Page 60 of Lonely Alpha

“People have given me bruises before, and they never took care of them. So I’m going to thank you.”

Kiara didn’t open her eyes to speak, stating that so matter of fact. I tried to stifle my growl and managed. Dash’s instinct was to freeze, his eyes wide. A purr rumbled his chest and he reached for her to comfort, only to stall when a growl split the air.

Both of us turned to Mercury, who was gritting his teeth and looking at the floor. Trying to pretend it never happened and he wasn’t protective of the omega.

Kiara’s lips curved, but she didn’t open her eyes.

It left her none the wiser to who that growl had come from, and maybe it was better that way. Mercury wasn’t ready to acknowledge her yet. Hopefully, he would be soon.

TWENTY

LEIGHTON

This mansion never got less gaudy, no matter how many times I drove past the guarded front gate.

Soren Rosania lived in Citrine Hills, a neighbourhood on the outskirts of New Oxford where only the richest of the rich could afford to live. My family was rich, but we couldn’t live here. This was a level above everyone else.

His mansion took advantage of the vast property, sprawling across an unreasonable amount of space. The rest of the area was filled with greenery maintained by his staff, including god-awful hedges shaped like cartoon characters and a small golf course.

I’d experienced it all before, so I ignored most of the finishings as I wandered up to the huge double front doors and knocked.

Soren’s secretary Lyra answered, a prim smile on her face and her attire as insane as usual. “Good morning, Leighton,” she said, gesturing me inside. “He’s expecting you.”

I hadn’t called to warn him of my impending arrival, but I bet he knew about what was going on with Kiara. With him giving me a shitshow to deal with, it was only a matter of time before I showed up. Plus, the gate guards would have given him a three-minute warning while I came up the drive.

“Good morning,” I greeted politely.

I followed her through the unorthodox house, noting that Soren was going through a Barbie phase. Lyra’s pencil skirt and flowing blouse were both that shade of pink, and he’d put up some new decor around the place since I’d last been here.

She led me into his library and then exited with a smile, leaving me alone with the man of the hour.

Soren was the root of all my problems, including most of the ones that I had with my mother.

“Pleasure to have you visiting again, Leigh-Leigh,” he said.

He was curled in a circle chair in the middle of the library, a book in his lap. It was all very domestic until you realized he was wearing bright pink latex pants, a pink leather harness over his chest, and accents of neon blue with his layers of jewellery.

Oh, and the book was on bondage.

“You know why I’m here,” I said, crossing one ankle over the other in an attempt to look more casual. It was better to match Soren’s vibes when possible.

“And you didn’t bring gifts. I expected to be showered in gifts to make up for your cruel words on the phone.”

Internally, I cursed. Externally, I kept my demure smile on my face.

I should have thought things through this morning. The way to butter Soren up was to bring gifts and wear bright colours. My pantsuit today was black, which was the most boring shade. He despised it.

“I apologize. With the task that you laid out, I haven’t had time to find the perfect gift. I do need some information to help in my completion of the task, if at all possible.”

“Always so formal,” he said with a snort.

His fingers waggled to gesture me closer, and I sat down on a chair near him. This close, I came to the chilling realization that his latex pants were actually latex chaps, with a very tight pair of briefs underneath. If he got up and turned around, I was going to have to bleach my eyes.

“You are a client,” I said. “Formality is expected from me.”

“I suppose so. What do you need today?”

There was a gleam in his eyes—they were golden, the orbs truly shining. Soren was a male gold pack omega. They were considered the highest threat of all, because they could go around impregnating women and creating rogue alphas like crazy.

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