Page 16 of Chosen Beta

It feels like an open wound.

I’m sure it’ll heal.

Someday.

“Brooke’s true mates didn’t meet the academy’s guidelines,” I reveal, making Erika’s eyes widen. “Basically, it took so long for her to meet them because they were kept away from her, due to the old rules. That’s part of why I’m changing things. Only the richest Alphas were able to access the academy to meet the Omegas before. Those rules were set in place to keep the academy’s donors happy. They weren’t created with any thought to the Omegas and their safety or happiness.”

She nods, slowly, letting it sink in.

When she doesn’t speak, I go on. “Everyone has a right to their freedom. Considering there’s still an antiquated law about Omegas requiring a guardian if they’re not mated to an Alpha, and I’m legally that guardian to all of the Omegas in this building, I have a lot of work to do to get things ready.”

“You’re my guardian,” Erika murmurs, as if she’s never considered that before.

“Each of the heads of admin were your guardian while they were in charge.”

She shivers. “Oh my. I hadn’t given that any thought.”

“I’d guess that’s typical for the Omegas here. They probably think they’re still under the guardianship of their parents while they’re here, but they’re not and that offers them a unique opportunity.”

“It does?” she asks, watching me curiously. “What kind of opportunity?”

“Freedom of choice. You can choose to stay here under my guardianship for as long as you’d like, providing you don’t take an Alpha’s mark I’ll remain your guardian and that means you can figure out what you want your life to look like without feeling under pressure to find a mate and move on. Of course, if you want, I can release you back into your parent’s care. Or you can continue to attend the events that we’ll still be hosting to find a mate.”

“It’s a lot to think about,” she admits. “When are we supposed to get this back to you?”

“If you have any reservations about staying at the academy, it would be best if you got that information back to me soon. I don’t want anyone who lives here to feel uncomfortable about any of this, and I know some of the Omegas might choose to leave.”

“I’d say I’m pretty comfortable here,” she says, giving me a wry smile. “But I’ve spent so long waiting for my mate to show up that I don’t know if I want to hang around for much longer, just waiting for the chance that he might be one of those men who weren’t allowed to access the academy before.”

“That’s completely valid. I don’t expect everyone to make the same choices. As you can see from the form, we’ll be covering various kinds of degrees and training courses if you decide you’d like to do something academic.”

“I don’t have the focus for that,” she says, shaking her head. “I tried, first time around. I’m good with organising things and I thought I might do well in some sort of hospitality career, butI’m awful at the studying side of things. It drove my tutor insane. I didn’t get past the first-year classes.”

I blink as I look at her, starting to smile as I remember how often Geraldine used Erika as a tour guide for visitors.

She’s good with people. Polite and welcoming. She’s also easy to work with.

“You know how our phone system works,” I murmur.

She raises an eyebrow. “Um, yeah? Why?”

“I could use a receptionist, if you might want to give working a shot.”

It would be like a trial run for her, and it would help me out in a big way.

Her eyes light up. “For real? An actual job on reception. Like with a paycheck and vacation time and all that stuff?”

“It doesn’t pay a fortune, before you get too excited, and we’d have to start with a temporary contract, but yeah. It’s a real job, that really needs filled as soon as possible.”

“I can start right now,” she tells me, setting the papers down and getting to her feet.

“You’re sure?” I ask, as I slip my feet back into my low-heeled pumps.

“I’ve been so bored in class,” she admits. “And I’ve always wanted to have a real job. Maybe not behind a receptionist’s desk, but we all have to start somewhere, and I doubt too many Omegas get a chance like this without any real strings attached, unless maybe they’re passing for Betas, which I guess is a real option for me … huh.”

“If that’s something you’d like to talk about, I can have one of the doctors from the medical wing prescribe you suppressants. You won’t need them until you decide to leave, and hopefully that won’t be soon, but it’s an option.”

She shakes her head, grinning from ear to ear. “I was so afraid today was going to be awful. I never would have expected this.”

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