Page 47 of The Feisty Omega

It wasn’t going to be possible to sneak unobserved up to the house before dark, but equally, I couldn’t wait. Every minute I delayed, was a minute that Irian remained at risk. I did the only thing I could think of. Jogging quickly to my car, I ripped my clothes off, shoving them haphazardly onto the backseat. Then with a sharp warning to my wolf to behave, I shifted.

Instantly I was in motion, slipping between the trunks like a will-o'-the-wisp, heading around the property towards the back of the house where the trees crowded up much closer to the building. It was the safest place to approach.

As I skirted around the house, a small wooden door came into view. Before I ventured out from the protection of the trees, something caught my eye and I froze, deathly still.

I thought I’d seen movement, no more than a shifting of the shadows around the back of the house. My ears strained, catching the faint whine of poorly oiled hinges. A shadow moved around the doorway. No, two. Two shadows, one much shorter than the other.

I stiffened as my inhale caught the co-mingled scents of Irian and Marius. An angry growl erupted from my throat and the human part of me was helpless to intervene as blind fury consumed me and the red haze shrouded my vision. Without hesitation, I left the trees, my paws thudding over the ground, my eyes laser-focused on the man whose throat I was about to rip out.

My fury was pinned so fiercely on the human who must not be allowed to retreat into the sanctuary of the house, that I didn’t see the golden wolf separate itself from the dark shadows and streak towards me until it was too late. The first I knew was when a bundle of fur barreled into me, knocking me sideways. If the bundle had been bigger, the momentum would have knocked me from my feet, instead I just stumbled. I snarled… and inhaled the sweet fresh uncontaminated scent of my future mate.

And it was pure and unsullied.

No trace of Marius’ scent on him, except for the faintest suggestion, indicating nothing more than having been in close proximity.

I didn’t understand.

Irian thrust his muzzle into the fur of my neck and leaned into me, his wolf rumbling softly, contentedly, calling to mine.

I didn’t move, reveling in the gentle relief of my future mate’s presence, but my eyes sought out the house. Marius was standing in front of the open door. Our eyes met. He raised his hand in acknowledgement and the door scraped closed behind him, leaving Irian and I alone on the lawn. Exposed and in wolf form, we didn’t linger. Explanations could wait.

It was only when we’d arrived at the car, that we shifted back. The expression on my face must have said volumes, because Irian put a hand on my arm, “Marius let me go. Don’t be mad at him. He had nothing to do with this.”

Even in the gloomy light, I could see the flush on Irian’s cheeks, the brightness of his gaze… and the dark bruises on his upper arms. He didn’t seem to have noticed the goosebumps on his skin yet, but I thrust a t-shirt, jeans, and a jacket, into his hands from the stash of spare clothes I kept in my car for these sorts of occasions.

“What happened?” I asked, as we hurriedly pulled on our clothes.

Irian stayed quiet for a moment, and I thought it was because he was dressing himself. But then a fragment of light caught in a droplet as it rolled down his face.

“It was my mother,” he says quietly, turning red-rimmed eyes towards me. “Somehow, she obtained a permit for an under-age union and had me locked up in the house to make sure it happened. Marius was supposed to mate me, but he let me go instead.”

The sharp hiss that split the darkness came from me, I realized, as a cold trickle ran down my back. It wasn’t sweat. It was the awful realization of how close to disaster we had come. And at the same time as I understood the depth of the treachery and betrayal by Irian’s parents, I also knew that we owed Marius a debt of gratitude, that for whatever reason, he didn’t go through with their sordid plans.

“Did he lay a hand on you? Mistreat you at all?”

The untidy strings of hair flicked about in vehement denial. “No, no! He didn’t touch me.” He held his arms out to me, showing me the bruises and the congealed blood.

“It was Alpha Moray’s betas who did this. Marius… Marius…” A visible shudder ran through him, and it made my heart ache. “He didn’t touch me. I thought… I thought he was going to… he was supposed to. That’s why they had me locked in there.” Irian’s voice broke on the last words.

I stepped towards the shattered omega. He was always so strong, so independent. Coming face-to-face with his vulnerability like that, must have been devastating. I reached for him and he fell into my arms willingly. He rested his face against my chest, and though he made no sound, I felt the wetness on my shirt, and the shaking of his body.

My hand rubbed up and down his back, soothing.

“And all I could think of was what it would mean for us,” he whimpered into my shirt.

The words pricked at my skin like shards of glass. The thought was devastating, but what hurt the most was how hurt and afraid he must have felt, thinking our future had been lost.

I breathed a gentle kiss into the mussed-up hair. “I would have come for you regardless,” I assured him. “I would have taken back what was mine.”

I gently encouraged him to lift his head and look at me.

“I’m your alpha. I will always come for you, no matter what,” I promised. “I’m glad Marius did the right thing by you, but I would have come for you regardless.”

Chapter 20

IRIAN

We found our way to a motel, several hours from my parents’ country estate, a place I was sure I’d never want to return to again. I stayed in the car, as Talius went inside to see about getting a room.

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