Page 7 of The Omega Exchange: Omnibus (The Exchange)

Chapter Six

Luke

My head tips back as my palms land against the wall several times in quick succession. What the fuck is wrong with me? Did I seriously jump down that woman's throat all because she complimented my scent?

The sound of my boots hitting the floor echoes around the quiet hallway. I'm a fucking adult. It's past time to have moved on from Melody and the bullshit she pulled.

I owe Everly an apology the next time I see her. What the hell am I supposed to say? I'm sorry my damage was showing? That's not gonna fly.

I finally make it to my room and toss open the door to my suite. It closes loudly behind me as I pace the room.

My chest gets tight recalling the look on Everly's face.

Shit.

I was an asshole.

Kicking off my boots, I toss myself down onto the sofa. I swipe a hand over my face, blowing out a heavy breath. I'm going to need to nut up tomorrow and figure out a way to apologize.

"I'm sorry," I say, leaning against the wall in Murphy's office early the next morning. "Say that again?"

"I'm pulling you off Anastasia," Murphy says.

I grin. He's never cared if an assignment was a pain in the ass before. I scratch my jaw. It makes me mildly suspicious.

"You're now assigned to Everly Chastain," Murphy continues. "Don't fuck it up."

A sharp bark of laughter escapes. This is perfect. "There's a slight possibility I already did."

Murphy is a monster of a man. I'm tall for a beta, six-foot-three to be exact, and Murph still has close to half a foot in height on me. He hits his feet, and I try to take a step back. My head bumps the wall behind me, and I square my shoulders.

"What do you mean?" he growls. It's a low, menacing sound that sends a shiver down my spine.

"I hurt her feelings," I say, swiping a hand over my face. "She complimented my scent. I made it clear I'm not an alpha."

"Fucking Christ," Murphy grumbles. He jabs a thick finger at my chest. "Fix it."

"I will," I say, giving him a nod. "Are you and the bosses courting her?"

Technically all three of them are my bosses, but Murphy's a military guy like me. Sure, he's my boss, but he's not a suit.

Murphy grunts. "She's already got a scent match." He grumbles under his breath. I think he says, "For now."

"You like her, that much is clear. Why would you allow her to go to another pack?"

Murphy sighs, tossing himself back into his chair. "Connor says it would be inappropriate to abuse our power by trying to court her when she's already been matched."

"That's the dumbest shit I've ever heard. They didn't care enough to show up on time, so fuck them."

"My thoughts exactly," Archie says, leaning lazily in the doorframe. "She's delectable. Everything I'd ask for in an initial match. Of course we'll have to get to know her better, but that's the entire purpose of courting."

"She smells pretty," Murph grumbles. "I think she'd look nice pregnant…"

Archie and I share a look. Oh yeah, he's got it bad.

"She has a week before her heat is supposed to hit," Murphy growls, drawing my attention. He's bent over studying his computer monitor. It looks tiny in comparison to his massive frame. He curses. "She's already in pre-heat, or she's about to be. You'll need to be extra vigilant."

Great, she's going to get even more potent with each day that passes. Let's hope she gets alphas soon. She needs alpha pheromones rubbed off onto her or my job is about to become very fucking difficult.

"Christ," Archie muses. "Are you scouring her medical records?"

Murphy grunts.

"Why didn't I think of that?" Archie chuckles.

"And Connor actually believes you assholes are going to let her match with another pack?" I laugh.

This isn't the first time I've seen alphas find their omega. They get borderline stalkerish. Nothing is off limits. There's no line they won't cross. My bosses might not see it yet, but they're totally fucking fucked.

"We'll see how it goes," Murphy grunts. "Keep her safe or I'll break both your legs and claim it was a skiing accident."

I laugh. I'm pretty sure that was a joke, but not sure enough that I'll take the risk.

I guide Evie into the restaurant a while later.

The lodge includes an all inclusive breakfast, lunch, and dinner buffet.

It's where all the staff for both sides of the lodge tend to eat and congregate.

Evie's not tiny as far as omegas go, but she's small compared to me.

The top of her head barely meets my shoulder.

There are a lot of people around, and it's making me itchy.

We head to the line. I grab a single tray with two plates and aim for the meat station. I toss bacon and sausage onto both plates.

Evie frowns at the tray and I ask, "Are you a vegetarian?"

Fuck, are there vegetarian omegas? Omega biology is designed to produce as many babies as possible, which we learned in school means they crave protein and fat.

That sounds way worse in my head than it did when my alpha and omega dynamics teacher said it.

I shouldn't have been in that class, but everyone was so sure I'd present as an alpha that they lumped me into it in ninth grade.

"No," Evie says, giving me a shy smile. "I was just wondering if both those are for you or…"

"Shit," I say, rubbing at the back of my neck. I'm fucking this up. "No, one's meant for you. I forget not everyone's a hardcore carnivore."

Everly laughs. It's a light, tinkling sound that makes my chest tighten as I study her face. There's something about her smile that makes my pulse pound.

"Try to save enough room for some of that French toast." She nods further down the line where I know the carbs are located. "Ohmigosh, I see the whipped cream from here!" Her hands clasp in front of her as she practically vibrates with excitement.

I grin, shaking my head. She’s ridiculously cute.

“The stuffed French toast is some of the best you'll ever eat,” I say, smirking.

“Okay, well get a move on then,” she says, giving me a get going gesture. I laugh as I fill our plates with scrambled eggs.

She bolts for the sweets table as soon as I’ve got the tray lifted off the line. Her short black dress isn’t provocative in the least, but her curvy body fills it out a little too nicely. I sigh, glancing away from her swaying backside. My cock is suddenly determined to act a fool at breakfast.

This is why I brought her to the buffet rather than the upscale restaurant on the third floor.

Her sweet, apple pie scent fills the air as she darts across the room, and I notice pretty fucking quick that I’m not the only one trailing her luscious form.

I glare at a few of the snowboarding and ski instructors until they get the hint.

“I think I owe you an apology for how I acted last night,” I say after we’ve mostly finished eating.

Everly tilts her head, studying my face. “For what?” she asks. Her nose scrunches. “I’m the one who violated your personal space with my nose. I’m sorry for that.”

I sigh. Yeah, now I feel like even more of an asshole. She's soft in a way I'm not used to.

“No. Don’t apologize for that. It shouldn't have been such a big deal. I overreacted."

"Okay, no worries," she says, brushing her face clean with a napkin.

My hand falls to the schedule of activities for the week. "Have you given any extra thought to what you'd like to do today?"

"No, it feels weird to go to the mixers and things, when I'm supposed to be meeting a pack."

"That doesn't mean you can't socialize with the other omegas or even spend some time meeting the available alphas," I say, studying her face. "You're not locked in. You can choose any pack."

"I know, it's just…"

"Don't tell me you're one of those catty women who can't stand being around other omegas," I say, cracking a smile to let her know I'm joking.

"No, not at all," she says, pushing her plate away. "All my sisters are omegas, and my best friend. I'm very used to being around them. It's…" She sighs. "I really need things to work out this time."

I frown, studying her face. Her shoulders are slumped, and she looks defeated. "What do you mean?"

"The news hasn't made the rounds?" She laughs. "I've been rejected twice and that's on top of…" She glances away.

My jaw falls. I want to ask on top of what, but her discomfort is clear.

"You're kidding," I say before I can stop myself. It's incredibly fucking rare for an omega to be rejected.

"No, not at all." She shrugs. "The first time it happened, my OPA coordinator assured me it was a random fluke that wouldn't happen again.

By the time the second pack accepted my scent match, I was nearing the end of my current packet of suppressants.

They're pretty awful on an omega's health, so I stopped them, thinking there was no way another pack would meet me and change their minds. But here we are."

"The pack you're meeting here is going to be your third match?"

"Yeah, it's actually more than that, but I'd really rather not get into all that. I guess we'll see if I get lucky this time," she says, glancing away and laughing uncomfortably.

"The men here aren't stupid. Someone will have snatched you up before your heat starts." More than likely my bosses.

Everly blushes. "Let's hope so. I'm not sure I'm prepared to go through that type of pain."

Evie's beautiful in an understated way that you don't often see with omegas. They're usually in-your-face beautiful with overly-exaggerated curves. Evie is pretty in the girl-next-door kind of way. The kind of gorgeous that sneaks up on you with the shy smiles and pink-tinged cheeks.

"You won't," I assure her, stretching a hand across the table and squeezing hers.

I've spent years working security for omegas here at The Exchange. Never once has any of their energy felt like Evie's. She's a little broken, but still hopeful that maybe someone will want her. It kinda kills me. Most of the omegas we see are full of unwavering narcissism.

My heart pounds as I try to find a way to cheer her up.

"How do you feel about an outdoor adventure?" I ask before I can stop myself.

Fucking Archie and his ridiculous ideas. Oh well, if we're outside the lodge I won't have to worry about random alphas trailing my omega.