“Business and pleasure don’t mix,” I tell him firmly. “I don’t know what omegas were like at your last college, but at SVU, omegas don’t drop their panties for jerks who steal their jobs, their food, and don’t even thank them for saving their lives.”
“Thank you, Kady.” His deep voice drips with sarcastic sincerity. “For saving my life.”
“You’re intolerable.”
“So I’ve been told.”
An invisible force seems to tug us together, making me thankful that I took a double dose of suppressants this morning. After stargazing with Riven last night, my sensitivity to alphas’ scents seems to have increased. I need to keep my omega instincts under control. However, Calder’s sunshiny aroma appears to be chipping away at my resolve.
Suddenly, the office door flies open, and Devon races in, his usual spikey mohawk uncharacteristically flat and his T-shirt on backwards.
“Devon?” I spin, pleased that his interruption broke whatever moment I was sharing with Calder. “What is it?” Itmust be serious if he hasn’t gelled his hair. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him without his mohawk 4” high.
“Thank fuck you’re here.” Panting for air, Devon’s gaze flits to Calder. “Who is he?”
“Our new editor.” Devon’s eyes widen in surprise, but I wave away his questions with a flick of my wrist. “Just ignore him.”
“Ignore him?” Calder’s jaw drops. “I think you’ll find?—”
“What is it, Devon?” I press.
“It’s the article I wrote for you about the Blandon Pack,” Devon replies. “Did you read it?”
“I skimmed it before I left. It’s not my favorite photo, but it’s exactly what I wanted. Is something wrong?”
“One of the nationals has caught the story and is running it.”
My blood runs cold. “W-what?”
“Here!” He thrusts his phone into my hands to show me a headline on one of the country’s biggest newspapers’ website with the title, ‘Sinclair Heir Packed Up.’
“No, no, no,” I murmur in disbelief.
No courtship featured onTheValley Voiceblog has ever made it into national news.
I read the article:
Kadence Sinclair, the daughter of Richard Sinclair and sole heir to Sinclair Enterprises, has officially announced her courtship with the Blandon Pack. Tyler Blandon, pack leader, gave us an exclusive comment, gushing, “It was love at first sight.” Packmate Kyro Cockburn added, “She couldn’t keep her hands off us.” In addition, the…
Those traitorous little fucks! I grind my teeth, holding onto Devon’s phones so tightly that it’s a wonder the screen doesn’t crack. This news story catapults our relationship into a whole new stratosphere. One that’ll be part of my permanent history, tainting me by association forever. To make matters worse, my father will go absolutely ballistic to hear that one of thefew newspapers he doesn’t own has broken the story with an exclusive. This is all the Blandon Pack’s fault!
“This isn’t good,” I utter.
Calder’s jaw tenses as he scrutinizes his phone, presumably reading the article. “You have a pack?”
I ignore his question as I gather up my possessions, fully prepared to march over to the Blandon Pack hovel and unleash the full wrath of my anger. “I should go.”
At that moment, a phone in the office starts ringing. It’s not often that we get people dialing in as most students prefer to email or reach out through our socials.
Calder’s closest. “Calder Soren speaking.” His expression darkens, and his knuckles whiten, clutching the receiver tightly. “We aren’t commenting on Kadence Sinclair’s pack status for the time being.” He slams down the phone.
My stomach drops with dread when my mobile starts buzzing. I almost ignore it until I see that it’s Faye.
“Faye?” I answer. “Are you okay?”
“Have you seen it?” She sounds unusually high-pitched. “The article?”
“How do you know about it?”
