Page 37 of Dual Nature

"We aren't scary. I promise we don't bite," Milly assured me.

My brain whirled with the tug-of-war and how much to tell people about my life before getting bitten, knowing it would shock them even more. The need to have an exit was a requirement I had from my training. Plus, my wolf wasn’t feeling safe with our new pack yet since our mates weren’t with us. I took a deep breath and tried to ease both our fears, knowing that if it came down to it, I would be able to manage most things that came my way. I was not helpless, and I refused to ever be.

"So I know this is probably rude to ask, but what happened with Craig earlier today? None of the alphas or the lead betas will say anything other than it was deserved," Katie asked, looking at me hopefully.

I groaned in my head, frustrated at not knowing the rules about what I could say and what I shouldn't. Being their mate meant I would know things that weren't going to be common knowledge or ever shared with the pack. Diplomacy was not in my training. I took orders and fulfilled my mission—that was it.

"Katie!" Milly snapped. "If the alphas haven't told us anything, then we aren't supposed to know. Shame on you for trying to use her like that. You know omegas have a hard time not giving in to orders."

"Oh, like I have enough dominance to force her into telling me anything!" Katie huffed. "Tell her, Finley, do you feel the need to answer my request?"

Pausing to consider that a moment, I could feel my wolf’s agitation, but it had nothing to do with Katie's request. More so with the fallout if I accidentally did something to anger my mates. "No, I don’t feel compelled to answer her question," I mused. It was nice to know that I still had that ability away from dominant wolves.

There, that wasn't so hard. Keep it simple and to the point. That way, things can’t get fucked up.

The sisters looked at me wide-eyed, a little shocked by my answer, and that sent my wolf into a tailspin. Did we do it wrong? I closed my eyes, trying to get control of my wolf and calm her down, giving me a chance to find out what had caused their reaction, but she was far too stressed for me to control.

I got up from the table. “Excuse me, I’m not feeling well at the moment.”

Rushing away, I searched the crowd, trying to find any of my mates, but as I moved, everyone kept reaching out to touch me. The overwhelming sense of their emotions, some good, some bad, pounded into my head until I couldn’t escape it all.

Then the scent of a citrus-tinged ocean breeze filled my nose as a rough hand cradled my face. Elias had come to save me. Without opening my eyes, I reached out and wrapped my arms around his neck, letting him pull me against him.

"What is wrong, my heart?" he whispered into my ear.

I nuzzled into his neck, deeply breathing in his calming scent. "It’s too much—so many emotions, people keep touching me—and I don't know the rules, Elias."

Elias hummed his understanding and picked me up, pulling my legs to wrap around his waist as he carried me away from the stunned people around me. I had forgotten that Noah told me Elias didn't like to be touched, but when it came to me, it was almost as if he craved it. My wolf wagged her tail in excitement, knowing that we were helping him and getting the grounding we needed at the same time.

"What's wrong?" Mason asked me as he appeared, brushing his hand along my cheek.

"Grab the others and tell them to meet me on the pack house porch. We need to clarify a few things," Elias instructed, his voice rough with held-back anger.

He carried me up the steps and settled us on the porch swing, curling me up on his lap, his arm tightly clasped around me as he started rocking. My wolf, now free from the social environment and wrapped up in our mate and protector, finally settled, allowing me to breathe easier.

"I'm sorry," I murmured, feeling a wave of guilt at causing a scene.

Elias shifted me so I could see the scowl on his face. "None of this is your fault. We should have prepared you better for this situation. This is on us, not on you, my heart."

Heavily sighing, I melted into his warm body and waited for the others to join us. Of course, it didn't take long for them to arrive, a worried expression on everyone's face as their gazes landed on me.

"What's wrong? What happened?" Lane asked, sliding in beside Elias and pulling my legs onto his lap.

"We didn't do our jobs is what happened," Elias snarled. "How could you just leave her out there to fend for herself with the pack? She's an omega, for fuck’s sake, and we didn't give her any rules or guidelines to follow. I found her practically in a panic attack because she was so overwhelmed!"

The others looked a mix between shocked and pissed the fuck off with how Elias was talking to them, but I knew he was upset because he felt like he’d failed me.

"Fuck," Colt snapped, turning and gripping the porch railing until the sound of cracking wood was heard. "You're right, Elias. I should have thought that through better. I know better than to do that, goddamn it!"

“No,” I spoke up. “I told Colt I was okay to be on my own. I didn’t realize how much I didn’t understand until it was already too late.”

Noah knelt in front of me and grasped my hands, pulling them up so he could kiss the backs of them. "Okay, love, what can we do to help make you feel more comfortable going back out there?"

"There are a lot of things that I know from my job as an assassin, plus being your mate. I know far too many secrets in general… What am I allowed to say?" I inquired, trying to explain what it was that I was feeling even though I didn't fully understand it. “Katie asked me about Craig, but then she also mentioned you haven’t given any details. My wolf panicked, and with everyone's emotions flying at me, I couldn’t stop it.”

Noah looked up at the others with a frown. "Elias is right; we should have taken her past into account, not to mention the omega nature. We put her out in the pack, expecting her to just figure it out like a normal pack member, but she can't. That’s our fuck up." Turning back to me, Noah asked another question. "What is it that you’re most worried about?"

"I don't want to get in trouble for saying something I shouldn't or have other people mad at me when I won't tell them things…"