I look up, silently telling Kade that he needs to do something. Introduce himself properly. Say something gentle. Anything to ease the fear radiating off of Solana in waves.
Kade just sighs and shakes his head before pulling the car out of the parking lot. He doesn't say a word or even look back at us. He just starts driving like we're hauling cargo instead of bringing home our Omega.
I hiss at him but Solana holds onto me tighter and I settle, confusion warring with frustration. Why won't Kade fix this immediately? I know he felt what I felt. I know he wants her too. So why is he acting like this doesn't matter?
I press a kiss to Solana's head and whisper against her hair. "You're safe now. I promise you're safe."
Chapter eight
Kade
Fury courses through my veins as I drive home, my hands gripping the steering wheel hard enough that my knuckles ache and brighten against the black leather. The rearview mirror shows me Solana buried in Dustin's arms, her face pressed against his chest, her whole body trembling in a way that makes my protective instincts roar.
More than anything, I want to pull over and climb into the backseat, wrap myself around them both and tell her that everything Alpha Graves said was a complete lie. But I can't do that. Not like this, not when we're still so close to Harmony House and its watchful eyes.
What Alpha Graves said to me in that office made me rage in ways I haven't experienced in years. The casual cruelty of it, the way she talked about proper discipline and keeping Omegas in line as if she were discussing livestock management. The clinical detachment as she explained the rules for owning Harmony House property, as if Solana was a piece of furniture instead of a living, breathing person with thoughts and feelings and rights.
My mind keeps circling back to her words, each repetition stoking the fire in my chest. How can anyone possibly imagine what Solana must have gone through living in that place? Years of being treated like nothing more than a commodity waiting to be sold to the highest bidder.
They're just playthings for Alphas, according to Graves. Trophy pieces to be displayed at social functions. Objects to be trained and controlled and shown off to prove status. The thought makes me sick to my stomach because I could never think that way about Solana or any other Omega. The entire system makes me sick, this legalized trafficking dressed up in the language of protection and care. Harmony House presents itself as a sanctuary but it's nothing more than a prison with better PR.
The visceral reaction I had to Solana the moment I caught Alpha Marcus manhandling her caught me completely off guard. She was making that distressed Omega sound, every instinct I possessed screaming at me to protect her. To rip Marcus away from her and make him understand exactly what happens when you put your hands on what's mine.
My vision actually narrowed, tunnel vision focusing on his grip on her arm and the way she was trying to pull away. For a few seconds, I was about to do something incredibly stupid, consequences be damned. Violence felt like the only appropriate response in that moment.
But I shoved down all those emotions and forced myself to play the part Stefan warned us about. I forced myself to be the cold, calculating Alpha who viewed Omegas as purchases rather than people. That performance took everything I had.
The things I said about Solana in that office haunt me now. I talked about her like she was just going to be a decorative piece for our household, like she was a problem that needed managing rather than a person who deserved respect. I said I was going to keep her in line and make sure she understood the rules of our household so she knew her place. The words tasted like poison in my mouth and I felt physically sick saying every single one of them.
Worse than the self-disgust is knowing that Solana was terrified of me. She still is terrified of me based on what I can see in the rearview mirror. She won't look toward the front seat or meet my eyes when I glance back to check on her. Instead, she buries herself deeper into Dustin's arms whenever I make eye contact, seeking protection from him against me.
The sight makes my chest ache because I want to fix it so desperately, but I couldn't do it in the parking lot. Alpha Graves was still standing on the steps watching our vehicle, her sharp eyes missing nothing even from that distance.
The tinted windows prevented her from seeing inside, but she would have been immediately suspicious if we had spent any significant time sitting in that parking lot. If I had climbed into the backseat and held Solana the way I desperately wanted to, if I had shown any hint of the actual emotions churning through me, Graves would have known something was off.
She would have found some excuse to delay the paperwork or cancel the arrangement entirely. I had to maintain the facade even as it killed me.
Now we're finally on our way home, putting blessed distance between us and that hellhole. But that sourness in Solana's scent is only getting worse with each mile we travel, and my anger is about to boil over completely. The fear and confusion rolling off of her in waves mix with Dustin's distress until the whole truck reeks of unhappiness. My Alpha instincts are screaming at me to fix this, to make my Omega feel safe, but I don't know how without potentially making things worse.
The pressure builds in my chest until I can't take it anymore. I pull over into a parking lot abruptly, the tires skidding slightly as I brake too hard. "I need a minute."
Dustin looks up from where he's been murmuring soft reassurances to Solana, his expression full of concern. He whispers something to her that I can't quite hear, then carefully untangles himself from her and moves to follow me out of the truck. By the time he closes the door behind him, I'm already several feet away with my hands shoved into my pockets, trying desperately to breathe through the rage building in my chest.
"What the hell, Kade?" Dustin's voice cuts through the parking lot. "You're scaring her."
Turning to face him, I know my expression is full of the barely controlled rage I’m feeling. "The way they talked about her in there, I wanted to rip Graves' fucking head off and I would have if they didn't require a check-in in almost a month. It's required to even get Solana off the property permanently. Do you understand that? We can't just take her home and be done with it. They get to come to our ranch and evaluate whether she's 'thriving' in our care. They talked about her like she was nothing, like she was a pet that needed training. And I had to sit there and nod along and act like I agreed with every vile thing that came out of that woman's mouth."
Dustin steps into my space immediately, his hands coming up to frame my face with a gentleness that contrasts with my anger. He kisses me then, the contact grounding me in a way nothing else could. "I know. I heard it too and it made me sick. I wanted to punch that smug look right off her face, but you need to talk to Solana because right now you're just another enemy. Another Alpha who's going to hurt her. You can take your anger out on my ass later but right now, we have a beautiful Omega in that car hoping that we aren't just another hell she's going to disappear into."
Roughly, I grab the front of Dustin's neck, my fingers digging into the sides hard enough to make him gasp. "That's a promise."
I kiss him again, harder this time, and pour some of that rage into the contact. He needs to feel the fury burning through me so he understands exactly how much control I'm exercising right now. Then I pull away and move around the car to open the back door, preparing myself to face Solana's fear.
She's sitting in the middle of the seat, no longer curled up, staring at me with wide, beautiful eyes. Those dark brown irises with flecks of green that caught my attention the first time I saw her are full of emotion. There's hope in her expression, Solana desperately seeking reassurance, my need to protect her flaring up all over again.
Crouching down beside the open door, I try to make myself smaller and less threatening. "Hello, Solana."
She stares at me for a long moment, studying my face until she speaks. "You really didn't mean all those things in there?"
