Page 31 of The Feisty Omega

I didn’t feel like partying, and I didn’t feel like celebrating.

As I entered the darkened room, the soft twinkle of the colored lights in the tree brought a blurriness to my vision. This was not how things were supposed to be. Tossing my clothes aside, I shifted and settled myself under the tree. Lying there with my wolf, head resting on our paws, we thought about our omega. Where was he now? What was he doing? Was he sad? Or was he angry at us? Perhaps he thought we didn’t try hard enough to be there. Perhaps he thought we didn’t care.

My wolf gave a low, sad whine and I felt the rumble in my chest, and the involuntary sigh that escaped my throat.

It was a long time before we drifted off to sleep.

Christmas totally sucked.

Chapter 14

IRIAN

In the early hours of Christmas Day, after the disappointment of Christmas Eve, I had dragged myself back to the dormitory where I stayed mainly to avoid Marius, but also so I could move freely around the compound. Usually that meant slipping across to Tal’s house and hanging out there...

This year… I squeezed my eyes tight to stop the tears trickling out, and I buried my face in my pillow. There was a pain in my chest, a hard block of concrete that threatened to crush me. I could barely breathe and my throat was constricted from trying to hold in my feelings. And yet, I felt empty. It was a strange kind of dissonance, feeling so full of emotion and yet so empty at the same time.

After a long, sad time, I drifted off into a half-sleep. I heard the sounds of excited pups in the distance and pulled the thick fabric of the coverlet over my ears.

I heard the squeals and laughter of the young shifters as they played their games in the courtyard and huddled further under the covers.

I heard the sound of my heart breaking and pretended I didn’t.

???

A hand shook me roughly awake. I grumbled.

“Leave me alone. I’m sleeping.”

“Not anymore, you’re not.”

“I should be,” I muttered, squirreling my way deeper under the covers.

A blast of cool air hit me. This annoying person had tossed the covers off me! I shivered. It wasn’t really cold, it was summer after all, but I felt exposed.

I felt the weight of Darius’ hand on my shoulder again. “Come on,” he said, more gently. “It’s time for lunch.”

“I don’t want any,” I sulked, smothering myself with my pillow.

“You have to. Everyone has to go to Christmas lunch. Alpha expects it.”

It was on the tip of my tongue to sayWell, he’s not my Alphawhen I realized this was just plain childish and wasn’t going to get me anywhere.

Reluctantly, I sat up. Darius’ green eyes watched me, looking compassionate and concerned. I hated it. I hated that he could see straight through me. HeknewwhyI was hurting.

Softly, he said, “I don’t know why he’s not here, Irian. I don’t know what’s going on, but I do know, if he’s not here, it’s not by his choice.”

I hid my sniff with a fake cough but said nothing. Then surprisingly, Darius’ lips twitched and one side of his mouth quirked up. He tried to stop the snigger coming out, but I heard it anyway.

“What?” I glared at him.

Now his smile stretched across his whole face. He raised a finger to the side of his mouth in a rubbing motion and nodded towards me. Cautiously I raised my hand and rubbed my index finger along the corners of my mouth, and to my absolute disgust and embarrassment, found a line of dried spittle there.

I pointed my finger at him and glared. “Don’t say anything!”

He shrugged, still smirking. “I’ll wait for you outside. If you’re not out in five minutes, I’m coming in to get you.”

With that, he was gone, and I was left alone in the dorm. Everyone else was long gone from there, and the silence was a cocoon, a shelter I’d have to leave any minute. A slow stream of air passed my lips in a resigned hiss as I sat up. Hurriedly throwing on some fresh clothes, I dashed to the bathroom to wipe the drool from my face and fix my bedhair, then rushed outside before Darius embarrassed me further by dragging me out.

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