Page 24

Chapter 24

Caleb

The moment Ava entered the house, I smelled her and knew something was wrong.

I think we’re all able to pick up on her scent more strongly, and more instinctively, than we could at first. It’s a part of how the bond is made. Already whenever I leave the house and I go out in public, any other Omega I run into smells sour to me. Too cloying, like an overly sweet cheap grocery store cake.

Which sounds absolutely insulting, so I’d never say it out loud to any Omega. But I know it’s the growing bond between me, between all of us, and Ava as we continue to court her.

I’m so upset about this Marcus guy I could take a swing at him myself, which isn’t my usual style. But Ava’s approaching her heat. She was already unhappy and upset when Dante took her shopping.

Then they came back, and she smelled so afraid .

Even a few hours later, I can still catch whiffs of it.

She feels better. I can tell that, which is better than nothing. I want her to feel better. But I’m more in tune with her than the others, aware of her emotions, and I can tell she’s still on edge.

I can’t blame her. She must be feeling really raw after all of that. When she confided in us the first time about her abusive ex, it was clearly upsetting to her, but she’d felt it was all in the past.

Now that past is back to haunt her.

I wish I could snap my fingers and fix it easily. I’m good at that, at work, at our company. I’m good with people, and oftentimes, the solution we’re looking for is a simple one. But this is one of those things you can’t fix with just a few magic words or an email to another department.

However, I think I have some ideas of what can help.

The rest of the pack likes to lovingly tease me for being a nerd, but I think research is important. You can never be too careful, and it’s something I remind them about as we put the finishing touches on this Omega smart watch project.

Once Ava got here, I stepped up that reading, brushing up on everything I’ve ever read about Omegas—but not just biology, like the research I did for the watch. Now I’ve been reading about Omega behavior during heat. What they need. How they feel. How they’ll act.

And now, I’m ready to pamper her.

I head upstairs to her bedroom. Her nest, rather. If she chooses to bond with us and be our mate, this room will be the one she considers her own for her heats, but it probably won’t be the place she sleeps every night.

Right now, though, it’s her domain. And she wants to nest and fix it up so it’s perfect.

As I walk up the stairs, I can catch a whiff of her scent. She’s much calmer now. The things she bought from the shop arrived about an hour ago and so now she’s redecorating, hanging up the curtains, all of that.

We asked if she wanted help, but Ava politely declined. I think she wanted some time to be alone after everything. I get that, but I think it’s time she had a break.

I know she won’t take one when she should. She’s determined to be independent and not give in to her instincts. I understand. But giving in isn’t a bad thing. Not when we’re here to catch her.

“Ava?” I call, so she can hear me coming. “Can I come in?”

I get up to her door and knock. “Ava?”

“Sure thing! Come on in!” She sounds like she’s yelling, but it’s muffled.

As I enter the room, I immediately realize why. She’s got the coverlet over her head as she’s trying to completely redo the sheets on the bed.

I can’t quite hide my chuckle. “You look like the world’s frilliest ghost.”

Ava wrestles with the bedding until her head pops out, her dark hair all around her face. She’s so adorable I want to devour her. I know she’s still making up her mind, and none of us will ever push her, but I know what I feel. My heart aches to make her our Omega for good.

I can see how lighthearted she’s trying to be, but the stress around the corners of her mouth and eyes give it away.

She needs a break.

“How’s it going?” I ask, sauntering over.

“I think you can tell how it’s going,” she shoots back, laughing and pushing her hair out of her face.

“Honestly, I think it’s going great.” I look around. She’s added more décor and redone the curtains. “I really like the art you chose.”

“You’re sweet.”

“I’m honest. People are just used to honesty only when it’s mean.” I hold out my hand. “Come on, I have a surprise for you.”

She takes my hand, smiling up at me. I can sense that she’s secretly relieved to have an excuse for a break, even if there’s a part of her that’s still a bit anxious, frantically telling her she needs to make this perfect.

That’s okay. I know how to quell that part.

Her hand is warm and trusting in mine as I lead her downstairs to the home theater we have set up. I’ve already gotten out all the treats: the popcorn maker and cotton candy machine, the soda, the ice cream.

Ava laughs as I lead her in. “Caleb. You didn’t have to do all this for me.”

“Of course I did.” I sit her down and get her some treats. “You’re our Omega. You deserve to be pampered. And I’m guessing it’s been a while since you ate.”

“I am craving junk food,” Ava admits.

I wink at her and get going on the treats. I’m not surprised she’s craving junk food. She needs extra energy for the next few days and her body’s preparing for a possible pregnancy, but definitely for a long few days of sex.

Ava smiles up at me as I bring her the food, her eyes full of wonder like she can’t believe I’m doing this for her. As if my doing this for her is some kind of chore and not a pleasure, an honor. It brings me joy to give her joy and to take care of her, that’s what Alphas do.

“The others are out. I think Dante went to talk to our lawyers.” Probably investigating if there was anything we could do about Marcus. “Garrett went for a run with Ethan.”

I don’t add that the two of them needed to work off some steam. Garrett’s our fighter and Ethan’s always restless. After what happened with Ava, knowing they can’t go and just beat the shit out of this guy like they want… yeah I don’t blame them for needing to work off the energy some other way.

Ava gives me a shrewd look, and I’m sure she’s read between the lines. I might understand her, but she understands me too.

She doesn’t press, though, she just takes the food and lets me snuggle down next to her. “I have a whole lineup planned.”

“Oh?”

I grin down at her. “Now, I could have asked you what you like to watch, but, I think it’s more fun if I guess.”

“Okay.” Ava laughs. “Go ahead, then, what’s up first?”

I use the remote to get the movie started, and Ava’s eyes go round and wide when the Disney animated 101 Dalmatians starts playing.

“How’d you know?” she looks over at me. “Who told you?”

“Well, I wasn’t sure how much you liked it, but I figured you must have a little bit, since you love dogs so much.”

“This was my favorite when I was little. I watched it so many times, I practically had it memorized. I can probably still quote scenes from it.” Ava smiles at the screen. “I used to do the whole bit with Lucky when I was cold.” She imitates Lucy’s voice. “My ears are froze, and my nose is froze, and my toes are froze!”

I grin down at her. “You are so fucking adorable, did you know that?”

Ava blushes and ducks her head down, but I can tell from her sweet scent how pleased she is. “You’re not too bad yourself.”

I put my arm around her shoulders as the movie starts. “What was your favorite?” she asks. “Growing up?”

“Peter Pan. I really liked Wendy. Not that I had a crush on her, that was Tinkerbell. But I liked how she became okay with growing up at the end and she realized… how it was all about balance.”

“You’ve always been very mature, haven’t you?” Ava asks. “Very observant.”

“I suppose so. Although mostly I think it translates to ‘nerdy.’ Just ask the others.”

Ava leans her head on my shoulder. “I like that.”

We watch the movie, occasionally whispering through it to talk about things like Disney, and animals, and then when it finishes I start the next film on the list.

Ava laughs. “Okay, you’re wrong about this one. I’ve never seen it.”

“You’ve never seen You’ve Got Mail ?”

“I’m not a huge fan of rom-coms.”

“You’ll like this one.”

“Oh yeah?” Ava looks at me playfully. “Why is that?”

“Because it’s about an Alpha and an Omega who fall for each other through a computer screen. No scents, no heats or ruts. Nothing. They fall for who the other one truly is. And when they meet in person, and don’t know they’re pen pals, they don’t like each other. It’s about two people coming together because they’re right for each other. Not just because of biology.”

Ava stares at me with a soft, awed expression on her face.

“What is it?” I whisper.

She smiles. “It’s just… you get me. You really get me.”

My chest fills with so much warmth that I feel like it might burst as I reach over to rest my hand lightly on her leg. “I try.”