1. Hannah
Hannah
" M s. Beckham! We hope you enjoyed your stay here at the Starbook City Heat Clinic. Do you have a moment for a quick survey?"
Time? I guess. The desire to complete a damn survey after an unfulfilling four-day heat? Not really.
The beta behind the checkout desk flashes a saccharine sweet smile at me. Ugh. She probably gets like…points or something if she gets me to take the survey.
Sighing, I run a hand over my face. "Do you still offer the ten percent discount on my next stay if I participate?” I’m feeling the post-heat drop hard .
Something that unpacked omegas can start to experience if they go through too many heat cycles…
unsatisfied. Omegas benefit greatly from heat after-care, especially with the help of pheromones from scent-sympathetic alphas.
“Of course,” she says, pulling out a clipboard and writing my name at the top of the form she has. “First, on a scale of one to ten, how satisfied with this heat do you feel?”
“Probably…a three?” I shrug.
Her brow furrows as she frowns, and she scribbles something on her board. “Okay…and, on a scale of one to ten, how likely are you to come back again?”
“A ten, I have no choice.” I grimace. What other option is there for someone whose kidneys flat out reject heat suppressants?
The damn “Alpha-Helper” app, where I invite an unknown alpha into my home without even knowing what they smell like?
No thank you.It’s not like I haven’t tried to find a pack either, it’s just everyone seems to find me lacking.
I can’t say I disagree.
This poor beta has no idea what to do with me, so she ignores my little side comment, and asks her next question. “How did you find the selection of bedding and nesting items? On a scale of—”
“One to ten?” I suppress the urge to roll my eyes. The girl's just doing her job, but it doesn’t change that despite the fact I was railed for four days straight with semi-adequate alpha cock and knots, I’m feeling…grumpy. “An eight.”
Her face lights up with glee as she smiles and jots that down, and I almost feel bad about my attitude. Almost.
“Any issues with the alphas? The moderator has already made note of the one with the…oral fixation. He was obviously here for himself if that was all he cared about.”
Yeah, repeatedly trying to shove your dick into an omegas mouth when she specifically asks you not to… I’m not here because I like you, Henry. I’m here because the one thing I hate about being an omega doesn’t stop just because I haven’t found my pack.
“Everyone else was fine.” I shrug again. “But yes, Henry thought that just because I was an omega in heat, it must mean I wanted my mouth full of his dick.”
I mean it is kind of my fault for opting for the cheaper heat package—the one that only comes with alphas who have volunteered…not the ones who are specifically trained to handle omegas in heat.
The beta flushes scarlet and clears her throat, as if she doesn’t work for a facility that is specifically designed for omegas to come get fucked six ways to Sunday in a semi-safe environment.
“We appreciate your time, Ms. Beckham. We will be putting Henry on probation and if his behavior doesn’t improve, he will be banned from volunteering. ”
“Good.” I nod once, hiking my overnight bag further up my shoulder. “Can you blacklist him from helping me again?”
“Of course. We’ll see you in three months, Ms. Beckham.”
I pause, my lips pursing. They haven’t asked me to pay. I shouldn’t look a gift-horse in the mouth, but the last thing I need is for a bill to come in the mail later. “Don’t I need to pay?”
“It’s taken care of,” she waves me off, “a…Cady De Lucca called two days ago to put her card on file for your balance.”
Dammit Cady.
After thanking her and leaving through the clinical, stark white reception room double doors, I pull my phone out.
Me
I'm safe and sound and apparently paid for???
Cady
What good am I if I can't pay for my bestie to get a good fucking?
I don't point out that the fucking was far from good , because really, the last thing I need is my best friend pitying me.
Just because she's found her magical true scent-matched pack when she never wanted one, and I'm still spending my heats in and out of heat clinics…
none of this equates to her fucking paying for my heat clinic stay. Like I'm some kind of charity case.
Gods, if she knew the real reason I haven't settled down with a pack yet, she would have tried to start paying for my visits a lot sooner.
Me
You didn't have to do that, Cades. I'm more than capable of paying for my own heat clinic visit.
Her reply is nearly instant.
Cady
Of course you are, Hannah-Banana. But I love you and wanted to show you.
I feel so fucking useless in this friendship sometimes, I just wanted to do something nice for you.
If it really bothers you, you can pay me back.
Despite myself, a smirk pulls at my lips as I reach my car.
Me
Well, I wouldn't go that far.
Cady
Just count it as payment for doing my hair for Titus' birthday party in a few days ??
Chuckling and shaking my head, I hop into my car and start the drive home. To be honest, freeing up the money that I had been planning on spending at the heat clinic will make my next three months a hell of a lot easier. Maybe I can buy a new nesting item or two, and put the rest into savings.
Something about Cady's words don't sit right with me though.
What does she mean that she feels useless in this friendship?
It's only been four months since she packed up and came out as the Knotty Omega to the entire world.
If I was in her position, I wouldn't even be texting.
I'd be soaking up all that scent-matched goodness.
Okay. So I'm a little jealous. But no more than what's perfectly acceptable when your best friend, who never wanted what you wanted…gets what you wanted. And, I'm happy for her. She was so miserable before, even if she'd never admit it.
It's not her fault that there's something so fundamentally wrong with me that I've been rejected by twenty-three different packs.
Cady thinks that none of them ever worked out because I've found them lacking…
because that's what I told her. How can I admit to her that I'm so broken that nobody wants me?
None of them could give me a reason either. They just "didn't feel it".
Bullshit.
It's like I'm cursed or something. Ever since Charlie…I shake my head. I can't think about Charlie right now. The wound, even though it's been twelve years, still feels like it's fresh. I really thought he was it for me.
My ringing phone jolts me out of my potential fall into self-pity, but once I look at the caller-ID, I almost wish I had it on silent. Why the hell is Cat calling me? Hitting ignore, I drop my phone into the cup holder and focus on the drive.
Or I try to. My eyes keep darting to my phone in the cupholder like it might gain sentience and attack me. Cat's voice keeps echoing in my head, a dreaded reminder from that night.
"I want you to stay away from Charlie. I'll make you regret it if you don't."
I haven't heard from Cat in years. Not even when Nana passed two months ago. Not a word from her, Rue, or Birdie. Birdie is less surprising, considering we're stepsisters by law only—she had already moved out of her dad's house by the time our parents got married.
I've seen my step-sisters one time since I moved to Starbrook City to help Nana, and it was a few months after I came here.
Mom and Paul I've seen a couple of times over the years, but you would think that Nana's biological grandchildren would make more of an effort to come see her.
But nope. She was stuck with me, her heartbroken step-granddaughter who moved to a different state to escape from her problems.
At least she treated my brother and I just like her real grandkids, despite the fact that my mom didn't marry Paul until I was twelve. I think that's part of the reason why my stepsisters iced me out. Not that we were particularly close to begin with.
Now that I think about it, Cat's probably calling to rub her inheritance in my face, thinking I didn't get anything.
There's no way I'm going to tell her that Nana left me almost half a million dollars though.
I guess she was a lot more well off than I thought, if that's how much she left me , someone she's not even related to.
The lawyer had reached out a few months ago to let me know a rough amount, considering they're still liquidating all her assets.
Nana had been mated to four alphas who died in a car crash fifteen years ago, and they were rich as hell, apparently.
I'm going to assume that I got like…ten percent.
Whatever she left me must be a drop in the bucket compared to my step sisters, Mom, and Paul.
Maybe I'll open up my own hair salon. Or maybe I'll retire and live out the rest of my days eating ice cream in my nest.
Okay, yeah, definitely the post-heat drop talking.
Finally pulling into my parking spot at my apartment, I pick up my phone to place a grocery order because there's no way the food in my fridge will still be good. Pointedly ignoring the voicemail notification from Cat, I order my groceries, then balk at the wait time. Two hours.
After eating nothing but protein shakes and special omega-specific nutrition bars for the last two days has my stomach demanding more sustenance.
Welp. I guess I'm having Chinese for dinner.