Page 58 of Claiming the Pack’s Omega (Riverwell Omegaverse #2)

Reyna

I know Killian’s brother.

I know Killian’s brother.

The moment Milo and I walk out onto the balcony off the ridiculously fancy living room, my shoulders slump forward, and I let out a soft gasp.

“Are—are you okay?” Milo asks, his voice just as shaky as my insides feel.

I swallow hard, but my mouth is so dry that it barely does anything. If anything, I feel like I’m choking on my own tongue.

The panic swells inside me, building and building until I’m gasping for breath because I can’t fucking breathe.

Just like when Killian’s brother had his hands wrapped around my fucking neck, choking me until I passed out as he thrust inside me. My skin feels dirty, exactly like it did when he tossed those crumbled bills onto my trembling, naked form once he was done with me.

My “tip” for letting him choke me bad enough to leave bruises for weeks.

Bad enough for me to panic and claw at his forearms as the world went black.

That same hungry look he was giving me in the foyer? The one he wasn’t afraid of showing, even though I was surrounded by my guys? In front of his mother?

He had that same expression.

I’m no stranger to guys looking at me with nothing but lust in their eyes, but this motherfucker was a different story.

That hunger? It came from him relishing my fear. It came from him being a power-hungry maniac. He had my life in his hands at that moment. He knew it. I knew it. And he ate that shit up.

“H—hey,” Milo says, standing in front of me and resting his hands on my shoulders.

He leans down so I have no choice but to meet his gaze.

“What’s wrong, Sunshine? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

My bottom lip wobbles as my heart squeezes in my chest. God, Milo is an angel.

He also looks like he’s seen a fucking ghost. There’s a tremble in his fingertips that matches the one in mine.

But despite that, despite the fact that he also had to walk through that door and see the bitch who ruined his life, he’s still here, comforting me.

If I weren’t wearing as much makeup as I am now, I would burst into tears.

“You—you aren’t the only one who’s got someone in that fucking room that they would’ve preferred to never see again,” I mutter under my breath, rubbing my sternum to try and ease the soul-consuming dread I can’t seem to shake.

Milo stiffens and his gaze narrows as he looks over my shoulder and back into the house. He’s smart, he’s probably piecing things together.

“Was that the first time you’d seen her since?” I ask softly, my hands coming to wrap loosely around his lower back.

He tugs me closer to him, lowering his head to my neck. His breath tickles.

“Sort of, yeah,” he says softly. “I used to see her around at school, and I saw her once in college, but after that, I made sure to stay inside and away from places she’d frequent so I wouldn’t have to see her again.”

“I know she barely said anything, but I wanted to smack the shit out of her, if that’s any consolation,” I murmur, running my hands through his hair.

The movement was intended to help calm Milo down, but cradling him to me also seems to be loosening the knot in my chest ever so slightly.

“It helps,” he says, letting out a shaky huff of laughter under his breath as he stands. His expression grows surprisingly hard as he stares intently into my eyes. “Now tell me how you know Killian’s brother.”

I swallow hard. I knew I’d have to talk about what happened to me in more detail. Hell, I was willing to stand in front of a whole courtroom and do so, but things are different right now.

I never expected that my guys would know one of the Northside men who bought my time. I especially never would’ve expected whatever clusterfuck this is.

“Do you—do you remember how Stone mentioned when he first met me that there were bruises around my neck?”

I feel Milo stiffen in my arms. I don’t know whether it’s the general mood, the eerie, dim balcony lighting, or the situation itself, but Milo’s expression grows darker than I’ve ever seen it before.

It’s like he’s biting back a snarl.

“I do,” he says, his voice barely a whisper. He lifts his hand to trace his fingertips against the column of my neck.

Instead of a necklace of bruises, I’ve got a necklace of rubies, probably worth more than all the money I would’ve earned in a month.

I blink rapidly, trying to fight away the feeling that I’m a fucking fraud.

Killian’s mother clocked it the moment I set foot in her house. I may look good, but this dress, this jewelry, this whole look? It’s like I’m playing dress up.

It’s like part of my brain, part of my body, is more used to abuse than it is luxury. Seeing that hungry, ravenous expression on Max’s face, a face I was used to seeing while stuck on my back in the Southside, seems to have shaken me to my core.

“Tell me what happened, Sunshine,” Milo says through gritted teeth. “Please, I have to know. We have to know.”

My nod is jerky as I cling to Milo’s expensive suit, inhaling his comforting gunmetal scent.

“Does Killian’s brother go by Max here?”

“His name is Maximus, yes,” Milo nods.

“Well, Max used to be a client of mine. I wouldn’t call him a regular, but I’ve—he’s bought my time a few times.”

I glance away. I can’t look at him right now.

Not when, internally, I’m fighting the urge to rip myself away from him because of how dirty I feel.

It’s a bizarre feeling. Not wanting to be touched at all, but wanting nothing more than to sink into Milo’s skin and become one with him, because that’s the only solace I have in this insanity.

Milo gives me space and time to get the words out. Any of the other guys would’ve pushed, they would’ve demanded, but not Milo.

I think I needed Milo. Needed his approach to things. Because I never would’ve been able to push past the shame and disgust I feel towards myself to answer his question if I’d been pushed to answer.

“Considering the way that fucker has treated Killian all his life, I’m sure it doesn’t come as a surprise to find out he’s the type to go to places like that,” I say, my voice a bit shaky, but my words coming out in one go.

Milo nods, and his arms remain strong around me, offering me the strength I need to finish this.

“He… he had violent tastes. He’s the one who I let choke me. For five hundred stupid dollars?—”

My voice finally breaks when I admit that I let him do that to me. When I admit that I was complicit in it.

For whatever reason, in my head, I wouldn’t feel as dirty if he just did it.

“He fucked me and then choked me so hard I passed out. He loved it. He loved the fear and the look I got in my eyes when I was worried he was just going to kill me,” I whisper, my gaze locked on the buttons on his button-up shirt.

“Then he tossed a bunch of crumpled bills on my naked body before he left.”

Like a whore.

Because that’s what I was.

A low growl leaves Milo's throat. I glance up to see his expression twisted in a mix of despair, sadness, and a whole lot of anger. His chest rises and falls quickly as he fights to keep a leash on his alpha instincts that seem to be screaming at him to go and defend my honor.

"That motherfucker—" Milo snarls, his voice breaking as he looks down at me. "He—he hurt you."

"He did," I nod. "But—but I let him, so it's?—"

"No," Milo snaps, interrupting me.

My mouth snaps shut. He's never used that kind of tone with me before. Frankly, I didn't know he was capable of it.

"Don't make excuses for him," Milo says, his brows drawing down. "I can see it in your eyes. You think what happened to you is your fault. It's not. It's just not. And I'm not going to argue with you about it."

I go back to staring at his chest as I purse my lips, biting the inside of my cheek to keep my words of protest locked away. Because I know he's right. I don't know why I feel the need to defend Max. Defend what he did to me.

Maybe because I don't like the helplessness around feeling like a victim.

"That stupid asshole has put Killian through hell and back their entire lives," Milo says, his hand coming up to cup my cheek.

He guides my gaze back to his. "You'd never in a million years say that it was Killian's fault, what happened to him, even though the guy has gone back to his family time and time again to try and figure out whether he can make things work. Right?"

"Never," I say, shaking my head. "His family's fucking crazy."

"Exactly," Milo nods. "That's why it's not your fault?—"

I hear the click of a door opening behind us and freeze as Milo stiffens underneath me, his gaze darting over my shoulder.

"Well, well, well," Max says, his voice dripping with amusement.

I whirl around, my heart leaping up and into my throat. I feel phantom hands wrapped around my neck as I stare into Max's dark, almost beady-looking eyes. The dull green there looks so lifeless in comparison to Killian's.

"You were certainly the last person I expected my little brother to bring home," he chuckles.

Milo's arms around me tighten as he stiffens behind me.

Well, this fucking sucks. I glance around, trying to see if there's a way out, but unless we want to jump off the balcony and onto the backyard below, the door behind Max is the only way out.

"What—what the hell are you doing out here, Maximus?" Milo says. To my surprise, the waver in his voice sounds like it's coming from anger, not any sort of fear.

I squeeze his hand, trying to show him how grateful I am that he's here with me. I don't know how I'd react if I were alone with Max again. I'd probably freak the fuck out. Well, freak the fuck out more than I already am, that's for sure.

It makes my heart melt, the fact that soft and kind Milo is willing to bare his teeth at an alpha that easily has fifty pounds of muscle over him.

"Am I not allowed to go places in my own home?" Max laughs, extending his hand outward and gesturing to the mansion around us.

"That's not what I'm saying, and you know it," Milo answers, his voice low.