Page 181 of Omega's Heart

“There wasn’t anything to tell.” Felix put a contemplative hand on the curve of his belly, visible now that he’d taken off the winter coat he’d been wearing when they first got on the airplane. “And you didn’t need to be distracted.” He frowned a little and hitched his carry-on higher on his shoulder. “They’re still really mad, aren’t they? I mean, about Jason.”

“Seems so.” He’d actually had a moment’s worry at one point that they’d try to keep Felix, whether out of revenge or some misguided idea that just living in Mercy Hills made any omega a True Omega, but he wasn’t going to let his mate know about that. Felix was alarmingly aware of the emotional temperature of a room even at his most distracted, and he’d obviously picked up on some of that. But the subtle and not-so-subtle threats had been at a time when Felix hadn’t been around, thank Lysoon.

And there was that sneaking suspicion of Kaden’s that Felix might just be part of the rare group of omegas.

Kaden had hustled them out of the enclave before he lost his temper and had stricken Montana Border off the Mutch Trust list with satisfying prejudice. Not that he thought Jason would have been much in favor of it, but the political implications of awarding the next trust to Montana Border were still being hotly debated. Though after he made his report, he thought that idea would be shoved into a grave more than six feet deep.

And now they were in Texas, waiting for their luggage, while Kaden worried about his mate and wondered if he shouldn’t have said no to the offer of a car and driver from Buffalo Gap.

Barrens, that’s what he’d do. “Let’s just rent something and drive out ourselves.” They had a couple of hours to wait before their drive could pick them up anyway. It wouldn’t be a problem.

“That’s expensive, Kaden. I don’t mind waiting.”

There it was again, that slight sense of not-quite-right in Felix’s voice.

“I do,” Kaden decided. “Let’s get the luggage and see if we can find a comfortable car. John will cover it.” He’d make John cover it. Or the omegas. Someone. But he wanted to get Felix’s state of mind settled before they got to Buffalo Gap, with its just as problematic history with the Mercy Hills omegas.

“What’s wrong?” Felix stepped around to stand in front of him. “I’m fine, I’ve already told you.”

“We can talk in the car.” The baggage carousel started to move and Kaden took the opportunity to delay having to pry into something his mate didn’t want to talk about. He didn’t think of himself as one of those overbearing alphas but this sense of wrong drifting off his mate made his ruff stand on end.

Felix sighed and followed him over. They waited in silence for the bags to come around, then Kaden led them back up to where the car rental services were. He got them a larger car, with Felix’s condition and height in mind. Ten minutes later, Buffalo Gap knew they were driving themselves and he had their luggage and—more importantly—his mate tucked safely inside the sedan.

Except Felix hadn’t said a word since their—Kaden wouldn’t even call it a tiff—at the baggage carousel. So maybe it was more than a tiff, at least to Felix.

I’m going to have to apologize.

He put the key in the ignition and then jumped when Felix leaned across the car to kiss his cheek. “Thank you,” his mate said softly.

“I thought you were mad at me.” Kaden reached for his hand and squeezed it.

Felix shook his head. “No. I know you’re being a bit alpha. They put you on edge. It’s okay.”

“But you’ll tell me what they did that put you in that odd mood?”

“I’ll try.”

Which Kaden guessed was as much as he was going to get.

Felix went quiet again until Kaden was out on the highway. “That was still the same Alpha of the pack that was there when Jason was there?”

“It was. Orvin.”

Felix nodded. “There’s something wrong with him. I don’t know what—Holland could tell you better, or maybe Jason. He’s creepy.”

“He feels like the world owes him something, I think.”

“Maybe that. I don’t know. But I wasn’t a packmember to him or even a person. The way he looked at me…” Felix shrugged and fidgeted in his seat. “I felt like a side of beef.”

Kaden reached across the car to curl his hand over the top of Felix’s thigh. “I like your beef.”

As he’d hoped, it startled a short bark of laughter out of his mate. “Goof.”

“I’m totally in lust with you, you’ll just have to roll with it.”

Felix opened his mouth as if he was planning to say something, but all that came out was, “Oh!” He spread his hands over his belly and bent his head, eyes closed as if he was paying close attention to something.

“Is something wrong?” Kaden reached for him, while at the same time scanning the road for a safe place to pull over.