Xenia is a victim. Xenia is no longer mated.
But Luther wants to change that. Wants to finally complete their pack.
It is both a betrayal and the greatest gift.
Pierce inclines his head in agreement.
He knew the moment he saw this poor woman dangling off the edge of the hill in her car that there was something special about her.
She had caused his heart to beat for the first time in years. Maybe it began as fear, but now he instinctively needed to keep her safe. To protect her.
He drops to his knees next to the tub, his hand landing on her back. The instant searing connection is exactly as it was when they slept in the nest. He rests his head on the ledge simply watching her.
sixteen
Wren
Wren seethes in the living room. He hunches over, pressing his palms to his eyes. He ignores the sound of footsteps as they approach. He doesn’t need to look to know it’s Pierce.
“She’s not going anywhere,” Pierce advises. “She’s not a Rossi, she is avictim.”
Wren doesn’t want to argue, but he also doesn’t want to hear what Pierce has to say.
An unfamiliar scent wafts towards him and causes his entire being to freeze.
The floral and citrus intermingle, calming a deep broken part of himself.
“You’re covered in her scent,” Wren snarls, jumping up from the couch. His long hair falls forward, and he aggressively tucks it back. “And somehow she smells of Luther too!”
He is angry. Scared. Confused.
He knew this omega would be a problem, but he didn’t realize how much so until she told him her name.
What better bait than a broken omega. One who is rapidly approaching her heat.
“She needs to leave. She can’t be here when she goes into heat. I donotaccept her as part of our pack.” Wren pants as he glares at Pierce.
This will be the excuse the Rossis use to kill them all.
Pierce raises his hands up defensively. “This isn’t like you, Wren. You are the cool, calm, collected one. She’s already gotten under your skin. Just admit it.”
Wren shakes his head. “No. We made a promise. Charles would always come first. We agreed an omega would complicate raising him, that he needed us.”
Pierce drops his hands, his face turning red. “No. You decided that for all of us. And he’sgrownnow. He’s outGod-knows-where, and he’s not coming back. At least not anytime soon.” He releases a deep sigh. “He can’t. You’re allowed to be selfish, Wren. We’re all allowed to be. She needs us. I miss Charles just as much as you do. He is my best friend, but that doesn’t change anything.”
“She’s aRossi.” Wren holds onto that. Onto his anger surrounding the word. He doesn’t look too closely at any of the other emotions filtering through.
“Exactly. She could very well be the answer. She could help us! Did you ever think of that?” Pierce’s attention flashes behind him, towards the direction of where the omega is. “She’s going to go into her heat soon. She was perfuming in the bathroom. Are you with us?”
“No.” Wren falls back into the couch. He’s done with this conversation. All it took was one perfuming omega to flip their entire dynamic upside down. “Just go back to her. I know you want to. Leave me be. And don’t come crawling to me when this all turns out to be a mistake.”
Pierce heaves a loud sigh. “We have been together for over a decade. I love you and Luther with all of my heart. I would not choose this if I thought it would be anything except the blessing it is.”
“You know nothing about her. She is a stranger in our home!” Wren barks, his face heating in his contempt.
“I know that she is suffering! I know that she needs us! I know that she is a scent match! I know that Luther didn’t hide away in that cabin because of Charles!”
Wren has had enough. “Leave! I will be the adult just as I always am. I will be the one to hold our life together. And when more Rossis show up on our doorstep, and I have no doubt they will, I hope you remember my warning. I hope we don’t all end up dead.”
