Page 32 of Claiming the Pack’s Omega (Riverwell Omegaverse #2)

Theo

“ G reat work on the case so far, Selene, you seem to have a good handle on everything,” I say to the fresh-out-of-law school beta I’ve apparently taken under my wing.

“Really? You think so, Theo?” Selene asks, starting to collect the files we’ve spread out on the conference table in one of the spare rooms of the office.

“Of course. You and the client have excellent rapport. It’s hard coming to a firm like ours but you’ve made the process as comfortable as it can be, all things considered.

Wrongful termination lawsuits are stressful enough on their own, add in wrongful termination because the client came out with sexual misconduct from her boss?

I think you’ve got nothing to worry about. ”

“I—I’m glad,” she says, tucking her salon blonde hair behind her ear and blinking up at me with a bright smile that makes me pause.

Shit. I know that expression.

“I know I’ve kept you at the office late, but do you have any plans tonight?”

And there it is.

I paste on a placating expression.

“Sorry, Selene, I’ve got plans.”

“Oh, that’s okay! Maybe next time?”

“How about we make it a team thing? If you’ve got any ideas for the next team-bonding outing we do, just let Jessica know, she’s much better at planning those things than I am,” I say, referencing our take-no-shit HR director.

Hopefully, that was a big enough hint.

“Oh," she says, glancing away. “Okay.”

“I’ve got to head home now, have a good night, Selene.”

Technically, I’m headed to the nearest store to get Reyna a new phone. Milo texted earlier in the group chat and asked if Killian or I could pick it up.

Theo

Headed out of the office, I’ll go pick up the phone

Killian

Good. Thanks. I’ve got one last meeting before I can head home

Milo

Let me send you the details

I ordered it for you, so you’ve just got to pick it up

Theo

Thanks bro

Wouldn’t want to pick up the wrong kind

With my luck around technology, I wouldn’t put that out of the realm of possibility. Milo has a bad habit of comparing himself to the rest of us, and in his eyes, he tends to fall short.

I think differently.

He’s a genuine technological wizard. I’ve never seen anyone do the things he’s been able to do so easily. He works for a ton of different companies, organizations, and even governing bodies.

If he decided he wanted to fuck over the entire city of Riverwell, he probably could, considering he’s worked on systems for the city council, the police department, and the biggest security firm in town.

I manage to make it home earlier than I thought I would, even though I stopped to pick up Reyna’s new phone. I would’ve taken a lot longer if Selene weren’t as well prepared for our one-on-one as she was.

Her crush on me aside, she’s excellent at her job.

“I’m home!” I call out when I make it back.

The house is quiet. Almost empty feeling. To be fair, that’s not unusual, considering the four of us tend to work ungodly hours and have opposing schedules half the time, but I thought with the addition of one new person, it would’ve breathed a bit of life into the place.

I hear footsteps at the top of the stairs and see Reyna and Milo, hand in hand.

A small pang of jealousy hits me before my gaze focuses on her. Instantly, every other emotion but concern vacates my brain.

“Are you okay?” I ask, rushing up the stairs two at a time.

She turns away, wiping at her cheeks.

It only helps a little bit. There’s no hiding the fact that her makeup is smudged because she was crying .

“What’s wrong?” I ask her.

When she keeps her gaze averted from mine, I turn to Milo for answers.

“You should tell him,” he murmurs softly. “He can help, too.”

She glances up at me, her stormy gray eyes carrying shadows that I’d do anything to get rid of.

“I look that bad, huh?” She jokes, wiping at her face again. “I should really go fix my makeup.”

“There’s nothing to fix, Spitfire, you look beautiful as always.”

She rolls her eyes. “Trust me, I don’t feel hot. There’re much sexier ways than crying my eyes out to make my mascara run.”

Her mouth snaps shut as if she didn’t mean to just say that. Her petrichor scent thickens, betraying her true feelings.

A satisfied smirk tugs at my lips.

She may still be pissed at me, but she’s attracted to me. I can work with that.

What can I say, I look good in a suit.

“Forget I said that,” she mutters under her breath, staring away from me and up at the ceiling.

“Hmmm, I don’t think I can do that. But I’ll be nice and not talk about it anymore,” I say, flashing her a wink. “Now then, do you want to tell me why you were crying?”

She bites her lower lip and that anxious look returns to her expression.

“I—I took a nap earlier and woke up to a bunch of texts and missed calls,” she says, shifting her weight nervously from foot to foot. “They were from my old pimp. And from someone in the Sorel family.”

Oh fuck. And not the good kind of fuck, either.

“What kind of bullshit were they saying?” I growl, my voice going low.

“Just stuff about how I’m a traitor," she says, her scent souring with her stress. She won’t meet my eyes. That frustrates me.

She may be able to hide her emotions better than most, but I’m an observant guy. Her eyes are like windows into her head, and considering the fact that she doesn’t seem to be the kind of girl who lets people in easily, they’re one of my only tools to understanding where she’s at.

“They also burned down my family’s house," she whispers, her head falling to her chest. She looks defeated.

I’ve never seen her look like this before. It makes my heart ache.

“Fuck, I’m so sorry,” I say, reaching out to pull her into my chest.

She leans in, resting her cheek against the fabric of my suit jacket as she wraps her arms tentatively around me.

God, I missed this.

I got used to the feel of her soft body pressed up against mine during those Saturday nights I’d have with her.

“We can find replacements for all the things you weren’t able to bring with you,” I suggest softly.

“It’s not about the things," she says, shaking her head. “I mean, maybe it’s a little about the things—I grew up in that home—but it’s more than that.”

She trails off, and there’s a little tremble in her arms as she clings to me.

“They were also threatening her safety,” Milo says, his jaw clenching. “The house was just another way they wanted her to get the message.”

My gaze jerks to him.

“They what ?” I grit out. “I need names. And addresses. Right the fuck now.”

“Hey, wait that’s a stupid idea,” Reyna says, her hands coming to my chest. “Like, a seriously bad idea, that’s going to jeopardize the entire case! Plus, you saw what they did to Stone and I’d put money on him being a better fighter than you are.”

“I can fight in other ways, Spitfire,” I say, my gaze not dropping from Milo’s. I need to know what he knows.

Based on the look in his eye, he’s determined as hell to protect Reyna too.

“We know the information on… on Reyna’s old boss, but it’s the other number who contacted her that I’m worried about,” Milo says. “That one was untraceable, even for me.”

“Fuck, really?”

“Yeah,” he says, his jaw clenching. “Which means we’re dealing with a group with a lot of money.”

“That fits the Sorel family,” Reyna adds. “They’re probably swimming in cash, considering the scope and extent of their drug trade and omega trafficking.”

My gaze jerks down to her as she takes a step back, away from my embrace.

I miss her already.

Fuck, I’m so screwed.

“We really do need to have a conversation about the information you know,” I say.

Her expression shutters immediately.

Shit. I was doing so well, too!

“Sorry," she says, shaking her head. “You don’t have to look at me like that.”

“Like what?” I ask, clearing my throat.

“Like I just told you to go fuck off, or something," she says, running a hand through her raven hair. “I just—I just don’t like talking about my past. It’s nothing to do with you.”

“So… you’re not mad at me anymore?”

Her lips tug into an amused smile. “You’re out of the doghouse,” she says, shrugging. “For now. Be careful, I may have to throw you back in if you do something stupid.”

I bow like I’m a butler.

“Yes, ma’am,” I say, straightening. My lips tug into a genuine smile as I look down at her. She’s stunning, even with her makeup a little smudged from her tears. “We don’t have to talk about any of that stuff tonight.”

She gives me a jerky nod.

“Okay, I think I need a little time for things to settle, you know?”

“Of course, you’ve gone through a lot of changes in the past twenty-four hours.”

I take a moment to breathe her in. I’m so tempted to lean my head down and bury my face in the crook of her neck as I scent mark her.

That’s a bad idea, though. I’m only freshly out of the doghouse. Wouldn’t want to do something too quickly and get myself thrown back in.

“Here,” I say, handing her the bag with her new phone. “Here’s your new phone.”

“Oh, thanks," she says, taking the bag and glancing inside of it. “It wasn’t too expensive, was it?”

I don’t know a lot about technology, but that phone’s the newest model. So it was definitely one of the more expensive options we could’ve chosen, but we’re definitely in the financial position to be able to buy it for her.

“Nah,” I say, shrugging. “Plus, you deserve some sort of compensation for allowing yourself to get whisked away.”

“Whisked away to the rich and ritzy part of town where you guys are basically giving my family a whole new life," she says. “That’s like winning the fucking lottery, it’s not like you’re kidnapping me to do something I don’t want to do.”

“Do you need help setting up your phone? I could do it for you,” Milo offers.

“Oh, you’d do that? Thanks! I’ve had the same phone since high school, so I’ve got no clue how to transfer things.”

“I’ll take care of it,” he nods.

“You can go with him to see him work his magic, or, you could come with me and watch me work my magic in the kitchen.”

She raises an eyebrow and lets out a little huff of laughter.

“Magic, huh?”

“Yeah, I’d say so. I’m a pretty damn good chef.”

“I bet your signature dish is steak and eggs or something," she says, rolling her eyes.

“Hey, I’ve gotta work within the limitations of cooking for three other guys. I’ll have you know my steak and eggs are bomb though. They help feed these muscles,” I say, miming flexing my arm.

I may not be nearly as jacked as Stone, but I’m not half bad, especially considering I don’t make it to the gym nearly as often as he does.

I don’t miss how Reyna eyes me up and down, like she’s trying to see through my suit to see the muscles I’m talking about. She’s definitely felt them, while we’ve been tangled in each other’s arms, cuddling. But she’s never seen them.

By the expression on her face, she seems pretty interested.

“Take me to dinner first, before you eye fuck me,” I murmur, leaning in and brushing my lips against her forehead.

Her body jolts, I can’t tell whether it was from my words or from the forehead kiss. Both, probably.

“Well then, I guess I’ll just have to help you make dinner," she says, looking up at me through her lashes, her petrichor scent swirling around us as it sweetens with her attraction to me.

Fuck me .

She’s absolutely divine.

“I’m going to go clean myself up first," she says, glancing away.

I reach out and gently guide her face back up to mine with a gentle finger under her chin. I can tell exactly what’s running through her head right now.

“You look amazing, you don’t have to worry about that around us.”

She shrugs as if she doesn’t believe me.

Well, not all battles can be won in one day. We’ll just have to show her we don’t care about whether or not she’s wearing makeup.

She’s probably been taught that she’s only valuable when she’s desirable, considering the places she was working.

“Meet me down in the kitchen whenever you’re ready,” I say, softly. “How about that?”

“Okay, I’ll be down soon," she says, flashing me and Milo a tight smile, leaving the two of us on the landing by the stairs alone.

“Wow,” Milo breathes out.

“Wow, what?” I ask, leaning against the banister and scrubbing my hand down my face. God she drives me crazy.

“You guys… you guys look good together,” he says softly.

I let out a huff of laughter under my breath. “So do you two. I didn’t miss the way she was holding your hand earlier, when I got home.”

“I—I told her about what happened in middle school,” Milo says, his gaze locked onto the floor in front of us.

My head snaps in his direction.

“Really?”

This is a huge deal. It wasn’t until I’d already graduated from high school that he told me the full story himself. I just beat up the guys involved in bullying him because who the hell bullies someone like Milo?

Douchey, sadistic idiots, that’s who.

I don’t think he told the other guys for years after we’d all met. The fact that he’s told Reyna after knowing her for such a short period of time means he feels the pull, too. There’s something special about Reyna. Something I can’t put into words, but it’s there and ever-present.

“Yeah,” he says. “She took it really well. Said it wasn’t my fault and stuff. She even threatened to take care of Angie Winters if she ever met her.”

“Holy shit, that’s awesome! How do you feel, now that you’ve told her?

“Good. Really good. Like a weight is off my chest, you know?”

I clap my hand on his shoulder before pulling him into a hug.

“I’m so glad. So glad, you have no idea.”

“She’s really special,” he whispers, hugging me back.

“She is.”

I don’t think I’ve hugged Milo like this in years. Even though I’m adopted, I’ve viewed him as my little brother ever since we were kids. Man, I should do this more. Pay attention to him more. Make sure he’s okay, and all that stuff. I’ve been too wrapped up in work.

Reyna was right when she tore into Killian and I in the hospital. We’ve seriously got to reevaluate what’s important to us.

I pull back from the hug and grip Milo’s shoulders.

“We should play some video games or something, later.”

Milo’s eyes go wide and there’s a spark in his amber eyes that I haven’t seen there in forever.

We’ve got similar eyes. I think it’s part of the reason why his parents decided to adopt me, out of all the other kids they could’ve adopted. If you look at the family photos, I fit right in.

“Really?” He asks, a rare smile tugging at his lips.

“Of course, it’s been too long. Let’s hang like old times.”

“Like old times,” Milo says with a nod.

“I’ve got to go figure out dinner, now. I’ve got an omega to impress.”

Milo heads back to his room, probably to set up Reyna’s new phone and I head downstairs to try and figure out what I can make that would be impressive enough for her.