Page 29 of Curvy Nerdy Omega

The smell was familiar and normally I’d find it comforting, but there was something off about it that was putting me on edge. I couldn’t put my finger on what exactly it was, but it made me want to bite through my cheek hard enough to make blood gush into my mouth and down my front to stain the pink shoes red.

After all these years of pretending to be normal, I was finally losing my mind. That was the only explanation for the way I felt right now – even after taking one of Cas’s suppressants.

All the times I’d convinced myself I could be normal had worked before, but now? Nothing could hold back the ocean of blood anymore.

I’ve been drowning in red all my life and the stains were finally starting to show.

I wanted to blame Liam and Cas for this, but it wasn’t their fault their pheromones had me feral.

I couldn’t ignore it anymore.

Their pheromones had triggered my instincts hard and my body was making up for lost time. That had to be it. Nothing else made sense unless they were drugging me to react like this.

Guess we’d find out soon enough.

“We’re not making enough progress on this case,” Frankie whispered – the sudden drop in volume catching my attention more than if she’d yelled those words at me. “No one has been able to find Gideon’s wedding ring, or the murder weapon. The autopsy reports didn’t tell us anything we didn’t already know and nothing was missing from Gideon’s office no matter how many times I’ve compared the crime scene photos to the professional ones used for marketing.”

I should tell her I’ve seen Liam and Cassius’s murder basement – that they had her shitty cousin in there because of what he’d done to me. Not that Frankie would care if he lived or died, but it was vital information that could help her see what I couldn’t because I was drowning in blood and oranges.

“If the wedding ring is still missing then it’s a trophy,” I muttered, chewing on the soft flesh of my cheek as I tried to focus on my partner.

Dropping my gaze to my fingernails, I picked at the cuticles until they bled, using the extra pain to anchor me a bit more so I could be useful instead of the feeble omega I was turning out to be.

“Only a spouse or lover would care about a wedding ring,” Frankie agreed. The way she eyed me was uncomfortable, but thankfully she didn’t ask how I was doing since it was pretty fucking obvious I was struggling. “Your interview with Melinda was amazing, Lou. I’ll never get over how quickly you piss them off.”

I laughed but there was no humor in the sound. “Liars don’t like to be called out.”

But Liam hadn’t reacted like a liar when I’d demanded answers. He reacted like someone who had nothing to lose. Which meant he was telling the truth, or at least, a version of the truth he believed wholeheartedly.

“Well, thanks to your interview and notes, I was able to narrow down the potential list of people she could be having an affair with. I’ve been tailing her over the last few days, but there’s nothing out of the ordinary yet.”

My phone chimed and I forced myself to pull it out of my pocket to see what it was.

Frankie had sent me a list of single men in the Valor pack who could move around the estate without making anyone think twice, and it took me longer than I cared to admit to see there were only five people on the list, but she’d highlighted the first three.

“The last two are technically single, but they really don’t like Melinda so it’s not likely she’s been sleeping with either of them.”

They could be pretending to hate the omega, but it was more likely they just weren’t interested in that kind of mess considering they were in charge of maintaining the Valor security system.

I almost dropped my phone when I remembered Liam’s explanation for all the cameras he’d placed in every single facet of my life.

Every possible angle.

Rubbing the sudden twitch on my eyelid away, I tried to ignore the warmth spreading through my chest. It was not normal or sane to feel so fucking pleased with his explanation, but it made sense to me. In a way.

Liam Valor had actually admitted that he was so obsessed with me he couldn’t go a single second without knowing where I was and if I was okay. He’d made the choice to do that instead of whatever depraved shit he might have done instead. Because I wouldn’t like it.

I laughed and rubbed my eye hard enough that stars exploded in the darkness.

As soon as he detoxed from my pheromones, he’d feel differently, but I really, really hoped I was wrong.

“Lucy…do you have any idea who she might be sleeping with?” Frankie leaned closer to me and I instinctively shifted to keep the distance between us. I winced when I saw the hurt in her eyes, but I was still pissed she’d handed me over to another alpha like it had been the easiest thing she’d ever done.

I checked the time and tried not to worry that Nathan was officially three minutes late now. “I don’t think it matters.”

“Why not?”

“What does Gideon’s wedding ring have to do with Melinda’s affair? Why would they take that as a trophy when they already have the ultimate trophy? His omega.” Unless it was Melinda who arranged for her husband’s death after finding out she was pregnant.

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