Page 58 of Talk About… Rivalry

Something about the guilt on his face had me sticking up for him.

“Hey, somebody bumped into him. It wasn’t him,” I said quickly. Grabbing my napkin, I offered it to her.

“Are you fucking kidding me?!” Her lips twisted in a scowl. From the way she braced her shoulders I knew this wasn’t going to end quietly.

As she glared at me, I was begging her with everything in me to not cause a scene. She dabbed angrily at her dress before storming off to the bathroom.

“I’m so sorry about that,” Taylor offered, looking genuinely remorseful. I shook my head and waved him off.

“It wasn’t your fault, it was an accident.” I reassured him. “She’ll be okay.”

I wasn’t positive if that was true or not.

Kelly was pissed and I had a feeling most of her anger was with me.

Sidney

My jaw dropped and Leo bit back a laugh as the glass of wine tumbled toward Maverick’s date.

I was definitely going to hell.

The deep satisfaction that filled me at her screech and the sight of wine dripping down her expensive dress, was intense. A giddy laugh escaped my lips as she stood up, cursing and swiping at her ruined dress.

Maverick was frozen, staring in horror.

The omega huffed and stormed off, shoving people out of her way as we all tracked her movements.

A low growl slipped out of my throat as she bumped into Taylor. He cast a reassuring smile my way before turning back to Maverick who was only looking at my omega with kindness.

My omega.

How was I already thinking that way?! Wasn’t I just the girl who was fighting this with everything in me?

Yet, seeing her ask out Maverick, memories of my night with Bennet, and knowing that Taylor wanted me, I couldn’t seem to fight the urge to let someone in for once.

It would be an adjustment and they would have to be patient with me always being ready for them to bolt because I knew that wasn’t going to change overnight.

I was getting ahead of myself anyway.

There still needed to be a date and a scent… or lack thereof, conversation before we got to that point.

“How does it feel?” Leo asked conspiratorially, leaning in far too close to me. My heart slammed in my chest as my eyes flickered over to his, the deep green of his eyes holding me captive for a moment. Warmth bloomed on my face and for a brief moment a small hint of citrus and cedar wood hit me. Rich, earthy, and crisp.

What the hell was that?!

I shot back so fast my chair clattered and I stood, looking around like a wild animal. No, that couldn’t be a scent, I didn’t fucking have those.

Leo looked just as shocked but the view was blocked as Maverick shifted in front of me, eyes intense as he leaned in, hands on my shoulders as he leaned down to my level.

This time it was the fleeting scent of sandalwood, amber, vanilla and a hint of bergamot, the lime and earthy hint mixing with the warmth and spice. My chest ached painfully as it hit me, pulse picking up, and my pussy throbbing painfully before it was gone again and I was left dizzy and reeling.

“What’s wrong, Sidney, did he do something? I’ll fucking kill him,” he ground out, oblivious to my panic.

A huff behind him had Maverick turning around to fight with the beta again.

I used his distraction to get away, snatching my bag and choking out an apology before rushing through the door.

The dining room was packed now and several sets of eyes locked on me as I hurried past in a frenzy. I nearly sobbed at the sight of the front door in front of me.

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