Page 18 of Last Pack Standing
He was right. An omega submitting to another omega - it was not something I’d ever seen. But it seemed to help Cassie. She was not agitated that he was here, during what must feel like a real heat. He was helping to soothe her. I couldn’t stop watching. It was still tenuous, but I felt like so far we were avoiding disaster.
I felt something twist deep in my chest. I wanted to be there, with them, touching both of them. I wanted to see Cassie’s mouth on Ash’s throat, and then on mine. I wanted to touch Ash, feel him melt under my hand. I wanted to earn what they were giving each other.
The producer’s voice crackled faintly as someone stepped in. “Alright, Ash, come on out.” And Just like that, the trance broke. Cassie bristled, and I could feel Ash’s panic. Leo growled, stepping in front of the two omegas as if to guard them. I looked over, ready to break them apart if Cassie or Ash started fighting. Instead, Rys had already silently scooped up Ash, before either he or Cassie noticed, and was rushing him to the door.
Cassie let out a strangled whine, and started tearing at the sheets.
“That’s enough!” Rys yelled, his anger directed at the producers. One of them tried to help Ash out of the room, but Rys liftedhim higher, pulling him tight to his chest. “Take care of Cassie!” He yelled over his shoulder, but Leo and I had already moved into formation, covering her and helping to soothe her as the confusion muddied across her face.
“Cut!” The voice came in through the speakers, and the pheromones stopped, the air quickly being filtered as the show tried to stop the challenge. I growled, a natural possessive reaction to Cassie’s distress. The crew rushed around as they attempted to stop production. They were just in time, too. Cassie’s eyes started to clear, and I pulled myself back from the edge.
That was almost too real.
Chapter 15
Cassie
Inside the Confessional
The confessional room was colder than I remembered. Or maybe it was just the contrast between the heat challenge we’d just finished and the sterile studio. Either way, I pulled the blanket tighter around my shoulders, still flushed from the simulated heat the producers had just thrown us into. Well, I suppose Ash was the only one who was really thrown.
They tossed him into the room and somehow, despite all my instincts to get him out, he calmed me. Even when the tension swirled around us like a storm, he anchored me. I hadn’t expected that.
I could barely get my thoughts together before the producer’s voice crackled in through the speaker. "Cassie, we’ve got something we want to show you." My stomach dropped. That was never a good way to start things in this place.
The screen across from me turned on, and there he was - Jace. He was seated in the same room I was when they were holding interviews for show candidates after the first round of auditions. He was clean shaven, trying to look casual but sitting too straight, like he wasn’t sure what to do.
“I’m interested in Last Pack Standingbecause, well, I want something real,” he began, his voice quieter than I’d ever heard it.
“Tell us about your past love life.” The interviewer asked.
Jace paused, then spoke. “I haven't dated in over two years. The last time I was interested in someone was a while ago. We worked together, and I really liked her. A lot. But I never had the guts to tell her. She was smart, and sharp, and she didn’t take crap from anyone…"
I froze, his voice echoing as my mind zoomed out, feeling out of sorts as I realized what I was hearing.
“I think I blew it,” Jace continued, running a hand through his hair, looking down. “She quit. I don’t blame her. I messed things up, and… I don’t know. Maybe I’m hoping for another chance. A chance to find love, I guess.”
The screen went black. I sat there for several seconds, realization hitting me.
“Thoughts?” the producer asked gently.
My throat was dry. This was Jace’s private audition interview, and wasn’t supposed to be part of the show. What he was saying was real. He wasn’t bluffing when he said he liked me during our date. But I had no idea how much he meant it until I saw this. He was telling the truth - he never meant to mess up my presentation. Everything that had happened was real between us, not fake. And though I stopped hating him a while ago, I now liked him even more, a surge of emotion hitting my chest.
“I didn’t know,” I said finally, quietly. “I thought he just... thought I was a joke.”
One of the producers, hidden behind the glass, leaned in over their mic. “So, Cassie. Be honest - how are you feeling about your team now? Any early favorites? Is Jace in the lead?”
Of course they only showed it to me to try to make the competition more fierce. They didn’t really care about our actual emotions, or our lives outside the show. So I just laughed. “Favorites? I don’t even know where to begin. All of them are amazing, better than I ever could have hoped for.” I paused, smiling at the thought of them.
“And how did you feel about Ash intruding during your challenge?” The voice asked, and I felt myself suddenly bristle. “Jace, Leo and Rys were watching everything. Doesn’t it botheryou that Ash was getting that kind of attention while you were the one suffering?”
There it was - the bait. They were trying to get me jealous, to perhaps paint me as possessive or insecure.
“He didn’t intrude. That was all your doing. And anyway, Ash was perfect. He knew exactly what to do.” I said, starting to get angry. There was a pause from the other side of the glass. Then a voice came through, far too innocent.
“That’s interesting. Because, well, Ash had something to say about you too.”
A screen lit up in front of me. I blinked, confused. Then I saw a video of Ash in the same confessional chair I was in now, dressed in black, his usual mix of bravado and quiet introspection on display. My stomach twisted.
