“There you are,” she said, looking at me, frustration creasing her forehead. “You’re lucky I was able to pick this up so quickly,” she continued as if it was my doing that Cole had claimed me with nothing more than what I had been wearing.
She thrust the shoebox towards me at the bottom of the stairs.
“Are you wanting to drive yourself this afternoon or should I arrange a car?” she said, turning dismissively away from me and towards Cole.
“I’ll drive. Thank you for delivering the shoes for my omega. I trust you will have completed your other tasks by the time I arrive home this evening,” Cole replied with a clipped tone.
“Of course,” Chloe agreed, and left without any goodbye or looking in my direction again.
Cole turned to me and took the grey box from my hands.
“Let’s see if my assistant was able to follow my instructions,” she said as she opened the box.
Inside were a pair of immaculately white trainers.
“I thought minimal would work best. Lunch with Sepher Logistics will be more casual than business, and it wouldn’t do to have you all dressed up like last night for your first introduction to the Pack House. By tonight, you will have a selection of pieces more appropriately sized and fitting,” she promised as she removed the shoes from the box, and I hoped she wasn’t planning to dress me similarly to how Ashford had. “Take aseat,” she instructed, pointing to a small black wooden stool in the front entranceway.
I did as she instructed and was shocked as Cole knelt in front of me, so shocked I flinched back and hit my head off the wall behind me.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“What are you doing?” I accused.
She smiled, a devilish kind of smile that stole the breath from my chest, but it might have just been the knock to my head.
“What does it look like, puppy?” she asked as she loosened the laces of one shoe before reaching out and taking my ankle in her hand and guiding my foot into the shoe.
“Why?” I asked.
I was confused, perhaps potentially concussed. What was she doing?
“Because I want to and I can,” she answered, and I sat still, allowing her to put the shoes on for me and even tie the laces.
It took a moment for me to even register what she had said.
“I don’t like that,” I said as she stood in front of me.
“Are the laces too tight?” she asked.
“What? No. I don’t like being called puppy. It’s infantilising and disrespectful. I’m an omega, not a child,” I told her.
Cole laughed.
“I don’t view you as a child. I view you as mine,” she replied.
“For the next five weeks,” I said quietly. “Just don’t call me puppy,” I added, staring at the tied shoes. I couldn’t remember the last time someone else had put my shoes on and tied my laces.
My head was pushed upward by her curled finger under my chin until my eyes met her liquid-gold stare.
“You’re mine for as long as I desire,” she stated coldly. “You do not dictate what I can and cannot do, but if you want something from me, you may ask politely.” She released myjaw. “Now stand up,” she instructed and took a brown leather, collared, oversized bomber jacket from a hook and put it on before selecting a slightly lighter brown cotton utility jacket and holding it open for me, silently demanding that I allow her to help me put it on. I obeyed, even allowing her to zip it up.
“It fits well,” she said, smiling like she was pleased with herself.
“It does,” I begrudgingly agreed.
“Shake off that attitude, omega,” she warned. “We’re about to step into public together. I am an alpha wolf and the Beta of Pack Sandstorm. If you disrespect me publicly, you'll face a public correction. Do you understand?” she asked.
Her tone was calm, soft, almost, but I understood the threat. I was to play my part or accept the consequences.
