Page 53 of Small Town Shy Omega
“My sister called me while I was in the studio. She wanted to rub her happy engagement in my face. I tried not to let it affect me, but she’s vicious about it, man. Just when you think she lets up, she doubles down.”
Josh frowned, rubbing my palm. “I’m sorry, baby.”
“After my parents died…” I had to find the confidence to go on. “Do you guys mind? If I share, I mean?”
“Please do, baby.”
Blake nodded. “That’s what we really like about you, Layla. Your incredible emotional honesty—not every Omega has it,and when I talk to you at least, I find myself learning how to understand my own emotions better.”
“It’s not just Blake,” Josh said sweetly. “You help us all become better men.”
“Wow,” I said softly, my heart pounding. “Just… wow.”
I decided to go for it, tell my Alphas the past I rarely shared with anyone.
“My parents died, and my stepparents—Jasmine’s bio parents—wouldn’t take me in. I don’t know why, but my grandfather wound up sorta adopting me. He raised me from the age of eight, and I spent many happy memories with him. Don’t get me wrong, I love my grandfather. He was a great man, and he read to me every night.”
“What books did he read?” Josh asked.
“Heidimainly,” I shrugged. “That’s a kid’s book about a girl who lives in the Alps with her grandfather. I loved that book. I loved pretending I was eating cheese sandwiches, living in a cottage, and walking with my grandfather. I asked him to read it to me every night, and he obliged.”
“He read youHeidievery night?”
“Yeah,” I said, tears dotting my eyes. “He was a good grandpa.”
Dreydon rubbed my palm. “Go on, baby. We’re listening.”
“My grandpa took me in, and every time I saw Jasmine or my stepparents, they acted like they didn't recognize me. They just… pretended I’d died with my parents, like I wasn’t their problem. But, I was very alive. I internalized that rejection, and I guess you could say I still have some wounds.”
Josh bit back a growl, his emerald eyes flashing on me. “You’re so brave, Layla. Damn—losing your parents,anddealing with bitches like Jasmine and her family?”
Dreydon shook his head, a low growl rumbling. “Fuckthose fuckers, baby. If I see your stepfamily, I’m wringing their necks.” He flexed his muscles, riddled with scars. “That’s a promise.”
My heart swelled, and I clung to my Alphas.
“Thank you,” I muttered, the fabric of Dreydon’s shirt blocking my voice. “You guys… really helped just now. You might not know it, but you did.”
“Thank you baby, you help us be stronger men. Every time you open up we get to see a little more of your beautiful heart.”
I was so comforted,so seen.Seen—when my Alphas spoke to me, even if we were just watching a rom com or something, I felt seen.
There was a person inside of me, and my Alphas saw it.
Others didn’t.
Jasmine didn’t, and my stepparents most certainly did not.
My last few packs didn’t, and I was grateful that my current Alphas understood.
They understood that… I was so much more than my heats, so much more than the slick I produced.
My slick as an Omega wasn’t all of me.
I mattered, damnit. And when Josh, Dreydon, and Blake talked to me, I really believed they cared.
I was a human being, an Omega whose thoughts, opinions, and history was valid. And that was really, really nice.
“And why areyou so smitten with these Alphas anyway?”
