Page 3 of Cursed Love

“Then you’ll be escorted to the Omega Center by morning to pick a match,” my father replies, as if he’s discussing the weather.

I nod, swallowing the bile rising in my throat. Fine. I’ll play along. It’s not like I have a choice. The weight of their stares burn into my skin as I push my plate away and stand.

“Where are you going?” Damien snaps.

“To my room,” I say, turning on my heel.

“You don’t leave the table without finishing,” he barks, the Alpha in him flaring like it always does when he feels he’s not in control. “It’s disrespectful.”

I stop and glance over my shoulder. “Let me be defiant for just a few more fucking hours, Damien.”

The room falls silent. Carla shifts uncomfortably, her eyes darting between us, but she doesn’t dare intervene. The boys stare at their plates like they suddenly find the mashed potatoes interesting.

Damien stands, the chair screeching across the floor as he storms toward me. I brace myself, but it doesn’t stop the jolt of fear when his hand shoots out and grabs my chin, forcing me to look up at him. His grip is rough, fingers digging into my skin like he’s trying to leave a mark.

“That mouth of yours better be gone by the time we get to the gala,” he growls, his breath hot and bitter against my face. He’s the real monster in my eyes, the man I’ll be running away from as I find solace in yet another monster or nightmare. The treatment will be similar but at least with my mate, hopefully they’ll forget I exist as I disappear into my nest. One can only hope.

Tears burn my eyes as I tremble beneath his touch, hating his fingers on me. They’re going to leave his awful scent there until I scrub it off in the shower. “You’d sell me for money? Because that’s what you’re doing. You don’t care what happens to me. You only care about the family name.”

Damien snorts, releasing me with a firm shove. My back hits the wall as a grimace sits on the edge of my tongue. “Get dressed, Koa. I expect you on your best behavior tonight, or there will be consequences.” He stalks back toward the kitchen but not before I hear his last words. “The worst thing society ever did was let Omegas believe they have rights.”

I’m going to kill him one day. Stand over his body as he’s blubbering for air, asking me to spare him and then I won’t. It’s just a fantasy but one I’ve played in my head over enough that I’ll keep wishing until something happens. For now, I’ll slip intothat goddamn dress and keep to the edges of the gala. If I find someone suitable enough, I’ll say yes. It’s the last ‘fuck you’ card I have left.

Koa

I’m not putting that shit on. The dress Damien bought is spread out on my bed like some kind of shimmering beast, glaring back at me. The barely-there fabric, drenched in sheen and shimmer to highlight every curve I’d rather keep hidden is a horrid choice for the gala tonight. It screamslook at me,like I’m some cheap prize at a carnival waiting for the highest bidder. “I’m not a piece of meat,” I spit out to no one in particular.

I hold it up, grimacing at the way my lamp shines right through the fabric. This is what some of the other Omegas and Betas do at the Scarlet Selection—wrap themselves up likecandy and hope an Alpha bites. It’s disgusting, but it works. The right dress, the right scent, and suddenly you’re the center of attention. But the Alphas aren’t the only ones watching.

The Valla are always lurking. No one talks about them outright; they’re more like ghost stories whispered in dark corners.The nightmares in meat suits,parents call them, warning their children to stay away. The tales are endless—Valla ripping apart anyone who dares look at their Omega the wrong way, dragging their prey home, and vanishing into the shadows. And when they lose control? No one wins. Everyone knows the stories of Valla locked away for their crimes, how their violence knows no bounds, even for those they’re supposed to protect.

But there are other stories too. Darker ones. The whispered rumors of Valla who don’t cherish their Omegas, who don’t just protect—theyown.As abusive as the worst Alphas, if not worse. No one really knows what’s fact and what’s fiction, but I do know one thing: I’d take my chances with an Alpha before I’d ever go home with a Valla.

I shake my head, tearing my gaze from the dress before I burn it. My phone sits on my nightstand, and I grab it as I head for my closet. The closet is the only place in this house that feels like mine. Damien and my father don’t bother coming in here unless it’s to bark orders or throw their weight around.

Inside, my makeshift nest waits for me—a pile of fluffy, bright pillows my mom bought before she died. It’s the one thing about being an Omega I don’t hate, the way nesting feels like a tiny rebellion, a soft sanctuary in a world that’s constantly clawing at me. I keep the nest hidden in the closet, though. If Damien or my father ever found it, they’d ruin it, just to remind me that even this small comfort isn’t mine to keep.

I step inside and close the doors behind me, shutting out the rest of the world. The air smells faintly of lavender from the pillow spray I use, and for the first time today, my shouldersrelax. I sink down into the nest, phone in hand, and scroll through my contacts until I find the one person who might still pick up—Amelia.

She’s a mated Omega now, halfway across the country, living the kind of life I’ll probably never have. But we used to go to school together and she’s the only person who ever treated me like I was more than just my designation. If anyone understands how trapped I feel, it’s her.

The screen of my phone lights up with Amelia’s face. Her cheeks are flushed, her grin wide as the image crackles to life. Those luscious brown curls spilling over shoulders accentuate those full cheeks and the bright hazel eyes which are always so damn curious. It’s infuriating how good she looks, even in her version of casual.

“Koa!” she beams, her voice practically dripping in sugar. “You wouldn’tbelievewhere I am right now.”

I snort. “Knowing you? Probably somewhere obnoxiously fancy.” I always get a small kick of living vicariously through her, Amelia meeting the two most wonderful men at a gala several years ago. Tall, beautiful Alphas from the Dominican Republic, richer than I could even wrap my head around. For the brief moment I saw them before they whisked her away, even their shoes were worth more than my existence.

Amelia giggles, pulling the phone away from her face and then pans the camera around, showing me a view of some sprawling estate. Marble floors gleam under golden light and beyond the open windows, there’s a pool that might as well be a damn lake. Lush greenery surrounds the whole thing, like something out of a dream or a fantasy I don’t get to have.

“Can you believe this?” she says, her voice bubbling with excitement. “We just got here yesterday. My Alphas thought I needed a little getaway, so they rented this place for a week. Can you imagine? A week of being pampered like a queen.”

I manage a laugh, though it sticks in my throat. “Must be nice.” I curl a little tighter into myself, wedging myself between pillow A and pillow B. I was going to name them but they actually have frilly letters ‘a’ and ‘b’ on them and so that’s what they are.

She pauses, her expression softening. “Sorry, Koa. I’m rambling again, aren’t I?”

“A little,” I admit, though there’s no real bite to my words. Her rambling gives me something to focus on and as jealous as I am, some part of me loves the way her mates smile at her through the little screen, the way they dote on her, the way she’s living out the dream of every Omega.

She sighs, leaning closer to the camera. “How are you? Really?”

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