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I huff a breath and adjust the collar on my shirt. Raising my hand, I knock on the door. “Kinsey, it’s me. I wanted to see if you’d work out with me or something. It might help. Or we could go to the library. Go swimming. You name it. I want to give you a tour of the palace.”
I listen as Kinsey crosses the room, the soft shuffle of her feet agonizingly slow. I can smell her scent, the sweetness of marshmallows exciting me in a way that I can’t control. God, I need to stop thinking about our moment together and how wet she was. How much she desired me, and how incredible her touch was as she explored my body.
The door cracks open, and Kinsey greets me with a beautiful smile. It feels as if it’s just for me. I wish she would do it more often, but this is the first one I’ve seen unprovoked by me trying to tease her or feed her.
“Are you sure it’s okay for me to leave my room? Wilder sounded annoyed.” Kinsey looks past me, peeking into the hallway. “I feel like he’s waiting to corner me at any second.”
I step back, letting her exit her room and into the hallway. “I sent him out. It’ll be at least a couple of hours before he comes sniffing around.”
“Good. He’s driving me crazy.” Kinsey ruffles her fingers through her dark hair, sending her scent wafting toward me.
Wilder says the same thing about Kinsey. So do Enzo and Desmond. They aren’t as closed off to their senses and emotions as I am. I’ve been constantly working on it my entire life, knowing that I would be at an advantage if I learned to ignore everything that triggers me. I even sometimes dab a fragrance under my nose to help with the pheromones constantly battling against mine, especially with Kinsey here. Things have gotten more intense. It’s what happens when an unbonded, unrelated omega enters our home. Anyone’s home really.
Which is why I think getting the suppressant pills will help. We can do it for Holly, but if things keep growing more intense with Kinsey, maybe she will want them again.
I frown at the thought. I’d prefer she didn’t try to suppress her order. She is incredible as she is, my attraction to her is strong but manageable. She shouldn’t have to hide who she is with us. I’d understand if she wants to but...I shake the thought away.
“That makes all of us,” I say, reaching out to graze my fingers across her shoulder. She’s freshly showered and untainted by any of my brothers, and I just want to know what it’s like for my scent to mingle with hers all over again.
But I must resist.
Kinsey laughs and whips her head back and forth, the musical sound of her voice stirring something wild inside me. “I can tell. I’m pretty sure Wilder’s touching everything he can just so I don’t forget he’s lurking. He even touched you.”
Goddamn it. I’m so used to him being around that I didn’t realize why he was here, wanting to suddenly talk when he knew I was going to try to get Kinsey out of her room. I know exactly when he did it. He smacked my cheek, turning this into another damn pissing match for power and recognition, considering Kinsey won’t give him the time he refuses to admit he wants.
Kinsey pulls at the hem of her shirt and stretches it up, wiping it across my face. “Here, I’ll help you out.”
My eyes break from hers, and I glimpse down at her exposed perky tits in the slightly sheer bra. Desire squeezes my balls, the sight of her being the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen. She’s unintentionally—or maybe purposefully—scenting me. I want more. Need more. Her closeness does indescribable and unexpected things to me. I never expected to be so attracted to an omega, especially one not picked out for me. Relationships have never been a priority since it’s forbidden under my father’s reign to be anything except casual. Kinsey is different. I can’t imagine anything purely casual. I’m far too invested in her. She’s perfect.
Giggling, she catches me staring. Blush tints her cheeks, yet she doesn’t cover up quickly. She sucks her bottom lip into her mouth, her desire growing stronger. I wonder if she considers our moment. If she wants to push me until I get on my knees for her.
“I can’t smell him anymore. Just you. But let me make sure his scent doesn’t return.” Bringing her hand up next, she rubs her palm across my skin. Fuck, it was purposeful. The little tease. “Much better. You’ll have to let me into his room to touch his shit as payback. I think that’s what I want to do now. What do you think? Are you willing to risk it, because I am?”
I chuckle, already hearing Wilder swear to the sun and back. She truly does want to torture him, and usually, I’d be all over it, but she underestimates his intentions. He’d love it. He’d just never admit to it. “And give him that kind of satisfaction? Fuck no. I know he fights his attraction to you. You’d just be rewarding him for his dickish attitude. It’s why he won’t give you your belongings. It’s the only thing he can get close to without getting punched in the nuts.”
She rolls her eyes at me, puffing a breath. She doesn’t see what we see. “Attracted to me? Hardly. All I ever sense is his anger and annoyance.”
I caress my thumb to her cheek, drawing a line down her jaw and neck. She doesn’t stop me, stepping closer to press her face more firmly to my hand, the act enough to excite me about her craving my touch.
“It’s basically indistinguishable with him. He’s a moody bastard.” I dart my gaze down to her lips, thinking about how soft and sweet they felt against mine.
She shivers under my exploration of her neck, finally reaching up to stop me, linking our fingers together. “If he were really attracted to me, I’d know.”
Wilder is a much better actor than any of us, but I know my brother. He’ll be jerking off the moment he is alone, his face buried in whatever fucking thing Kinsey touches. And after his uncalled-for behavior, the last thing I need is for him to start thinking he has a chance with her. Omegas only go out of their way to leave their scent when they see potential. If Kinsey recognizes it, then she obviously has convinced herself otherwise. It’s not her fault, though. He is a strong, loyal man.
“Whatever you say, sugar. Just be mindful around Wilder. He is far more...aggressive? It’s hard to explain. He has lived his life with different expectations. He carries the stress of our kingdom on his back, because if we fail to properly take the throne, we’ll have far worse problems. It’s why we need to ensure Holly’s safety in case.” I don’t want to get into more details and scare Kinsey, but our father believes Holly is dead. He was the only one who could arrange a bonding with another pack, and he chose wrong, which is why we did what we did. If we can’t throw him out of power the right way, Holly needs to be able to escape. She needs to be able to make it on her own. She needs someone who can help her. Kinsey is that someone. It was as if fate put her in our path for a reason, and I’ll spend forever thanking her for being our saving grace. Fate might destroy us otherwise. We can’t turn our back on such a gift of a woman.
“If you don’t want me to mess with Wilder’s belongings, then I’d like to formally meet your sister.” Kinsey swivels on her feet, peering around. “I think that’s what I’d like to do with my time. I need to see if the task you guys want is actually possible. I got lucky passing as a beta. I knew how things worked. If you’ve sheltered Holly all her life, it’s going to be a huge wake-up call to her.”
“Oh.” I swallow, trying not to react toward the truth of her words.
She’s absolutely right about my sister. Holly has never strayed far from our father’s royal fortress. When we manifested our orders, the king pushed us out, which is why we live separate from him in this palace on the edge of our kingdom. He didn’t want to risk us realizing just how bad of a person he was. He tried to give Holly away without even telling us. She managed to run away from him, and that’s when we decided what had to be done.
It was dangerous, but we had to make Holly’s death look real. She has the scars to prove it. We did things I never expected we’d have to do, but it was the only way. We needed a body. We needed concrete evidence that Holly left this life. Finding someone to match her took searching every damn hospital and morgue in all of Saint Vista for a beta with bad luck.
I shudder at the memory, pushing it away. Wilder will never forgive himself for what he thought he had to do, begging the sick woman for help with her sacrifice. If Kinsey knew, she’d probably look at us all as monsters.
Or maybe not. Kinsey might be a monster too. I’ve seen the reports. I know what happened to her pack, and some suspect that she was the one responsible. The murder-suicide was all too convenient, considering everything would be left to her. That’s the only way an omega keeps their pack rights.
