Page 23 of The Heat of Us

“Many omegas are in a better place because of it.” My voice roughened. “I hope you are too.”

There was not enough joy in Hazel’s wry little smile. “In a manner of speaking.”

That drove me crazy for some reason. I needed her beaming and happy always.

“You deserve all the good things in life, Hazel.”

Instead of looking repulsed, Hazel looked…stricken. Then her eyes hardened, shimmering water turning to glass.

“You don’t know me, Ben.”

I didn’t. But I needed to.

And I was already fucking it up.

Don’t say shit like ‘you deserve all the good things in life’ to a complete stranger.

“Can we…can we start again?” I held out my hand and hoped for the best. “I’m Ben, Juno’s brother and my hair is usually longer, I swear.”

The pause that followed before she slipped her hand into my palm was possibly the longest of my life. I was certain I had imagined the little catch in her breath as we made contact.

“Hazel. Sometimes my hair is pink,” she said, a hint of a smile playing on her lips.

My brow furrowed. “Pink?”

“Maybe I’ll tell you if you’re a good boy.”

I wasn’t sure why being called a good boy made me feel like a wild animal was about to emerge from my chest, hold her down and show her all the ways she was wrong.

The dull ache behind my left eye sharpened considerably.

“Are you ok?”

Her voice sounded far away from where I was crouched over, hands on my knees.

“Yeah, I…I just need some air, I think.”

Hazel glanced behind me. “There’s kids running amuck in the backyard. It’ll probably make whatever you have ten times worse. Maybe you can try the balcony on the second floor. Come on.”

The noise from the party grew dim as we ascended the stairs but the ringing in my ears only got louder.

The balcony and quiet did help.

Having Hazel there, leaning against the wall watching me, helped even more.

“For what it’s worth, Juno’s glad to have you around.”

A surge of hope shot through me.

“Yeah?”

Hazel shook her head placatingly at me like I was being foolish. “How do you feel seeing her like this?”

It was a loaded question. Omegas tended to have a greater sense of intuition and empathy than most and Hazel was no different.

“Like how?” I asked, buying myself some time.

“Happy. Bonded.”

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