Page 23

Chapter 23

Ava

My legs give out.

The shaking isn’t just in my hands now. It’s everywhere. I feel cold all over, except for my face, which feels flushed. I can’t stop shaking.

Dante whips around, crouching just a bit and pulling me into his arms, letting me bury my nose in his neck where his scent is the strongest.

“What a strong Omega,” he purrs. “ My strong Omega. You were so brave. It’s okay. I’ve got you. I’ll protect you. I’ll rip his damn throat out if he tries anything, I don’t care who’s watching or where we are. You were so brave. You’re safe. I’ll keep you safe.”

Tears slip free and I nod frantically, but I still can’t stop shaking.

Dante gently picks me up, keeping his arms around me, and nods for a clerk. The woman rushes up, looking concerned. “Sir?”

“I’m afraid my Omega’s had a bit of a bad shock.” Dante’s tone is apologetic, but not embarrassed. “Would you mind taking these items and arranging to have them sent to our residence?”

He takes care of everything with the clerk, his calm voice washing over me. You’d think that he was arranging this so I wouldn’t have to carry too many bags, and not because I’m having a panic attack.

It really does make me feel safe, to know that he’s so calm. Dante will handle this. Dante will protect me.

He gets me out of the shop and back to the car, where he sets me down on the hood. I keep my arms and legs wrapped around him, and he rocks me, purring, rubbing my back.

I don’t know how much time passes until I’m feeling less like I’ll fall apart, but Dante doesn’t complain. Whether it’s five minutes or an hour, he’s patient, and he just keeps reassuring me, holding me.

He pulls back just enough to take my face into his hands. “Are you okay if I drive?”

I nod.

We get into the car. I’m still shaking a bit, but it’s not as bad as before. Dante drives one-handed, his other hand on my leg to help calm me down.

It works. I feel secure, with him touching me.

We pull up to the mansion and get out, but the moment we open the door, the Alphas must sense something’s wrong because all three of them descend.

“Ava?” Caleb’s there first. “You smell…”

He kneels in front of me and buries his face in my stomach, wrapping his arms around me like a supplicant. I run my fingers through his hair and brace my other hand on his shoulder. He smells so lovely. So comforting.

“What happened?” Garrett growls, a threat in his voice. “Did someone touch her? Did someone hurt her?”

Ethan’s fidgeting, clearly wanting to help, but not sure what to do.

“I think we should move to the living room,” Dante says, ever the leader.

Caleb picks me up and gets to his feet in the same instant, carrying me to the living room couch. All four of them crowd around me, giving me their soothing scents.

“We ran into her ex while we were shopping,” Dante says, keeping his voice quiet so he doesn’t upset me.

Ethan strokes my hair while I lean my head on Caleb’s shoulder. “Marcus,” I whisper.

“He seems to think he has a prior claim on Ava, because he dated her before she knew she was an Omega. He was upset that Ava hadn’t arranged for him to be notified so he could be at her presentation ceremony.”

“If that’s the case,” Garrett mutters, “the girl I kissed in fifth grade should’ve invited me to her goddamn ceremony too.”

“I hate this,” I whisper. “I hate how upset he makes me feel.”

“Ava.” Ethan’s voice is gentle. “He abused you. That’s going to upset anyone.”

“I hate that I fell for it. How charming and sweet he could be.”

“He can certainly present a false face to the world,” Dante growls. He glances at me, his lips pulling to one side. “When you talked about a man named Marcus before, I didn’t realize that it was Marcus Travers. He’s a competitor of ours.”

“Wait. You know him?” I ask.

“Unfortunately.” He glances at his pack mates. “It’s not just any Marcus. It’s our favorite guy to hate.”

“What? The fucking Prodigy asshole?” Garrett snarls. “Oh, he’s asking for it. He knows he’s asking for it. I told that guy last time…”

“I’m sorry,” I blurt out. “I’m sorry. This is my fault. If I’d just… I shouldn’t have given in. I was drawn to that Alpha energy, but I should’ve known…”

“There’s no ‘should’ here,” Caleb murmurs.

Dante nods firmly. “He gave you every reason to be scared of Alphas, after what he did to you. I know you feel your instincts steered you wrong, but baby girl, nothing that happened to you was your fault. And we will protect you. No matter what.”

The other three men all add murmurs of agreement.

“We’ll keep you safe from him,” Garrett promises. “He won’t ever fucking touch you again.”

“That’s our vow to you,” Ethan adds. “Even if you decide you don’t want to be our Omega and don’t want to bond with us. Nobody should have to be at the mercy of an asshole like that.”

“You have our word.” Caleb kisses the top of my head. “We’re going to take care of you.”

“That man,” Dante growls, “is against everything an Alpha should be. There’s no way we’ll let him get to you. We’ll make sure he never has any claim on you.”

I’m touched by their defense of me, their protectiveness, their compassion. But no matter how much it means to me, I can’t fully erase the part of me that is still terrified of Marcus.

I wonder if I ever will.