Chapter Lucas
Lucas
I don’t know who this Omega thinks she is, being barely in the house before she's escaping already. She is distracting… and calls to the part of me that knows we are scent-matched mates, but the thoughts of my previous Omegas haunt my waking moments, and I cannot afford to let down another. Skye is — Interesting. I think that’s the best way to describe her.
Without a doubt, I knew she would run. She has this nervous, flighty aura of panic closer to a rabbit than a wolf, and it pulls the hunter out of me.
Lazing in the branches as I had been, I had heard the calls through the night, my canine pack mates calling out the hunt.
Given the silence of the night, I could hear her tearing up the ground as she ran, though it was a much more substantial effort not to grind my jaws straight through her vertebrae when I landed.
My cat is well-evolved to hunting that way, and my anger at having an Omega tossed in my way has smudged my usually perfect control, if just for a moment.
Creaking hinges of the lounge door break my thoughts as the little Omega is pushed through and directed to the sofa.
Fury is nice enough to throw a blanket down over the leather so her bare ass doesn’t stick to it, though it would have simply been more gentlemanly to let her dress first. Shifters of any kind should be well used to nudity, especially wolves, given their pack requirements.
I’ve been home a while by the time their human legs carry them through the door, with a pair of sweats and a black shirt on before they arrive.
Despite my dislike of having her here—or perhaps because of it—I don’t want her staring at my nudity.
It has already become intimately acquainted with her ass, much to her dislike.
Huffing as she hits the cushions, she pulls the blanket tight and snuggles into it, everything an Omega should be doing when they’re uncomfortable, and the provider in me is aching to give her more, to carry the whole haul of blankets down from our rooms upstairs, knowing that it would comfort her far more to nest whilst we speak.
Fury settles next to her, splaying himself out in a way that bares him completely, and I see her eyes flicker fearfully to his piercings, the balls of the thick barbells glimmering in the firelight from the hearth.
She looks away, then back, then away, her mouth opening and shutting like a gaping fish, with an expression lodged somewhere between horror and awe.
Presumably, she has never seen such things before, although you would figure she’d have enough manners not to stare at our resident pincushion.
Clearing my throat, she meets my eyes, then darts away quickly with a furious sheen of red overtaking her cheeks. Cute.
Atlas and Clay stroll through the door after, chatting animatedly, the big wolf as naked as a baby as well, whilst Clay carries through some sort of food tray and sets it on the mahogany table.
Theo follows, and I jump to grab the jugs of lemonade he carries whilst he hobbles to the armchair, waving me off dismissively.
“There’s some more in the kitchen, grab those, will you?
” I’m out the door before he finishes, collecting plates—six of them—and bringing more trays of food through.
Theodore has outdone himself again, and I hadn’t even realized there had been food in the crock-pots slow cooking all day before we left for the auction.
Well-prepared seems like an understatement for describing our Beta, and I’m always appreciative of his ability to wrangle us and keep us well kept and fed.
Fury takes over once the food is all out, packing plates as the others chat and handing some cutlery to the Omega, who frowns. “Where’s mine?” Her voice is soft and husky, almost a whisper, and my temper rises to greet her instantly.
“Not good enough for you, princesa?” I snap, scooping some lasagna onto my plate with a slice of garlic bread. I’m ashamed at my outburst, my Alpha berates me for how I’m speaking to her, but I can’t seem to help it, “Sorry, we don’t serve it on silver—“
“Enough,” Fury’s bark stops me in my tracks, forcing me to silence despite how much my Alpha rises in return. It’s the second time today he’s had to use it… And once more, the guilt eats at me. I am hurting my pack, but I’m doing it to protect them from hurting even more later.
“No… I…” Skye is even quieter now, and the shocking distress that bites at me is no surprise. Clay scoops some different food onto the plate for Theo, carefully avoiding looking between us and letting Theo lean on his shoulder as they eat. “Can I put some clothes on? Can you, please?”
Snorting loudly, Fury pulls one of the soft pillows across his lap, resting the hot plate on the top. Atlas doesn’t even budge, his fluffy mohawk tipping as he tilts his head in question like a giant puppy.
“We’re shifters, Firecracker. Nudity comes with that.” Our Cardinal rolls his head to his shoulder, keeping her gaze as if to reassure her. Not that he can see much with the blanket over her, “Is there a reason you’re so against seeing your mates naked? And what’s wrong with the food?”
“Uhhh… Nothing. There’s nothing wrong with the food, just—“
“Just?” I interrupt, earning another withering look from Fury. At this rate, I will lose my shifting privileges.
“Start from the top, were you not raised in a pack?”
“No,” She shakes her head, eyes turning distant and misty, “I told you guys at the auction that I was sold there by my dad?” A few of us nod.
“My grandma was the last wolf in my family, my mom’s mom.
She died when I was young, before I shifted for the first time.
I always remember she had this big pack, and she used to show me pictures of her and all four of my grandaddies.
I used to go to her house during the week when mom and dad were working, this big old ranch house with land, sort of like here, I guess, and she had this big tractor tire tied up to a tree to make it a swing…
” Her eyes are more than misty now, tears shining along her lashes, and her lips turned up in a nervous smile.
Then it all implodes at once, her shoulders drop, and the smile vanishes as her eyes flutter shut, “Dad’s an Alpha, mom was an Omega.
He refuses to buy into the whole pack thing, thinks it is a joke, and that ‘no Alpha wants to share their Omega really.’” Her voice deepens, and her chest pushes out as she obviously imitates the man, “Omegas need to know what’s good for them, and that is one Alpha who knows what they need. ”
We’re all silenced. Muted. Atlas’ jaw hangs open, his fork clattering to the plate with a mumbled curse. He and I grew up in big packs, the rest with various configurations of family; it’s almost unheard of to be raised by a single Alpha/Omega pair unless there’s been losses in the pack already.
“So hi, I’m Skye, I’m a wolf who has no idea what that means except for inappropriate howling, extreme heats, and I would really rather not stick around to be used, so if I could leave, that would be great!”
I don’t think she could have shocked us anymore had she pulled out a lute and played the chicken dance naked.
“But you’re our scent match.” Atlas is a sweet man, but I do wonder whether you could hear his brain cell rattling if he knocks his head. “I don’t want you to leave.”
“Pretty girl,” Clay steps in, a voice of reason as he sets his plate on the table, “Whatever ideas you have about packs, or Alphas from the asshole you call a father—you leave them all at the door out there, you hear me?” She nods at him, her scent souring at his tone, “Now listen here. We don’t want to imprison you.
An Omega is a goddamn gift to a pack, and a scent match even more.
The goddess must have been smiling down on us when you walked your pretty little behind into the bar last week and nearly had Fury begging on his knees to bring you home there and then. ”
Submissive, she dips her chin, looking away even as a smile cracks out.
My cat purrs in delight, wondering if we could get that same response, but I smother him, reminding him of the pain and worry.
Maybe this time… No, I can’t put myself through it again, and it might truly kill me to lose a scent match.
“You want to lie about all day like a pampered pup in the nest? That’s fine,” He raises a hand to her sound of annoyance, “You want to travel the world and eat weird fish soup in Iceland, or go snorkeling in the Bahamas? I’m sure at least one of us will be up for a holiday, though leave me out of any fish soup trips.
And if you want to get us all lovin’ you, then break our hearts at the end of the month?
Sure. Though I’d really rather you didn’t do that, darlin’,” he winks, his thicker accent pulling through.
Bile rises in my throat, and I stand abruptly, nearly dropping my food, “I’m going to eat in the sunroom.”
“Luc, c’mon, dude,” Atlas tugs at my pants, and I scowl, batting his hand away, “She’s yours as much as the rest of us.”
“That’s the problem!” I finally explode.
The outburst feels good, my melting pot of emotions bubbling over, and Atlas shrinks away from me.
It hurts to see that my claws have nicked his hand, blood trickling as he holds it.
“Caralho! She’s been here not even two hours, and you’re all falling already.
Can’t you see how dangerous this is? She’s already run once.
Who will pick up the pieces when she leaves?
When she rejects the bonds? What happens if she runs into Brynn on one of her escapades?
It’ll be us. We’ll all have to tape together the pieces of our shattered souls, and I… I can’t do it again.”
“Sit.” For the third time tonight, my Cardinal barks an order at me, and I sit down so fast that hot pasta tips across my belly, ruining my shirt and burning.
Fury glares for a minute, and I know he’s punishing me with it before Clay tosses me his shirt, leaving him bare-chested and pulling a blanket up over himself instead.
Fury turns to her, a wicked glint in his blue gaze, “Do you want to know what it’s like to be with us?
” Fear strikes through the woman, ducking into herself again.
Softening, Fury reaches out with a large hand, “You can say stop at any point, and I promise we’ll listen.
We don’t want you here just to lock you up and abuse you, Firecracker.
We want our Omega to hold her own, to fire right back; we want to give her the world.
Will you let me give you just a taste of it? ”
Watching her pull herself together is like one of those satisfying time-lapse jigsaw building videos. I can see the exact moment that she thinks about his words, and when she decides to pull herself together, she lets the blanket drop ever so slightly and reveals a chest I could suffocate in.
“Okay… Show me.”