16. Magnus
Chapter sixteen
Magnus
I ’m shoved out of the dressmaker's store by Belle Snow as she forbids me from seeing Opal’s gown.
“No Alphas allowed."
I blink down at the small, doe-eyed Omega. “What? But she’s my Omega.”
But Belle merely places her hands on her hips, and it looks like I’m beat.
No Alphas allowed, so I hold up my palms as a show of peace, stepping away from the door to join her Alpha, Troy.
“And you, too!”
Belle rounds on Alastor as he sneaks away into the store, and there’s no missing his shit-eating grin as he ducks behind a couch, a true master of stealth.
Belle huffs, calling his Omega. “Ella!”
Finally, Ella arrives from the back of the shop, dragging her Alpha out from behind the couch by his ear.
“Come on! I just want to watch my Omega trying on dresses,” Alastor gripes as she shoves him out the door.
“Fuck off, pervert!” she shouts, showing him her middle finger through the glass of the door, and it appears we’re all beaten.
Omegas only.
Or better yet, girls only…
I don’t think even Zayden or Brody would be allowed in there.
Alastor sighs, peering around at us now, and he truly looks at a loss without his Omega. “Now what do we do?”
Good question.
I scratch my beard, gazing up at the dressmaker's store. Then, I peer around the shopping mall, spying the food court.
Depending on where we sit, we may just have a good view of the shop.
I refuse to take my eyes off Opal, even for a second.
It's dangerous times we’re living in, after all.
“How about the food court?”
Alastor gazes at said food court, and his face turns as green as his eyes when he spies all the little children. “I’ll pass.”
“So, you’ll just hover outside the door like a creep?” I ask with a smirk.
The Alpha scowls at me, and it seems his mind is set.
Troy rolls his eyes. “Let’s just go. I’m starving.”
Troy and I depart for the food court, and I’ll admit—those children are loud.
It looks like there's a birthday party happening somewhere.
“You sure?” I ask, looking back at Alastor.
The shadowy Alpha peers through the glass of the door. “A choice between getting a glimpse of my Omega in a beautiful dress or sitting in what can only be described as my own personal brand of hell… I think the first option wins out.”
I take it he isn’t a fan of kids, then.
A shame; I adore them.
Troy doesn’t seem to care either way.
“Now, if they were kittens rather than human crotch goblins, then sure, count me in.”
I raise a brow.
Kittens?
I heard he was a cat lover.
Well, it seems we’re in luck because there is a pet store facing the dressmakers.
I point my thumb at the pet shop. “We could always look at kittens.”
Alastor’s eyes light up, and soon enough, we're all looking at kittens.
Now, we check out cats in the pet store, and Troy leans close to me. “What are we doing in here exactly?”
I shrug, watching Alastor as he plays with a cat in a glass cage, and it seems the Alpha just loves his cats.
“I really don’t know…” I reply.
I don’t know Alastor all that well since he isn’t in my pack, but from what I’ve learned, the Alphas from Packs Snow and Titan often rotate shifts as they accompany their Omegas on their outings.
Their Omegas have become the best of friends, so it’s understandable that they have become acquainted.
Maybe even friends themselves.
We’re brothers in arms too, having all made the cut for Gryphon’s squad.
So, we’ll be seeing a lot of each other in the foreseeable future.
Troy smiles. “Got a thing for pussy have we, Titan?”
The Alpha chuckles, and there’s that grin that looks good enough for eating shit again. “You bet your ass, Snow.”
I laugh along with them, and I guess that makes two of us as I picture my own Omega as she tries on dresses, and I hate Belle and Ella at that moment for throwing us out of the shop.
We’re their Alphas. We should be there to give a second opinion.
But then I guess it would ruin the surprise.
I will wait for the night of the ball.
“This is the one,” Alastor notes.
“One what?” I ask.
He rises, meeting my gaze. “Ella wants a new cat.”
Troy snorts. “Don’t you already have two?”
Alastor deadpans him. “No. We have one cat and one smelly dog as courtesy of my pack brother, Kelly. I just want to show him up when I bring home a new cat. He’ll be so fucking pissed."
Kelly being Kellen , of course.
“Don’t you think that’s something you should discuss with your pack first?” Troy challenges.
Alastor thinks for a moment. “Nah.”
Wow. Seems things never really change with Pack Titan.
If I recall, Theo is currently their pack lead as they each take turns, and I couldn’t imagine wanting the responsibility.
I’m happy for Levi to maintain the position.
Soon enough, we leave the pet store with a new cat, and I sure hope all the other kittens find homes soon.
They are cute but a huge responsibility.
But I'm more traditional; I prefer my babies without fur.
My eyes catch sight of a familiar shadow, and I shake my head.
Did he really think he could go on unnoticed?
The idiot.
“Can you two watch Opal for a moment? There’s something I need to do.”
Alastor is too distracted by his new cat, but Troy looks my way. “Sure? Where are you going?”
I turn back to the spot where I saw the shadow. “There’s someone I need to speak to.”
Troy peers at me confused for a moment. But then he shrugs, gazing back at the shop. “Sure, I'll watch her. No problem.”
Now I stalk off, finding him at last behind a water fountain. “Reed, what are you doing?”
He growls through his teeth. “Keeping an eye on the Omega. Unlike you.”
I sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose. “Look… That was Alastor. He wanted to look at cats.”
Reed scoffs. “So, you left the Omega unattended just to look at fucking cats? You idiot! You can't take your eyes off her for a second. What if she is up to something?"
I laugh. “She is trying on dresses, Reed. Chill. And she’s not the enemy you think she is.”
He huffs. “You just watch. You'll all be eating your words!"
I roll my eyes, sick of the sight of him, then return to Alastor and Troy.
Gods, he’s insufferable.
“Everything okay?” Troy asks.
No doubt he saw Reed.
“Yeah. It’s fine. Reed’s just…”
I don't know how to describe Reed these days. I mean, he's an Acute, whose senses never betray him or us, but sometimes, I wish he would just switch off.
“He doesn’t trust your Omega yet.”
That was Alastor.
It's more of a statement than a question.
I sigh. “No. We’re all at a loss with him.”
Alastor looks up from the box with his kitten friend, meeting my eyes. “These moments pass. We all locked Ella up in a cell when she first joined the pack.”
“I threatened Belle…” Troy mutters, and there’s no missing the guilt in his electric blue eyes.
I palm my face, rubbing between my eyes. “Reed is an Acute. So, he gets this way. He hardly trusts anyone outside the pack.”
Troy shudders. “I couldn’t even imagine what that must be like. Being an Acute sounds like a living nightmare.”
It sure does.
Sometimes, Reed can pick up on smells that are weeks, months, even years old.
A shadow looms in the corner of my eye, and then I jump when I meet the wide, ice-blue eyes of Lachlan Hart.
“Fuck, Hart… You scared the shit out of me. What are you doing here?” I ask.
The Alpha blinks, cocking his head slowly. Then he giggles for no reason other than the fact that he’s a psycho, pointing at the dress shop.
My gaze finds the back of his Omega, and it appears Mila Hart has come to join the fun.
The more, the merrier.
Lachlan's eyes flash like a warning beacon when they land on Alastor’s box.
Namely, the small kitten inside.
“Ooh, is that lunch?” he asks.
Shit. Why couldn’t it have been Barret’s turn to watch Mila today?
Alastor holds the box away from the strange Alpha. “Fuck off, freak.”
Lachlan’s eyes gleam brighter, and then his body starts to tremble at Alastor's insult. Then he giggles like a circus clown and turns toward the spot where he saw Mila.
“Just kidding, of course…" he singsongs.
I hope he was.
This is going to be a long wait indeed.