Page 6 of The Alpha's Fake Mate

“Thursday will be fine.”

“Good. We’ll all meet out front of Zilly’s at three.”

We both rose at the same time. Saben shook my hand.

“You’re a wealthy man now. You keep that farm and let it continue to do business, and you’ll grow even wealthier.”

Well, I would think about it, at least.

In the parking lot, I got into my Jeep. My dad had left me his Rolls and his Porsche and his limo and driver. But I still loved my Jeep.

I sat in the sun-warmed seat for a few minutes doing nothing. I had just inherited multi-millions, and an Omega chattel farm I didn’t want. But I didn’t feel like much had changed. That was probably because I’d already had everything I wanted in life. What a privileged ass I was!

I should be celebrating. My dad had died a year ago, so there was no sadness. Even then, when I’d gotten word of the plane crash, I hadn’t cried. Not one salty tear.

Finally, I decided to text some of my college buddies. We’d all just graduated. Many of them were in between more schooling or jobs.

I invited them to dinner at the best steakhouse in the city. My treat.

Every one of them accepted the invite.

Chapter Three

Holland

I kicked at the thick, beige carpet.

I’d gotten the brace off my ankle yesterday, and it was still sore. I didn’t care.

“It gets us nowhere to hate ourselves,” said Sen.

“I never said I hated myself.”

“Yet you want to die.”

“To escape.”

“That would only be hurting yourself.”

“Why would I want to hurt myself? Or hate myself? I’m a good person. I’ve never done anything wrong. I haven’t harmed others. It’s the world I hate, but I can’t kill the world, now, can I?”

Sen had this irritating mint habit. The air was filled with wintergreen. He sucked on his candies throughout each of our sessions. It was a wonder he still had all his teeth.

He was a gangly guy with a craggy, but still handsome face, and his smile showed slightly yellowed but perfect teeth. I never asked him his age, but I figured somewhere between seventy and a hundred.

“I’m not going to hurt myself,” I confessed with a deep exhale. “But fuck this. I am not going back to the mating halls. And I hate to cook! I’m not going to spend my life in service to other Omegas.”

“It hasn’t been long enough for you to make any decisions. We need to focus on emotional health at this time, how to make you feel good about yourself again.”

It had been two months already. Nothing was improving except my body, which healed rather quickly without a care to my mental state.

“I feel just fine!” I argued. Some part of me, even before the attack, had always been slightly contrary. But certainly I did feel fine. Physically, I was healed. Mentally, I knew nothing about this fucking situation had been my fault and I resented it more every day.

And the anger. I hated everyone and everything. Even Harly couldn’t get me to do much. Play games with him and the others? That was kid shit. I mostly kept to myself and read or watched vids.

“You may think you feel fine,” Sen said. “But you aren’t ready to be making any decisions right now about what you may be willing to do or not do.”

“I won’t go back to the mating hall ever again, I know that.” I folded my arms in front of me.