AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I hate that I make that noise, but it’s physically impossible to stop it.
He lunges and I shriek, pushing back my chair, but not fast enough. It clatters to the floor. His big hand catches my wrist, squeezes until my bones creak and I cry out.
“Let her go!” Jackson’s alpha bark ripples over me and my omega whines again, wanting to do what he asked. Only I can’t because I’m trapped, trapped, trapped.
Mr. Werth doesn’t so much as flinch. Of course he doesn’t. Hands brace me, curl over my shoulders and arms, someone reaches for the fingers manacling my wrist, trying to get their grip to loosen.
“Dad!” Davis shouts. “Let her the fuck go. Jesus, you’re going to break her wrist in front of twenty fucking people. Witnesses. An omega.”
Something about what Davis says must get through. Or maybe it’s the excited whispers from the other guests that does it. Or the quietly sobbing woman in the chair next to me. But Harry Werth, the second alpha of the elder Werth pack, moves forward, claps his hand on Mr. Werth’s shoulder and squeezes. “Let her go, Maxim.”
The vise-like grip loosens, then falls away all together. As soon as I’m free, Asher scoops me into his arms, cradling me against his chest before he takes a step away from the table. Four bodies step between us and the elder Werth pack.
Asher dips his neck, bringing my face closer to his skin so I can inhale deep breaths of his sweet apple scent, tinged just lightly with smoke. It helps somewhat, but he’s also still pumping out a lot of ‘I’ll kill anyone who gets too close’ pheromones.
“It’s okay, angel,” he murmurs. “We’ve got you. We’ve got you.”
I nod against his shoulder, burying my face against his skin. God, I can’t look around. Can’t see all the same faces watching me now that watched my meltdown seven years ago.
It all comes full circle.
I wonder how long it will take for someone to leak this to the gossip column. I can see it. A ‘where are they now?’, where they put a picture of me as a heart broken seventeen-year-old alongside one of me now smacking one of the arguably most powerful Alphas in the city in the face.
It’ll sell like freaking hotcakes.
“Ash,” Ford’s voice is thick with the promise of violence. “Get her out of here.”
“What?” I lift my head and find him, his green eyes focused not on me but on Mr. Werth, with his hands fisted at his side. “No, come with us.” I reach out, and then wince, because I used my throbbing arm without even freaking thinking about it.
“Guys, please.”
“Asher.” Jackson orders without actually ordering and a second later, we’re moving. My quiet alpha tucks my head back into his neck, moving silently through the room, until I’m blasted with chilly fresh air.
“We can’t leave,” I murmur. “They need to come with us.”
His lips press into the top of my head. “They will, angel. We’re just going to the car. We’ll wait for them, okay?”
I want to protest, more than a little concerned about what the hell they might do. I know they won’t kill him. He’s still Davis and Jackson’s father, after all. But I’m not sure they can afford to burn bridges with their family.
Asher’s dress shoes crunch over the gravel drive, and then he slides into the middle row of seats of the giant car we came in together. I expect him to set me down now that we’re safely away, but he keeps me in his arms, on his thick thighs. One of his hands smooths from the base of my neck down to the swell of my butt and back up, over and over as I take deep inhales of his scent.
When I’ve stopped trembling, he murmurs into my hair, “what did he say to you?”
I sigh, and his fingers tighten on the back of my neck, almost reflexively. “He asked how many heats I’ve had.” My face flames again with renewed embarrassment. “He wanted the names of the alphas who helped me through them. I think he wanted to talk to them, to verify I’m not lying.”
I lift my head to meet his dark eyes, hoping he can see the truth in them. “I’m not lying, Ash. I swear.”
His fingers pinch my chin gently as he holds me in place, leaning in until his soft mouth brushes mine. “I know, angel.” A second kiss, the barest of touches. “We can feel it. You’re our omega. Always have been, always will be.”
The tight knot in my chest unfurls with his words. I hadn’t realized just how worried I was about that, about them possibly not believing me. I know an easy way to prove I am indeed an omega would be to stop taking my suppressants. My doctor has been telling me I need to for years, but I’m terrified of the effect that will have on my RMD. What if I stop taking the suppressants and I stop being able to function like a normal human?
More than that, what if the Werth Pack breaks my heart while I’m off them again? It’ll kill me. I have no doubt about that.
“Is this real?” I ask softly.
Asher’s brows furrow as his dark eyes scan over my face, like he’s trying to figure out what exactly I mean by that. I’m not sure I know myself, so I try to explain. “Is this, what’s between us, between all of us, real? Am I really your omega and are you really my alpha? Do you really promise to not break my heart again? Is this… thing we’re building again real?”
His fingers tighten on my neck as he leans his forehead against mine. “Its real, angel, I promise. I know we messed up before. We hurt you so fucking much. I can’t promise that we’ll be perfect. We’ll make mistakes again, I’m sure of it.” I snort out a half laugh, because he’s not wrong. He smiles softly. “But I can promise you we’re not going anywhere. As soon as you say the word, we’re going to bite you, bond you, mate you. And then you’ll really never be rid of us.”
