Elara
“This is all mine?”
I couldn’t believe it, and yet, I should’ve known by the sleekness of the vessel from not only the outside but the inside too.
They had made this vessel their home, their sanctuary—theirParadise.
“Yes,” he purred, combing my stray hair away from my ears. “We’ve kept this nest room empty in preparation for when the time comes for me to have the honor to be chosen by an omega.”
“Is this common?” I’d never heard of a nest room until I met him, and yet here was a massive room with the most enormous bed I’d ever seen taking over a whole corner. There were two other sliding doors which I assumed went to my bathroom and closet. The rest of the room was filled with oversized bean bag chairs beside a window that took over the whole wall. “I thought omegas typically slept in their alpha’s chambers.”
“If the clan isn’t well off,” he replied, turning me to face the long, wall-size mirror. “But if someone in my position hadn’t provided you with one, it would be an insult to not only you but of my character too.”
He leaned in and pressed his nose against the top of my head. I watched him through the mirror as he closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. A satisfied purr erupted from him as his calming scent filled with coconut and sunshine wrapped around me like a warm blanket.
“I highly doubt someone like you could have damaged your reputation.”
“Are you sure?”
His icy blue eyes jerked open and found mine in the mirror’s reflection. If it weren’t for the clear regret chiseled in his facial expression, I would’ve thought our position as being erotic, but the tone of his voice—so defeated—as the question escaped his kissable lips had stabbed a dagger filled with worry, straight to my heart.
Had I made a choice? Was his kindness an act?
“What do you mean?”
“How much does my name matter to you?” He pulled away as if he were afraid to touch me. “What if I was the wrong brother?”
“You aren’t Eli, the Coco Pharma product designer?” My eyebrow scrunched in confusion as I tried to sort through my brain to piece together memories of conversations, both ones that I had and others that I had eavesdropped on. “But Luca, the Coco Pharma delivery manager?”
“You are correct,” he breathed, lifting his hands to touch me but stopping himself from doing so. His face scrunched as if he were in pain, needing to try to comfort me but refusing to do so out of respect that I might not want to be held by him right now. “Unfortunately, my mother had me shortly after she had Eli, and we often get mistaken as twins for how similar we appear. When your caretaker came to me about how much you wanted me to be at your arena, the only way I could go was if I took my brother’s registered spot, I figured if you didn’t pick me, there wouldn’t be any harm, and I could go on my business, never mentioning it to him. But since you did pick me, I placed the both of us in this predicament. I needed to get this off of my chest before anything between us progressed any farther.”
I stood there in shock, unable to move as I watched him watching me through the mirror. He was breathing heavily, waiting for my verdict to see if I would change my mind—and yet, how could I?
The alpha behind me already cared so much about how I would feel if I had found out after he had claimed me because there was no way he would be able to hide his true identity or have kept me from discovering the truth on my own. If anything, this made me respect him more as a person, especially regarding the circumstances. I would’ve probably done the same if I were in his shoes.
I wouldn’t have been able to go on with my life knowing that I could have potentially been with an omega who wanted me so much that she had sent her delta after me.
“What is a name?” I whispered as I grabbed the smooth fabric of my emerald dress for strength, wanting to be able to reach for him, but knowing if I did, I wouldn’t be able to resist kissing him. It was vital for me to get this off of my chest so we could move forward. “If I were you, I would’ve done the same. You may have done something fraudulent, but it wasn’t as if you were stealing a stranger’s identity. Eli is your older brother, and you both are co-owners of the same company, not a far stretch from the truth, especially when the both of you have a similar enough appearance that no one questioned you even though you are the person who visits the station often to deliver goods. It’s the deltas’ fault for not catching on, but now that I know, I believe after you claimed me, it would be honorable if you confess to Quinn and explain to her what happened. I bet she will be able to assist you with everything, and hopefully, your brother will never find out.”
“You are honestly not upset?”
“Not over something like this.” I shrugged, already over this conversation. My body felt heavy, and I was ready to be claimed. “You are the same kind and caring person, regardless of what you’ve done. It doesn’t matter if your name is Eli, Luca, or Frank. I still want to be with you.”
“Not Frank.” He frowned, shuddering as he stepped forward and ran the back of his hand against the choker around my neck. “That old name has not aged well, and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.”
“Not even our enemies?”
He sent me a wide smile through the mirror and placed his lips next to my ear. “Not even them.”
Leaning back, I pressed myself against him and enjoyed how we appeared standing beside each other in the mirror. We radiated elegance—power—and hunger.
“When are you going to help me out of this dress?” I peered over my shoulder and rubbed my butt against his hardness. “Or am I going to have to ask Maia or Stella to help me with it?”
“Don’t say such things,” Luca growled. His words held a hint of bark to them. “You know I would be more than willing to do it for you.”
A part of me wanted to be defiant and test him, to see what he would do, but I resisted. I would play with him another day. Right now, I wanted the mark that I’d been dreaming about all this time.
“Then do it, Alpha Luca,” I whined, not wanting to wait any longer. I could feel my body starting to heat up from arousal as wetness developed between my legs. “Claim me as yours.”
