My half-hearted attempt to lie to myself was over before it started. Had I known Joon would be here tonight, no matter the maddening pull I felt towards Eva, I would've been waiting for him.
He was mine.
But so was she.
It was hindbrain, surely. But there was something else, too, a level of concern and care that I felt for the omega even if we were having difficulty connecting emotionally.
Sure, the Packtacular had helped the physical side, and Joon had stopped flinching every time I spoke to him, but things were still…tense.
Of course, I wanted things to move along with him, but he was complicated. Skittish and unruly in a way that would take too long to tame.
Even still, I was committed to seeing things through with Joon, even if the omega's glacial pace tore at me more by the day.
There was something about him that was so intriguing. I’d never had issues attracting whoever I wanted, omegas, betas, it didn’t matter. But Joon had been… resistant to say the least. At first, I found it off-putting, but it didn’t take long for me to realize he wasn’t just being petulant, he was a brat that needed to be tamed.
And our pack seemed up to the challenge, even if Marcus needed time to catch up to the rest of us.
I tossed a bill beside my unfinished beer and was out the door before I'd really considered how strange the omega would find it that I'd appeared, seemingly from nowhere. My long legs took me across the parking lot and street without looking, earning a loud honk from a white sedan as it nearly struck me on its path to pulling up besidemyfucking omega.
"Don't you dare," I said, ignoring the driver as they lowered their window to shout towards me.
Joon's reddened nose turned up as he opened the door to the rideshare. "Go away, Cameo."
I ignored him, closing the distance between us and using my hand on the window of the car to close the door again. "I'll take you home."
"I am more than capable?—"
"Joon! Wait—please—let me explain!" Eva's voice drifted from the door as she exited. I recognized Jesse and Tara behind her, the third friend a mystery to me as she rushed towards myomega, who suddenly looked more like a deer in headlights than a man.
He grabbed my hand, towing me down the street and away from her just as she got close enough for a whisper of her strawberry matcha scent. At least, I'd thought so, until the smell continued as Joon stormed down the street in the opposite direction of where I'd parked. Maybe I had imagined it.
"I'm not interested!" he snapped. "Call Indigo if you want him so fucking bad!"
I blinked, though I was used to Joon's surly attitude, I'd mistakenly assumed that it was something he'd reserved mostly for me… or Marcus.
Joon really didn't get Marcus.
But it seemed Marcus didn’t get Joon either.
The omega turned a corner, seemingly at random, and I let him get to the end of the block before directing him back the way we came on the new street. He dug in his heels, refusing to continue.
"I'm not going back."
"I'm not taking you back," I said. "I've parked in this direction."
"Oh," Joon muttered, deflating as he stopped fighting me to walk at my side.
His hand was still in mine, a little sweaty and overly warm as I led us down the sidewalk, comfortable in the silence while he stewed.
“I could have gotten home myself,” Joon grumbled petulantly, casting me a sidelong glance that made my nose turn up with irritation. "You didn't have to wait around for me."
That was the thing with this omega. He always had a fucking attitude. Even something as simple as—Okay, well, I was stalking him, however accidentally. So maybe he had the smallest sliver of a point.
A micron, tops.
“You’re the one who dragged me away from your ride,” I reminded him, raising an eyebrow. “Why are you complaining now?"
It wasn't like I was going to admit to stalking Eva, either. Besides, it was really about intent. I wasn't going to hurt her.
