3. Ozren

3

Ozren

I 've never seen Harrison like this. He's calmed down, but only externally. He's like a ticking bomb ready to go off again if pushed too hard.

When I saw Daniel chasing Meggie, I wanted to beat the fucker senseless just as much as Harrison did, but I won't let another brother go to jail. Meggie needs us. She needs Harrison, even if he's got his head up his ass and refuses to see it right now.

Thankfully, Daniel's house is empty when we drag him inside. Meggie tells us he has roommates, but they must be out. Hopefully, they'll fucking stay that way.

Dante and I prop Daniel up on the couch, sitting on either side of him, while Harrison sends the rest of the pack home with Meggie. She's pretty shaken up, and I wish like hell I could go with her, but right now, this is where I need to be. Someone's got to keep an eye on my pack mates. Harrison's barely containing himself. And even though Dante's anger is subtler, it's also darker.

Daniel blinks a few times and tries to stand, but Dante and I each grab an arm and jerk him back onto the couch. This will go easier for him if he doesn't try to fight or make a scene.

"Fucking assholes." He yanks his arms away hard enough for Dante to flinch, since he's holding Daniel with his bad arm. We should have switched sides, but it's too late now. I don't want to reveal any kind of weakness to Daniel by suggesting it.

Meggie's bastard ex uses his free hand to touch the bruising on his face. "I'm gonna call the cops. You're in so much fucking trouble."

Unfazed, Harrison sits in the armchair across from us, propping his elbows on his knees like a mob boss.

"Here's how this is going to go." His voice is lethal. "You're not going to tell anyone about Meggie being an omega or the real reason your face looks like shit." Harrison circles his finger in the air like he's outlining Daniel's messed up face. "And we won't tell anyone that you tried to kidnap an omega against her will."

"Like hell! Get out of my house!" Daniel tries to stand again, but he doesn't get anywhere.

"Do you know the penalty for kidnapping an omega?"

It's a rhetorical question. Everyone knows that you'll get life if you're convicted of kidnapping an omega. A lot worse than aggravated assault. Far worse than lying to the Olympic committee.

"You actually think anyone will believe you?" Daniel has the gall to laugh. "I'm the golden boy of swimming! All they'll know about her is that she lied about being an omega. No one will believe her if she says I tried to kidnap her. Especially since we have a well-documented past relationship. All I have to say is that she begged me to get back together with her," his voice contorts like he's mimicking some mockery of a female, " Please, Daniel, I never should have broken up with you. It was wrong of me to try to get into the Olympics. Take me, Daniel. Bond m— "

He doesn't make it any farther before Harrison is on his feet, and Dante's got his hand around the fucker's windpipe. I can't believe I'm the reasonable one here, but I know what jail is like. We have to be smart. We need to handle this carefully.

"We were all there," I say to Daniel. "We've got six witnesses who saw you trying to drag her into your house against her will."

"Yeah, but you're her teammates. Of course you'll lie for her. You're already lying for her, if you're really planning to take her to Paris."

Dante, Harrison, and I share looks across the room. He's not entirely wrong.

"It'll be even worse if you bond her," Daniel says. "Everyone knows alphas will do anything for their omega. The media will never believe you. And good luck finding a judge who will rule in your favor."

This bastard thinks just because he's some hot shot alpha Olympian with his face on a cereal box, he can do whatever the fuck he wants and get away with it. Maybe Dante was right. We should just throw him off a cliff.

Dante's still got his hand around the asshole's throat, and I can see the way his muscles flex as he tightens his grip, shutting Daniel up. Harrison crosses the room and sits down on the coffee table right in front of Daniel. His eyes are dark and menacing. There's so much alpha energy pouring off my pack alpha that even I want to cower from it. He stares Daniel down and the lesser man immediately looks away and recoils.

"Do you know who my parents are?" Harrison's voice has turned almost sweet, so calm it's terrifying.

Daniel tries to lift his head and meet Harrison's stare, but he only lifts his chin halfway. He manages more than most when he snaps through clenched teeth, "Why would I give a shit about your parents?"

"My mother is Charlotte Kay Hart."

His face pales. Everyone knows Charlotte Kay Hart. She's one of the top journalists in the nation and one of the most prominent proponents of omega rights. She's known for ripping apart reputations and bringing dark secrets to light. Her exposé on illegal omega trafficking overseas was so explosive it led to the resignation of a Prime Minister.

The public trusts her.

And Harrison avoids her like the plague.

I don't know the whole story, but I know things are rocky between him and his parents. They aren't estranged or anything as severe as that. But I think growing up with all the attention that came from being the son of Charlotte Kay Hart and two of the most powerful alphas in corporate industry, Brett and Cooper Hart, well, it did a number on Harrison. He doesn't call on them for help. Ever.

That he would consider going to his mom about this says everything about how much Meggie means to him.

"Now, I don't really want my mother digging into this anymore than you do," Harrison cracks his knuckles slowly. One by one. "It would put Meggie in the spotlight more than I'd like."

It would put all of us in the spotlight more than any of us would like.

"Even if she can't prove you did this," Harrison continues, "I'm sure there are plenty of other secrets a man like you wouldn't want Charlotte Kay Hart to find."

That woman could find dirt on the Pope if she set her mind to it.

Harrison leans forward until he's right in Daniel's face. "I'd rather deal with this my father's way."

"A-and what's that?" Daniel stutters.

Harrison just smiles.

***

"It's taken care of. He won't be a problem again." Harrison says as we walk into the family room. Meggie is curled up between Ellis and Nils while McQuinn sits in the armchair, fidgeting with his rabbit's foot and staring at his phone. I can see the page for today's horoscope pulled up when he drops it on his lap to look up at us.

"What do you mean?" Meggie asks. "You didn't… kill him, did you?"

The guys laugh, but Harrison looks away. I think he would have killed Daniel if I hadn't pulled him off, and it's forcing him to look at himself differently. I clamp a hand on his shoulder for support. Harrison may be almost a decade older than me, but I know a thing or two about anger and guilt. I know how quickly it can turn inward.

"Harrison guaranteed mutually assured destruction," I say, squeezing our pack alpha's shoulder. He should be proud of what he accomplished. "Our very own Cold War."

"If he says anything to ruin you," Dante adds. "We'll ruin him, too." He walks around the couch and gives Meggie a kiss before sitting down next to Ellis, his expression hard, still fighting the urge to hurt someone in order to protect our girl.

"You think that's enough?" Meggie watches Harrison carefully.

"We threw in a bit of an incentive." I sink into an armchair next to McQuinn, taking the first deep breath I've taken since Meggie went missing.

"What kind of incentive?" Nils asks.

"For every month he keeps his mouth shut, he'll get paid."

Meggie sits up straighter, her beautiful face contorted in concern. "For how long? You can't just pay him off."

"Why not?" Harrison disappears into the kitchen, but I know he can still hear us.

"This isn't worth it!" Meggie gets to her feet and goes after him, but he's already coming back into the room with a beer in hand. He stops two feet in front of her. The air in the room crackles with energy, their scents drowning out the rest of ours.

"I'm not worth it," Meggie whispers.

Six growls erupt around the room. None as loud as Harrison's. I can't believe our girl would think that about herself. And I won't tolerate it. None of us will.

"Don't you dare say that." His voice borders on an alpha bark, almost as threatening as it was when he spoke with Daniel. "You're worth everything to us. You hear me? Everything."

Meggie sucks in a breath and looks down at the carpet. "I shouldn't be. All I ever do is complicate things for you."

"Baby girl," I growl in warning, getting her to look at me. "Keep talking like that, and I'm going to need to punish you again."

Her eyes round in surprise, but it has the desired effect. The sour apple scent in the room turns sweeter. Her self-deprecation giving way to a small shiver of desire.

"Look at me, Meggie." Harrison sets his beer down on the coffee table and crosses his arm over his chest. "You are part of this pack now. My pack. And we take care of our own."

Ellis, Dante, and Nils echo his sentiment with similar statements. McQuinn is quiet, but he doesn't argue. It's Harrison who captures my attention. He's always been logical, un-sentimental, controlled, but right now he's shaking with so much raw emotion it's like static electricity around him.

I think I always assumed he just didn't feel things the way the rest of us do, but watching him watch Meggie as she turns away and Ellis pulls her back to his lap, I see a new side of our pack alpha. He feels just as much as the rest of us.

The poor bastard is terrified.

It almost makes me laugh, but I stifle it the second Harrison's eyes shoot in my direction.

"One more thing," he says. "No bonding until after the Olympics."

"What?! Why?" Nils protests first, which has McQuinn shooting to his feet, snatching Harrison's beer from the table, and stalking into the kitchen.

"I don't think I can wait," Ellis says, looking at Meggie like a love-sick puppy.

Dante growls. His eyes sparking angrily at Harrison. "I thought we agreed. She's pack."

I keep my cool, for once. No matter how much I might want to bond Meggie—and I do—Harrison is right. It would be stupid to bond her before we know how this is all going to shake out. Daniel is right about how our story will be spun if we're bonded.

"You heard me." Harrison gives each of us a slow, long look, avoiding Meggie's gaze. "I rarely give orders as pack alpha, but this is an order. No bonding. Not until after Paris."