Page 146 of Altius
Relieved that there seemed to have been a breakthrough with their pack’s communication, I leaned back in my chair and answered honestly.
“Sometimes, the only way to deal with a stubborn jerk is to mirror their nonsense. It’s a tactic my older brother, Ethan, specializes in. Be thankful you missed the summer that Rory got obsessed with water conservation. Little punk tried to convert us into taking one-minute cold showers. Ethan took him up on it. I’ve never been so thankful to have lost my sense of smell.”
“Oh.” Alijah blinked. “That’s…”
“Gross but effective.”
“Sure, let’s go with that.” He grimaced. “I thought it might be more like how you handle Garvey. You know, game face.”
“Not really, but I can see why you’d think that way.”
“I don’t like Garvey.” The poor menu became even more crinkled. “How he talks to you, the things he says when he thinks no one’s listening. The way he looks at you.”
“You know I don’t let that bother me.”
At least, that’s what I wanted him to think.
For all his sweetness and understanding, Alijah was a male beta and could never fully comprehend life as a female omega, no matter how much I tried to explain. Even Papa and Jacobi still had blind spots. Grace was the only person in my life who truly understood.
Alijah picked at the creased paper. “He makes me sick. And I… I know about omega discrimination and sexual harassment. Taken all the training. Watched the videos. But it’s different, seeing it happen to you and being unable to do anything.” His voice deepened, dropping down to a near-whisper. “I hate it.”
The server approached. Alijah’s demeanor brightened as he sat up straight. Reliable boy scout mode activated, he offered plenty of seemingly genuine smiles and gratitude while ordering the mussels with a side of truffle fries.
It was a near-perfect performance. If I didn’t know him better, I might have believed the switch was real, but my professional mask was more fine-tuned than his.
He was still upset about Garvey’s behavior during practice yesterday and worried about the implications of the pheromone bomber.
I ordered the salmon special. Not because I wanted it, but my head was already pounding, and risking anything with more spice wouldn’t bode well for the rest of the evening.
Once the server was a safe distance away, I countered, “Are all your coworkers polite to betas?”
“No, of course not. Why?”
“Piper had a real bitch of a dance teacher when she was younger.” Taking a sip of my drink, expecting the tart bite of cranberry, I swallowed my surprise at the overly sweet maraschino cherry and sour citrus. Was that fucking grapefruit? At least the disgust in my next words came naturally. “I mean, nasty piece of work. Got on her about her weight all the time. Her hips were too stiff. She was too tall because she was a beta. That her nose was too big.”
“What?” His hand shot forward, gripping my wrist. “I love your nose. Er, noses. You know what I mean.” Tentative fingers rubbed the back of my hand. “Oh, I would have—there’s no way… Surely, your parentsdidsomething.”
I nodded, sliding the mocktail to the side—and my hand away from Alijah’s touch. “Mom wrote a strongly worded letter and enrolled Piper in a different class.”
“That’s it?” Disbelief steamrolled his features.
“It was a life lesson.” I tapped a fingertip against the table for emphasis. “One I firmly believe in. Focus on what you can control, and—”
“The rest will sort itself out,” he said with a playful smile. “You’ve told me that before.”
“I have?” Fantastic. Nothing undermines solid advice like giving it twice. “Sorry.”
“No, don’t apologize. It’s worth repeating.”
“And repetition doesn’t detract from the moral of the story. Piper got the last laugh. You don’t become a principal ballerina for the Belcrest Ballet with stiff hips.”
“No, I don’t suppose you do.” Alijah took a long sip of his cocktail, wincing as the discordant sweet-and-sour notes hit him square in the taste buds.
Ordering wine in a place like this was a safer bet.
“I get the usual passive-aggressive nonsense,” he said. “That betas dogoodwork, but nevergreatwork. I didn’t get that theatre communications job because they claimed betas don’t have the same emotional depth as alphas, so I could never adequately capture the essence of true art. But I took it on the chin. Now, I’m just waiting for the perfect opportunity to come along.”
He risked a second sip, hand trembling slightly, then cleared his throat. Even so, his voice was tight. “So, what do I get? What’smyreward for being so patient?”
