"Headache. Tired."
"When did the headache start?" When she was only wearing her bra and panties, I stood to look at her. Still sweating, her skin looked irritated and red all over, as if hives were covering her.
"This morning. When I woke up."
"And the tiredness?"
"After meeting with Danny."
"Did something happen at the meeting?"
"No. He was weird, though. Kept his distance and he kept sniffing the building." She opened one eye. "Why are you interrogating me?"
"Becauseyou'reacting weird and I'm worried." I sat on the edge of her bed. "Did you eat today?"
"Not hungry."
"Naomi, you have to eat." I sighed. The Beta in me was freaking out.
By nature, we couldn’t help but to nurture any person we bonded to. Especially, an Omega. Her needs came beforemine and if she wasn’t okay, neither was I. Genetic makeup catastrophe.
"Kira. Please. I just need to sleep. I'll be fine."
She looked so miserable that I relented. "Fine. But I'm checking on you in a couple hours."
"'Kay."
I left her there, but something was nagging at me. The fever. The exhaustion. The heightened scent that even I as a Beta could detect.
It felt like—No. It couldn't be.
Naomi had never gone into heat. Ever. She thought she was a late bloomer, but at thirty, most Omegas had long since presented. But those Alphas last night had been able to scent her from across the room. Why else were they so in tune with her that they approached? What if they'd triggered something? Or sensed something? No other Alphas had approached her, but that didn’t stop them from looking. After Kellan and Rowan had come over and staked their claim, it would have been suicide for others to approach her. In fact, nobody but the bartender had come near her after they’d come over.
I pushed the thought aside. That was ridiculous. All of this was. One night couldn't trigger a heat.
Could it?
NAOMI
The next time I woke up, I was soaked in sweat and groaning. The cramps had intensified. I’d never had them this bad. Plus, it felt like it was a hundred degrees in this room. It had to be the reason that I was in so much pain and my skin seemed to be on fire.
God, it’s so hot.
I kicked away all the blankets and groaned loudly. Nothing seemed to help. There was a knock at my door.
"Naomi?" Kira's voice. "You okay in there?"
"Fine," I managed.
"You don't sound fine. You sound like you're dying."
"Not dying. Just," another cramp hit and I curled into a ball. "Fuck!"
The door opened.
"I said I'm fine!"
"Are you in heat?"
