Page 39 of Your Wild Omega (The Feral Actress #2)

Chapter thirty-three

Red

With such a hectic schedule, the days until the Thursday lunch appointment vanish in a blink.

Our car pulls up in front of a gated property on the hill overlooking Laversham city and Ricky leans out to key in a security code.

Out the window to the right, the Ommywood phallus rises, but it looks smaller from this perspective with no sky behind it.

This is the neighborhood my slimy co-star Brad bragged about living in.

Big. Pretentious. Old money. Slick. The type of place that would birth a confident man like Callisto. The big black metal gates slide open, and we move inside, the car crawling slowly along a driveway leading to a mega mansion.

I lean closer to the window to see, my breath misting the glass. “This is where Callisto grew up?”

Rickon chuckles. “Yep. I spent a lot of time here too, after—well, after I lost my parents.” He tries to mask it, but pain lingers in his voice.

My heart sinks. We’ve raced from one life crisis to the other, which left us with very little time to get to know each other.

But Callisto, and the family I’m about to meet, know nearly everything about Rickon and his tragic past. They spent time together in this big house as youngsters running wild, building forts, having pissing contests, and who knows what else teenage boys get up to—and I didn’t get to be a part of it.

Zack rumbles and leans over, releasing his seat belt when it stops him. He peels back my collar and presses his lips to my bond mark. His scarred hands fold around my waist, enveloping me. I gasp as the sensitive spot on my skin propels heat through my body.

I’m not sure if it’s because Zack left his teeth in for so long when he bonded me, or because he re-bit the same spot after, but it’s like he’s created a personal reset button. When he kisses me there, I forget how to think. And if he sucks on it at all, well I’m a goner.

Thankfully he doesn’t suck right now, ’cause I need my legs to be in working capacity to meet Rickon’s replacement family, but as he pulls away, I feel lighter, like my regret has dissolved.

I reach out to stroke his cheek, the peppering of coarse hair nibs tickling my fingertips, and my heart softens.

Zack never experienced those things growing up either, so we’re the same in our misfortune.

But now we are building all these memories together.

“Here we are,” Rickon says, switching off the engine. “Let’s go meet the family.” He sucks in a deep breath and nods, like he’s bracing himself, which is weird because he always speaks of Lexi Wren and her two partners with so much fondness.

Agent Pierce is tagging along with us today and he opens the door for me.

“Why, thank you, gentle monster,” I quote before I’ve thought it through.

Agent Pierce’s brows jump. His gaze flicks to Zack getting out behind me, who probably fits that title more than anyone.

“It’s a line from a movie,” Rickon says, grinning across the car roof at me.

“Oh, that makes more sense,” Pierce says, relaxing. “What’s the appropriate response?”

Rickon and I bob our heads toward each other as we quote together. “It was my awkward pleasure, Queen of the Damned.”

The agent laughs. “It was my awkward pleasure, then. I’m not gonna say the rest because I don’t want to upset Zack over there.”

I laugh as I take Zack’s leash and close the door behind him. “He wouldn’t know what it means.”

“Yet,” Pierce shoots back, flashing an exaggerated wince. “But I bet he keeps grudges.”

I chuckle and lock my arm through Zack’s. “I bet you’re right.”

The house towers over us, three stories high in the front, with textured stone bordered by white arches and inset pillars, a dark slate tiled roof and matching dark window frames.

Although the building itself exists in squares, the windows feature rounded tops and some of the roof pitches triangulate to let sunlight into the back of the house.

Fixtures shaped like lanterns hang on the walls below more modern down lights, and red-leafed trees trimmed into balls line the paved area out front.

It’s quite beautiful, combining modern with an elegant and timeless style. I thought the front was glass windows, but they swing open as we step up onto the raised platform bordered by running water. A tiny tinkling moat, I realize belatedly, making me grin.

“Welcome, welcome!” The slender lady with braided hair falling over one shoulder glides out onto the porch. “I can’t even say how excited I am to meet you, Red.” She beams at me and opens her arms. “May I?”

I nod mutely and let her embrace me, and I get a strange urge to cry as she hugs me close, her omega scent diluted by a soft coconut fragrance. It’s a genuine motherly hug, the kind I’ve never had.

She lets out a deep breath before holding me at arm’s length. “Let me get a good look at you.” Lexi scans me, and tears glint in her eyes as she says, “You are so very beautiful, songbird.” A faint trace of a British accent lilts her words.

“Thank you,” I manage. “But I don’t sing at all.”

She laughs and Rickon worms his way between us to kiss her cheek, accidentally knocking her cute beret loose. “Hi, Aunt Lexi.”

The woman hugs him tight before kissing both of his cheeks. “Hello, darling boy. How do you manage to get more handsome every time I see you?”

“It’s the omega effect,” he declares proudly, stepping back without releasing her hand. “Meet the love of my life, Red Jones. And this is Zackary Jones. But I don’t think he’s the hugging sort.”

“My goodness. The Jones family! I’m so happy for you, love.” She reaches both hands out to Zack. “Would you like a hug too, Zackary?”

The alpha eyes her up and down before swiveling to face me, confusion in his eyes. I wrap my arms around him. “Hug. Like this. Yes or no? It’s your choice.”

“I won’t be offended,” Lexi promises, leaving her arms open.

Zack slowly spreads his hands, mirroring her. “Hug.”

Lexi’s eyes crinkle as her smile deepens.

I can see Callisto in her face, the hooded eyes and square hairline.

Her locks contain a tinge of red, which I think is dyed, and her irises are much lighter brown than his, but she must have been an exquisite omega in her youth, because the traces are all still there.

When she turns, sunlight sparkles on a dash of gold eyeshadow along her upper lids.

Maybe she’s the original inspiration for Rickon’s love for color.

Zack bends down stiffly to accept her hug, acting like she might break if he closes his grip. The sight makes my heart flutter, even more so as a soft murmur of wonder flows through our bond. She’s probably the first non-pack person who’s ever been affectionate with him.

Lexi steps back and dabs a finger under her eyes, mopping up traces of tears. “When Rickon said he’d met his omega, I just got so warm inside. And here you are, with another alpha to boot.” She inhales, hands clutched to her chest, looking happy and serene like a church saint statue.

I never knew my mother, but I could settle for someone as welcoming and vibrant as this woman. I exchange a glance with Rickon, smiling.

“Oh.” Lexi gasps softly, the moment of wonder fragmenting. “Where are my manners, keeping you on the front step?” She twirls and moves inside. “Come in, come in. Meet Simon.” She points to a tall alpha just inside the doorway with honey-brown hair. “And Lector.”

I gathered the two guys are brothers from Rickon’s chats, though he never mentioned that Lector was a beta. I shake both their hands, and Rickon introduces Agent Pierce.

Lexi offers me her hand. “May I escort you?”

“Sure.”

She leads me deeper into the house, and I feel like a grand lady with my hand clasped in hers.

“I’m unsure what you like to eat, so I ordered a bit of a spread.

I hope it’s not too much.” She glances over her shoulder and chuckles.

“Luckily we have a few men with alpha appetites here, plus one more coming.”

Lexi opens a double door, letting out a cloud of delicious food scents. I hesitate in the doorway, but she tugs me forward.

“Is this a movie set?” I murmur, turning full circle to take in the room.

A glimmering chandelier hangs over a long table set with layers of plates.

The table, chairs, and side bench all match in cream wood and the chairs are covered in the kind of embroidered fabric I’d expect royalty to wear.

A row of rectangular flower boxes lines up along the table center, interspersed with tall silver candles that have clearly never been lit before.

And the food.

To borrow one of Rickon’s phrases: bloody oath.

The sideboard which runs the whole length of the room bursts with food dishes, the vibrant colors and stacked arrangements contrasting with gold foil artwork on the wall behind.

Lobster on ice, boards of sliced meat with a dozen types of cheese, and one of those sets of trays with flames burning underneath to keep everything hot.

And the cherry on top is a lady in a uniform setting out tongs and fancy serving spoons, looking like she’s ready to cater to our every whim.

“Aunt Lexi, you didn’t need to,” Rickon chides gently.

Lexi spreads her hands with a guilty smile. “But you brought your omega home for the first time. This is a special day.”

He chuckles and drops another kiss on her cheek. Coming back to my side, Rickon wraps an arm around my waist and the touch startles me out of my daze.

“Stop drooling, Red,” he teases, pulling a chair out for me on the long side of the table.

“Isn’t it the greatest compliment?” I ask, patting the edges of my lips to check he was only teasing.

Keeping one eye on Simon across the room, Zack settles into the chair beside me.

“I want to hear everything,” Aunt Lexi says as she sits at the head of the table. “How you met, what you like. Everything.”

I peek at her pack members through my lashes, but neither of them seem bothered by her choice of seats as they sit opposite us.

In the movies, the head of the household sits at that place at the table, but maybe that only applies to mafia or nobility.

Or only movies. Or maybe an omega is the pack leader here.

I lightly touch the rows of silverware. I’ve never sat at a long, formal table like this for a meal. We had round tables in the Omega Center cafeteria, where no one minded if we ate messily.

The uniformed attendant glides to Lexi’s side and offers a bottle of wine with an embroidered towel tucked around it. Lexi nods and the lady fills our tall glasses with pink wine.

I didn’t realize I was fisting my hand until Rickon strokes my tightened grip. His smile unwinds the unease in my belly. Right, this is Rickon’s family.

I run my finger over the silver rings holding my cloth napkin in a roll. Cloth? Do they get washed and reused, or thrown out like paper ones? My stories will be a bit foreign in this place of gold rimming on the plates, but if these people are truly family, they won’t look at me in disgust.

The hostess laces her fingers together. “So, how did you and Rickon meet?”

I dampen my lips with my tongue. “Aunt Lexi, I should warn you, I’m more crazy than sane, so some stories might shock you.”

She grins. “Even better. I’m not entirely sane myself, so I think we’ll all get along just fine.”

Well, she has a point. You’d have to be just a little bit crazy to live in a house this big and embroider your family name on the serving cloths.

I grin and toast her with my glass. “I think so, too.” After her eager welcome, I already decided I liked her, but now I’m really sold.

Her brows pop and she reaches for her glass. “And I should probably mention, this one’s non-alcoholic,” the omega says, tapping the glass with her nail. “It’s a little early in the day for me to start. Hope you don’t mind.”

“All the pleasure without the hangover?” I say, clinking our glasses together. “Sign me up.” Especially since I had a hangover just a few days ago that sucked hairy balls.

A door slams somewhere in the house, followed by footsteps. Lexi brightens. “Oh, here’s our last member.”

Heavy dread winds through my belly as the murmur in my head quiets. The door swings open.

“Mom, why is—?” Callisto cuts off as his gaze falls on us and his body twitches. Our gazes lock and the bottom drops out of my stomach.

He clears his throat, hand clenching around the door’s edge. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize others would join us.”

Lexi stands up. “I said family dinner, Calli. No need to be like that.”

He embraces her, but with an unnatural stiffness in his shoulders, and his Adam’s apple bobs heavily.

I lower my gaze to the fizzing pink drink, feeling like I’ve seen something I shouldn’t.

I run my bottom lip through my teeth, but then smile to myself.

What’s family dinner without drama, right?

The awkwardness belongs here as much as Lexi’s warm welcome does.

At least we don’t have any weird uncles to pinch my ass.

“I haven’t had both my boys under my roof for what seems like years. Sit down,” Aunt Lexi orders. “Rickon and Red were about to tell me how they met.”

“You know we were both here for Christmas dinner, Mom.” Callisto takes a seat at the far end of the table, looking pale. Dark shadows mar the skin under his eyes, suggesting he hasn’t been as okay as his texts with Rickon suggested.

“Well, that seems like a long time ago,” Lexi grumbles with a mischievous smile. “This is different.”

Callisto winces.

Fuck, what a mess.

Now I just have to sit through dinner with the alpha I rejected. And I’m not the only one who’s uneasy.

Zack rumbles faintly, gaze locked on Callisto.