Page 76 of Omega Rock

“I want to keep on if possible,” I say with a nod to Leo. “Your health pending, of course. We move around you.”

Leo inhales deeply as if needing to steel himself. “I’ll be out of commission for a while. A few weeks at the very least, maybe months, until this is healed. But treatments for full flares like this can take up to two years during which I’ll be even more immunocompromised than normal.”

I lift my hands. “That’s fine. No one says we have to tour. We don’t even have to make this album right away.”

“Assuming Wes even still wants us,” Noah comments.

Mia crosses her arms. She’s still standing next to me. “I’m sure he’ll be by at some point to tell us just that.”

I shake my head. “Screw Wes. Even if he drops us, we can still have Exit Fate. Just… without a manager. All a manager does is make things easier.”

I don’t mean to fully discount Wes and his impact. He’s done so much for us in such a short amount of time. But the fact of the matter is that it is actually notrequiredto have a manager. We can even find a new studio to record at.

Leo inclines his head. “Okay, then say we carry on with Exit Fate. What happens next?”

“You get better, man,” Noah says. “That’s first and foremost. We can write while you do, hang. Focus on the pack in the meantime.”

“I want to focus on the packperiod,” I say. “You all mean the world to me.”

“And I’ll be in heat again soon as it is,” Mia comments, which for some reason takes me by surprise. Timing wise, yeah, I guess she will be. “Not that that matters, other than me being down for the count for a few days.”

My inner alpha screams with the urge to take care of her during that time nearly as strongly as before Knotty Tour. It’s the same part of me that suddenly wants a house full of pups running around—something I’d never really considered before. But there’s so much time for that.So much time.

Noah looks up at Mia. “You’ve got to tell Designation Outsider and Jordan no, and do it in writing with Wes on the message thread with you.”

Mia whips out her phone and starts typing fast. “Done. Screw them.” She smiles sweetly at me despite the bitterness I know exists for my old band. “You were all the talent they had anyway.”

Noah winces as she says it. “Damn, girl.”

“What?” Mia asks. “It’s true. And ask Sable, I’ve always been a bigger fan of Aiden than the whole band anyway.” Then she stops and her cheeks flush bright red. “Actually, really don’t ask Sable.”

“I kind of need to now.” I grin and pull Mia into my lap where I press my lips against her ear and whisper, “You had posters and album covers all over your room, didn’t you?”

Mia makes a high-pitched sound of embarrassment and shrieks, “I will admit to nothing.”

We all share a long laugh and for a while it’s just peace and happiness with my pack and our omega. And then Wes appears between tour buses, sunglasses already on in the early morning sunlight. He’s dressed casually in jeans and a black Knotty Tour t-shirt.

“Ah, didn’t expect to find you all awake,” he says as he fixes his graying red beard with one hand. “Leo, how are you?”

Leo gives him a small wave. “Much better, thank you.”

Wes looks to Mia who’s still sporting a pretty gnarly bruise on her jaw and he frowns. “We need to have a talk.”

We all nod solemnly because either way this would be happening. We hadn’t said it in plain terms, but in the very least we’re dropping out of Knotty Tour. We have to.

Wes sighs heavily and leans his back against the tour bus. “You know, I really do believe in all of you. I just want that out there.”

“Then why do you look like you’re taking us out back to shoot us,” Mia comments.

Wes raises his eyebrows and nods. “Because it’s kind of like that, yeah. This entire weekend has been a PR nightmare at a time where, without a first album, that might be unrecoverable.” He lifts a finger. “That said, audiences have really warmed up to you in person.”

“So?” Noah asks.

Wes crosses his arms. “I want you to get that first album I promised you. I want you to have that chance. But I’m assuming that your stint on Knotty Tour ends today.”

“It does,” Leo says. “I’m sorry?—”

“No,” I cut in. “You arenotapologizing for this.”

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