Chapter Three — Logan
CHAPTER THREE
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LOGAN
Restlessness writhed beneath my skin. I’d been the one who wanted to come tonight, and yet I felt unsettled. The scenes were fine, the atmosphere normal, but something…
I couldn’t explain it. Maybe it was disappointment? I knew it was a long shot to find someone available to play with on a masquerade night, but after so long away, I’d hoped for something more than watching and returning home to nothing but my hand.
Not that I’d been looking for sex, necessarily, but I hadn’t played in months. When you went without the kind of fulfillment this offered… I hated it. There was a unique emptiness to this kind of craving.
The twins were watching a suspension scene in the corner, but I wasn’t in the mood for rope. So I’d decided to head to the upper floors and take a look in the public rooms to see if there was anything interesting happening. Usually, there was someone who’d gotten creative.
I’d almost made it to the elevator when a waft of floral scent washed over me. Sweet and light, the barest hint of citrus, and fuck.
Omega.
I turned, looking for the source. The scent rooted itself in my chest and held me in a grip so tight I didn’t think it would ever release me. And I wasn’t sure I wanted it to.
The elevator dinged behind me, but I didn’t care. The only thing that mattered was that scent. Where—
There.
A small blonde perched on one of the viewing couches, her hands laced together with what looked like nerves. Her delicate silver mask obscured her face, but that mouth…
Fire burned through my lungs with every inhale, and I wasn’t even near her.
The scent was a fucking beacon through the club, drawing me toward her like the moon and the tides.
With the amount of scent canceller in the air, there was an almost zero percent chance of scenting someone so deeply. Unless she was a scent match.
Holy shit.
I wasn’t bored anymore. I was entranced watching this Omega that had divided my life in two.
She was engaged in conversation with Amber, and from her body language and the tinge of sour in her gorgeous scent, it wasn’t a good conversation.
No part of my Alpha cared. The only thing I wanted was to sweep her off that couch and spread her out. Inhale her deeper. Rip that mask off so I could see the rest of her face.
Amber glanced over at me and smiled, nodding briefly in greeting before turning her attention back to the Omega.
What the fuck did I do? I was torn between storming over to her and kissing this woman as a greeting and—
The others. The only thing that would let my feet move in another direction was the fact that my pack didn’t know the entire world had changed.
I turned and went back to the scene area I’d just left and stepped between the twins. “Where’s Theo?”
“At the bar,” Brooks said. “Why?”
“I need all of you with me. Now.”
Bastian looked over at me, brow furrowing. His mask covered the lower half of his face rather than the upper, with the bottom half of a skull. He said nothing but nodded once.
“What’s going on?” Brooks asked, following me until I could catch Theo’s eye and gesture him over.
“I— there’s no way to tell you without... you’ll see.”
Theo followed along with us as we walked around the huge, circular bar, back to where she sat in that little lounge area. Where her scent gathered like a puddle of perfection.
Beside me, Bastian went rigid.
“Holy fuck,” Theo coughed, choking on his drink. I pounded him on the back. “Who is that?” He growled. “Where?”
“Right there.” I lowered my voice and nodded to the shadowy corner.
The Omega wore a deep green dress that reached her knees and had enough ruffles in the skirt I was imagining diving through them to reach the core of her scent. Picturing disappearing beneath them.
“You guys feel that, right?” I inhaled again. So light and delicate with layers I was too feral to separate. I could live breathing that scent alone for the rest of my life. This Omega was mine.
“Yeah,” Brooks said. “Fuck. I need—”
I stopped him as he stepped forward, bristling at the growl he threw my way. “If she’s talking to Amber, there’s a reason.”
“You think Amber will give a fuck when she finds out she’s ours?”
I growled back at him. “You don’t think I’m with you? The fact that I came back to find you all instead of kidnapping her to a private room is miraculous. Look at them. This is not a conversation we can interrupt.”
He glanced at the Omega, and his shoulders dropped. The way her fingers fidgeted and she bit her lip… something was wrong.
It took everything in me to keep my feet rooted to the ground. I wanted to pull her close and fix whatever it was. Protect her from the world. Protect her from everything, and I didn’t even know her name.
Theo walked over and abandoned the drink he’d just gotten at the bar. I didn’t blame him. There was no way I could hold anything right now that wasn’t her.
He shook his head as he returned. “It’s so much stronger when you get closer. I— Fuck. What do we do?”
I moved a little closer. Not so close that we were intruding on their space, but close enough that I could barely hear her voice above the noise of the club. She fiddled with the fabric of her dress. “What would the punishment be?”
Amber smiled gently. “Since James doesn’t want part of it, it would be our standard punishment for first-time rule-breakers. Spanking. Twenty strokes with either a bare hand or a paddle. Your choice.”
The Omega immediately drained the water bottle she held, and I was having trouble remaining upright since every bit of blood I had was flowing south.
They were talking about a punishment. This beautiful Omega had broken a rule. One look at her told me it wasn’t intentional. People who broke the rules on purpose didn’t look like they were shaking. Amber had said first time, so it was likely she was new.
Amber was one of the kindest people we’d ever met. She’d never push someone beyond what they were ready for, and she was understanding about accidents. But if you didn’t know that, the woman could be scary as fuck. I didn’t blame the little Omega for being nervous.
“Did I just hear what I thought I did?” Brooks asked under his breath.
“Yes.” Bastian’s single word, rough and raw, confirmed it.
She was our scent match. All of us.
Theo was right. What the hell did we do? Besides stealing her and hiding her away from the rest of the world? That wasn’t realistic. Or… legal. But my Alpha wasn’t exactly concerned with legality right now. He just wanted his Omega closer.
I’d missed some of their conversation getting my body under control. Amber looked amused. “I will have to witness the punishment if that’s what you choose, but we would find someone you’re comfortable with.”
Oh. She had to choose whether to leave or accept her fate. Please. I offered the word to the universe, hoping to hell she chose to stay. If she was leaving, then so was I. All the glow of being here was gone without the spark of her and her scent.
We needed to know who she was. First, we needed to stop standing and staring like creeps. But I couldn’t seem to make my feet move. The others weren’t moving either.
I missed what she said, but snapped back in when Amber tilted her head to the side. “You’re nervous?”
“Yes. Of course I am. But I would like to… try.”
“All right.” Amber nodded, all business. “Let’s see who we can find for you.”
I didn’t recall making the decision to step forward and speak. But the words were out of my mouth before I could second guess or check with the others. “We can take care of that, Amber, if you like.”
They both turned to look at me, and our Omega’s eyes went wide. She took in the four of us, staring in shock and… desire? Her scent shifted—darker and somehow impossibly sweeter.
Fuck yes.
There was no way for her to scent match with us right now, but there was interest. Interest was all we needed. I locked eyes with her, unable to conceal my amusement and my own desire. “If the Omega agrees, of course.”
Amber looked up. “Hello, boys. It’s good to see you again.
” She scanned us up and down, and there was no way she didn’t know something was up, but she didn’t give it away.
Her mouth tilted up into a smirk before she looked back at the Omega.
“This is the Breaker Pack. They are trusted members here and very experienced. I can give you guys a few minutes to speak if you like?”
Amber leaned forward and lowered her voice. “But please remember that no part of this is meant to cause you discomfort, and you can always stop and return another night. Or we can find you someone else.”
Our Omega swallowed, and her hands fisted in her skirt, clearly showing her nerves, but her scent was still deep and sweet, and there wasn’t any true fear. “I’ll talk.”
I took another step forward, my entire soul wilting in relief. This Omega was ours. Now we had to figure out a way to show her.