Chapter Ten
Rhea
T heo’s hand hovers in the space between us.
“You don’t have to say yes.”
But I do.
Because I can’t hold myself up anymore.
Because the floor tilts under my feet, and there’s a fire clawing through my belly that no amount of pride can beat.
Because deep down, I don’t want to fall alone.
“ Yes ,” I whisper.
One strong arm wraps around my waist while the other braces against the wall behind me, pulling me upright. Warmth floods into me, grounding me for a breath before it sets everything on fire again.
The moment Theo’s hand settles against my back, something inside me cracks. I don’t cry. I don’t scream.
But I break apart quietly, all at once.
Alpha.
Theo pulls me close like he already knows the shape of the ache. My face finds the crook of his neck without instruction, and I breathe him in - pine and honey and something that smells like sanctuary and sin.
My nails clutch at his shirt. My thighs press together. The ache is no longer just pain; it’s hunger. Deep. Rhythmic. Demanding.
My scent spikes, thick and heavy, curling through the air like it has opinions.
“She’s scenting,” Theo mutters, voice tight.
“She's perfuming .” Kai lets out a sound that could be appreciation or prayer. “She’s dripping with it. Fuck. No wonder she ran.”
Lucian shifts slightly - barely a movement - but the tension ripples across his shoulders like something primal just stood up inside him. His hands flex at his sides.
Ash’s voice is flat, but his eyes are dark. “This isn’t some alleyway heat. She’s rare .”
The word lands like a thunderclap.
Rare.
Lexi’s head snaps toward him so fast it’s a miracle she doesn’t get whiplash. “I’m sorry - rare ?! She’s not a collector's item, she’s my best friend!”
“Lex,” I manage, shaky. “Not helping.”
“Not not helping,” she mutters, still glaring at every alpha in reach like she’s debating which kneecap to aim for first.
They ignore her. Of course they do.
I flinch. I press tighter against Theo like I can hide inside him, like his body might block out the way they’re looking at me.
“Stop,” I rasp. My throat’s raw. My voice feels half-formed. “Stop looking at me like that.”
“Like what ?” Ash says, his voice quiet.
I lift my head and meet their eyes one by one.
“Like you own me.”
None of them answer. They don’t need to. I can feel it - thickening in the air, coiling around us.
Mine. Mine. Mine.
Mine.
“We need to get her out of here,” Lucian says, tone clipped.
Ash nods. “She’s not safe.”
“No shit,” Kai mutters, raking a hand through his hair. “She steps outside and someone else catches that scent, it’s over. Omegas in heat aren’t exactly inconspicuous.”
Lucian’s frustration bleeds through as he turns to Theo.
“Carry her out to my car.”
Lexi throws her hands up. “Okay! Yes! Great plan, love the initiative - but let me just check if I’m hallucinating, or did you four very large, very hormonal alphas just suggest kidnapping my best friend?!”
Lucian barely spares her a glance.
“I have a property just outside the city,” he says, voice cold as steel. I can't figure out whether he's saying it to the other's, or for Lexi's benefit. “Gates. Privacy. Land. No neighbors.”
Lexi gasps. “Oh my god, you’ve thought about this.”
“I plan ,” Lucian says simply, as if that’s supposed to be reassuring.
Theo’s hand is still steady on my back, a single point of contact anchoring me through the rising storm. The chaos doesn’t disappear, but it dulls.
Enough to think. To breathe.
“You okay with that?” he asks.
I want to say no. I want to scream. I want to claw back the mask I’ve worn for years and pretend this isn’t happening.
But I can’t.
Because I know what happens to unclaimed omegas in heat who get caught.
And there’s no other alpha I know, never mind trust to carry me through it. No Beta who could survive it.
No bond. No anchor.
Only instinct. and these four standing between me and the system that would chew me up and spit me out.
“I…” I start, but Lexi cuts me off.
“Wait,” she says, eyes wide. “ Shit . One of the OMB guys is still at this party.”
“Fabulous,” Kai exhales. “Nothing like a little light government surveillance to spice up the evening.”
Lexi’s voice pitches. “So unless you want my girl hauled off by collar-happy bureaucrats who wear matching suits and probably track orgasms for data points, we move. Now .”
“ We move.” Lucian says, his eyes cutting sharply to Lexi. “ You stay. Get back to the ballroom. Distract the OMB.”
Lexi chokes on air. “I’m sorry, what? ”
“We need a cover,” Lucian says briskly. “A scene. Something loud enough to keep them looking the other way while we leave.”
“I am not your personal diversion!” she snaps, outraged. “This isn’t a stupid action movie - I’m not gonna throw a glass of champagne and scream ‘ he slept with my sister ’ just so you guys can smuggle my best friend out of the building like a heat-struck art thief!”
“You’ll think of something,” Lucian says, already dismissing her with a flick of his hand like she’s a very sparkly, very loud pigeon.
Kai throws her a wink. “Come on, glitterbomb. You know you’ve got the drama in you.”
“Don’t flirt with me while you’re kidnapping my best friend.”
“I’m multitasking.”
“I will taser you.”
“I’m into that.”
Theo clears his throat pointedly.
“ Ugh ,” Lexi groans, turning to me. “Rhee, you better come back alive, hydrated, and un-bitten. If you end up a walking bite mark, I’m getting a priest.”
I try to laugh. It comes out as a wheeze.
“She won’t,” Kai says, stepping forward with both hands raised. “We’re not gonna hurt her.”
Lexi narrows her eyes.
“That’s exactly the kind of thing someone says right before they hurt someone.”
Kai tilts his head, gaze surprisingly sincere. “I promise , Lexi the beta. Nothing bad’s gonna happen to her. Not while I’m there.”
Lexi pauses.
For once, she’s quiet.
Then she exhales through her nose.
“Goddamn it. Fine. But if she comes back marked and moaning, I will stab you in the femoral artery.”
Kai flashes her a grin. “That’s the spirit.”
“I’m serious.”
“I know. And that’s why it’s hot.”
Lexi turns to me, hands landing on my arms from where I'm still tucked into Theo, and her expression softens.
“You sure about this?”
“I don’t really have a choice,” I frown. “Not right now.”
Lexi’s jaw works for a second, her eyes shining, and then she pulls me into a hard, glitter-scented hug. For what it's worth, Theo stays completely still behind us.
“Okay. Okay. Just… stay alive,” she says. “Don’t let any of them imprint on you without a lawyer present. Oh, and don’t have sex on leather. You’ll never get the smell out.”
“I love you,” I whisper into her hair.
“You better. Because if I have to break into a billionaire bunker, I’m bringing zip ties and rage.”
She pulls back, straightens her sequined jumpsuit, and glares at the alphas.
“Alright, gentlemen. I’ll go draw some fire. But if I get tackled by a suit with a barcode scanner, I’m coming back and haunting all of you.”
“Noted,” Lucian says without inflection.
Kai gives her a two-finger salute. “Remember: that’s how you punch,” he adds, nodding at the still-unconscious beta on the floor. “Very respectable form.”
Lexi flips him off, then spins and stalks back toward the ballroom like a sparkly missile on a mission.
And just like that, the plan’s in motion.
Heaven help us all.