10. Meggie

10

Meggie

" I heard you've been working hard the past few weeks." Dante saunters up to where I'm sitting on the bleachers with Emily and Ellis, eating sandwiches the team brought for lunch. The food is good, and I should be hungry after all that we did this morning, but I'm too nervous to have much of an appetite. If I don't make this team, all my Olympic dreams will truly be over.

Dante puts his hand on Ellis's thigh, and I notice the bite mark on his upper bicep. I haven't noticed any bite marks on the rest of the pack, though. Omegas don't have to bite their alphas for the bond to be complete, but I'd expect an omega with a pack of athletes this delicious to want to mark her territory. It's a sign of belonging, a possessive inclination most omegas give into.

If their omega bit them, she didn't choose places easily seen, which is surprising since most omegas like their bonds to be an obvious claim. Considering these men wear speedos when they compete, the unnoticeable options are pretty limited.

Heat warms my cheeks, thinking of where those bites could hide.

Ellis leans over and gives Dante a quick peck of a kiss, drawing my attention and stirring a reaction in me that feels almost like jealousy. A desire to have what they have, that kind of certainty and commitment. Hopefully, someday I can have that too. I just have to get through the Olympics first. Then I can let my little omega nature out to play and start looking for a pack.

One that won't hold me hostage to their own whims. One that will let me do what I want and pursue whatever dreams come after the Olympics.

Maybe I should just get a cat and a really good vibrator with a knot.

"You okay?" Ellis asks. He's become unnervingly in tune to me over the past few weeks. I'm not sure if I love it or hate it.

"She's great," Em cuts in, swinging an arm over my shoulders. "She's having a blast. Aren't you, Megs?"

"It's been fun so far." A bit of an exaggeration, but Dante's looking at me carefully, and as the team's coach, he'll have a particular say in who makes the cut. The last thing I need is for him to think I don't like the sport.

He frowns, lips turning down as his eyes size me up. "You don't have to lie. I know water polo isn't most people's favorite sport."

"No, it's really great." I try to cover for myself, but under Dante's acute gaze and strong alpha presence, I can't lie. "Okay, it's a little hard to get into," I admit. "But that doesn't mean I won't make a great addition to the team."

Dante makes a non-committal noise in the back of his throat, and my heart sinks.

"You're all really impressive," I hurry to add. "I mean, I've watched some of your games online and you work so hard. It has to be satisfying. I really respect that."

That earns me a small smile from Dante and a shoulder bump from Emily.

"Tell him how long you did the eggbeater yesterday," she prompts.

"No. It doesn't matter."

"Twenty minutes," Ellis says without looking up. There's a little smirk on his face as he continues to pick the lettuce off his sandwich.

"Impressive." Dante looks me over again before taking the lettuce from Ellis's plate and adding it to his sandwich.

"Do you want my lettuce, too?" I ask.

"You don't like it either?"

I shake my head and wrinkle my nose. Ellis smiles at me. "I told you she's good people."

Dante gives Ellis a good-natured smirk and takes the lettuce from my plate. "Is it just lettuce or do you dislike all vegetables like this guy?" He jerks his chin towards Ellis.

"He doesn't like any vegetable?"

"Hey," Ellis defends. "I eat vegetables if they're cooked into things."

"So you never eat salads?" I ask.

Emily laughs. "Once, our mom made him eat a chicken salad, and he didn't speak to her for a week."

"Petty," I say.

"Effective," Ellis replies.

"Well, personally, I think salads are the only acceptable use of lettuce. It shouldn't be used as bread substitutes or put on sandwiches or grilled." I make a disgusted face and stick out my tongue.

"You're wrong," Dante says. "But at least you're better than Ellis."

"You love me." Ellis bumps his shoulder into Dante's.

"I do." Dante leans over and kisses him again.

Yep, my heart hurts. There's a feeling almost like homesickness in my chest. A pull that makes me want to crawl into the thin space between Ellis and Dante.

It's just their scents. And my stupid omega hormones. That's it. The clock is ticking on how long these suppressants and blockers are going to work. Eventually the blockers won't be enough to hide my scent if I perfume, and my suppressants won't be enough to keep me from going into heat. A sinking feeling in my gut has me thinking it won't be long before that happens.

Which is all the more reason I need to make it into this Olympics. This is my one chance, and I'm not going to blow it.

While I'm still lost in these thoughts, Harrison joins us, introducing himself and holding out his hand for me to shake. I hold up my sandwich and my messy hands as an excuse to avoid touching him. The last thing I need is to be touching an alpha right now. I'm already turned on enough.

This is the first time I've been close enough to smell Harrison and his smokey scent makes my breath catch in my throat and my skin warm as if I'm standing too close to a bonfire. He's one of those summer nights that stretches on forever, infinite and all-consuming. I want to curl up under a blanket next to him and watch the stars.

He smiles and puts his hands in his pockets, making casual conversation, asking me about myself and my family. Every once in a while, his nostrils flare, and I wonder if he's trying to scent me. He won't be able to. I was extra careful today. I increased my blocker dose and showered twice with deodorizing soap and shampoo. My swimsuit is even made from a special deodorizing material.

Right as Emily is telling him about how we got kicked out of broadway drag karaoke, Harrison's posture stiffens. He sniffs, and this time it's clear he's picking up on someone. I discretely try to check my armpit, but don't smell anything. Then I spot a swimmer I recognize just stepping out of the locker rooms and into the pool area.

Ava's been part of the swim circuit with me for years, but we've never gotten along well. She's catty and self-absorbed. Emily once dubbed her The Wicked Witch of the Pool. Not very nice of us, but fitting.

Her hair is perfectly curled. Makeup, flawless. She's wearing heels and a short blue sundress that shows off her long swimmer's legs. Gorgeous, but not really appropriate attire to hang out at the pool.

Harrison gives her a once over and scowls. I wonder why she's here.

I smile at her, but she ignores me, goes straight to Harrison, and kisses him. Some omega instinct in me roars to life in my chest and I barely manage to bite back a growl.

I've never had this kind of possessive reaction to an alpha before. It makes no sense for me to feel this way with Harrison, who I only just met. But the need to stake my claim on him is so strong I have to clench my fists and sit on them to keep from doing something stupid.

I don't understand this feeling. I just know I shouldn't be feeling it. Feelings like this will only get me in trouble. I try to remind myself that it's just his scent. His delicious summer bonfire scent. He's a scent match. Another one. How am I going to fucking survive this?

I take deep breaths in and out through my mouth.

"You okay?" Em whispers.

"Mm-hmm," I mutter. "Fine."

Scent matches are just biology. It doesn't mean we'd be good together. It doesn't mean we're supposed to be together. People have multiple scent matches, even if it's rare to find them. I have no intention of telling Harrison, or any of the rest of his pack, that they're mine.

Nope, not mine. He's not mine. They're not mine. And they're not going to be mine, because for now I'm not an omega. I'm a beta. I'm going to the Olympics. And damn it all, I won't let anything get in the way of that.