Page 11

My eyes scan the brief submission I just downloaded from my email, struggling to keep my breathing steady.

Dear Romantic,

I’m being courted by a wealthy, attractive pack. They come with the right pedigree and all the shining things an Omega could ever want. They’ve never shied away from the physical nature of our budding relationship, their touches and kisses leading to other intimate acts rather quickly. There’s only one problem. I’ve never taken a knot, and the fear of it paralyzes me any time we get close. It’s not the actual act itself that worries me. It’s more that a part of me can’t help but think that it’s just sex to them. I want it to mean more. I want it to be as important to them as it is to me. How do I know if that’s the case, and what do I do if it’s not?

Sincerely,

Knot Shy

Well, at least someone’s close to getting a knot, my vagina gripes.

Trust me, my lack of knotting has nothing to do with fear and everything to do with lack of candidates who won’t require more than a knot squeeze in return , I snap back.

My conscience rolls her eyes at me. Keep telling yourself that.

Without a lot of room for furious pacing in the Hacienda, I’ll have to make the most out of the few feet available as I tap the name in my favorites. Lucky for me, my ankle seems much better, with only the slightest twinge if I turn too fast, so at least I don’t have to worry about that on top of everything else.

Note to self: don’t almost kill anyone today. I really need to stay in full working order for the remainder of this trip.

I’m so lost in my head I almost forget I’m in the middle of an overdue phone call before the phone rings once, then twice, and I hear the telltale click on the other end.

“Hello, Ellie Bellie. How’s the grand vacay going?” West chirps across the line.

My growl has every head in the room turning to gawk at me, but my face must clearly say mind your own fucking business because everyone scatters at once.

“West Carter, you can consider this your termination as my best friend. I want all my hoodies and old Backstreet Boys albums back. You can keep my tupperware because you’ve probably lost the lids anyway. I plan on keeping the two bottles of sangria you left at my apartment as payment for having to deal with your idiotic attempts at matchmaking, including the absolutely absurd situation I’m currently stuck in.”

I take a deep breath, preparing to launch into another tirade, but her chuckle stops me in my tracks.

“Wow. So what you’re not saying is that it’s going even better than I could’ve dreamed. You only threaten friendship termination when you're on emotionally unstable ground.” She snorts. “You can stop growling at me any time now and admit I’m right.”

“You conned me into coming on this godforsaken trip under false pretenses, Sy and I got stuck overnight in a hotel with one bed, only to show up and be stuffed into a villa with that pack of droolworthy Alphas who are covered in muscles and tattoos. Then I almost killed a man with a grape, my ankle got fucked up because his heavy ass fell on me, all in front of said droolworthy Alphas, mind you, and then the spicy redhead picked me up and carried me home where he proceeded to give me the sweetest kiss of my entire existence. Now I’m over here questioning everything, and I really fucking hate you right now.”

“Okay, whoa. That was a lot to unpack there, but let me start with the fact that you’re sharing a villa with them. That was not my doing. You were each supposed to have your own suite in the same building.”

“You didn’t book the villa in some sort of forced proximity romance trope foolishness?”

“Girl, you’re giving me way too much credit. I’m honestly pouting now because I didn’t think of it.”

My fury subsides…at least partially. “Fine. Then it really was a mix-up on the resort’s end. You’re off the hook on that one.”

“Now, what’s this about you and Sy in one bed and almost killing a man before Rafferty kissed you? Tell me more about all of that .”

I go into the whole story from the beginning, practically hearing her smug grin over the phone. I want to curse her again and threaten bodily harm, but when I replay it all in my head, I feel that same fluttery sensation in my belly and warmth lighting up in my heart. Maybe it can wait until I figure out what the hell that’s all about.

“So, what are you going to do?” she asks eagerly, and I swear she’s probably bouncing in her seat. “You’re not going to continue this romance research on strangers when you have big, hunky Alphas to test things out with, right?”

“Don’t be referring to my teammates as big, hunky Alphas , bright eyes,” Nash mutters in the background.

“Shhh, sunshine. You know I don’t need any more dicks around here.”

He grumbles something else, but it’s too low for me to make out.

“Earth to Carter. This is my fucked-up life we’re talking about here. Your grumpy man-child can wait his turn. He already gets enough of your attention.”

“You’re right. I’m sorry. Where were we?”

“I was about to tell you that I just received a new column request right before I called you. I’m one hundred percent still moving forward with my original plan to romance the shit out of the males on this island.” I swallow down the little bit of guilt that sneaks up my throat, trying to strangle me, when four faces flash in my mind.

“Why do I feel like there’s a but in there somewhere?”

I try to tell myself I’m being silly. There’s no commitment between us. We’re just acquaintances with mutual friends. Nothing more. Except there’s Sy and our new agreement, not to mention our long-standing bestie-ship. But he understands how important this assignment is and will totally understand why I have to do this… right?

Fool, my conscience snaps at me.

“Elliott, the fact that you’re completely silent right now tells me something else is going on here. What is it? I’m your best friend. You can tell me anything.”

“I don’t trust myself around those Alphas, West,” I whisper. “I feel things when they’re close that I have no right feeling. They deserve a traditional Omega who wants all the things she’s supposed to want. Being pampered, having babies, a pillow addiction, and all that other normal shit. Not some weirdo with more baggage than Kanye.”

Her voice is soft when she says, “Elle, we’ve talked about this. I know where you stand and why you believe pack life will never be for you, and I’ve always respected your decision. I just think you deserve more than random flavors of the week. You deserve to be loved for the amazing woman you are, and I think these guys might be the ones to prove it to you. This might be your chance to see if what’s between you all is the real deal. Maybe see if there’s a middle ground you didn’t realize could exist.”

My heart is beating so fast, I feel like I might be edging toward a panic attack, which hasn’t happened in a long ass time. Just the thought of being doted on is… smothering. Almost to the point it’s becoming hard to breathe.

The door to the Hacienda opens, distracting me from my rising distress, and a man steps through the door with long blond hair, ocean blue eyes, and a six-pack that’s impossible to ignore, mostly because he’s shirtless. He doesn’t exactly give me any flutters, but he’s pretty to look at. His gaze circles the room, and when he catches me watching him, he smiles widely, showing off perfect, pearly white teeth. He slowly saunters toward me, sliding his hands in the pockets of his red surf shorts, the movement emphasizing his broad, toned chest.

His scent hits me—jasmine with a hint of cedar—and while it doesn’t set off my internal Omega sensors, it’s clean, neutral, and most of all safe because he’s a Beta.

This is what I came here for , I rationalize. My job is on the line, and I need that transfer. Pull up your big girl panties, Elle. Time to do this thing.

“West, sorry to cut this chat short, but an opportunity just appeared that I can’t pass up. I’ll try to call again with another update in a few days.”

“Opportunity, my ass . Really, Elliott?” Her frustrated sigh hits my heart like an arrow. “Just promise me you’ll think of what I said? They’re worth the risk, babe. Trust me.”

“I promise, just…” I take a deep breath in and exhale, forcing the tension in my shoulders to ease as I tuck away the messy feelings threatening to drown me. “Don’t get your hopes up. Toodles.”

Tucking my phone into the back pocket of my just-shy-of-too-revealing cut-off denim shorts, I watch his eyes trail up my legs and over my exposed stomach to the cleavage revealed above my white cropped cami. The loose, flowing, blush-pink linen shirt is unbuttoned, acting more like an accessory than an actual cover up.

“Hey, beautiful. I’m Marshall.” He holds out his hand.

Closing the distance between us, I slide mine into his, immediately noticing the smoothness of his fingertips against my palm.

This man’s never done manual labor a day in his life. My conscience pouts, crossing her arms over her chest.

My vagina tilts her head as she studies all of the bronzed skin on display, not a single scar or tattoo in sight. But that’s not a bad thing. Maybe he’s a model or an actor. He’s definitely pretty enough.

My conscience narrows her eyes. Or maybe he lives in Mommy’s basement and mooches off wealthy travelers to fund his lifestyle.

Shaking myself out of the silent conversational battle, I paste a smile on my face. “I’m Elle. Nice to meet you, Marshall.”

“I came in here to look for my friend, but I don’t see him. We were supposed to go down to the beach. Would you care to join me instead?”

A walk on the beach is romantic, right?

Despite the twinge in my belly, I nod before checking over my shoulder, half expecting to see one of the men who’ve been occupying my thoughts to be watching me with a look of disapproval, but they’re nowhere in sight. I’m not sure if that’s disappointment or relief swirling in my gut, but I ignore it. Threading his fingers through mine, he leads me out of the Hacienda and down the wooden pathway that will bring us to the beachfront.

This is for your future. Nothing more, nothing less. You don’t owe anyone anything. I repeat the mantra over and over in my head as the soothing sound of the waves brings a false sense of peace to my soul.