Page 18 of Warwick

“It’s true. And I happen to agree with Damien. I think Cecil is your mate. Trust me when I say that your beast will calm considerably once you claim him.”

I shook my head again. “No. He’s not my mate. He’s Alpha Vitomir’s great-grandson. I can’t be mated to him. There has to be another reason.”

Damien chuckled. “Sorry, man. He’s your mate. Your beast brought the two of you here. Not to the transport building. Your beast was trying to get you to claim your mate. You need to accept the fact that your mate is from a created line, and your mate is an omega.” Damien looked over at Atticus. “Do you think they’ll have a baby hellhound?”

I tuned them out. I couldn’t be mated to an omega. Cecil was…small. He was…I would hurt him. I was large and rough around the edges. He needed a mate who had manners and was a gentleman.

“He’s not paying attention to us.”

I looked at Damien and narrowed my eyes. “I can’t be mated to him. He’s small. I’d break him.”

Atticus snorted. I glared at my alpha. “He’s an omega, Warwick. I’m sure he’s perfectly capable of handling you as you are. Just remember to be kind to him. Talk to him. Do things for him. You should talk to someone and ask for advice about what all you can do for him once he becomes pregnant,” Atticus said.

I stood and walked toward the other side of the room, unable to sit any longer. “No,” I said after turning to face Damien and Atticus. “You’re wrong. He’s not my mate.”

Damien and Atticus shared a look, and then Damien sighed.

“We can get someone else here to help you realize that yes, he is. You can deny it all you want,” Atticus said. “And then you and Cecil will end up miserable just like Brice and I were for ten long years. If you think your beast is difficult now, just wait.”

I stared at Atticus. He couldn’t be right, could he? Was Cecil my mate? He was cute, and I certainly was attracted to him. And my beast was incredibly happy when we were walking together earlier.

“I think he might be coming around,” Damien said quietly. Atticus chuckled at that.

“Hopefully, he does a whole lot quicker than I did.”

I moved back over to the couch and sat. “All right. What if I accepted the fact that there was a possibility that Cecil was my mate? What do I do?”

Atticus and Damien shared another one of their looks. I wasn’t sure what exactly that was about, but I really didn’t care as long as they helped me at least a little.

“You talk to him, Warwick,” Atticus told me.

“You already said that,” I said.

“Yes, but you obviously didn’t listen.” Atticus sighed. “He’s an omega, so it’ll be different with the two of you than it was for the two of us.”

“Oh yeah,” Damien said. “From what I’ve heard, omegas tend to go into heat faster when they’ve been around their mates in their shifted forms. I’m not sure if that holds true for Alpha Vitomir’s line. I would think they’d be the same though.”

“Heat?” My eyes widened. “We’ve already been around each other when he was shifted. He was shifted today when I found him in the forest. So was I. I shifted first though, and after a moment, he did as well. Then we talked.”

“Yeah, you should probably swing by the omega clinic tomorrow and see about making sure he’s feeling all right,” Atticus said. “From what I understand, he should know when he’s about to go into heat. There are signs, so ask him how he’s doing.”

“Ask him if he recognizes your connection to one another,” Damien added. “That was a big thing for Ledger. I didn’t acknowledge that we were mates because I honestly didn’t realize. It upset Ledger until he understood a little more how hellhounds work.”

“How do I know he’s my mate though? Maybe my beast just wants to be protective of him.” The thought of me having a mate was honestly a bit terrifying. I didn’t know how to be gentle with someone. I was cranky, I liked being alone for the most part, I didn’t know how to take care of someone else. And those were all things an omega would need from their alpha mate.

“He’s in denial,” Damien said. “This is probably going to be more your territory than mine.”

“I’ll just be mean about this, Warwick. I don’t like to do this, but if I have to, I’ll go to not only Master Edison but also Alpha Vitomir.”

I glared. “Why? I have no proof that he’s my mate. I wouldn’t be good for someone like Cecil. He seems nice and needs an alpha that isn’t me.”

Atticus sighed. “You have proof as soon as you ask him. He’s a shifter, and he will have scented you. If you’re his mate, he’ll know. That’s why we said to ask him if he recognized the connection between the two of you.”

“Fine. I’ll ask him,” I told them just to get them off of my case. “But what about my beast? How do I get him back under control?”

Damien groaned, and Atticus sighed and shook his head. “He didn’t listen to a single thing we’ve said.”

“Apparently not.”

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