MACKENZIE
Mackenzie
Oh no. Oh no no no.
All. Terrain. Vehicle.
VEHICLE.
I stared at the line of “ATVs”. My heart trying to escape through my throat. They were basically motorcycles. With four wheels. That you had to drive.
Drive.
As in operate a motor vehicle.
Which I had no idea how to do because Daryl hadn’t wanted me to get a driver’s license.
“An omega doesn’t need to drive. That’s what alphas are for. Besides, you’d get distracted by hair gel and crash.”
The safety instructor was talking about throttles and brakes and something called rear differential, but I heard none of it, just the blood rushing in my ears. My fingers trembled as I tried to fasten the helmet strap, but the stupid clasp wouldn’t work.
“And remember,” the instructor’s voice cut through my panic, “these machines can reach speeds of forty miles per hour on the trails…”
Forty miles per hour?
I was going to die.
I was going to crash into a tree and die, and they’d have to scrape me off the rainforest floor and ship me home to Jillian in a jar.
“Here.” Justice’s fresh scent enveloped me as he reached for my helmet. “Let me help with that.”
“I’m fine,” I babbled, my words coming too fast and too high. “Totally fine. Just a weird clasp design, right? Though I guess all helmet clasps are probably the same since safety standards are pretty universal but I wouldn’t know because I’ve never worn a helmet before because I’ve never needed one because omegas don’t do things that require helmets and oh god I don’t know how to drive. My alpha said omegas don’t drive, but now I’m alone and…”
Justice grabbed the front of my helmet, hooking his fingers under the faceplate. He gave my head a gentle shake that made me focus on his face. His dark eyes held mine, steady and calm.
“Mackenzie.” His voice was low and even, “You have all the power here. You are in complete control. You get to decide what happens next. Do you understand?”
His scent was suddenly everywhere. And his aura felt like a hug. No impatience, none of that feeling of being pushed or pulled in whatever direction my alpha wanted.
He said my name again. “Can you answer me?”
“Yes, I understand.”
Hand still on the faceplate, he nodded my head once for me. “Here are our options. We can go on the tour and both ride ATVs. We can go on the tour and you can ride on the back of my ATV. Or we don’t go on the tour at all and head back to port. Each one of those options is equally valid and correct.” He kept holding my gaze. “What do you want to do, Mackenzie?”
Every time he said my name, it was like a magic spell, cracking open something inside me. What did I want? When was the last time anyone had asked me that?
I looked at the ATV, then back at Justice. No judgment, no pressure. Just… waiting for my choice.
“Can I…” I took a deep breath. “Can I ride with you?”
His smile made my knees weak. “Of course.” He adjusted my helmet one final time, his fingers lingering at my throat.
Justice climbed onto the ATV like he had done it a hundred times. He probably had. He probably jetted around the world for adventures with omegas who were elegant and knew how to drive. He grabbed my hip and pulled me close.
“I need you to know, to really understand that you can say ‘no’ at any time, about anything, and everything stops.”
What an odd thing for an alpha to say. “Okay,” I said softly. “But I’m… I’m scared.” I wasn’t talking about the ATV, but he didn’t need to know that.
“Can you do something and be scared at the same time?”
“I… I think so.”
He helped me onto the back of his ATV, showing me where to put my feet. Then he pressed a button on the handle and the machine roared, making me scream in surprise. I shifted around, looking for a place to put my hands. Justice caught one and slid it around his waist. He leaned back into me to pull my other arm around him.
“Ready?” he asked, pulling on his own helmet.
I pressed closer to his back. His aura felt so good I could just crawl inside it forever.
“Ready.”