I know I shouldn’t feel like this, and maybe that’s part of my problem.
I never thought I’d have an omega. It’s why I joined this pack. I’m thirty-two, which is old for an alpha to be omegaless. I should have a litter of fucking kids right now at my age, but…
I’ve never scent-matched an omega. I’ve never felt any sort of desire to knot an omega. Sure, I’ve found them attractive, and yeah, I’ve fucked enough omegas to know my way around pleasing them, but I’ve never wanted one the way I want Auryn.
I settle on my knees, adjusting my cock as she scrambles to the corner of the bed, pulling her legs up in front of her, looking terrified. I hate it. I hate seeing her afraid.
And all at once, something ignites in me as I crawl towards her. Slowly, never breaking her gaze.
“No, it’s not,” I say softly. “I mean, it is, but…” I swallow harshly as the words fall out of my mouth. “I don’t just want you because you’re an omega.”
She sniffles, and I think she’s going to shift personalities again. Tell me to back the fuck up. Claw at me, something, but she doesn’t. I grab her wrist, pulling her hand away, and that’s when I see them.
The scars all along her arm. I hadn’t noticed them before. My gaze follows the trail like breadcrumbs, and I realize they are everywhere. Like freckles, but more vicious.
Something about the sight both angers my alpha and makes me feel a sort of sympathy for her.
Did she do this to herself, or…?
“Stop looking at me like that,” she says as she pulls her arm from my grasp.
“Like what?”
“Like I’m broken,” she says, her voice tinged in a sob and growl.
“Is that what you think?” I ask, grabbing her chin again and forcing her to face me. She tries to fight me, but I’m stronger than her at the moment.
That fact alone tells me all I need to know.
Auryn is complex.
She loves to fight me, but it’s not all she wants. It’s not all sheneeds.
“You are not broken, Auryn,” I say, and she leans into my space. I take her arm with my free hand, dragging my thumb over one of her raised scars.
“You are a fighter,” I tell her. “You are a vicious little thing, and you are stronger than you give yourself credit for.”
Something passes in her eyes, something enticing. Wonderful.
Trust.
“These aren’t the scars of a broken omega,” I say, trailing my fingers up her arm. “These are the scars of a fucking warrior.”
I drop her hand and give her my neck, which in itself is dangerous. As an alpha, we’re taught to never do such a thing, but something tells me right now, it’s the right move. So, I listen to that instinct.
“You see this?” I point to the scar that’s still fresh, that still stings. “You did this,” I tell her, my voice deep and sure.
I feel her fingers against my neck, tracing the spot. It stings only slightly.
“I did that,” she murmurs.
“Damn right,” I say, my voice darker than it should be. “And you can do it again, which is exactly why I fucking want you.”
She grabs my face, nails dragging across my jaw.
“You want me to hurt you, Emmett?” she asks, her voice not as shaky as before.
A growl escapes me. “Fuck, yes, Auryn. I want you to do your worst.” I grin at her. “I promise I can take it.”
