.”
When she removed her hand, I tried not to pout. Instead, I looked up at Truett’s hard stare and grinned. “So, how long has Truett been courting you?” I asked lightly. When Otillie-James’s eyes immediately went wide, I knew he’d been full of shit.
“Objection!” he muttered, but she’d already whipped her gaze his way.
“Truett isn’t courting me. He’s in a Pack with my stepbrother.” She frowned. “I’m Unshown.”
I shrugged. “I’m an Omega. Means nothing to me; we can bond with whoever we like without fear of disapproval. If my Omega wanted you, I’d court the hell out of you.” I let my tone be teasing, but I could see that Truett saw the truth in my words.
She giggled self-consciously. “That’s unconventional too, right? Don’t people normally court the Omega, not the other way around?”
I shrugged. “Conventional has never been a personality trait I aspire to embody.” A server came with the first course, a tiny little nibble of food that had crumbs and foam, and I regretted not having this meeting at Bucket’O’Wings night at my local bar. “So, if Truett is being a dumbass and not courting you, is there another Alpha in the wings treating you how you should be treated? Or maybe another Unshown? A Beta?” I knew there wasn’t another Omega; I’d have smelled it on her.
She smelled so sweet, like orange blossoms and gardenias, something light and floral and delicious. I wanted to roll in that scent. At first, I’d thought it was perfume, but perhaps it was just her natural scent, given the way my Omega reacted to it. Though it was very strong for an Unshown.
Could Truett not scent it? If he could, how did he resist her?
She shook her head. “Uh, no. Not really. I’ve been busy with my job, with my rescues.”
I asked her more questions, watched her face light up when she spoke of things she enjoyed, her anger at the cockfighting ring, her joy at the rescue animals and their antics. She was enchanting.
We were now on the third course of the set tasting menu, something she seemed to be enjoying, if the sweet little noises were anything to go by. She spoke to me animatedly, but I didn’t miss Truett swapping out his full plate for her empty one. She didn’t seem to notice, but it prolonged her happy food noises even longer. I might pay for dinner, just because they’d made her emit those sounds.
While I might be learning everything there was to know about Otillie-James Baler, she’d also managed to pull more than a few facts from me, as if she were a CIA spy. Like the fact I also had no Alphas, and wasn’t being courted. My career had kept me busy, and I couldn’t risk an Alpha making me quit my job.
Truett scoffed at the idea. “Why would any Alpha make you quit? You’re a fucking great lawyer, and they’d want you to what? Sit at home in your nest, fussing with the house all day?” He snorted. “Ridiculous.”
My heart pounded in my chest. Every Alpha I’d gone on dates with since I’d designated had basically insinuated that if we Packed up, I could quit my job and do whatever I liked with my days. Like they’d be doing me a favor.
Truett was the only one who seemed to understand being a lawyer was what I wanted to do with my days.
I looked over at this Alpha I’d spent far too many years challenging. I enjoyed riling him, but I’d also had more than one late-night fantasy about him too. Was he interested in me like that? Were he and Edison Chalmers looking for an Omega, or were they happy with Otillie-James?
Did it have to be an either/or situation?
As the night progressed, a plan formulated in my mind—one where I got the girl and the Alphas, and we all lived happily ever after.