She squeaks and bites her lower lip. There's no mistaking the way she leans into his touch, her entire body tilting towards him.
Viper doesn't scare her. He never has. He makes her feel safe, protected, and loved.
And rut-dammit, being adored by his Omega is a good look on him.
After the three months we've had, he deserves to be happy. He lost himself without her at his side, death knocking on his door every damn moment.
They've had a connection since she risked her life to save him.
I remember that day in the hospital, when she threw herself between him and my gun. I thought he’d kill her with a flick of his wrist. But he didn’t. Lieutenant Viper, who’s ended hundreds of lives down the scope of his rifle, didn’t harm a hair on her head.
I'm a man of science. I don't believe in mythical forces, or prophecies, or love-at-first-sight. But those two? There’s something inexplicable about them. Something more than instinct. It looks like fate. Fated mates.
The bite collar around Halley's throat is still in place. He didn’t place an official claim on her with a bite, but it’s clear to anyone with a nose that it’s inevitable.
My stomach twists. If they bond…
What happens to the rest of us? To Knox? Blaze?Me?
I step out of the shadow and interrupt their little moment of happiness.
"Hey, lovebirds," I say, trying for casual, but it comes out bitter.
I can't help it. I feel like I'm drowning in my complicated feelings of jealousy and, worse than that, hope.
Because before she left, Halley was enthusiastic about forming a Pack. She wanted all of us. Even me, a Beta. And if she’s found her way back to Viper, maybe there’s still a path back for the rest of us too.
She startles when she sees me and her blush deepens an even darker shade of pink.
"Shade!" she squeaks, pulling her hand away from Viper and freezing like a rabbit in headlights. "Er... I mean, Beta Specialist Shade. Hey… hello…hi."
I bite back a smirk. She’s flustered. That means she still feels something, right?
"Omega Specialist Sparks," I say, matching her formality and tilt my head to watch her blush spread further.
I raise a brow at Viper, licking my lips in fascination.
I want more of a reaction from her. That pretty blush is the closest I’ve had of her attention in months. So, like a boy pulling a girl’s pigtail in the playground, I tug a little harder.
"I see the lieutenant checked you were okay after your chat with General Stone. I’m sure he's been taking very…verygood care of you."
She quietly chokes on her spit and nods with wide, guilty eyes.
Oh yes, there she is. Her focus is onmenow.
"I was, uh, apologizing to him about how I left things..." she mumbles, fumbling for the right words, fingers fidgeting.
My amusement sours fast and a surge of frustration rises in my gut.
Viper catches the shift in my scent. His eyes narrow.
'Don't,'he silently warns.
I don't take orders from him. He's not my Prime Alpha.
Does she think a simple apology will cut it? That we can pick up where we left off and pretend nothing shattered?
I study her features, searching for an answer.
