Page 30 of The Bounty

“I am helping you,” he says cautiously. “We all are.”

Anxiety rises in me as I plan my next words carefully. “I need to go back to my family, Dylan,” I say slowly. “It’s only an eight-hour drive. Kilian doesn’t need to know,” I say hurriedly. “And Brock obviously doesn’t want me here, so you could take me back home.”

For a moment, I can tell he considers it. Pain is clear on his face, and he sighs as he looks at me. His scent darkens, the pine and earthiness of his musk swirling around me.

Hope and desperation brew in me. This is myonechance.

I can convince him.

“Please,” I whisper, closing the distance between the chair and the bed. I lose my balance, awkwardly tripping, but he steadies me with a powerful hand on my waist, holding me in place.

“Dylan,please,” I try again. Even sitting, his face is almost eye level with mine as I stand over him. His scent envelops me, and my traitorous inner Omega bats her eyelashes.

He holds his breath, his fingers gently tracing the cloth of the sweatshirt.

I smile brightly at him, and he lets out a shuddery breath.

“We could go now,” I whisper. “They don’t need to know.”

My voice belongs to someone else; I’ve never taken on that seductive and husky tone before.

His other hand comes up to my waist, and he holds me in place, looking up at me.

He’s going to help me.

He’s going to do it.

The room buzzes with energy, and I’m seconds away from stepping closer to him…

“There’s a bounty for you,” he sighs, shaking his head. “I’m sorry, Olive.”

I blink, frozen in his hold.

“What?” I whisper, unable to process his words.

He smiles sadly as he looks up at me. “You’re one of the only missing Omegas left,” he murmurs. “There’s a twenty million dollar reward for you.”

I tremble in his hold, clutching his broad shoulders to steady myself.

“I’m so sorry, sweetheart,” he whispers. “They’re tapping your family member’s phones by now. They’re most likely monitoring your friends. If you want to stay hidden, I can’t take you back.”

I shudder.

Twenty million dollars.

I wish I was still asleep. That there wasn’t food in my body, that I was still in survival mode, so the fear wouldn’t paralyze me.

I don’t realize I’m crying until Dylan pulls me into his lap, his powerful arms encompassing my body.

He presses a kiss to my hair, and the gesture only makes me sob harder.

This is so fucked up.

I bury my face in his chest, allowing myself to accept his comfort.