Page 6 of Lethal Alpha

Jorge shoots Mathew a look.“Because I feel like it and because people are wondering where you are.Especially since you usually go out for dinner multiple times per week and you’ve not been seen for at least three weeks.”

Three weeks, that’s when we came here.Mathew, Vera and I haven’t been away from this place since then.

Mathew has been getting people to come here to do things like measure us for new clothes and Eli goes out to get groceries or they get delivered, but we’ve not left the property at all.

“I prefer to eat at home right now.Fewer headaches.”Mathew starts reading on his tablet again, like this is the end of the conversation.

I glance at Vera, who’s also looking troubled.Taking on new mates and keeping us locked away while ‘his Omega’ is in heat is one thing, but changing his schedule so much that people start to become suspicious, that’s not good.

Especially not for people in Mathew’s line of work.

“Mathew.”I stand up, going over to him, leaning against his desk, waiting for him to look at me.It takes a few moments, but then he looks up at me reluctantly.

“You can’t lock yourself and us away.I know that there’s a lot going on right now, but this isn’t how an Alpha in your position would act.They would want to show off their new Omega.They would want to show off their brand new pack.”

“It’s too dangerous.”His voice is clipped as he glances away from me, his pheromones spiking just a sliver.“If we go out, I have no idea what could happen, who might be looking at us, who might be following us.I can’t risk it.”

“This isn’t you.”Jorge’s voice is soft.“This isn’t how you would normally act.The last couple of times there was a bounty on your head, we went out for dinner every night, and usually clubbing after that, just to show them that you’re not scared.Why are you hiding this time?It’s not like you, and people out there know that.”

Mathew carefully slides Vera off his lap before he stands up, putting the tablet down a little too forcefully.“Well,I’mnot like ‘me’ anymore.I’m not the same person I was even a month ago.I have different responsibilities now.A different life.I can’t risk—” He stops, shaking his head, staring hard at the floor.

“You can’t risk, what?”Vera reaches up, sending comforting pheromones to him.

His shoulders sag.“I don’t want to put you in danger.Taking you out there with me, it puts a target on you.I can’t risk that.”

Oh, no.We’renotdoing this.

We’re not doinganyof this shit.

Just because he’s now got a pack doesn’t mean that the world is suddenly out to get us or whatever.At least, not more than it was before he knew us.

I grab his jaw, turning his head so he’s looking at me and I release some of my pheromones, letting him feel how much control I have as his bonded Alpha.“You might be the boss of this organisation, but you’re not the boss of this pack.”

Mathew snarls, trying to jerk his head away, but I keep holding on.“Fuck you.”

I don’t want to do this, but his reaction reeks of fear, it reeks of the fear of someone who’s finally found something good in his life and is terrified of losing it.His obsession with the Hearts and how everything is connected makes so much more sense now.

It’s his way of trying to stay in control of a situation he has no control over.It’s not that he’s scared of what the Hearts will do next, he’s been dealing with them for nearly two decades, he’s using them as an excuse because he’s scared to leave this protective bubble the four of us are in right now.

That’s not good and won’t make anyone happier or safer in the long run.

“You’re going to go against your Alpha?”I stare at him hard and his eyes widen for a moment.

I like how he’s surprised that I’m invoking my status over him.He might be the one with the power and the money, but that doesn’t mean he always knows best.And right now, he definitely doesn’t.

“Fuck you.”His voice is less harsh this time.“I don’t fucking take fucking orders from a fucking Alpha, bonded or not.”

“And I won’t let you lose everything you’ve built in the last decade because you’ve suddenly realised you’ve got something to lose.Stop hiding.That fear won’t go away just because you’re hiding us away in this fortress you’ve created.It will only make it worse.”I let him feel the calm certainty through my pheromones.

I know how he feels, I’ve been through it before with Vera.The fear of losing her, of potentially losing your mate, someone who’s more precious to you than anything in the world.But going into hiding isn’t the solution.

“You’re Mathew ‘The Cleaner’ Page.You’re feared because of your ruthlessness, because you take on jobs that other people think are too dangerous and you make it look easy.You make other people look like fools for being pessimistic.”

I pull him closer, whispering against his lips.“You’re the most dangerous person I know.And that’s what I like about you.Don’t lose that, it’ll get us all killed.”

He lets out a short laugh, before crashing his lips into mine, kissing me hard.When he pulls back, his eyes are full of defiance.“I guess we’ll see who’s in charge of this pack.”

See?That’s a challenge that I like.Or, at least, that my cock likes, a lot.

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