20. Jade

twenty

Ashort conversation turned into twenty minutes. There's no sign of Kandi or Sven, and I've wandered to the wall to look at this strangely compelling abstract painting. I can't decide if I like it or not.

"Jade Greenway, what are you doing here?"

My back stiffens as memories crash over me, unpleasant, unwanted memories.

I turn with a smile pasted on my lips. That distinctive olive oil and cough medicine scent is impossible to forget. No happy moment comes without a test of our strength, and I guess I'm due.

"Pack Lovehard. How good to see you again! I trust you're well." I keep my voice measured, but I do not hold out my hand, nor do I move closer.

The alpha is about a head shorter than Adrian, but somehow, he still manages to try to look down on my alpha who hasn't even noticed the man appeared.

"I see you found…uh, someone who's suited to your peculiar tastes."

I glance at Adrian, who is still talking to Taylor Knight.

"Peculiar?" I ask with an edge to my voice. There is nothing peculiar about Adrian. He's perfect. I resist the urge to snarl.

Antony Lovehard pulls at his jacket with self-importance dripping from his pores. His pack mates, Bernard and Henry, leer at me. I have an urge to pull my dress higher up my chest. They make me feel naked but not in the way Kandi makes me want to get naked. No, this is a skin-crawling sensation that I can honestly say I'd willingly roll in mud just to avoid them looking at me the way they're doing.

"Your hair is unsightly. It's such a peculiar shade, like an old woman's hair. Not ladylike at all," Antony whispers. "What would your mother think?"

"Strange, I don't aspire to be a lady. I'm first and foremost a woman, and secondly an omega. Neither of those things requires me to have a particular hairstyle," I say tightly.

"Or control over your vulgar vocabulary," Bernard says with a snicker. He's always looking to the others to validate his corny sayings and jokes. Or his cruelty. "What else can you say with that filthy mouth of yours, Omega?"

"If people have an issue with how I speak, then people can go jump in a river. Furthermore, I don't perform on cue, Bernard," I spit out venomously.

Antony shakes his head. "You haven't changed a bit in all this time. You still think you're better than us. Still think you're going to be put up on a pedestal just because you're an omega."

"A whole year and a bit?" I scoff. "Yeah, I haven't changed. I like who I am. I'm proud of who I am."

"You're still the same strange little omega your mother tried to palm off on us," Henry says darkly. "But you can't make a sow's ear a silk purse."

I wince, hating the reference to the nickname they gave me. Little Piggy. Apparently, I squeal when I'm accosted by unwanted alphas. Who knew?

I lift my chin. "I am who I am, and I'm proud of that person. Let me make this clear: I am not interested."

"Rumors are going around that your own mother was so disgusted with you she cut ties." Antony leans in conspiratorially. "We know all about it. Proud? I would not be proud if I were you. Now, you're helpless. Now, you're just a no-one. We can offer you help…for a price."

Where is Adrian? I clench my hands into fists in the front of my dress as my anger starts to grow.

"No one here wants to speak to you. People are just watching you embarrass those poor alphas. Embarrass their friends and offend people with your presence. You're all alone here, Omega. There are no bonds on you, no pack wants you. The doctor is just playing with you."

Doubt seizes me for a moment. Am I embarrassing Adrian, Kandi, and Sven? I didn't mean to embarrass them. Maybe I am, maybe I'm better off alone.

"You could just pretend I don't exist," I point out. But their words have hit true. Isn't it true that my pack has been resisting me? Isn't it true that I am, as yet, unbonded?

"We would, but you laugh too loud. Your hair stands out. Your presence is an offense. The fact that you have somehow conned your way here, into this world, is an affront. But we can help you." Antony moves closer, his finger sliding across the back of my hand. I snatch it away.

"I'm not surprised you're still unbonded," Henry whispers evilly.

I get vivid flashbacks of his hands on my shoulders the last time we met. An excellently timed interruption by another omega had allowed me to escape.

"What does it matter if I'm here?" I ask with exhaustion. "How does it hurt you?"

"It doesn't hurt, it's just like seeing an overfull bin in a shop or a blowfly in a restaurant. It's an offense to the perfection that is tonight."

I wrap my arms around myself. His verbal blows are landing.

"There's a place for you still, if you want it," Antony whispers. He moves into my space, and I have to fight the urge to step back. I will never give into bullies, no matter how hard they turn my stomach. "Where we discussed."

"So I can be a whore in one of your properties somewhere? Waiting until you show up and spread my legs and be grateful for what you offer?" I hiss, incensed. "I think fucking not."

"No one is going to pack you up. All you can hope for is to be some alphas whore."

"Is that right?"

I shudder at the ice in Kandi's voice.

She puts a hand on the alpha's shoulder and grips hard. He struggles, but her grip is merciless.

He opens his mouth, but Kandi does this move, and somehow, her elbow slams into his face.

"You weren't about to use your bark on me, were you?" she snarls.

The other two are hesitating. Pack Lovehard are cowards underneath it all. That hesitation costs them.

Adrian turns towards us in surprise, his eyes darkening to solid black. He moves with such menace that it's like a storm wall of atmosphere washing over us.

"You think she's only good to be your whore?" Kandi hisses in rage.

"Kandi," I whisper, glancing around. People are starting to pay attention to what's going on here.

"She doesn't have a pack. No one wants her!" Antony protests too loudly. People are really watching now. The spectacle that is my life.

I wince, and my cheeks burn when I look up and find Missy, Hazel, and Onyx watching me. Shame tugs at me, and I look at the ground, wishing it would open and swallow me up. I'll never be like them.

"It doesn't matter," I mutter, both to my own thoughts and to Kandi's outrage.

Kandi's eyes blaze when she lifts them to stare at me. "It doesn't matter? Them calling you a whore, inviting you to-" She cuts off with an inarticulate cry.

"I don't have a pack, Kandi. It's facts. Some omegas get packs, some work as companions or find other ways of supporting themselves. It was generous. I should thank them."

Adrian is staring at me, completely still. His face has no expression. I can't look at him. I keep my eyes on the floor.

"It was fucking not!" Kandi growls. Her fingers tighten on Antony's shoulder until he bends and is at my height.

I sniff and glance around before finally looking at her again. Her cheek tics, and her lips are a thin line.

"You don't have to do this, Kandi. You're under no obligation."

Kandi lets out a savage sound and almost throws Antony away from her. He stumbles to his knees, but I soon forget him. The furious beta threads her fingers through my hair, messing it all up, but I don't care because she tilts my face and slams our mouths together.

I hang on to her, clinging while the kiss heats the part of me that had turned ice cold. She demands as much as she gives, and I'm drowning as she takes my pain. I can only cling to her, the world around us is gone, muted, colourless. She pulls back and touches her lips to my cheek.

"You deserve more. You're beautiful and unique, and we all love that about you. Don"t listen to people like him. Never let them treat you like you"re less. You're not a whore. You're not alone. It wasn't generous, it was an insult. And you deserve better, no matter what happens with us."

I peer up at her and feel myself soften. Tears prick my eyes, but I blink them back.

"You've riled Adrian up," I whisper.

Kandi glances over her shoulder, and together, we watch Adrian and Sven escort the Lovehard pack out of the ballroom. Adrian has gone cold. I can feel it from here.

"The next time someone says you don't have a pack, tell them they are mistaken."

I turn with a gasp and find Sunny standing there. When he smiles, I see Kandi in him. His golden hair is slicked back, and he's wearing a suit, but he still manages to look like he's heading to the beach as soon as this is done.

"I have a pack?" I ask in confusion.

"Clearly." Sunny nods seriously. "Kandi, Sven, and Adrian."

I clear my throat and glance back at Kandi, unsure of what to say.

"No, they, we aren't a pack," Kandi stutters out.

Sunny scowls. "Yes, you are."

"No, we're not."

"I'll tell mum. She'll kick your ass for being so dumb."

"Dibberdobber."

"Oh, my god, can you be any more childish?" Sunny rolls his eyes.

"I know you are, so what am I?" Kandi retorts.

My eyes bulge, watching the pair of them.

I look back and forth between the siblings and try really hard to figure out what the hell to do in this situation. But somehow, the homicidal rage that Kandi was pouring into the air around us is gone. Sunny has grounded her back in the now. I need to learn that.

Luckily, a moment later, Soren appears and puts his arm through Sunny's. He looks the same as last time I saw him, but for the suit and the newly dyed black and white hair. I study it in fascination.

"What's wrong, Sunny?"

"Kandi says they're not a pack."

Soren frowns. "That's ridiculous. You clearly are."

I frown at the ground, and then force myself to smile. "Don't worry about it. We don't have to be pack to care about each other."

"No!" Kandi barks so loudly several people jump and look at us.

"What?"

"You are not going to be that for us," she grabs my waist harder, pulling me closer to her. "You're more than that."

I shrug and gently pull myself free. "Kandi, everyone thinks I'm weird. I'm too sharp with my opinions, I talk too loudly, my hair is weird, my hobbies are odd-"

"You fit with us perfectly," Adrian says and tugs me back into his arms.

I peer up at him, but I stay silent. If I'm so perfect for them, why do they keep trying to get rid of me all the time? I'm not sure I believe Adrian's declaration now.

"Give us a moment to get our heads in the right place," Adrian whispers to me. "Just a little bit of time. I promise, not much longer. I'll fix it."

I sag. I can't refuse this man anything, and then I realise that he and Kandi have me virtually sandwiched in front of all their friends and family. In front of everyone who knows them. And all eyes are on us.

I clear my throat. "There are people watching us."

"I don't care," Adrian whispers.

"Me, either." Kandi cups my cheeks and kisses me again.

"All right you three, come on, let's get out of here."

I turn my head to find Sven standing there. He looks amazing in an all black suit, with a black shirt and tie. I really want to run my hands across his chest, but instead, when he holds out his hand, I put my fingers in it and allow him to pull me free.

He guides me past people who murmur their goodbyes. I vaguely recognise them, but I'm too busy trying to keep up with the alpha.

At last, we step through two huge glass doors and into the cold air. I shiver, but it's more from reaction than actual cold. We stand there while a black SUV pulls up. The silence is fraught with unanswered questions and tension that I don't know what to do with.

Sven helps me into the car, and then gets in the driver's seat. Adrian gets in the back while Kandi climbs in the front.

"So, you want to tell me what happened tonight?" Sven growls.

I'm not sure who he's talking to. "Well-"

"Not you." Sven snaps. He turns his head to Kandi. "You were supposed to be working. How did that pack get close to her?"

Kandi hisses in annoyance. "I was talking to Missy about-"

"You abandoned your duties, and our omega got hurt-"

Our omega?I sit back with a smile, sinking into the faux leather.

"She wasn't hurt. It looked like they were talking. They seemed harmless. I was on the other side of the room, Sven. Where were you?"

Sven's jaw is clenched tight, and he shakes his head. "They were disgusting individuals. They should never have gotten so close to her."

This is adorable. Kandi glances back at me in concern, sees I'm smiling, and frowns. It only takes her a second to figure it out. She winks at me.

"Look, Sven, it wasn't a big deal!"

"It was a huge deal. She was being treated like crap right under our noses. We can't allow this to happen ever again."

"So, what shall we do, check everyone?"

"Yes."

Kandi gapes. "That's completely over the top!"

"Our omega got hurt-" Sven stops suddenly. He clears his throat. Stops, chokes. Stops. Splutters. Before finally letting out a very quiet, "Never mind."

Kandi glances back at me and blows me a kiss.

Adrian's been watching the exchange with narrowed eyes, but now he folds his arms over his chest and glares at the side of Sven's head. I briefly wonder what that's about.

"Sunny thinks we're a pack." Adrian throws out like a challenge.

I jerk my eyes to Adrian. So does Sven.

"What?"

"Sunny thinks we're a pack. In fact, most of everyone thinks we're a pack."

"We don't have bonds. We're not," Sven protests.

"Packs don't have to have bonds," Adrian growls.

"We are not a pack," Sven says darkly, his fingers flex on the steering wheel. "We can't be."

I look out the window, that familiar despair and humiliation rising again. If he never accepts me, will this relationship with Kandi and Adrian work? Will they allow it to work without him?

"He asked me to be his whore. At the Omega Meet. He wanted to give me a house and set me up. I'd be there for his pack when they needed it until they found an omega they wanted to court."

Sven drives up our driveway and stops the car.

"Is that what you want?" Sven asks coldly.

"That's what they told me I deserve," I spit back at him.

"I don't care what everyone else thinks. I want to know what you want."

"You know what I want!" I shout and throw myself out of the car. I pick up the skirt of the dress and stalk towards the house. Sven catches me and spins me around.

"Do you want to be their whore?"

"No!" I shout.

"Good. I'd never let you."

"Why ask then!"

"Because I want to make sure!"

"This is stupid," I huff.

"What do you want?"

"I want to be your omega," I say quietly and with deep sorrow. "Yours, Kandi's, and Adrian's.

Sven leans in close. His eyes are closed, but he's somewhere else. So I stand up on my tiptoes and kiss him. It takes a moment, but then he is kissing me back with a hunger that makes my toes curl.

He reluctantly tears away from me and opens the door, allowing me inside.

"Go inside with Kandi and Adrian. I need to go for a run."

This time, I don't watch him run away.