Page 52 of Pack Fever

“My phone and emails are overloaded with every media company wanting to interview us and meet the mysterious Omega.” He’s running his hand through his hair repeatedly, his shoulders curled forward, clear he’s fraying at the edges and about to spiral.

“Listen,” I say, getting to my feet and blocking his pacing. “We just need to reverse engineer this. We can’t take them head-on. We know you’re not engaged, so we just need to prove it to them and the whole damn world that it was a mistake.”

“And how the fuck do we do that? It’s our word against theirs, and the media are blood-starved hounds, digging up every inch of information. And I sure as hell don’t want to reveal Danica’s with us, so Nexus rocks up and takes her.”

I nod, frustration worming up my spine. We can’t even declare to Nexus that she’s our Omega and record our relationship since that will get out into the public, proving we breached our contract. Goddamnit.

“We need a believable story, then. One we can pull off to convince them you’re not engaged. And show how quickly rumors can spread in the media, blah, blah. Play the victim card and all that bullshit.” I pause, then blurt out, “Maybe we say she’s your cousin from overseas. Nah,” I say just as quickly as the words fall from my mouth. “Your family may not buy into joining such a big lie.”

Seth pauses in front of me, his brows pulled together. “Wait. Earlier, Danica mentioned something about showing the media it’s a misunderstanding… she talked about showing them she works for us.”

Our gazes clash, a spark of possibility igniting.

“Fuck, yeah, that could work,” I agree. “And we need a new marketing manager after you fired our band manager,” I add, half-jokingly.

“We explain she came to the party to introduce herself to the family,” he adds, nodding as if the idea’s growing on him more. “We don’t need to mention the ring. She could just be looking at her hand in the photo.”

I chuckle. “But you had to go and introduce her as our Omega, not to mention the bathroom incident.”

Seth’s expression tightens. “Fuck!” Then he’s shaking his head. “We can work around it. I’ll explain it to my family. She’s our new band marketing manager, and it was a joke that I called her our Omega. I’ll talk to my mom privately about the ring. To the others, I’ll say as soon as Dad gave me crap about having an Omega, I let him believe it was real out of spite.”

“Sounds like something you’d do,” I explain, yet the dread that the plan won’t work sits on my chest like a block of ice.

He runs a hand down his face, probably from sweating so much from his nerves.

“We’ll make this believable.” I slap a hand on his shoulder. “Chill the fuck out. We’ll just need to convince Danica of this and that she’ll be stuck with us.” The idea warms my insides, and my cock gives a throb in agreement. “Though, as far as I’m concerned, she isn’t going to leave us. I want her as our Omega,” I announce, wanting my intentions to be clear. “I can’t even explain what my brain is thinking, but the moment I inhaled her scent, it felt right.”

He blinks at me with an expression I can’t read.

“Let’s deal with that once we fix up this mess.”

“I know you want her, too. I didn’t forget how you spoke about her after your time with her at Nocturne, but sure, let’s get over this hurdle first. I just want to make it clear… I will make her mine, with or without you two.”

He’s already heading to his desk, and I don’t push him, knowing his anxiety affects him differently. It drags him down to a dark place where his mind is so focused on the problem at hand, he can’t process much else.

“Let’s go break the news to her,” he suggests, already stepping out of his office. “Then I’ll call Rick at Wing Music to explain the situation.”

I sigh and step out after him to start damage control, though part of me feels a surge of protectiveness over dragging Danica into his mess. We’re all in a tight spot now and need to work together.

Danica

“No way, I can’t be a band marketing manager, and everything that goes with it and…” I mutter, trying not to panic. This is Fever, and I’m a nobody with no experience.

“Which part can’t you do?” Seth asks calmly, all of us standing near the kitchen, where they pounced on me when I came searching for a snack.

“All of it,” I reply, trying to keep my racing breathing steady. I barely know how to organize myself, let alone a band. “I know nothing about managing a band. And it’s not like I can show my face without Nexus seeing me and coming for me.”

“And that’s why we need each other,” Jasper pipes in, smiling at me as if there’s not a worry in the world. Except they are about to get potentially sued, so now they’re hatching a plan involving me to cover their asses. The truth is, I don’t hate the guys or want them to get into a legal battle with a massive record label.

I blink, processing it all.

“I’m not saying no to helping you because you’ve helped me, and I will do the same for you, but I don’t think I can do the job. Unless you’re saying it will be a pretend job?”

“Yes and no,” Seth answers. He then takes my hand, and there’s a warmth to his touch, the kind that slinks up my arm and ripples across my chest, hardening my nipples and making me suddenly lean toward him. A simple touch, and that’s how quickly I’m smitten with him, especially after his grizzly reaction this morning to the news about our engagement.

We’re sitting at the kitchen table while Jasper’s heading over to the fridge.

“You won’t have to show your face anywhere in public, so you won’t be in the limelight,” Seth explains. “Right now, I manage the band, and if we go on tour, I will need some help. I’ll guide you. Trust me, I’m not dumping this on you. Most of this is for appearances and cover story.”

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