Inhaling the slightly sweet scent I recognized as Daniel, I sidled closer to him as we sat on the edge of the bed. My mind was foggy, and I could barely make sense of what was going on, let alone whose room I was in, but his presence calmed me. I couldn’t explain it, but being near him soothed my tension, even if I didn’t understand what was happening.
“Why do you smell like chocolate? And why do I feel so spaced out?” I finally asked in a sleepy voice so soft, I thought he might not hear me.
“I didn’t know I did.” Twisting to look at me, putting his hand on my arm. Warmth spread over my skin, so serene, I knew if I closed my eyes, I’d drift right to sleep. “But my touch has the ability to soothe those I’m connected to in my pack, and it seems, with you as well.”
Blinking up at him, I stared into his deep mocha eyes, long lashes that should be illegal on a guy, and high cheekbones. Everything about him was adorable in that cute, boy-next-door look that made you want to listen to him talk for hours.
“Is that why I don’t feel scared, even though I know you and those Alphas kidnapped me?”
“Is that what you call it?” He tilted his head to the side. “Not us saving you?”
I waited for him to say more, but when he didn’t, I shook my head, needing to clear the haze in my mind. It was a strange sensation to know I was in so much trouble yet was calm about it.
Pouting, I leaned against him and inhaled his delicious scent. He smelled like the finest piece of candy I’d ever had the good fortune to eat. Not able to help myself, I pressed closer to him, my lips on his arm—I couldn’t get enough.
“That’s far enough, Trinity,” he groaned and got up, breaking away from me. “You aren’t my Omega, and I’m a Beta. Until the Alphas work out a plan, you can’t touch me like that.”
A flare of coldness swept over me, the calmness from earlier fizzling. It didn’t all vanish, but enough to remind me I was in my kidnappers’ home. With it came the terror that I might end up dying here. Omegas were stolen all the time, then killed. The gravity of my situation came at me like a freight train.
I scrambled back over the bed, needing to put distance between Daniel and me. Even as he stared at me with those huge sad puppy eyes at my reaction, fear swallowed me. My stomach trembled, releasing a growl, and I hugged my middle as a pinching ache swept through my insides.
“What are you all going to do with me? I need to leave. My friends will be worried sick.”
Everything cleared up in my mind—being stolen from the ball by three Alphas and their Beta, Daniel, the aching pain that lingered deep in my gut, not to mention how wet I’d been yesterday when they took me to their car. I had passed out the moment I hit the bed, and I now realized it had everything to do with Daniel’s calming nature. A gnawing worry started at the back of my head that he had such influence over me.
“We will not hurt you, Trinity.” He sighed and stuffed his hands into the pockets of his cargo pants. “You’re safe here, and for your own protection, you can’t leave.”
I gasped out loud. “So, I’m your prisoner?” Another shot of pain roared like a beast across my stomach, and I clutched it, unsure what was going on with me.
“I’d rather call you a guest.”
“Are you trying to be funny?” I shot, cutting a sharp stare at him. I might have laughed if I had the energy.
Daniel chuckled loudly.
“Trinity, you need to calm down, and I think some food will help. I’ll be back in twenty minutes.”
Shaking, I just stood there, watching him leave the room. The click of the door lock sounded, and I made a strangled laughing sound.
“Yeah, right, a guest locked in her room.” Rushing to the window, I peeled back the lace curtain and found it was morning. I’d slept through the night. Bruised clouds crowded the sky. A savage bolt forked across the heavens, and the first droplets of rain tapped on the window.
Below, the gravel driveway curved away from the house and through an oversized yard peppered with trees and ended at lofty iron gates. Huge stone walls surrounded the property, which looked difficult to scale. Whatever was going on with this pack, they were well guarded by the looks of the security cameras.
Drawing back from the window, the shuffle of my dress had me realizing I still wore my ballgown. It reminded me of my friends, and I wondered if they were alright. They would be worried about me vanishing, not to mention Ms. Bakewell would go ballistic and grill everyone at the Institute about my whereabouts.
I swallowed hard, knowing I got my friends in trouble, but I also wondered if Adella and Charity found Frannie at the Glass Slipper Ball. After everything I’d gone through, I hoped they at least made my pain worth it.
With my bladder squeezing, I scanned the room desperately, sighing with relief when I eyed the second door, which turned out to be a bathroom. Small with only a shower and toilet, it would do. Trying to use the bathroom in a long dress proved difficult, but I managed. The boning was digging into my ribs in a variety of places, so I wiggled my way out of it and jumped into the shower to clear my head.
The shower soothed the itching on my skin but did little to ease how hot I felt. I only noticed the fever once the water seemed to steam off my skin. Once I finished, I swiped at the mirror over the sink. When I saw that all of my hair had turned pink, I gasped and pawed at myself.
I whined, completely devastated that I had become a true Omega. Everything I’d planned—traveling, getting a job, being semi-normal—were all out of the picture now.
I suspected the severity of my sickness last night was just the beginning of what was coming my way. That part scared me because I really didn’t know what to expect. I kept rubbing the goosebumps out of my arms.
Gaping at my image, I wondered if this was how Frannie had felt when her hair turned sapphire blue in a matter of hours. Frannie was sweet, funny, and always ready to laugh, but she’d been in tears that day. Nothing we’d done could soothe her, and once Ms. Bakewell found out Frannie’s hair had changed, she’d rushed to take her away. The last words we heard from Frannie was that she’d call us.
I’d known something was wrong when we never heard from her.
“I’ve got raspberry Danishes, French Toast, and pancakes for you, Trinity,” Daniel called from the bedroom, causing me to flinch. Frantically, I grabbed the white, threadbare bathrobe hanging on the back of the door and wrapped it around me before I walked out.
He placed a heavy silver platter full of food on the side table.
“Oh, I won’t be able to eat all that.” Going to the bed, I pulled the downy duvet around me. I looked at the orange juice and coffee, suddenly thirsty, and my heart melted. I wasn’t sure why since it wasn’t as if Daniel knew I was sick to death of drinking water, which was all we were permitted to drink at the Institute.
“I wasn’t sure what you’d want, so I brought a few things. I’ll eat what you don’t want. I got you some clothes, too.” He pointed at the soft flannel pants and t-shirt on the bed. “It’s all we have that might fit you.” He’d showered and changed into fresh blue jeans and a white short-sleeved Henley. It suited him.
“That’s fine,” I blurted. When he made no move to leave the room, I grabbed the clothes and went to the bathroom to change.
“How are you feeling?” Daniel asked after I’d come back and settled down to drink a cup of coffee. There was a carafe filled with more, and I planned on having a second cup once I finished the first one.
“Tired. Stressed. Feverish. Guess how any prisoner would feel.” I moved my shoulders and my neck, feeling the ache of stiffness there.
“The soreness in your body is the onset of your heat, and you’re not a prisoner, Trinity.”
“Is that why you locked my door when you left?” I huffed.
“It’s just a small precaution until we gauge how quickly your heat is coming on.” His mouth tightened at the corners, and his breathing deepened.
“A precaution for whom?” I narrowed my gaze on this man who kept his voice calm, who showed me nothing but tenderness, yet I was crushed by my situation.
“For you and the three Alpha Lords of this mansion. When your heat flares, they won’t be able to control themselves around you, and neither will you, but they gave you their word that you’d be safe here. So for now, distance will help everyone.”
The dull thump of my heart escalated at how casually he spoke about a life-changing event. It didn’t help that I knew so little about Omegas.
Talking about going into heat had my heart pulsing faster. For so long, I prayed I wouldn’t change, and now I felt cornered, with no option but to face it with these Alphas. Looking around, the room felt like a huge cavern, and my eyes felt as though they were bouncing around in my head. I put my hand down on the bed to steady myself.
“What’s happening?” Daniel asked.
“Just a little dizzy. Can you shut the curtains? My head’s beginning to hurt.” I blinked at the bright light, overpowered by the strong rays of sunshine beaming through.
“Sure. I think this is another phase of your heat. The room feels too big, right?” Daniel asked as he came back from closing the curtains. The sudden gloom was a physical relief to my eyes and skin.
“Yes, way too big.” I looked at the food, not wanting him to know my head hurt so much, I felt ill. The ache waned, so I picked up a Danish. “I know nothing about being an Omega,” I murmured, feeling stupid for not even knowing what I was.
“Pardon?” Daniel asked, his fork full of pancake paused between his plate and his mouth.
“I know nothing about being an Omega,” I repeated, not sure what else to say. “I wasn’t raised in a place where you could learn about it. We were kept in the dark.”
Daniel frowned. “Where were you raised?”
I looked at him, suddenly worried he’d take me back to the Bakewell Institute for Girls. Part of me wanted to escape this room and those Alphas downstairs who wanted to ravage me, but another part of me didn’t want to leave. That part was afraid of Ms. Bakewell’s wrath when she figured out I’d disappeared and afraid of going through a heat without a male. I’d heard that was hell, and the only relief to be found was mating with an Alpha.
So, if I returned, was I exchanging one devil for another? So far, these Alphas hadn’t hurt me.
The voice at the back of my head oddly sounded like Charity when she spoke about knotting back at the Glass Slipper Ball. It sounded like something she’d be quick to point out. That made me smile.
“What are you thinking about that makes you smile?” Daniel let his first question go, and I was glad he did.
“Just about a friend of mine,” I hedged, a little nervous around him. “Did you check up on if they were alright at the ball?”
He gave a weak nod, his eyes lowering to his plate. “I returned to the ball, but I couldn’t find your friends.”
My gut twisted. “Maybe I can use your phone to call them?”
Something flared over his face… a panicked expression. He took another mouthful of pancake and shook his head. Right, I was a stolen Omega, so they’d be worried about being caught. I clenched my jaw.
“So, how long will I be locked up for? Am I staying here until I pass my heat? I mean, I may not know much about Omegas, but I know they’re rare, and stealing is heavily punished.”
I watched his face for any reaction. I didn’t know these men, didn’t know if they’d use me and throw me away as Viper had suggested. We all knew the penalties for stealing Omegas, even Ms. Bakewell had allowed us that knowledge, but I wasn’t worried about that, either. What I was worried about was what would happen to me if they knew I was supposed to end up in the slave market. Would they sell me after they got what they wanted?
“I’ll be honest with you, Trinity. We weren’t planning to bring home an Omega last night. And you probably already have a family looking for you, ready to match you with another Alpha.” His soft stare hardened, almost turning to pain. It made me realize he wasn’t telling me everything. And how the hell was he so calm when they were in huge shit if busted. I worried more about my situation… and how I’d get out.
I started shaking again, like a trapped animal. I got up to pace, scared I wouldn’t be able to escape if I was going into heat. My fever spiked as I walked, leaving me in a cold sweat. Daniel finished his breakfast as he watched me. When he saw the sweat on my skin, he walked over to me.
“You’re burning up. Get back in bed. Do you want me to bring the Alphas to you? They could help, but you must also be prepared for what your connection with them might result in.”
Sex.
He didn’t need to say the word, but it hung in the air between us.
Fire burned across me, spreading from my cheeks to my chest and lower. I wanted to ask for the Alphas to see if that would indeed put out the flames, but the words froze, locked so tight in my throat, I could barely breathe.
So, I shook my head. Thinking about Viper in the car, the venom in his voice when he demanded that they get rid of me left me whining internally. Was I safe around him? My eyes pricked from fear, the fire inside me, and the throbbing emotions that were going unexplainably haywire.
“What the fuck is wrong with me?” I blurted.
“It’s just the heat cycle, Trinity. It’ll be okay. I swear. Let me get you some painkillers. I won’t be long.”
Tears streamed down my face. I shook with sobs as my body kicked into overdrive. It wanted the men desperately, wanted Daniel as well, but that wasn’t what I wanted. I needed this all to stop—yearned for the shivering cold deep inside of me to end, to stop thinking about stripping the Alphas down to their bare skin and licking every inch of them. I wanted to stop imagining what it would be like to climb onto them and press myself against them. I definitely didn’t want thoughts of that growly jerk, Viper, spanking me before he licked me in places no man had ever touched. A scream pressed on the back of my throat, and a pitiful confusion battled in my head.
Returning, Daniel drew me into his arms and handed me the painkillers. “These will help.”
Instantly, his presence soothed me. Clutching the pills, I lifted my neck to his lips, wanting something but unsure of what it was. I just wanted it all to end… no matter what it took to make that happen.
Daniel’s delicious scent brought urges to life I didn’t know Omegas could have for Betas. But then, what did I actually know about being an Omega? Ms. Bakewell had educated us in the basics—math, reading, science, and housekeeping to keep us in the dark while she controlled us as slaves. I didn’t know a lot outside of rumors about the heat cycle or about anything, really.
“I can’t do that, Trinity. It’s forbidden and I’m already spoken for.” His voice was breathy. Even if he pushed me away, his flushed face and the tenting in his pants told me a different story. “Let me get Thelma, Shadow’s grandma. She’ll know what to do.” Daniel retreated quickly, leaving me alone once more.
Collapsing on the bed, I curled in on myself.
New images assailed me, flooding my mind with sexual pictures I couldn’t quite figure out. Writhing on the bed as slick ran between my thighs, I screamed as the next phase of hell began.
