I shake my head. “No, but you’re the first one I’ve met.”
“For every hundred alphas that present, ninety-nine are male.” She huffs. “So, about one percent of alphas are female. That means that when we look for a pack…most men wouldn’t be happy allowing a female into their pack that didn’t want tobeshared.”
Oh.
“Not that I wouldn’t be open to it with the right people. Especially considering I’m bisexual. I just…my omega would come first, you know? And mens’ egos…at least the men I’ve met, well, they don’t handle that very well from a female. So I’ve kind of given up for the time being.”
The way she talks about it—her omega coming first—it makes my heart ache.
“Maggie…” I grab her hand in mine, feeling the overwhelming need to comfort the alpha. “Have you gone to the OMS? I’ve heard they’re a good resource—”
She shakes her head. “There’s not an option for single alphas. You have to be a part of a pack first. I know that some heat clinics take volunteers, I just…” she sighs. “It’s so discouraging, Wren. All I want is an omega to take care of, whether that’s male or female, and I just…” she grimaces as she wipes the tears from her eyes. “So thank you for letting me be an overbearing older-sister for a little bit.”
I smile, despite my heart breaking for her. “Are you kidding? I’ve been on cloud nine, suddenly having so many people care about me. You know, the guys and I…we’re going to Starbrook City. You could come with us.”
She barks a laugh. “Thank you. But…my practice is here. I’ll come visit though, I promise.”
Unable to resist the urge to hug her, I lean over, wrapping my arms around her neck. “You’re going to find the perfect pack one day, Maggie,” I whisper, my voice choking, “I know it.”
Another watery laugh leaves her as she returns my hug. “You’re sweet. I won’t get my hopes up, but…thank you.”
Maggie gets ready to leave, packing up her stuff and declining the invite to stay for lunch. As she passes by my canvas, her jaw drops. “Oh my gods, Wren,” she gasps, her eyes going wide. “This is…”
“For my parents,” I grin, walking over and standing next to her, “think they’ll like it?”
“Oh, they’re gonna hate it,” she laughs, “it’s perfect.”
Chapter 41
Wren
As I slip into my outfit for dinner, I can’t help but admire the way it makes my ass look. Last night we did some more online shopping from Nesting Co., because in Teddy’s exact words, “Eat shit, Nest Luxe.”
The clothes I ordered are both appropriate for a dinner in a restaurant and are also comfortable as hell. The dress hugs my newfound curves, the fabric stretchy but sturdy. The inside is this soft, silky material, and the outside has the appearance of a more formal dress.
Turns out, I could have dressed the way my parents wanted me to all along and been happy about it if they had taken a split second to consider how textures affect an omega’s nervous system.
Between my outfit, and the makeup I followed a tutorial on for the perfect “smoky eye”, I look ready to do business.
“Temperature check,” Brennan announces as he enters the nest, waving a thermometer around. I can’t even appreciate how good he looks in his button-up shirt and tie since I’m so annoyed he’s checking mytemperatureagain.
I huff. “I was at one-oh-two at lunch time, there’s no way I’ve gone up more than—” My mouth snaps shut as he scans my forehead anyway.
It beeps, and he frowns. “One-oh-three.”
Shit.
“I’ll be fine,” I say quickly. “That’s still three degrees to go. I only went up two between my meeting with Maggie and lunch today, so that means I’m up two degrees every twenty-four hours.”
“I know,” he sighs, looking up from the screen, “it’s just—” his eyes catch on my body, and he freezes. I guess he had been so intent on checking my temperature before, that he didn’t reallyseeme. “Holy shit.”
His voice is a reverent whisper as his eyes run up and down my body, the intensity of his gaze burning through me like a brand.
“Yeah?” I can’t help my grin as I do a quick little twirl. “You like it?”
“You look…” he huffs a breath, shaking his head, “I can’t even put it into words.”
“I look like I’m going to finally confront my parents and force them to release their hold on me once and for all?” I hedge, loving the way he can’t seem to pull his eyes from my cleavage.
