Page 24 of An Omega for the Lycan Prince

“Too well,” I admit with a flush.

“Of course, she does,” Ella muses. “Liam is powerful and strong, and his wolf probably highlights all of his attributes.”

“Alrighty,” Dave smirks. “So now we have to find your mate too, Ella. And yours, Finn. I am going to call it Mission Searching-Hot-Mates. Mission SHM for short.”

“What!?” Ella sounds slightly panicked. “Forget it, never!”

“I can find my mate on my own, thank you very much,” Finn glares.

“Oh, right. Is that so? And how is that working out for you so far?” Dave asks innocently.

Finn furrows his eyebrows, his glare deepening. “My brother found his mate on his own too. Just now. And he is older than me.”

“And? Are you your brother?” Dave asks lazily.

Finn shoots him a deathly look. “And now you sound like my father. How do you even do that?”

“Oh, honey,” Dave grins. “It’s a gift.”

I can’t hang out too long today, I still need to study, and my… well… my mate wants to meet me later. Even thinking about it feels surreal. I take the rest of my food along, carrying the plate carefully not to spill anything. When I turn around the corner, someone bumps into me with so much force that I drop to the ground, my food and coffee spilling all over me and the floor.

I look up only to see it is Lauren. “Oh,” she smiles sweetly. “I am so sorry.”

I blink, confused at first, before I start gathering my stuff. “It’s okay,” I mutter. For a split second, I truly believed it was an accident. Then, however, Lauren glares viciously at me and kicks my now empty plate further away from me. Her dumb brainless followers do the same until all of my stuff is spread over the corridor.

What the heck? The moment of shock passes, and I am about to get up again and face them properly when Lauren pushes me down again.

“That’s exactly where you should be,” Lauren hisses. “Down on your knees with dirt all over you. Filthy Omega!”

“I don’t get it,” one of the girls huffs, glaring at me. “She isn’t even pretty!”

“Totally plain,” another one agrees. “I don’t know what he sees in her. First Prince Finn and now Prince Liam.”

“You like whoring yourself out to those rich guys?” Lauren hisses.

I let out a sigh of annoyance before getting up to my feet. This time I know what to expect and avoid their hands. I look at them coolly. “Are you finished embarrassing yourselves?” I ask, well aware that Lauren would never dare to hurt me for real. Her father is the Beta of our pack and a good friend of my parents. He wouldn’t be too happy if his princess pranced around punching other she-wolves… over a guy who isn’t even her mate. “If yes, I would like to proceed.”

It worked! I collect my stuff and walk away from them. I try not to let their words get to me. They are jealous. I know they are just jealous. But still, having them blurt out the truth… I feel so hurt. I am used to Lauren throwing petty comments at everyone she deems below herself, and while I am not scared of her and her friends, it still hurts. It burns all of a sudden that they treat me like that.

At the same time, I am pissed. At them for being pathetic idiots. At me for my insecurities.

While I walk towards my room, I can feel Lauren’s searing glare against my back. I don’t turn around.

Girls from my own pack.

Their words sting, but the betrayal I feel stings more.

Chapter eight

Chapter 8 Lauren

*ANNALISE*

I don’t tell anyone about the incident this morning. Normally I would share everything with Dave and Ella, and I am still debating if I should, but I am unsure. It’s not that I don’t trust them. I know they would instantly defend me, and Ella would not be scared to go against a bunch of she-wolves. But something holds me back.

I feel unusually insecure, more so than normal. Rationally, I know that Ella and Dave would never agree with them. But deep down, I am scared that Lauren and her clique are right. That I am crossing a line by being with Liam. That I am not good enough for a Lycan prince.

Clashing with Lauren and hearing her words made me feel horrible. I felt anger and disbelief, but a major part of me also felt ashamed. It was so embarrassing. I don’t want to relive that moment again. I don’t want to repeat their hurtful words and actions. I don’t want to embarrass myself further. And I won’t tell Finn or Liam either. Especially not Liam. He already got a weak Omega as his mate. That’s bad enough. Just imagine if his mate can’t even stand up for herself on top of that.