He moved his hand behind his back. “I’m sorry. I got mad and punched a wall. Alphas should protect omegas, not hurt them.”
I know there had to be more to that story because our walls were pretty nonviolent. He’d better not lie, or I’d be done. They’d been sneaky enough with me. “What kind of wall did you punch? Stay away from it.”
He sighed, tilting his head back. “Funny, but I’m not finished. After I attacked the innocent wall, I found the guy, and I punched him too. We got in a bit of a scuffle. Then security came, and I said what he did. He denied it, but then one of the guards mentioned a police call for an assault. I may have threatened him as well.”
Wow, I didn’t expect that from him. I knew he was an alpha, and they were prone to violence, and this was a reminder. Still, the guy deserved it. This made Daniel messy, and I needed to see that, even if it was bloody.
“How’d you even find him in the room full of people?”
He pointed to his nose. “Only one alpha in there.”
Made sense. I grabbed his hand and poured my magic into it.
“You don’t have to do this. I can heal myself,” he began in a quiet voice. He didn’t sound as steady as usual, and when I looked up at him, he looked away, but I caught the frown on his face. I wasn’t sure if he didn’t want me to see the healing injuries on his face or if he was embarrassed for me to see him disheveled. It was probably both. He didn’t need to be worried about either. I wasn’t a close-minded jerk.
“I know you can, but I want to heal you faster. I get you being mad. I wanted to hurt him myself. They didn’t arrest you?”
He gave me a sly grin, obviously satisfied with my comment of support. “I have my ways of getting out of things.”
When I finished healing him, I slapped him lightly on the back of the hand. Just because he’d gotten messy, didn’t mean it was alright. He was the leader of the group, so he had to set a better example. Especially with someone unhinged, like Kai, around. “You could have gotten in big trouble.” I leaned forward as if to tell a secret. “But I’m glad you did. I wish I could say I rarely saw this. I’ve seen it happen to younger than her. Alphas are…” I trailed off. I wanted to say monsters, but it wasn’t fair to him or the others. They had been nothing but sweet to me. Hell, he just beat up another alpha because the bastard hurt another omega he didn’t even know. Only Mya thought her friend she’d known for years was kind too until he didn’t get his way.
God, this was all so confusing. I wanted to hate them or, at least, keep them at a distance of perpetual distrust. It was becoming very much easier said than done.
Daniel looked down at me, softening his face. “I get it. And I thank you for having any kind of trust in us at all. We won’t let you down.”
He had a sincere face when he spoke, his lips turning up slightly, eyes squinting. They were good words, but Mya reminded me of why I’d been so afraid to become an omega all this time. Alphas were dangerous. Even good ones could change. And I was hoping that four of them would all stay kind to me. The odds just didn’t seem high. Not this early and not when I wasn’t sure I was seeing the true them.
* * *
Three days later, I met Lila at Daniel’s restaurant, Evening, downtown. He kindly invited us both to dinner without him, although he was running around and keeping an eye on me. I picked up one of the egg rolls we’d gotten as appetizers and poured a bit of their house-made spicy mustard on top. “Daniel is the perfect picture of walking, talking sex,” I said before biting into the egg roll. “He always walks around with his shirt off, and his body is bananas. All their bodies are crazy ridiculous.”
Lila made a pfft sound, rolling her eyes. “Oh, poor Billie, she gets to hook up with a different fine-as-hell guy every other day. Forget the plight of the homeless, let’s focus on helping you out.”
I twisted my lips. Clearly, she had no sympathy for me. Not that I blamed her. To any outsider, my situation might sound like a lot of fun. To me, it was a bit overwhelming. Not that I didn’t enjoy the experiences I had so far. Just thinking of Kai and Ty brought a smile to my lips. Daniel was also sweet but a bit overly confident. I would accept the nice things he did for us, like this dinner, but I wasn’t going to melt for him like he expected. It was all too easy for him, and as the leader of the pack, I feared him being more aggressive than anyone else. Even Lance.
Daniel was cocky, and he was used to getting what he wanted and people following his orders. I knew whatever things he was trying to woo me with were things he did to many a woman before me. I needed him to know that I wasn’t a pushover or someone he could manipulate or order around easily. I wanted to see how he would respond if he didn’t get his way. Would he break and hurt me like Mya’s former friend?
I let out a breath before picking up my pink cocktail. “I get it. I’m not a sympathetic character.”
Lila began cutting into her own egg roll, ever the neater eater than me. “No, but I get it. You gotta be cautious, and you’re a bit more reserved than me. Are you at least bonding with any of them? They gotta be better than that guy Chilli set you up with.”
Just the thought of that date made my blood rise. Chilli was away on business, but I did message her that Anil and I were not a good fit. She and I were going to meet again when she returned, as she mentioned having someone else in mind. Honestly, I didn’t want to meet anyone new. I needed to work through these guys and make a decision. I still hadn’t deviated from my option of going it alone.
Lila continued. “And don’t blame Daniel for being a little too perfect. Or any of them. They have a lot riding on this, and they don’t want to show you their bad side.”
“But that’s the scary part. They’re all perfect and beautiful and pampering. Then what if I get claimed, and they become monsters.”
Lila tapped the table. “It’s a valid concern. But you aren’t just any omega. You are a witch with friends in high places and a BFF who will eviscerate them if anything were to happen. Maybe just let Daniel know he doesn’t need to be perfect to get you to like him. That being flawed is attractive. Ty and Kai got it. There’s hope. What about the wolf?”
I growled under my breath. “I don’t think he likes me. Like, maybe his body is telling him to like me because he’s an alpha and I’m an omega, but his mind is just not that into me. I can’t be mad at him for that. It’s totally reasonable.”
Lila gave a knowing nod. “Not everyone’s going to like you, no matter how gorgeous you are, my dear. However, from what you said, they kind of already scouted you before you knew anything. You’d think they’d have to come to some sort of consensus for something as big as picking an omega.”
I shrugged, not sold on her spin. “Not if they’re doing this as just some business arrangement to gain strength or something.”
Lila tilted her head side to side before drinking her own purple cocktail.
I frowned and sat back, annoyed that she agreed so easily. “You’re supposed to disagree and give me an alternative.”
