28. Rian

It took a while to coax Belle out of her room again after our dire talk with Jeremy, and she even refused to join us for dinner at the table that night.

Instead, she has decided to eat all of her meals in her room, spending her time reading and rereading those smutty books I got for her, and I wish there was something I could do to earn her trust again.

Something to get her out of her shell.

She"s still shy and insecure around us, but as always, I don"t pry.

Her past is her business, and she has every right to want to keep it to herself.

Troy tells me not to bother and to just keep my distance, but I can"t keep away.

I"m drawn to that Omega, and I can"t help but want to spend time with her.

I"m not scared of her in the slightest. I know she wouldn"t harm a fly, and I trust her.

Belle is nothing like the Omega Jeremy"s team found.

She is sweet and innocent.

Everything I have dreamed of my entire life.

One afternoon, I managed to get her to confess her hobbies and interests, and she informed me that she likes gardening.

So, I took it upon myself to gift her a vegetable garden.

Leo helped with the digging, and now he stands smug, one foot on the shovel as he leans against the handle, covered in dirt.

I lead Belle out of the house, covering her eyes with my hands.

It"s the first time she has left the house in days, and it"s time we put an end to that right now.

"What"s happening?" she asks, a little warily, but I detect the humor in her voice.

She knows I wouldn"t do anything to hurt her and the fact warms me.

She"s opening up to us. Well, at least to me and Leo.

Jeremey she is still wary of, and Troy she avoids altogether.

That"s okay, I suppose, because Troy wants nothing to do with her too, and he hates it when I spend time with her.

Whenever I join him in bed, he growls, dragging me straight toward the shower to wash her scent off. Then he proceeds to replace her scent with his own until no inch of my skin has her sweet caramel anymore.

Once he"s done with me, I only smell like coffee. Which is a shame…

Caramel and coffee are two of my favorite scents.

And caramelized coffee…

I drag Belle to the vegetable garden, keeping my hands around her eyes. My heart thumps in anticipation, and I bet she can hear it.

"It"s okay, we"re finally here, Belle. Please be assured that I"m not going to lead you off the edge of a cliff…"

She giggles, the sweetest sound I have ever heard, and my heart melts at the sheer purity of it.

How the hell anyone can think she is a serial killer with a vendetta towards all things Alpha, I will never know.

Troy really is a blind fool.

Anyone with eyes could see how innocent Belle is.

There is no bad bone in her body whatsoever.

With a look at Leo, I smile, removing my hands at last.

Her pleasant gasp of surprise is like sunshine on my skin.

Fuck. That sound.

I want to hear her making that sound with my cock buried deep between her thighs…

"Oh my goodness…"

I smile. "You said you liked gardening. So Leo and I dug you up a vegetable patch. Do you like it?"

She leans over the patch of dirt, pinching a tomato plant leaf between her finger and thumb. Then she spies the carrots and the lettuce, eyes shining with tears.

Leo and I bristle with pride.

Finally, she looks up, meeting my gaze. "I love it."

My heart is practically singing in my chest, and Leo and I look at each other with pride.

It looks like we coaxed her out of her shell.

Leo passes her a watering can, and when she spies him covered in dirt, her scent floods the air around us.

Nothing but sweet caramel fills my senses now as her eyes get their fill of Leo all muddy and filthy.

He has pushed the sleeves of his shirt up to his elbows, and when he catches her staring, he puffs out his chest, winking down at her.

A soft purr rumbles in his chest, and her scent only intensifies.

I swallow back the lump in my throat as I know what that scent means.

Belle is close to her first heat, and sweat gathers down my spine when I think of her writhing in pain, begging for my touch.

Of course, she would want an Alpha to take her pain away, but a part of me still entertains the idea that she would want me, too.

Suddenly, my stomach cramps, and I double over, gripping my sides.

My heart pounds in fear.

Oh, fuck.

Leo is by my side in an instant. "Rian?"

I"m still doubled over, squeezing my eyes as pain lances my insides. My scent blooms and the air fills with sickly sweet baby powder next.

I find Belle"s concerned eyes.

They"re wide with understanding and shit. I have to go.

I fight every instinct in my body as I turn away from the beautiful Omega, ordering Leo to remain with her as I tend to my own needs.

Shit. This is bad.

I"m scent spiking again.

It"s been a while since I took some suppressants. Days perhaps.

But soon it won"t make any difference.

You can"t fight Mother Nature.

Troy is by my side the moment I stumble into the house, making my way upstairs to shower and remove the scent of baby powder.

It"s only a matter of time at this point.

And soon Troy and I won"t be able to keep my secret from Jeremy and Leo.

Jeremy has already suspected as much. He"s too smart, but Leo is still in the dark.

Guilt lances through my stomach, right along with the cramps, and I hate this…

I hate doing this to myself. I hate doing this to my pack.

I just don"t know how long I will last.

"Rian? What happened?"

He half drags me up the stairs as I grit my teeth through another cramp. "It"s… nothing, Troy…"

"No, it"s not. Fuck, Rian. You need to take it easy. What were you doing?"

He leans me against the wall, and I open my eyes, meeting his electric pair.

If I tell him, I know he will be angry, but screw it.

The choice was mine.

"I… I was digging and planting vegetables for Belle…"

A growl sounds from his chest, and I roll my eyes.

I knew he would get this way.

"This needs to stop, Rian. You heard what Jeremy told us. Omegas are going crazy out there. Belle could be one of them."

"Oh, give me a break, Troy. That girl couldn"t harm a fly…"

The Alpha falls preternaturally still. "And you"re sure you can confirm that? You don"t know anything about her. None of us do."

I scowl at him and push him away, stumbling into my room. I lay down on the bed, curling up into a fetal position.

Troy goes straight to my drawer, searching for the suppressants. He snarls when he finds the bottle empty.

"Rian… why didn"t you tell me you were running out?"

I lay my head against my soft pillow, closing my eyes as I pant my tongue. "Leave me alone, Troy."

"No. You need to let me know when you are running low. Or else—"

"Or else what? It"s inevitable. Sooner or later, it"s going to happen…"

I shiver on the bed, going into a cold kind of sweat. My breath saws from my mouth as my head swirls.

At least the cramps have subsided.

Troy slams my drawer shut and storms toward me. He tucks his hands beneath me and carries me to the shower, playing the overbearing Alpha once again.

"This is ridiculous, Rian. You need to take better care of yourself."

He places me down on the stool in my shower, yanking off my shirt and pants until I am in nothing but my boxers. Then he turns on the jets, letting the cool water run down my back.

I heave a sigh, throwing my head back as the water trickles down my face.

Troy grabs a loofah, and now he aggressively washes the filth away from my body and the scent of Belle"s sweet caramel.

I don"t protest, too tired as I let the cool water cleanse my flaming skin.

He lathers shampoo into my hair and practically claws at my scalp.

"The fuck, Troy?" I hiss.

"You smell like her," he pouts. "I don"t like it."

I roll my eyes.

God, he sounds like a caveman.

"I"m not your possession, Troy."

He stops scraping at my scalp, grabbing my chin now as he forces me to look at him.

His eyes are blazing.

"You are mine, Rian. No one else can have you…"

I hear the meaning in his words. He doesn"t want the government to get their hands on me and force me to train at that awful Omega school.

I hear they wear pastels, and I shiver.

Finally, I shove his hand off my chin, scowling up at him. "Just finish washing my hair."

It"s a challenge, and the Alpha narrows his eyes at me as I don"t break eye contact.

He finally concedes and returns to washing my hair with those possessive hands of his. He doesn"t stop until the mud and Belle"s caramel washes away in the drain.

Nor does he stop when he lifts me out of the shower and places me down on the bed, drying me with a fluffy towel.

For fuck"s sake.

It"s like he forgets I am a trained soldier.

I"m no sweet baby doll to be doted on.

No.

Because I want to be the one to do the doting…

How I would love to wash and shower Belle one day.

Gently, of course. Not rough like Troy.

I don"t think Troy even knows how to be gentle.

When he"s done towel-drying me, he removes my boxers then his clothes and wraps his arms and legs around me until I am draped in his coffee scent.

No hint of Belle lingers. But I am too tired to argue.

He is just going to have to accept that she is not a threat to us.

Belle is an innocent who needs our help. Not our hostility.

He rubs his cheek against mine, marking me with his scent. Then he nips lightly at his bite mark on my neck and my mind blanks.

Nothing but pure, heavenly light fills my vision.

"You stay in this room. At least until I get more pills…"

I groan, burying my face in the pillow.

"Leo will see to you while I am away."

My eyes drop as sleep drags me under. "But… Belle…"

He growls. "No. You keep away. At least until I return. You are vulnerable like this, Rian. She is not to be trusted."

I take a moment to respond, counting down the seconds until I fall asleep.

"You"re an asshole…"

Troy takes a moment to respond. Then he purrs, nuzzling his nose into my neck. "If that"s what it takes to keep you safe, then fine. I will be the asshole. You are mine..."

His words echo through my head as I drift off at last, but as sleep consumes me, I see her eyes.

She looks so happy.