Page 8 of A Promise of Forever (The Vallaverse #3)

"The room at the end of the east wing," I decide.

"Farthest from everything. Make sure it has everything an Omega might need.

Soft bedding, temperature control. Make sure the private bathroom is stocked.

And I want a security detail on that wing, but discreet.

He shouldn't feel like he's being watched, but I want to know if anyone approaches that area. "

After all, the work I'm part of isn't really conducive to having an Omega around. Sterling deserves a space he can call his own, far removed from my work.

I carry him up the main staircase, Sterling stirring against my chest as we climb, making soft sounds that might be words.

However, I’m now focusing on how to make everything absolutely perfect for my new Omega.

The east wing room is perfect for him. After all, it’s the room my Valla father chose for my Omega father.

It makes sense, too, with the large windows overlooking the gardens and the lush, thick carpet that will be soft under bare feet, and a bathroom that's bigger than most people's bedrooms.

The room is mostly furnished already, Beta staff scurrying across the carpet to tidy it up as I slip into the bathroom.

Someone has already started running a bath, the scent of lavender and eucalyptus wafting through the steam.

Whatever my brother must have told them definitely put them in a different gear.

Then again, he has an Omega and he knows exactly which buttons to push.

I set Sterling carefully on the closed toilet seat, keeping one hand on his shoulder to steady him. His eyes flutter open for a moment, unfocused and confused, before closing again.

"Will you be okay?" I ask softly, gesturing toward the warm water.

Sterling just stares at me with glassy eyes, and I recognize the look immediately. Shock. I've seen it in fighters who've taken too much damage, in people who've been pushed beyond their psychological breaking point. His body is present, but his mind has retreated to somewhere safe inside itself.

I sigh, running a hand down my face. This is so far outside my area of expertise that I might as well be performing surgery.

I make a move to step back just as he leans forward, chasing my touch.

Fuck. Quickly, I return to where I was and let him lean on me again, realizing that I might be the only one to help him right now.

"Everyone out," I order the hovering staff members.

They disappear immediately, closing the door behind them.

I crouch down in front of Sterling, trying to make eye contact with those glazed eyes.

"I don't know what you're okay with, Sterling.

I've never had an Omega, never thought I'd have one either, so you're going to have to tell me when to stop, when it's too much. But I can't leave you like this."

Sterling nods slowly, the movement barely perceptible, but it's something.

"I need your words," I continue, trying to soften my voice. "Something that tells me to back the fuck off. Red, okay? Say red if it's too much, and I'll stop immediately."

"Red," he whispers, his voice barely audible but clear enough that I know he understands. He wrings his hands together in his lap, my coat still hanging off his shoulders as he runs the word over his tongue a few more times.

"Good boy," I murmur, something in his expression shifting slightly, like the praise reaches him even through the shock. I wait a few moments before I start to move, helping him out of my jacket and then the suit that seems like it was borrowed. It’s a few sizes too big, the shirt easily coming up over his head without having to be unbuttoned, revealing the full extent of the damage underneath.

My jaw clenches as more bruises come into view. Finger-shaped marks around his wrists, what looks like belt marks across his back, bite wounds on his shoulders and neck, too shallow for bond marks that make me want to hunt Wilson down and tear his throat out with my bare hands.

But I keep my rage locked down, focused entirely on Sterling's needs.

He's trembling as I work, the Omega wrapping his arms around his chest protectively, but he doesn't say the safe word. He just watches me, almost as if he’s waiting for me to go too far before he says anything.

I hate that for him. I hate that someone broke him like that and I wonder if it was just Wilson or if there were more people involved in trying to rip this beautiful man apart.

When he's finally undressed, I lift him and carry him to the tub.

The water is the perfect temperature, Sterling sinking into it with a sigh that might be relief.

His lids flutter close as he grips the edge of the tub, his entire body tensing and then relaxing as the bath salts begin to ease the stress of his overworked self.

I perch my ass on the edge of the tub, ignoring the water that seeps into my dress pants, needing to be close enough to the Omega who’s stolen all of my attention.

The sight of his injuries is even worse in the bathroom lighting, a roadmap of cruelty that has me plotting Wilson’s demise.

A few rounds in the ring aren’t going to cut it.

He will die a gruesome, public death. I will make sure of it.

"Did Wilson do this to you?" I ask, though I'm afraid I already know the answer.

Sterling shakes his head slowly, his voice barely above a whisper when he speaks. "Not all of it."

I swallow the snarl fighting to get out. Wilson wasn't the first to hurt him, just the most recent. How many people have left their marks on this beautiful, broken Omega? How many times has he been failed by the very people who should have protected him?

"I'll be okay," Sterling whispers. He blinks a few times, his vision refocusing before falling on me.

"You're going to get your suit wet. You don’t have to stay. I can do this. I’m going to do this.

" His last words die out, strangled with pain, a whine following as a tear runs down his cheek.

Here he is, barely conscious and covered in injuries, and he's worried about my clothes getting damaged.

I can only imagine what was required of him before he got to the gala this evening.

"You look like you're going to pass out," I tell him. "I'll stay until you're ready to go to bed."

And I will. However long it takes, whatever he needs, I'll be here. The realization should terrify me, this complete upheaval of everything I thought I wanted from life. But instead, it feels like the most natural thing in the world.

Sterling is mine now, and I protect what's mine.