He wants a shield. So much for attempting to detach from the situation because I just dived into the deep end. I lean into Rafe’s side, my hand landing on his thigh. His muscles bunch beneath my touch, but I don’t give myself time to analyze it as I pin the omega with a sugary-sweet look.
“I know that the tabloids say he wasn’t faithful to you, even when you were together. Seems you like that though, if you came on this show where you have to share him with thirty other omegas.”
Her lip lifts in a sneer. “Better than what the tabloids say about you. A drunk, broken omega, jilted at the altar. Is this the only option you have to find love? Or do you just like your humiliation to be played out for millions to see?”
I can feel the blood drain from my face. The truth to her words hits me square in the chest. Fuck, she’s right. I can’t go along with a plan that will leave me standing at the end with nothing to show for it. I’ll look broken-hearted all over again, only this time on national television.
My fingers loosen on Rafe’s leg, and I press my lipstogether. Just as I’m about to move back, Rafe drops his arm around my shoulders and pulls me close. Tucking me into his side, allowing a purr to rumble from his chest. Can you fake purrs? I don’t think you can. My mom used to say she knew Dad’s moods just by the rumble of his chest, because alphas can’t control that. Maybe it was just him. But it’s a romantic notion I’ve never let go of.
It says more than words ever can. Still, he pins Hailey with a venomous look. “Back the fuck off. You know as well as I do that I don’t want you here.”
Hailey gasps, pressing her hand to her chest as she glances at the cameraman sitting across from us. The red light blinks, telling us all that this is being filmed. That it could be used on television.
“You are picking the pathetic omega that puked all over you in that club? Over me?” Her voice is shrill in my ears, and I cringe.
“It was never a choice.”
CHAPTER 12
Elliott
Straightening my tie,I examine my suit in the full-length mirror. This is the last chance I have before the ceremony to have a real one-on-one with Lilah, the one omega that caught my full attention.
My palms are clammy at the idea of being close to her. If I had met her outside of this show, maybe I would have never needed to force my pack ontoOmega in Paradise. Because one look, and it’s as if my alpha knows what it wants. It knows that she will fix what’s broken in my pack. That she can be the one that holds us together.
Twenty-nine other omegas, all beautiful and handsome in their own right, but my attention is drawn to her like a moth to the flame. And my pack seems drawn to her too. Even if Rafe won’t admit it.
Miles leans against the dresser next to me, already ready. Sometimes his OCD has him hyper-focusing on things and we’ll find him half-dressed, organizing the cabinets or refrigerator so everything’s ‘just right.’ But it’s obvious something or someone has motivated him today.
“Did you enjoy the afternoon?” he asks, but I’m prettysure his question is just a way to get on the topic he really wants to talk about.
“It was a good time,” I admit with a shrug. “There are a few omegas I can see myself giving a trinket too.”
He presses his lips together and nods slowly. “Yeah, same. Did you notice how hands-on Rafe was with Lilah?”
My heart gives a jolt at her name. Turning to him, I can feel my brow crinkle in question. “The one he just told us we couldn’t pick?”
“The very same.” A wide grin pulls at Miles' lips. Excitement lights up his face, and I know that his OCD has a new target in the form of a five-foot-six blonde beauty. I honestly can’t blame him because I’m obsessed with the thought of her too. “Maybe he’s had a change of heart.”
“Or maybe he knows she isn’t here for love,” Rafe says from the doorway, drawing both of our attention. “She basically admitted it. They only picked her in the first place to highlight that incident in the club. To show that I might never change. I decided we could help each other.”
“You’re going to use her?” It isn’t a question. Really, it’s more of a demand as it fills the space. I don’t like the idea, not even a tiny bit.
He rolls his lips together. “Sorry, man, but she told me to pick anyone but her in the end. She will make a great shield to keep the others off me. And I’ll use that to my advantage. Besides, if we can sell the story well enough, it will help my image too.”
“So that’s it? You aren’t going to try? You said you would,” I accuse him, a sour feeling settling in my stomach. Why would he purposefully pick the one omega I’m drawn to and use her as a means to an end? Does he even know that this show could do more than fix his image? It could fix us, and Lilah might be the key to that. Rafe isn’t normally cruel, but right now it feels as if he’stwisting a knife deep in my chest. “What if I decide it’s her?”
He meets my stare with a steady one of his own. Blinking once, he says, “It’s not.”
Miles clears his throat beside me. “Elliott, there are twenty-nine other omegas.”
My gaze sails over his expressive face. He’s lying because he feels it too. I know he does. That draw isn’t just me. But his words help to calm me a bit. If Rafe needs me to pretend she isn’t the one until he can come to terms with whatever is going on with him, I can give him that.
“Fine. I’ll give them all a shot. Except for the snake, Hailey Gray.”
The secondwe enter the expansive backyard that has a small hill down to a lake, the omegas call out happy greetings. Some are so bold as to close the distance between us. Yet, Lilah hangs back watching like she did the night before.
I make small talk with a group of girls, while my pack mates spread out, each of them interacting with other omegas. Eventually, I make my way across the patio to where Lilah is and settle next to her on the wicker couch. I’m like a moth to a flame with her. I can’t stop myself from going to her side. Or from being in her orbit. Even when less than an hour ago I made a false promise to Rafe.
