17
Lark
S carlett is more closed off than usual as we step into the diner down the block from her apartment.
When I’d asked her where she’d wanted to go, she’d told me to pick with a casual shrug of her shoulders.
I would have been upset about her blase attitude, but Wren had already informed us about the possibility she’d shut down, and exactly why that is.
That doesn’t mean I have to like it.
The last thing I want to do is push her, though.
I have my own plan to smuggle my way into my omega’s good graces.
The scents of fried foods and delicious coffee waft over us upon entering, and I refrain from smiling when Scarlett’s stomach growls loudly in response where she stands beside me, coming to a stop in front of the hostess stand just inside the door.
The place is packed for the breakfast rush, which isn’t a surprise.
This place had the best reviews when I’d done some research before deciding to go on this venture with my omega.
A young blonde woman standing behind the hostess podium glances up when we come to a stop, and her eyes immediately zero in on me.
She smiles in a way that instantly makes me uncomfortable, but I’m a nice guy, so I brush it off.
She doesn’t even look over at Scarlett. That aggravates me more than how inappropriate and unprofessional she’s being with her facial expressions when she looks me up and down.
“How can I help you, sugar?” She smells like overly ripe bananas and that fake vanilla extract that I usually find repulsive. Her tits practically pop out of her uniform top, which is missing a few buttons, when she leans forward against the podium.
“A table for two please.” It takes me a second to force a friendly smile, hoping she doesn’t take it the wrong way.
Confusion flashes in her eyes when she glances beside me for the first time.
Her brows hit her hairline at the sight of Scarlett standing rigid beside me, glaring daggers at the waitress.
“Scarlett? What are you doing here?” Clearly, the waitress knows my omega. Maybe that’s why she’s not put off by the death stare Scarlett has leveled her way.
“Trying to have breakfast with my alpha. Now, would you like me to remove your eyeballs from your skull, or can you manage to keep them to yourself and find us a table?” A surge of satisfaction shoots through me at her referring to me as her alpha, and I offer the beta a smirk when she has the balls to glance at me again in disbelief.
She’s quick to jerk her attention away from me when Scarlett lets out a small, yet still completely feral, growl. She blinks at my omega, slightly shocked. “I’m… sorry. Kate didn’t mention you had an alpha.”
Scarlett just looks at her with cool, emotionless eyes, but I can still sense the dangerous anger roiling beneath her skin.
It’s twisting her scent in a way I seriously don’t like.
It’s also entirely too fucked up that I find her possessive behavior sexy as hell.
I’m reminded of the slew of inappropriate things I’d like to do to her to reward her for publicly acknowledging her connection to me.
“Considering my personal life and business is not Kate’s to share, I’d imagine that’s a sufficient enough explanation.
Not that I need to give you one. Maybe don’t let the men you’re interested in see just how desperate you are at first glance, Rosa .
You’d probably have better luck catching the right kind of attention if you didn’t flirt shamelessly with every male that comes within five feet of you.
” I will not admit how painfully hard my cock gets at hearing my omega put another woman in her place.
I’ll just pretend she’s acting like a cave woman for my benefit.
I’m secretly loving that she’s letting her omega instincts guide her.
The waitress—Rosa—sputters and goes red in the face, but Scarlett just crosses her good arm over her chest, somehow able to appear threatening despite the sling she wears.
There’s anger and embarrassment shimmering in Rosa’s eyes when she snatches two menus from a stack behind the podium.
She’s smart to keep her eyes off of me as she addresses Scarlett.
“I have a two top booth in the corner. Follow me.”
My little fiery omega doesn’t bother looking at me while moving to trail after the beta, but I keep my smirk painted on my face, regardless. Yeah, Scarlett could fake it for the entire world that she wasn’t interested in us, but I know, deep down, that it’s a lie. I take that as a win in my book.
Rosa sets the menus down before turning towards us again.
She manages to offer my omega a smile, but it doesn’t reach her eyes.
“This is Cosette’s section for the morning.
She’ll be right with you shortly. Enjoy your meal.
” She steers clear of me like I have the plague, taking off back towards the hostess stand like the fires of hell are on her ass.
Scarlett doesn’t wait to take the seat with her back to the corner where a solid wall meets one made entirely of windows.
I don’t much like my back to a crowded restaurant, but if the position helps put her at ease, I am all for it.
I’m already fully committed to walking over hot coals if that’s what it takes to win this woman’s heart
Besides, Caito is currently outside across the street, sitting on a bench with a book in his hands, acting as back up.
None of us trust any one in this city, especially not after what happened a few days ago.
Thankfully, Scarlett hasn’t noticed her super powered scent matched security detail as of late.
I’m not sure how she’ll react to it when she finds out, which hopefully won’t be today.
Grabbing one of the menus, I start to flick through it, but then pause when she doesn’t pick hers up.
“Everything alright?” I ask with a bit of hesitancy, and she brings her eyes back to me from where she’d been looking over the crowded diner with a keen eye, arm still firmly wrapped across her chest.
“I used to work here when I first came to the city. It’s how I met Kate. I know that menu by heart.” She shrugs with her good shoulder, a sort of non-answer that makes my lip twitch.
I’m quiet for a moment, flipping through the hunk of plastic and only vaguely reading the options.
I already know what I want, too. “Didn’t like it here?
” I query, and Scarlett gives me an odd look, but before she can respond, a dark-skinned waitress with a mop of stylish, shiny brown curls and rich copper eyes appears.
This time, she only has eyes for my perfect omega. “Oh my gosh, Scar! How are you? Long time no see!” She flashes pearly white teeth in a genuine smile that has me relaxing more. It’s obvious that this one doesn’t feel the same animosity towards Scarlett as Rosa does.
Scarlett offers the woman a smile. My nostrils flare to take in the newcomer’s scent, and a small smile makes my lips twitch. Bonded omega. “I’m well, Cosette. Thank you for asking. How have you been? Hope those rugrats of yours are staying out of trouble.”
Cosette laughs, the sound like the tinkling of a bell.
“Georgia is freaking five now and little Henry just turned two. I’ve got my hands full, that’s for sure.
Alphas always make kiddos sound like a grand ole’ time, until you’re busy running after them and lecturing them not to put everything they have a fancy to in their mouths. ”
For the first time since I’d met my little omega, her eyes lit up with genuine amusement.
It’s an awe inspiring sight. “I told you to put your foot down with those burly alphas of yours. You can’t go letting them think they run the show.
” Scarlett actually winks at Cosette, and that somehow delights me even more.
I want her to wink at me like that. I want to be in on all of her jokes. I want to know everything there is to know about the beautiful omega sitting across from me.
Cosette snorts at that and shakes her head, wild curls bouncing around her head when she does. Finally, her eyes shift to me when she pulls out her order pad from the pouch pocket on her uniform shirt. “And who might this lovely thing be?” She looks me up and down, but not in the same way Rosa had.
I open my mouth to introduce myself, but Scarlett surprises me again when she speaks, “Cosette, this is Lark, one of my scent matched alphas. Lark, this is Cosette. She’s the one that set me up in my apartment with Kate when I first moved here. Her alphas own the complex I live in.”
Cosette’s eyes widen slightly during the introduction, but then a wide smile stretches across her face shortly after.
“Well, I’ll be damned. I never thought I’d see the day when you brought an alpha around, let alone a scent match.
” She gives me another once over, but it’s brief.
“Aren’t you the fella that opened that new PT office on the North edge of the Parkway a few months back? ”
My smile is genuine this time and I nod. It doesn’t even make Scarlett all that twitchy, either. “That would be me.” I can feel my omega’s curious eyes on me as I speak, and when I look over at her to offer her the same smile, she blushes and looks away. Well, I’ll be damned.
Cosette looks between the both of us. “You might know one of my scent matched alphas, Frankie Donahue.”
“Ah, yes. Torn ACL about a month ago cage fighting.” I recognized the name right away.
I liked the massive, yet oddly quiet, man a lot.
We’d been working at repairing any lasting damage from the injury since he’d been referred to my office.
He sometimes brought a little dark-skinned boy with him that I immediately deduce must be the two year old she’d been talking about with Scarlett before.
Cosette offers a sigh, and she nods. “I keep trying to get him to cut back, but the cage is an outlet for him.” She doesn’t have to explain it to me, but I nod anyway.
Frankie’s admitted as much to me in the short time we’ve been working together.
As an alpha myself, I understand the need to let loose pent up energy.
Nothing good ever comes of an alpha that doesn’t know how to handle all the hormones that come with our designation.
Especially when an omega is involved.
“Don’t worry. I’ll get him back into shape before you know it. He’s a tough one.” I assure her, and she offers me a tight, but genuine smile.
“Enough about me. It’s busy here and I’ll have my ass handed to me by Jerry if I don’t hustle. Can I start you two off with anything to drink? Do you know what you’d like to order yet?” Her gaze returns to Scarlett.
“I’ll take a chocolate milkshake and a stack of blueberry pancakes with a side of bacon.”
I smile at that when Cosette turns back to me. “Coffee, please. No cream. Also, an order of the cream cheese stuffed french toast with fresh strawberries and a side of bacon as well.”
Cosette ducks off after scribbling our order, and I return my attention to my omega. She’s looking down at a crack in the surface of the table like it might hold all the answers to her problems. When I reach out a hand towards her, she startles at the movement, but I don’t think it’s out of fear.
Fuck, I hope it isn’t, anyway.
“So, tell me why you left the diner.”
Her eyes snap to me, and I really don’t like the way she shudders when I return to the topic we’d been on before Cosette had arrived. I just hoped whatever came out of her mouth wasn’t bad enough to make me lose all sense over my thinly veiled morals.
If she starts crying, all bets are off.