Page 12 of Violet

She follows, skipping along. “You were talking to my brother. How do you know Heath?”

Oh, fuck. Is she his sister? That girl, Violet? Health barely spoke of his family when we were in school, but I know he has sisters. Everyone knows the Gardeners were blessed with a handful of Omegas, but their names are what I don’t know.

What the fuck is wrong with this place? She’s a child. She should be playing with her friends, not looking for a mate. Why would Pen even mention her as a good match for me? That’s fucked up.

“We went to school together. Now go away…er…Violet.”

She gasps. “O.M.G., do you know Violet? Do you think I look like her? She’s so pretty.” The girl grins. “I’m Rue.” She glances at her phone then at me. “Do you have a younger brother? All the online info about you says you don’t talk about family, but if you do have a younger brother, do you think he’ll like me? I want to mate with a handsome man just like Violet does, so you’re handsome and you’ll mate with her, and your brother can mate with me!”

Oh, for fuck’s sake. The girl might be thirteen or something, but she clearly is already mate-hungry.

“No brother, and I’m not looking for a mate.”

She isn’t bothered. Rue rolls her eyes, tosses her hair, starts trotting along next to me to keep up with my longer strides. “Why are you here, then? Everyone knows all the boys—except my brother because he’s too busy filling in for Dad—are looking for the perfect Omega. We’re all Omegas, did you know that? Of course, Heath isn’t. He’s an Alpha. He should be finding a mate, hopefully one with some brothers because I plan to have a group to pick from when it’s my turn. I can’t spend a whole summer devoted to mate hunting. But see, Heath can’t do that, either. Not after Daddy died. He’s head of our family now. But Violet’s in the running. She’s better than the other girls. They’re all fake.”

I don’t think she took a breathonceduring all that.

Her phone pings, and I can hear the familiar voice from the speakers. A Stitch post.

“….so no use crying over spilt honeyed cranberry. Not even if it ruins a gown of gold. Accidents happen…”

Rue gasps.

Is this fucking kid going to follow me all the way to the Lower Side? I’ve got to ditch her. “Don’t you have something to do?”

“Well…I could eat more of those cupcakes with the lavender icing, but Mom said not to. We’ve gotta save face for Violet. She could totally be the Monarch’s next Luxe, so Mom doesn’t want me to ruin her chances. It’s so cool.”

“Other people have Omega daughters,” I mutter.

She makes a soft sound of delight. “Did you hear what the QB said? She just mentioned when Iris accidentally on purpose tripped and spilled her cranberry juice over thatbitch.” Rue drops her voice to a whisper on the last word. “Those girls, Lara and her new friend, were being nasty to Violet. And Vi’s the nicest person ever. Iris says too nice.”

She pauses, and I speed up.

“Wait up!”

I stop, turn, and smile tightly. “Go back, kid. Okay? I’m just here for the summer. If you want an autograph, you can have one, or a photo. But just go back to your stupid picnic and see if you can spot the Monarch.”

She looks at me like I just slapped her.

“I’m fourteen. Not a kid. And I was being nice. You’re rude. I don’t want a photo or your stupid autograph. You know what? Heath might like you, but sometimes he’s got terrible taste. And as for Violet?—”

“I’m not looking for a mate, okay?”

Rue sniffs. “She’s way too good for you.”

And with that, she spins and stalks off, breaking into a run.

With the kid gone, I continue on, ignoring the guilt over being mean to Heath’s little sister. I’ll give her a signed photo. She’ll want one, when she gets over this. I’ll get her tickets to my next movie. Whatever.

But one thing is for certain—I’m not taking part in any of this circus of fucking balls and dances. And I’m not courting or mating with anyone. Especially Violet fucking Gardener.

CHAPTER

FIVE

Violet

Two days later, I open the door and greet Iris’s best friend. A Beta, who hasn’t come into her scent yet. “Come on in.”

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