Page 12 of Altius (The Scent of Victory #2)

When the clock ticked to eleven, I hit my absolute limit. I called Jacobi. It went straight to voicemail. I didn’t leave a message.

He knew what I wanted to talk about.

The clock ticked forward another minute. Then another. Deciding to risk it, I texted Grace. She might know something.

Did I break Jacobi?

No, but he’s in a mood. A big one.

So, that’s why he wasn’t returning my texts. Figures. My favorite menace could dish it, but he never liked the aftertaste.

How bad?

Almost as bad as the day you told him he couldn’t buy another pair of leather boots, but not quite.

Anything else of note?

Says he feels like shit for being too rough on you. But I think he’s right. Wyatt should be at your heat.

Great. My best friends were ganging up on me.

As I was about to reply, a knock sounded on my door.

Rory didn’t wait for me to respond before walking in. He was wearing his pajamas, long auburn hair pulled off his face by a terry cloth headband, and holding a body pillow.

“Can I crash with you? The twins are fussy, and it’s echoing up through the vent.”

“Why don’t you take Jenna’s room?”

“Because she’s even pickier than Papa when it comes to people touching her shit. And I barely get to spend time alone with you anymore.”

“Suit yourself, then.” I scooted to the side, leaving plenty of room for him.

“Yay!” Chucking the body pillow between us, Rory plopped down and got cozy, burrowing under my covers and shifting pillows around. “So, I’ve been meaning to ask you something.” He kicked an offending velvet throw onto the floor. “When you were in college, how did you go about finding, uh…”

I did some quick mental calculations. Eighteen was about the right age for a first proper heat—a daunting time for any young omega.

“I think it’s different for everyone. Some people focus on mating early, so they only sleep with potential packs.” Shifting a bit, I angled to face him. “A few of my friends had serious partners who were okay with adding in the occasional backup.”

“What about Jacobi?”

“Don’t follow his example, please. He developed a rotating roster, shall we say, so he always had plenty of choices. No strings, just sex. Which is all well and good until one of the random hook-ups catches feelings or gets jealous.”

“Sounds messy.”

“Oh, it was. That’s why I used to go through my designation counselor to arrange partners.” Belatedly catching the error in my choice of tense, I tacked on, “Still do.”

“Ooh, there goes my bullshit meter.” Rory sat up.

“You don’t need to arrange new partners—not when your neighbors spent last weekend waiting on you hand and foot, bringing you tea and snacks, while Cal handled all your medical shit like a pro.

And don’t forget how they acted around you at the gala and their housewarming… The list goes on and on.”

Wrapping his arm around mine, Rory leaned across the body pillow to rest his chin on my shoulder, then tugged on the sleeve of Cal’s cardigan. “And don’t think I haven’t noticed this gem.”

“Hands off,” I said, trying to dislodge him. “Try stealing this, and I’ll stop paying for all the stuff you sneak out of Kelsey’s stockroom.”

Rory flopped onto his back, wriggling in delight as he laughed. “I knew it! You’re dating Cal.”

“Shh, be quiet. I’m serious, Rory. No one else can find out.”

“Fine, fine,” he grumbled and rolled onto his side, facing me again. “I’ll keep my mouth shut…even though I’m probably the last sibling you’ve told.”

“Only Kelsey and Jacobi know.”

“But why keep it a secret?” he asked. “Cal’s great. Why not file courting paperwork and be out in the open?”

“We can’t—at least not right now. I’ll get removed from the PheroPass project because courting alphas and omegas can’t work in the same department. That would mean starting my research project from scratch. It’s too big a risk.”

“That sucks.”

“I know. So, prepare yourself, little brother.” I stroked the top of his head. “This will be your reality soon enough.”

“Ugh, don’t remind me.” He straightened his headband, then paused. “Actually, can Cal recommend a new designation counselor for me? I don’t like my university-assigned one.”

“Sure, I’ll ask,” I said, picking up my phone to add a reminder.

“And you could always try mine. Chantal’s taken excellent care of me, even though I’m pretty much a nightmare patient.

She’s also got an excellent reputation for pack matching.

At the very least, she can help figure out if one of the counselors at Harborview might be a better fit for you. ”

“I thought you were going to suggest Cal,” he said, stifling a yawn.

I set my phone down with a laugh. “Do you really want your prospective future brother-in-law to know everything about your sex life?”

The bright hue of his green eyes intensified. “Wow. You guys are that serious?”

“Getting there. At least, I think we are. Slowly. Very slowly.”

“But he’ll be at your next heat, right?” He sighed, cuddling deeper under the covers. “Fucking lucky. Pheromone stud boyfriend. Reunited with your gymnastics prince. A whole pack of handsome guys that will go above and beyond the call of duty to make your heat amazing.”

“Whoa—whoa. I do not have guys, nor are they coming to my heat. Just Cal.”

“But it’s so obvious they’re into you, Morgan.”

“That’s their problem.”

Rory rolled onto his stomach, digging an elbow into the body pillow to prop himself up. “What if I was in a similar situation?”

“I don’t do hypotheticals.”

“Seriously, that’s bullshit. If a patient came to you saying there was a pack interested in them, but they weren’t sure about having them participate in their heat, what would your advice be? The same thing you always tell me.” He leaned closer, staring deep into my eyes. “Trust your omega.”

“Which you should—when picking your own partners. Not mine. You don’t need to worry about me.”

“I’m not worried,” he said emphatically. “I’m frustrated. Every time I see you with one of those guys, it feels right. It’s like looking at Audra and her mates. My instincts say that you’re a match.”

“That’s very touching, but—”

“Would you mind if I dated Landon Choi?”

I rolled my eyes.

Rory’s tactics were too obvious. He wouldn’t get me to admit I felt the same connection between Audra and her mates. Or that he and Landon had all the romantic chemistry of a pile of wet newspapers.

“That’s none of my business,” I said flatly. “I’m not policing your love life.”

Rory nodded, but the wheels were turning in his rascally brain, quickly coming up with fresh bait to dangle in front of me. “I think Wyatt’s gorgeous.”

“That’s the general consensus. And I’m turning off the light in ten seconds.”

“Okay.”

Rory obediently closed his eyes, but his mouth was puckered, the telltale sign he was still plotting something.

Hoping that if I turned out the light before he started advocating on Wyatt’s behalf, too, I reached over—only to be sideswiped by the last thing I ever expected my baby brother to say.

“I’m going to ask Alijah out.”

Every instinct wanted me to lunge at Rory, determined to scratch his eyes out. How dare he covet my beta.

“ No .”

The strength of my possessive snarl took us both by surprise. I clamped my hand over my mouth and stared at him in shock.

Where had that come from?

I liked Alijah, no matter how much I wanted to deny it. One hit of his sweetness was never enough—but that didn’t warrant such a strong reaction.

“See,” Rory said with a triumphant smirk as he rolled over,clutching the body pillow to his chest. “You should always trust your omega, just like my amazing big sister taught me.”

Rory’s heartfelt words were too logical. Too precise. Exposing another weakness in my armor.

I never took my own advice.