Chapter 2

2

Wayne

" A re you all set for dinner tonight?"

"Yes, what's your daughter's name again?" I drawled, holding the phone to my ear as I leaned back lazily in the office chair at my construction site.

"Ruby," sighed Benjamin in disappointment.

"I'm only joking," I said, trying to reassure the omega's frantic father over the phone.

He'd done everything to ensure his daughter would be mated to a decent pack. I remembered the day like it was only yesterday when my construction business was struggling, and he had come into my small falling-apart office.

"Do you need help getting your business off the ground?" asked Benjamin, taking a look around my small office and the massive paperwork on my desk.

"Yeah, but what's your price?" I asked. "Everything comes with a price. I'm not stupid."

Benjamin laughed, "You'll marry my daughter five years from now."

"What?"

"She's an omega, and she will need a pack when she gets older," said Benjamin. "I'll help you get your business off the ground, and in a few years, you'll have a guaranteed omega for your pack."

I thought about that for a moment. I had never found love in my entire life, and I never believed in it.

"Yeah, sure," I said without emotion. I was going to get an omega and a successful business at that. "Sounds like a deal to me."

"I really hope to moons you're joking," growled Benjamin threateningly. "My daughter is already giving me flack for setting her up, so I hope you'll prove to be the alpha that I think you are."

"Yeah, don't worry," I said, tracing a finger around my expensive oakwood desk. "What time should my pack and I be at your house?"

"Six sharp," he said.

"Alright," I said. After hanging up, I let out a long sigh, wondering what I had agreed to. I made a promise, and now it was time to uphold that promise to Benjamin, to who we owed all our success. Without Ben coming into our lives to lend a helping hand with his influence and resources, we would have still been struggling.

"Rufus, Davy," I called out as they were eating lunch at the construction site with the other workers.

I needed to tell them the news about the omega we were going to meet today.

"Yo," said Rufus, setting down his sandwich and wiping his long brown beard. "As you can tell, I'm in the middle of eating."

"Bring your sandwiches. I need to talk to both of you outside," I said, standing in the large air-conditioned room we designated as the break room. My pack, along with hired alphas and betas, built the best houses for families here in El Paso.

Davy nodded and deftly picked up his food to join me outside. His bright red hair was dull from the dust accumulated during construction work.

"Is it a new project?" asked Davy eagerly. He was always quick to follow orders from me. Rufus joined us, and we stood in a circle outside the building's glass door.

"No, Davy," I said grimly. This would change the course of our pack, having an omega at last. It would cement our pack and test everyone's loyalty. "I have something to tell you both."

"Go ahead. Spit it out," grunted Rufus, taking another big bite of his sandwich. "You're taking your sweet time there."

"I need you both to get cleaned up for dinner tonight," I announced. "Tonight, we'll meet Ruby at last."

"Oh fuck," said Rufus excitedly as he tugged his beard. "I need to take a shower and find something nice to wear."

"Oh wow," said Davy with an uncertain look in his eyes. Due to his shy nature, he didn't trust easily and had often been taken advantage of in the past. "Hopefully, she's looking forward to meeting us. What do you think?"

"I made a pact with her father that we would take her as our omega," I said. It was all clear-cut to me. No feelings involved. "She's going to be ours, and we will have children with her. There's not much to it."

"Damn, you're cold," laughed Rufus. "It's not that simple."

"I'm sure it won't be a problem," I said. "We need to be at the house by six, so get ready."

Ruby

I couldn't find anything to wear as I sifted through the clothes in my closet. I held up a pair of jeans.

"You definitely can't wear that," said my best friend Carmen, who was sitting on my bed with a book in her hand. She was twenty-two, wore a nose ring despite her mother's disapproval, and had been rejected by an alpha two years ago.

"I don't care about them, though," I huffed as another wave of dread settled in my belly. Today was the day I was going to meet the Crawford Pack, and I was nervous even though I tried to hide it.

"You've never met them before," said Carmen, as she fixed her shoulder-length curly black hair using my brush.

"It doesn't matter, I'm not ready."

"What if the pack leader's hot?"

"Looks don't matter to me," I said. "He needs to be kind and patient, just like Jasper is with me. I want him to be an alpha of his word and just be a decent guy. That's all. Am I asking for much?"

"You need to ask for more," laughed Carmen, dropping my brush down with a clatter on my vanity. "Ooh yes, that's the dress!"

I was holding up a silk dark blue dress. It was long and simple with no sleeves and had a few gems running down the sides.

"Aren't you supposed to be reading your book and not paying attention?" I muttered as I held it up. I hadn't worn it before, and it still had a price tag on it.

"Oh, hush," she said with awe as I held it up to the light.

"Fine, I'll wear it," I said, grinning. Even though I wanted to ditch today's dinner, I couldn't stop the tiny flutter of hope that I would possibly fall in love again. But the thought of never seeing Jasper again made my heart ache.

Stripping off my jeans and shirt, I ripped the tag off the dress and pulled it on. It conformed to my body pretty nicely.

"Oh my god, you look so cute," exclaimed Carmen, earmarking her book and setting it aside. "Look in the mirror. I just need to do your makeup, and then you're good to go."

As she went on about how nice I looked, I walked towards the full-length mirror. I smoothed the sides of my dress down, admiring how the fabric flowed naturally to my feet. It was a form-fitting and sexy.

"I like it," I said as I gazed at myself in the mirror. "But I might be overdressed. I don't want the alphas rutting me in my family's living room."

"Oh my god, Ruby," groaned Carmen. "Alright, let's get your makeup started."

Wayne

As I rang the doorbell to the omega's family home, sweat trickled down my back in the stuffy suit I was wearing. We were going to meet our omega for the very first time tonight after many years of being promised to her.

I tugged on my tie nervously, catching a reflection of myself on the glass of the front door. My pack and I were dressed in the best suits we could find in town. I had even secured my dark hair into a bun for the first time instead of letting it loose wildly.

"Fuck, I don't think I'm ready," said Davy nervously, running his hand through his freshly washed hair.

"You're more than ready for this day," I reassured him just as the door opened to reveal Benjamin standing there with a broad smile on his face.

"Welcome to my home," he said. "I'm very pleased you're holding up your promise."

"I'm an alpha of my word," I growled, and he chuckled.

"Come on in, son," he said.

Benjamin led us towards a grand dining room that had a large rectangular table covered in a purple cloth.

"Oh, so good to meet you," said an older woman who had gray hair tied into a bun. "My name's Julie."

I could tell she was a pleasant lady through our introductions. My pack introduced themselves to her, and my gaze roamed the room, waiting for Ruby to make an appearance.

And then she did.

My breath caught in my throat when I caught sight of the omega descending the steps of the staircase. She was a vision of beauty and grace. Her long black hair cascaded down her back like a waterfall of silk. Her blue dress hugged her curves in all the right places, accentuating her exotic beauty.

Our gazes locked.

Goosebumps arose from my skin as I watched her glide down the stairs effortlessly as I drank in her beauty. Was this even real? I couldn't help but stop breathing as I took in the sight of her.

A soft smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she gazed at us.

"You look stunning, my dear," said her father as he offered her his arm at the bottom of the staircase.

Her cheeks flushed with color as she glanced at me and my pack shyly. I would have no problem with her in the looks department, at least.

I walked over to greet her, sticking out a hand automatically. It was as if I'd forgotten how to act normal.

"My name's Wayne," I said in a stiff voice. "Wayne Crawford."

"Nice to meet you," she said softly, her small hand cold within mine. "I'm Ruby."

While not letting go of her hand, I walked her over to Davy and Rufus. I smiled when I saw Rufus's awestruck face. His beard glinted in the light as he kissed her hand.

"Good evening," said Rufus breathlessly. "You are beautiful. Name's Rufus."

"Nice to meet you. Thank you," she replied, blushing. I could smell a hint of her sweet scent suddenly wafting into my nostrils. Her scent was so fucking sweet. I could almost taste it on my tongue.

Fuck, get ahold of yourself . I couldn't allow myself to lose control like this, no matter how beautiful this omega was .

Davy nearly tripped over himself, rushing to shake her hand.

"Sorry," he said repeatedly when he accidentally shook her hand too hard.

"It's okay," she said with grace. "What's your name?"

"Davy."

Once at the dining table, she sat between me and Davy. I placed the tablecloth over my lap just in case of an impromptu erection. I didn't trust myself around her candy scent.