“I’m here because I want my time with them. Plus, they’ll watch over me while you’ve got the Chapter Assembly,” I say, moving in for a quick cuddle, hoping I throw him off his game.
“Jesus, Raney, I don’t give a shit about the Assembly back home.” He squeezes an arm around me, talking quietly in my ear because there’s too many ears around here.
“I’m okay, I promise. They just… you know we’ve only been Face Timing and it always throws me seeing them.” I push out of his arms.
“I swear, if I find out you’ve all been fucking sexting, I’ll shove your phone up their asses.”
I laugh at the absurdity of his comment, “You do know that I’m twenty, right?”
“Do I look like I give a shit? Not when it comes to them.”
Them. Their. He doesn’t need to expand upon who he’s talking about. Them or their—being Reid, Talon, Hayes, and Colt—like it has always been. But I haven’t seen Colt. Yet. The five of us have a killer connection, and no one can dispute that. The issue is we live on different sides of the tracks, and their parents aren’t my most loyal or loving fans.
Add in the small issue of designations… and yeah, I’m allowed to bitch. For the record, designations suck ass. More accurately the lack of my designation is definitely worthy of the angst that lives inside me.
While people around me are emerging like they should, I’m stuck in a weird hiatus. My genes are like a bear in hibernation in the middle of winter: completely dormant.
In our society what you are plays a big part of who you will be. Alphas are the most predominant designation, and they usually blast into their power in their late teens, early twenties. Omegas are the rarest and they blossom the earliest, usually before a person reaches their teens. And betas are when nothing happens in terms of your designations, you stay the same.
Our society is structured around those designations. Alphas traditionally hold the power in our community and in our home units. Alphas live in packs, or perhaps a better way of putting it is: they circle protectively around their omega. It’s pretty much their life objective—having an omega that is. Because while an alpha is full of surging emotion and possessive protectiveness, omegas are the sponge that soaks up their powerful emotions. They have a natural born ability to anchor an alpha, and a whole pack. Omegas keep their alphas sane.
And while dad is a super strong alpha, and mom is a beta, the reality is designations don’t always follow your parents. The only sign so far that I’m probably following in Mom’s footsteps more than Dad’s is the delay in my designation.
As opposed to Talon and Hayes who have blasted into theirs. I knew they had. Reid is so close you can feel him pressing against you, plus he’s been especially moody lately. But it’s the first time I’ve felt and seen Tal and Hayes in person since they’ve presented. And that’s what I was responding to. Like any other person would.
My lack of designation is definitely something that plays on my mind when it comes to them. Omegas are also the only ones able to take an alpha’s knot. While not always necessary for breeding, an omega’s ability to take an alpha’s knot is a requirement for an alpha’s pleasure. And alphas are certainly about that—quite simply they like to fuck. Betas can have sex with alphas, but everyone in our world knows alphas need the satisfaction and pleasure only an omega’s body can provide. Of course, another thing that happens between alphas and omegas is instant compatibility, a little sniff of ‘your’ omega and promises, relationship, and life plans change.
Hence my angst. What happens if I’m a beta? What happens if my alpha boys meet their omega and that magical connection snaps in place… they’ll forget who I am in an instant.
Since the day we met, they’ve said they want me, and not my designation. We definitely have a connection, and we’ve always felt right. But we’ve never experienced that paralysing connection packs talk about after meeting their omega. King constantly bandies phrases around like immature views of the world and naive to the point of being stupid. I guess we’re full of hope that we’re going to be one of those packs that thrives without an omega.
“Raney!” Colt calls my name, and I swing my head around searching for him. The second I find him; I feel all dizzy in my head like I’m floating or falling.
For a long time, I was confused about Colt. Not him. Colt has never once questioned us. Considering he’s younger than me, I had to be the one putting the brakes on where he kept trying to take our relationship past the point of what society views as right. A large part of the confusion was centred around age which is weird, because I grew up in an environment where people focus on who you are as a person, not when you were born.
Colt and I have always had crazy intimacy to our friendship and that was never a stumbling block. The physical thing was a difficult part to terms with, and in truth that was a very, very recent change to our relationship and one that he initiated with a tenacity beyond his years, and one he vehemently refused to drop.
Dad completely ignores Colt, which pisses me off. I go to mouth off, but he talks over the top of me.
“Every fucking year you stand there, Reid, and try to tell me my daughter is meant to be with your not yet formed pack. It’s a bit of a fucking joke, kid, particularly when I notice your mother once again declined Jenn’s invitation to be here. Anyway, let’s focus on my daughter. You know the rules, we’ve already done this a few times, but give me your best shot as to why you should be allowed to date her. Remember, you only get one chance.”
For the past few years, Reid, Talon, and Hayes have stood in a similar way they are today. This year Colt, Reid’s younger brother, is standing there with them.
“We’ll be here every year, sir, until we get your approval. We’re not going anywhere, and neither is Raney. Yeah, we’re young…”
“You’re shitting me, right?” Dad laughs, sounding stunned. He’s not. He’s being an ass.
“No, sir.” Reid answers with a barely hidden tone of contempt. He’s egging dad on with his attitude for some reason. Or this is another one of those impending alpha change things I’ve missed picking up on during our endless phone calls or live streams during the last few months.
“Young, huh. At least you got that shit right, I’m pretty sure you just climbed out of your diapers. And I bet Colt still takes his mother’s sour tit before bed.”
My eyes jump straight to Colt. There’s no disputing his age, it’s the one thing you can’t argue. Saying that though, he’s got more maturity and courage than a lot of the guys that ride with Dad. I stare at Colt. Even across the patio I can see the mood in his eyes. I keep his attention locked on mine so he doesn’t start showing everyone how much courage he has.
Reid ignores King and starts talking again. “We’ve done exactly what you said you wanted us to.”
“All right, fellas let’s give this little soon-to-be alpha a fucking pat on the back. We’re done, Reid, the answer is still no.”
“No,” Colt snaps, “We’re not done. It’s Raney’s birthday, and this is what we do. We’re going to keep doing it too, until you say yes.”
