Pack Owned (Love Knot War #2)

Prologue

PROLOGUE

KAYLA

E ighteen years of just being ‘Kayla’ and bam, my boobs are finally here. I push out my chest as I examine myself in the mirror. Too bad I can’t date yet or ever. In my world, being an Omega means my dating app is set to ‘nope,’ my choices aren’t really mine, and my ‘firsts’ are locked down tighter than my diary.

Yeah, it’s like living in one of those old bird cages—pretty to look at but not much room to fly. No prom night shenanigans for me. No making out under the bleachers. The closest I get to prom is bingeing on those flashy dance videos, the ones where everyone’s dressed like they’re about to hit the red carpet instead of the school gym.

I wrestle into my jeans and think about those thongs tucked away at the back of the drawer—they might as well be unicorn fur for all the action they’re seeing.

Trying to fake happiness, but my heart’s just not in it. Dad’s gone, and he’s left a dad-shaped hole in everything. Twelve years and it still feels like yesterday.

“Hurry up, Kayla,” my mom calls from the kitchen. “Gary’s going to be here any minute.” Because of this new guy, Mom’s all about the Gary Show today. You’d think he was the second coming the way she’s fussing and fluffing up the place. I keep my feelings on mute; skepticism is my favorite hoodie—comfy and always in season.

I nearly collide with Mom, who is brushing her fingers through her brown hair that’s tinged with gray. She’s still young and looks beautiful. The gray hair started when Dad died. I remember him with tubes in the hospital bed, the smell of ammonia strong, the machine that kept breathing for him, and the beep-beep-beep of his heart that got slower and slower. I swear, sometimes I hear that sound at night before I fall asleep, and I like to think it’s Dad telling me goodnight.

For years, Mom would cry alone in her room. Finally, when I turned thirteen, I got the courage to ask why she constantly said it was her fault he died. I couldn’t stand to see her misery. So, with my encouragement, she started dating. None of them worked out, and I could tell the losers from the good ones within the first week of her dating them. But I hadn’t met Gary, so I was trying to push down my apprehension for her sake.

“You’re wearing that?” Mom scoffs. “What about a nice dress? Like the one I bought you for your birthday.”

“We’re not going to church. He’s just moving in. He’ll see me in clothes all the time like this.” Last month, she went to Vegas with him, and they got married. My frustration flared then, a hot, quick flame, but it’s since simmered down.

Gary, an Alpha, lived in California, and I had to be impressed that he would leave his job and pack up everything to move here. That’s gotta count for something. Most men, including Betas, would’ve insisted we go to him.

So, I plaster a smile on my face that’s easier than I thought it would be because Mom’s energy is on cloud nine.

“There he is.” She practically squeaks like a girl my age and pulls back from the window. “How do I look?”

Her dress, white with yellow rosebuds, flows down to her knees and flares out around her hips. She’s glowing, and I hug her.

“You look amazing and totally hot.”

Pink dots her cheeks, and she nods her head before opening the door.

“Gary,” she breathes out like a prayer.

“Hey, beautiful.” He crosses the threshold and hauls her into his arms, swinging her around, and her laughter fills our home.

Caught up in Mom’s excitement, I let out a happy sigh. I’d been worried before she came home from her trip to Vegas to tell me she’d gotten married.

My stay with Danica had been the whole week while Mom was gone. I told my friend I was sure she’d come home and say she couldn’t stand Gary. That she was moving on to another guy. None of them had even come close to filling the void in my mom’s heart from Dad.

Seeing them together, a fraction of the tension around my chest loosened.

“Put me down.” She slaps his shoulder, and he straightens. “I’ve got dinner in the oven. Are you hungry?”

“Starving,” he answers, winking. “How about you check on the food, and I’ll meet your daughter… Kayla wasn’t it?”

“Oh, yes, sorry.” She tucks her hair behind her ear and motions to me. “Kayla, come and meet Gary.”

“Nice to meet you.” He beams, oozing with charm. “Your mom has told me so much about you.”

I force a smile. “Hey.” My hand is in his before I really decide it should be. His grip is solid, and as his eyes dart from Mom’s bright face to mine, there’s a split-second glitch in his smile, like a crack in the smooth facade before he’s all gleaming teeth again.

A chill dances down my back. Weird. His vibe has my insides knotting up, and I can’t shake the feeling that there’s something more behind that smile, something not quite... right.

M y instincts were right about Gary. The last couple of months have been like dodging landmines in my own home. Gary’s every footstep is a thunderclap, signaling my need to become invisible or at least try to. I retreat to Dad’s old office and hope Gary doesn’t come looking for me.

Yet the sickening, familiar stomp of boots approaches my door and echoes through me. I scoot further under the desk in the office, my father’s desk, silently wishing that he could somehow protect me from the grave.

I press my back against the cool, dusty back of the desk as Gary throws the door wide, causing the hinges to creak in protest. The last few times he groped me, I fought back. My nose still stings when I breathe in too deeply.

Harsh light spills in from the hallway light, cutting through the dark of the office. I hold my breath, hoping with everything in me that he won’t see me huddled under the desk.

“Come out, little Omega,” he laughs, and my skin crawls. I hate that I’m an Omega. Hate that I’ll be shipped away from Mom whenever my heat comes. And there’s no way to know if it will happen soon or years from now.

His shadow stretches over the desk, and I feel like I’m smothering in the small space. The thud of his pacing, his footsteps drawing closer, freezes the air in my lungs.

Then he stops. Silence. My ears ring, and I break out in a cold sweat.

I don’t dare move or breathe or make a sound. Please, go away. Don’t find me. I clench the stapler in my fist, not that it will do any good since he’s stronger than me. My heart hammers in my chest, and I’m sure it’s so loud, he can hear it.

Then the chair shrieks across the floor as he replaces it with his body. His beady eyes stare straight at me, and I can’t breathe.

“Kayla,” he booms, and I jump, my head hitting the top of the desk. “Come out now, girl.”

I try to melt into the wall as his sweaty body leans deeper into my hiding space. My hand shakes as I try to throw the stapler, but he catches it, slamming it against my shin. I scream. I swallow bile, resisting the urge to vomit as pain radiates up my leg.

“Stupid bitch,” he mutters, grabbing my wrist. My elbow hits against the wood as he yanks me out. I cry out, fresh pain shooting up my arm. He pulls me up from the floor, fingers digging into my flesh. Tears well as I meet his scowl, and he gives me a harsh tug. I whimper, trying to twist free.

The front door of the house bursts open, and I flinch as Mom enters.

“Remember, you say a word, and I’ll hurt her, too.” Then, his face morphs into a mask. “Teresa, we’re in the office,” he announces and drops his hand from my arm.

“What’s going on?” Her footsteps quicken, and my heart squeezes so hard, I place a hand on my chest. “Kayla?” she asks from the doorway, and I can feel her stare.

I avoid Mom’s gaze, afraid she’ll see the truth in my eyes.

“It’s no big deal.” I try to make my voice steady. “I-I slammed my leg into the corner of the desk. Um…Gary heard me cry out and came to help me.” The lie chokes me, but I get the words out.

“Clumsy is a sign of Omegas.” Gary shakes his head. “I was fixing to take her to the couch and get her some ice.”

Mom smiles as she and Gary both help me to the couch in the living room.

“My sweet girl, be more careful.” She sits beside me, smoothing my hair in that gentle way only a mother can. Looking between us, her smile grows. “We’re a family again. Isn’t it wonderful?”

I nod mutely, hating myself. She hasn’t smiled this much since Daddy died. I’ve got to stick it out, not just because breaking Mom’s heart isn’t on my to-do list, but because, as an Omega, the rules are clear—no stepping out alone. We have to be with a parent before our first heat until we find our Alphas.

The city might as well be a minefield for someone like me. So, I swallow the unease that bubbles up every time he’s too close.

“Well, I’ll start dinner.” Mom stands and goes off to play chef and I get a whiff of her perfume that used to feel like a hug. Now? It’s more like a chokehold.

Gary sits heavily on the couch, too close, reeking of stale beer.

“I haven’t had a good cooked meal since my Emily died.” His voice catches, but it sounds forced. “My beautiful Omega.” Something he and Mom apparently have in common—both losing a spouse.

Despite myself, I ask, “What happened?”

“Rival Alphas.” He took a swig of his beer. “They couldn’t believe she was mine. So beautiful, but not as amazing as your mom,” he adds loudly.

“Oh, Gary.” Mom blushes and brings him a jar to open. I know Alphas and Betas marry all the time, but why wouldn’t he try to find another?

Guilt gnaws at me because I can’t burst the happy tide Mom’s floating in. I mean, break her heart? That’s a hard pass.

But as an Omega, I’m playing by a rulebook I never signed up for. Flying solo’s not an option unless I fancy a stroll through danger central and get fined or worse for being out unchaperoned.

Yet, I long for freedom, especially with Gary crowding me on the couch and looking at me in a way that makes my skin crawl.

I need Mom to see, really see, what’s going on, but how do I tell her that her slice of bliss might be my personal nightmare? It’s a mental tug-of-war, and I’m the rope.

Or maybe I’m just paranoid. Reading into his over-friendliness. I am trying not to squirm away or gag from the smell.

His hand rests on my knee, squeezing in warning. “We’ll continue this later,” he threatens.

Revulsion twists my gut. I leap up, dashing to the bathroom, just as the vomit hits my tongue.