Page 17 of Your Wild Omega (The Feral Actress #2)

Chapter thirteen

Zack

The Beyond is bigger than I can wrap my thoughts around.

It’s full of more beings and scents and noises than all the caves I’ve stayed in until now combined.

The sheer size makes my head hurt and leaves me feeling small.

Those prickly sensations settle whenever Mine touches me, but if she’s out of sight, a warning chill walks all over my skin.

At the den that seems to be ours, the threats are minimal, but out in this Beyond, I have so much to protect her from.

Which is why, the moment I spotted the strange, four-legged beast, I couldn’t ignore the danger.

As a new being opened the doorway to the blue Beyond, this hairy creature turned and looked through the barrier between us.

It may be half my size, but sharp fangs line its open mouth, and the drool spilling from black lips proves the creature’s violent hunger.

I must protect Mine.

And White Mine.

I’ve fought my entire life, but now I have something to protect. If my mate has claimed this territory, then it belongs to us and I’ll fight any challenger to keep her safe.

The alphas in matching blue clothes lunge for me.

I always suspected they were threats, just biding their time.

I snarl at the first man, who’s too slow, and kick the second, catching him squarely in his belly.

Just missed the spot that makes a man fold in half, but he still staggers back with a pained grunt.

A ripping sound comes from my clothes and the restrictive tightness eases.

I fling myself out into the bright light, roaring at the beast who dared set eyes on my ohm. A bitter taste floods through my chest, where new sensations have flickered ever since I claimed her.

The four-legged, hairy being trips over itself trying to face me, and I skid to a halt as I notice the chain running from its thick neck to a female’s hand—the same kind of chain I wear.

The connected woman screams at me, but I ignore her because she’s not a threat. This beast is. It recognizes the challenge with a growl and moves in front of the female, posturing up.

I lunge forward with a fierce snarl but then jolt as arms close around me from behind. Faster than I can react, a hand wraps around my neck, tilting my head back. Fury pounds fiercely in my chest. I’ll kill whoever dared—

The sweet scent of the delicious treats Mine’s been feeding me fills my nose.

“Stop, Zack,” White Mine says beside my ear, the words loaded with desperation. “Please stop. We’re safe. You’re safe. Sit.” His grip tightens around my neck and chest.

I freeze, quivering with instinct. I’m sure I could break his grip, but he seems taller against my back right now. Is today the day I challenge White Mine? Should I take care of him first before dealing with this other threat?

He babbles something to the female, and she backs up, dragging the four-legged creature with her. It’s getting away.

I growl.

“I’ll give you cake,” White Mine says, fingers stroking the skin of my neck around the band. It should be a vicious challenge to touch me in such a vulnerable place, and yet his fingers are gentle and nonthreatening. My skin heats and a shiver of pleasure runs through me.

What should I do?

The beast disappears from sight as Mine jumps in front of me, flushed red and gasping. She grabs at the thing hanging from my neck. “Sit, Zack.”

My lips peel back with a faint snarl. Do they know how difficult that command is for me right now?

I’ll sit for her anywhere she likes at the den, but out here I’m vulnerable.

Threats of every kind surround us, from the four-legged beast I’ve lost sight of to the giant noisy boxes that roar along the nearby path.

Not forgetting the two alphas in blue closing around us.

How do I keep Ohm safe if I’m on the ground?

The confusion swirls painfully behind my eyes, and I throw my head back against the solid wall with a loud crack. Once, twice.

They both gasp and shove their hands behind my head. I stop myself just in time from crushing Mine’s fingers with a third slam.

“No, don’t hurt yourself, Zack.” My ohm holds my gaze and repeats her order to sit.

I whine. She asks too much.

“You can do it,” White Mine says, stroking my jaw. His creamy scent lodges on my skin. “It’s safe. Sit.”

Safe . I crane my head to look at him. This moment reminds me of the first time he said those words, after I woke up in the den—when I learned that showing teeth doesn’t always mean a challenge.

Did the small beast smile instead of baring its fangs?

Red pulls out a tiny bag, the scent matching the alpha beside me. I lick my lips, imagining the taste on my tongue. But being surrounded front and back by this sweet flavor makes me wonder for the first time why I like it so much.

Do I like the treat because it smells like White Mine, or do I like White Mine because he smells like the treat?

With one fast move, I thrust my fist up, knocking White Mine’s hand on my face aside and spin.

He lets out an oof of air as I slam him into the wall and reach for his throat.

As I thought, I can overpower him, and yet, his pale eyes don’t show fear.

They blow wide, something else on his mind. Something that excites me.

I lean in and dab my tongue to his neck. He tastes different to cake, but makes me hungry all the same. Saliva pools in my mouth.

An uneasy, prickling emotion rushes through my chest, and I instinctively know it’s my female’s fear. She tugs on the strap around my neck again. “Sit, Zack.”

White Mine said it’s safe, and if it will help my ohm stop feeling afraid, I can do it.

I slide down White Mine’s body, touching all the ridges in his slender frame.

Some other kind of power exists in this world I don’t know about, because neither he nor Mine smells of strength, and yet I want to do as they say.

I huff in another whiff of their combined scents. Did my injury change me? Or the clearer air I breathe in the Beyond? Or is it because I started using tools in my hands like the other alphas at the previous place? My instincts are changing. It’s both terrifying and wonderful.

Slowly I sink down.

The moment my ass hits the hard ground, Mine offers me a piece of cake, happiness swelling through her to pressure my chest. I stare up at White Mine as the spongy piece melts on my tongue.

I can’t fathom why I’d sit on the ground at the feet of an alpha who hasn’t defeated me, and yet it’s not a bad thing.

It makes me fizz with an unfamiliar alertness.

“Well done. Thank you, Zack,” he says, smiling without showing teeth.

I grip the back of his knee and tug hard. White Mine yelps and falls, strangely clumsy for such a dangerous alpha. I catch him one-handed, and he laughs and digs his fingers into my hair. Mine laughs too and hunches down to feed me another piece of cake.

The woman from inside darts out to yell at her about a dress.

“Take a photo,” White Mine orders. “Zack’s first excursion.” He points up at some colored symbols across the top of the wall, and the woman’s eyes light up. While she pulls out a hand device and makes little clicking noises, I crane around to look for the four-legged challenger, but it’s gone.

Ohm presses her lips to mine, distracting me. New warmth floods my body, and I forget all about the dangers as we cuddle together on the ground.

“Ready to go home, precious?” Mine asks after a few long kisses. Home . That’s the word she uses for our den.

I shunt my nose into her cheek. “Hom.”

Her lips quiver and the sensation flooding through my chest blinds me. So sweet and pure. I think my ohm enjoys hearing my voice. “Mine,” I add, and she nods.

“Up,” she says, tugging once on my strap. “Let’s go.”

I respond quickly, drawing White Mine with me. When he tries to step away, I clamp down on his arm. I obeyed his request to sit, but somehow our challenge isn’t complete. If I must wear this leather-and-chain thing Mine holds, why does he get to walk around alone? Why can’t I chain him to me?

The uneasy sensation makes me want to growl, but I hold it in, knowing Mine is already worried. We walk back inside the shop, but I don’t release my hold on the slender alpha the whole time while Ohm changes her clothes and talks with the woman with hair the same color as the man in my grip.

After we leave, White Mine talks soothingly to me as we climb inside one of the noisy metal creatures and skim across the roads.

“You gave us a fright, Zack, but good job listening.” White Mine leans on my shoulder, pushing me toward the chilly glass.

He points with his free hand. “Look. What you saw was a dog.”

I stiffen as I glimpse a different four-legged creature being led by another female as we flash past. I twist to look out the back barrier.

“Dog,” I mutter. My hand strays to the device linking me to Mine.

The men with the biting sticks back at the fighting territory used to use that word. Is it the same?

Red catches my hand. “Yes, this is a leash, but it’s different. You’re Zack, an alpha, not a dog.”

I’m not a dog. If Mine says so, that settles it. I’m Zack, an alpha with an ohm and—and another alpha.

I swivel to face White Mine. His scent lingers in my nose ever since he touched my face and throat. The thin bones in his wrist rub under my thumb. I could snap them easily.

Would he try to kill me if I injured him? Would we struggle and roll together on the floor? What then? My body would cover his, since I’m bigger, and his scent would rise. I press my nose into the side of his neck. If I pinned him, sweat would coat his skin. I’d lick it off, tasting his fear.

Or maybe he doesn’t fear anything?

The thought catches me off guard and I lean into him, processing. No, it can’t be true, because there was fear in him when he stopped me from chasing the dog.

But not fear of me.

The strange fabric Mine loaded me into before our outing squeezes tightly around me, trapping heat and flesh between my thighs. I squirm. I need to get free. Need to challenge White Mine before I die of curiosity.

I stumble, dizzy, as we get out of the machine in the stinking, shadowed cave. I growl, turning to search for threats, holding White Mine behind me. Strange how I expose my back to him without a second thought these days. The two blue alphas are here as well, and I bare my teeth at them.

“It’s safe,” the sweet-smelling alpha says quietly, tugging on my leash.

Mine feeds me a bit of cake as the stomach-clenching box carries us into the building. I lick crumbs off her fingers, staring at White Mine. I need to know.

My body quivers with hot flushes as we ride the second box and step into the space outside our den. I rip the leash from Mine’s hand—I learned I could do that today—and throw White Mine against the wall. He makes the most satisfying sound, one that makes the lump in my chest thump harder.

I crowd the slender alpha, inhaling as his cake scent floods over me. I reach down and take his lower clothes in my hands and tear. His cock juts out, straining the limits of a scrap of lace. I want him under my power.

I reach down, wondering what it will take to make him snap. The blue alphas move closer, bristling with silent warning.

Mine throws herself in front of me, knocking my hand aside. Her eyes blaze with determined fire. “No, Zack. You must always get consent. You have to ask.”

I stare down at her, vibrating. She’s trying to tell me something important, judging by the rush of shared feeling pulsing in my chest. Mine is always teaching me, and this slender alpha is precious to her.

Slowly I press a kiss to her forehead, and then I push her back to stand shoulder to shoulder with White Mine.

He looks at me, our eyes level today. His unexplainable power made him grow taller than his usual size.

I lean in and rest my lips next to his ear, just as he did earlier to me. “Ask.”