I quickly angled my body between them, pushing Westin behind me.
“You think you can take me, beta?” the alpha asked, nostrils flaring.
“Physically? Probably not. But I’m a lawyer for the government and I will make it my fucking life’s mission to destroy you.” I squared my shoulders and planted my feet firmly beneath me.
“That’s hot,” Westin muttered under her breath, and I had to stop myself from puffing up my chest like a fucking idiot.
The alpha sputtered, his face turning red.
“The question is, how confident are you that everything in your life is above board? Because I have nothing but time on my hands,” I said.
“Fuck this,” the alpha said, taking a few steps back.
“Well, this has been fun,” Westin said. “But we’ve got to go. Enjoy your food.” She twirled back to the door and walked out, her hand firmly in mine.
She kept walking until we were about a block away from the restaurant. Then she dropped my hand and turned to face me. She was trembling and wouldn’t meet my gaze. Everything in me wanted to wrap my arms around her and draw her close, but she crossed her arms across her chest, hugging her bare shoulders.
“You know that guy?”
She nodded, her eyes taking on a far-away look.
“Did he hurt you?” I asked through gritted teeth, bracing myself for the answer.
Westin shook her head. The unspoken words passed between us. The alpha wasn’t someone she had dated. He was someone who hadpaidfor her services. A tangled mix of emotions flooded me at the realization that she was engaging in sex work. If I was totally honest, I wasn’t sure how I felt about it, but I was confident that she had no reason to feel ashamed or embarrassed.
“Do you just want to call it a night?” she asked. I caught the slightest hint of naked vulnerability in her expression before it morphed into something stoic and unbothered.
“No,” I blurted out.
Her lips parted in surprise, and I couldn’t stop myself from running my thumb down her soft cheek.
“I don’t want the night to be over,” I murmured, my breath hitching as Westin leaned in closer, our bodies almost touching. “Forgive me for my awful restaurant choice?”
She blinked a few times. “That wasn’t your fault.”
“Still, I’d be much more comfortable if you chose our next spot. Any ideas?”
“Oh…” She looked around at the quiet Main Street. A few people walked together across the street, their laughter filling the air.
“There’s an arcade nearby that I used to go to before… well, you know. I haven’t been back since things have opened up for omegas, but we could try it out.”
I realized Westin’s whole life was divided into abeforeandafter, and I would never fully understand what it was like to be an omega living through the Designation Government.
“Sounds great,” I said. I would agree to anything at this point to redeem this shitshow of an evening. “Want to grab your other shoes out of the car?”
Westin grinned. “I knew you weren’t just a pretty face. Brilliant thinking.”
I couldn’t stop my cheeks from heating. Did she really think I was pretty?
After she got her shoes swapped out, she led the way, taking us a few blocks away from Main Street until we got to a rundown storefront with boarded-up windows.
“Ha, it looks exactly the same,” she said.
Westin reached for the door and I had to stop myself from pulling her away. Far, far away from this dilapidated building that definitely wasn’t up to code. Before I could say anything, she pulled me inside.
It took my eyes a few moments to adjust before I could take in one of the weirdest places I’d ever seen. The bar was mostly empty, with a few people sitting at tables in the corner. Irish music was blasting from speakers on the wall, and the only light came from the large neon signs on the wall and some lamps casting a yellow glow. An Irish flag hung over the bar andpendants for the Ireland football team plastered the walls, but there were also Abba posters next to them and weird troll dolls hanging from the ceiling. I could hear arcade noises coming from an adjoining room, separated from the bar by a black curtain.
I almost tripped over the corner of something. “Why is there a canoe in the middle of the room?”
