Page 52 of The Omega Exchange: Omnibus (The Exchange)

I need to know her shame so I can take it and harbor it for her. More than likely, whatever is weighing on her isn't her misdeed. But if it is then I'll take that, too.

"I submit to you and you forgive me?" Ana asks, shaking her head. "I don't think it's your forgiveness I need."

We're at a precipice. She's teetering on the edge. I can't force her to trust me. I can only prove myself if she gives me the opportunity to show her that she can.

I move slowly to give her the chance to object. When she doesn't, I wrap my arm around her back and lift her into my lap.

"You're worried about the consequences of something. I haven't put the pieces together, but I will eventually. The thing is, once you're mine no one else can get to you without going through me first. And I can be a mean son of a bitch when I need to be, but never with you."

Her eyes dilate at my words.

Yes, I'd say Anastasia is naturally quite submissive whether she likes that side of herself or not. Her impulses seem pleased by my words, but a lifetime of being disappointed by alphas has made her wary of trusting anyone.

I run my finger over her soft cheek. "Whatever or whoever it is you're afraid of won't touch you.

The only person to dole out discipline will be me.

I'm the judge, jury, and enforcer of your sentence.

You won't always like it, but once you've been punished for something it's over and forgiven.

That, in and of itself, can be a huge relief. "

"Until it's brought up the next time," Anastasia whispers, glancing away.

"No, not with me. If you make a mistake, which we all do, then you trust me to decide your punishment. Once you've been punished, the slate is wiped clean. You release that guilt and your shame to me. I carry it from there. I assure you, princess, my shoulders can handle a lot."

Anastasia bites her cheek as her huge blue eyes meet mine. I ache to soothe the discomfort that she's feeling.

"Do you know why alphas and omegas work so well together?"

"I haven't had a lot of experience seeing healthy relationships first-hand," she says. I'm still holding her chin, but her gaze falls to her lap.

"Alphas aren't fulfilled unless we're offering care and comfort to those around us, especially omegas. Omegas do best when you have gentle guidance and someone to help you work through the difficult shit life throws at all of us. Give me your trust. I'll take your worries and carry them for you."

"Why would you do that?" she asks.

She's so fucking beautiful, and so vulnerable at the same time.

How could anyone see how much she's hurting and not do everything in their power to fix it?

"I'm drawn to you," I tell her truthfully. "I can't stand seeing you suffering. If you put a little faith in me, I'll fix whatever it is that's weighing you down."

"How?"

"I'll set boundaries and reinforce them, but I'll always have your best interests at heart.

You might not always like my rules, but you'll follow them anyway or there will be consequences.

We'll discuss those together. I'm open to your thoughts and opinions, but it doesn't mean I'll always take that course of action. "

"Another man who wants to hurt and control me," Ana scoffs.

"I want to take care of you because, frankly, you fucking suck at taking care of yourself. Do you want to know the main benefit of being mine?"

"What's that?" she asks, chewing at her bottom lip.

"You'll always know how much you're wanted," I murmur, brushing my cheek against hers. "I'll feed you by hand, tell you what a good girl you are, spank your ass red when you're naughty, and fuck it both for punishment and rewards. And then there's the fact that no one hurts you but me."

Anastasia lets out an adorable little gasp.

"Would you like a demonstration?" I taunt.

"A demonstration of what?"

"What it feels like to let go of that guilt that's stewing in your gut," I say, staring into her eyes.

"How?"

"I'm going to spank your ass raw for the way you acted yesterday with Evie. Then you don't have to feel guilty about it anymore."

"I'm pretty sure the owners won't consider a spanking enough to wipe the slate clean," she whispers.

"You'd be surprised," I say, trying to hold back the laugh. "But how about this? If anyone questions you about anything from here on out then you direct them to me. It's that simple."

"Because you'll be my Dom?" she asks. Her chest heaves with each rapid breath. "Do I have to call you 'Sir'?”

"Oh, sweet girl," I murmur against her lips. "I'd much prefer for you to call me 'Daddy'."

Anastasia gasps. I'm not sure how it happens, but the next thing I know she's grinding over my cock and whimpering into my mouth.

She tastes like a cherry slushie with some type of tart citrus mixed in.

Her pheromones hit me square in the chest. The low, vibrating purr that shakes out of my chest is surprising.

Ana smirks. "Are you going to spank me, Daddy?"

"Fuck yes, princess," I growl. "You're not going to like me very much when I'm done, but let's see if we can clear your conscience."

Anastasia bites her lip, blinking up at me from under her lashes. "Okay."

I'm so fucking fucked, I realize as my heart races. She's pure goddamn trouble and one-hundred percent mine.

I blink at the door long after Anastasia walks out it. I broke down her walls once. I don't care if they're twice as high this time. I don't give up without a fight.

"Those fucking assholes must have a death wish," I growl at Wolfe and Castro.

Cas sighs.

Wolfe snorts. His head tilts, appraising just how close Anastasia is to the ski-instructor with no survival instincts. Brad or Tad, or whatever the fuck his name is, slides his knee between Ana's legs and grinds his cock against her pussy.

"Chad really does want to die today," I say, swiping a hand over my face. It doesn't work. The little bastard is still touching my omega.

Wolfe laughs. "I don't want to say I told you so, but dude. I so totally fucking told you so."

I growl, shoving Wolfe away with my shoulder, but he only laughs harder. I should kill him, too. I'm not fucking pleased to hear he spent the night with Ana.

Cas rolls his eyes at the both of us. He assured me there was no sex, but I've still had a few fantasies of choking the life out of Wolfe.

He's on thin ice. We've been through it together, and yeah, he's like family.

But still, he's the kind of family I'll happily murder in his sleep if he's not careful.

"You know I didn't fuck her, right?" Wolfe says, crossing his arms over his chest. "Yeah, I was there for her and we hung out, but I never stuck my dick inside her."

I scoff, swiping a hand over my face.

"I'm serious," Wolfe growls. "Could I have? Maybe, but honestly I doubt it. For whatever reason, she really liked your ass. She was so fucking sad. You might not like seeing her like this, but let me just say, fuck you and your feelings."

He glares.

I glare right back.

"If you'd bothered to listen to me or Cas then you wouldn't be here right now. She was so fucking despondent to the point it got concerning. So yeah, man, suck it up and deal because I'll take this Ana any day of the week over the one we got while you were gone."

"Jesus fucking Christ," I say, shaking my head and staring at my boots. "I tried to call and text her regularly. I told you to have her call me. I even tried to buy her a goddamn phone once I realized hers was shut off and she wasn't just ignoring me."

Wolfe gives me a look that says that isn't enough. I sigh, shaking my head. He could have tried harder to make sure she knew I was coming back. I fucking called to check on her every single day! My eyes narrow as my brain spins through facts.

"You wanted her for yourself," I growl, slamming my palms into his chest. "You knew I was coming back. You knew I was worried about her. You could've tried a little fucking harder to make her understand that. Instead, you what, play games, trying to slide in while I was away?"

Wolfe and I are pretty evenly matched in height, but I've got a bigger build. We glare at each other with our faces only inches apart.

"You're losing your shit right now," Wolfe says, shaking his head.

"And if you believe that, well then, fuck you, too.

I was the one stuck watching her get worse every goddamn day you were away.

Cas and I both made it clear you needed to prioritize Ana over whatever bullshit vendetta you've got for her old man. "

I growl, but Wolfe takes a step back. Of course he doesn't get it. He didn't listen to the way Ana talked about her father and the way he treated her and her mother. If he'd heard what I did then he'd have been with me in New York.

Wolfe might spend his days kayaking, hiking, and fishing with tour groups, but he was right there with me in the sandbox and when we did contract work after. Neither of us are squeamish about doing what needs to be done. Sometimes the scum of the earth fails to take itself out.

"I'm not your fucking enemy. What the hell, man? I get that you're upset, but don't take that shit out on me. Or Cas for that matter. We're the ones who've been here for you," Wolfe says, sighing. He looks at Cas. "Back me up here."

Cas sighs. "We all care about Anastasia and about you. Don't push us away because you made a mistake."

I scoff. My anger is reaching dangerous proportions and the fucked-up part is I know it's not them I'm angry at. It's my fucking self that I'm pissed at. I got tunnel vision on removing the problem and failed to see the big-picture equation.

"We're practically a pack. Then Anastasia comes in and you want her all to yourself.

Did either of us show our ass when you wanted us around in case you couldn't manage?

No, we fucking showed up and put in time getting to know Ana.

I don't know what the fuck has gotten into you, but I don't like it,” Wolfe says, disdain lining his tone.

My stomach drops. He's right.

Cas, Wolfe, and I have lived together for close to three years.

I always figured we'd end up together with an omega in the center.

Except Anastasia made it clear she didn't know how she'd handle a pack.

Her father used her mother as a toy, traded to his inner circle to punish her mom or as a reward for his men.

The absolute rage that pulses through my system when I think about that man is alarming. I never understood the saying about your vision literally turning red, not until recently.

"It's not just me," I say, turning to locate Anastasia. She's standing by a table with the guys from the lodge. She's swaying to the music and talking to fucking Thad. "Anastasia has her own baggage, as I'm sure you've guessed."

"Yeah, no fucking shit," Wolfe says, scoffing. "Next time try talking to your teammates instead of shutting us out." Wolfe glances toward Ana. "Seriously, if that dude doesn't back off and stop giving her drinks… I'm going to have to push him off the side of a mountain during our next tour."

My eyes fall to the table of our co-workers. I suddenly understand Murphy's obsession with bears. Maybe he needs a partner in his animal sanctuary project?

"It's time for us to go," I growl. "Before I go down there and cause a scene."

"No, you'll only make it worse," Wolfe says, leaning over the railing. Ana looks up at him, and Wolfe smirks. "I've got this." He winks at Ana and spins to head down the stairs to where she's standing.

I frown at his back as he saunters away.

"Look," Cas says in his soft tone. He doesn't raise his voice or yell.

He never does. I lean close to make sure I can hear what he has to say.

"Wolfe didn't deep-dive into the reports of Ana's attack like we did.

Once he does, he'll get it. She will, too.

She's hurt because she cares. And for what it's worth, I think she'll forgive you. "

I sigh. "I sure fucking hope so."

"You made it seem like it was your choice not to let us in the nest for her heat," Cas says, watching Anastasia.

I don't say anything. It was a combination of things. Sharing doesn't come in my default settings. Anastasia was apprehensive, and that's all my inner caveman needed to know to decide I wasn't sharing during that first heat.

"I know it's not what you want to hear," Cas says, patting me on the back. "But give it some time. Let her make you jealous, and when you apologize try not to justify your actions. Sometimes, someone just needs to hear that you fucked up, you're sorry, and you wish you could change it."

"I'm not, though," I growl, swiping a hand over my face. "Okay, I regret not bringing Anastasia with me, but I didn't want her anywhere close to what was going down."

"I get it," Cas agrees.

I've never been in this situation before. I'm not fucking perfect; no one is. But I've never screwed up so royally before. My gut churns uncomfortably as I try to figure out how to fix this disaster.