Page 5 of His Snowbound Omega

Thorn’s hand tightened on the couch, but he didn’t retreat just yet, too afraid of that threat and what it could mean.

“There,” the praise was surprising, sounding oddly sincere, “that’s a good omega.”

Thorn licked his lips and tried reason, since he couldn’t think of anything else to do. “I made it to the cabin.”

“I helped you along,” the alpha replied.

“What?”

“I could have pulled you off the porch instead of pushing you in. We could be doing this in the snow, but you looked so cold. Like a frozen kitten. I couldn’t bring myself to rut you on the ground. Trust me, you have it better than all the other omegas do right now, getting their tight holes plowed in the blizzard.”

“Blizzard?” Thorn’s eyes automatically sought out the window on the side of the entrance, in the kitchen. A porch light illuminated the thick flurries tumbling outside the frosted glass.

“Did you not notice?” the alpha grunted. “The storm started almost as soon as the hunt did.”

He’d been too focused to realize, but that explained why his extremities had gone numb so quickly.

“It doesn’t matter how I got here,” Thorn tried again. “What matters is I did. I made it inside. You—”

“It matters if I say it matters, my frosty omega. But I’ll tell you what, 'tis the season of giving, and all that jazz, so I’ll make you an offer.”

He should refuse. Turn around and try his luck, see if he could make it to the bedroom and lock the door before the alpha caught him, but…That gingerbread smell seemed to be getting stronger, and for some reason, the notes of warm spice and vanilla were comforting.

“What are you doing?” Thorn demanded, bristling when the alpha chuckled.

“Making you an offer.”

“You’re using your pheromones, aren’t you?” he accused. That’s what the smell was. He’d never smelled an alpha quite like that before, but scents could be extremely personable, so that wasn’t uncommon. The trick was in not allowing the smell of festive baked goods to lower his guard, a task easier said than done, since the alpha was clearly using soothing pheromones on him at the moment.

Both alphas and omegas had them and could exude them to gain a number of different reactions. All things considered, this alpha was choosing an extremely passive approach.

Why?

What did he gain by getting Thorn to relax when, according to him, he could simply take at his leisure?

“Let’s see,” the alpha ignored his question, “you did make it to the cabin, so I guess I could honor the agreement and wipe your debts clean.”

“Really?”

“Ah, but I also made it in, and I did catch you, whether you want to admit it or not, so that means I’m owed something as well.”

Thorn had a sinking feeling he knew exactly where this was going.

“Do you know who I am, frosty omega?”

The weird nickname threw him off, and Thorn scrunched up his nose in displeasure. “What?”

“That’s what you look like.” The alpha inspected his face. “Like you were sculpted out of snow. Levi is the only person I’ve ever seen with hair that white. Any chance the two of you are related? No. He would have known if that were the case. Wouldn’t have allowed you into the Hunt. His eyes are shit compared to yours. Would you call that shade amethyst or lavender?”

“Does it matter?”

Thorn almost touched his hair, just barely catching himself. It was true, his hair was a fairly light shade of blond, so close to white that it was often mistaken for it, but he hadn’t made the connection between himself and the Dominus earlier when he’d seen him—

He sucked in a breath when it hit him who he was talking to.

“Oh, so you do know who I am.” The alpha—theunderbossof the White Frost Mafia—grinned.

Thorn’s shoulders caved in on themselves, a feeling of overwhelming hopelessness threatening to bring him back down to the ground, but the alpha clicked his tongue chidingly.