Page 3 of Sweet Omega
Luci was tense, arms crossed, jaw tight. Ludiin looked like he was trying to disappear into the floor, barely meeting anyone’s gaze.
Now what?He should have a plan. Some kind of action, some next step.
But his mind wouldn’t cooperate. It was stuck. Tangled up in grief, resentment, and questions that would never be answered.
Why didn’t his dad come back? Why die like a stranger when he had sons who would’ve still cared enough to show up?
“We should get going,” Hym said suddenly, pushing off the wall with a lazy grace that somehow still managed to piss Tarymn off.
His brother turned to Luci and Ludiin with a smile that was too sincere. It made Tarymn’s skin itch.
What the hell did that even mean? Was this his way of accepting them? Just like that?
Tarymn clenched his jaw. How could Hym smile when all Tarymn felt was betrayal?
“You both look tired.”
“We…” Luci started to object, but Hym didn’t give him the chance.
“Let’s go,” he said, reaching out and grabbing Luci’s hand, calmly tugging him toward the door. Since Luci had a protective grip on Ludiin’s arm, both omegas were dragged along in one fluid motion.
Tarymn blinked.
Now he wants to be involved? Now he wants to play big brother?
He stared after them in disbelief, jaw clenching, before forcing himself into motion and following them out of the depressing room.
As they walked, he caught Ludiin glancing over his shoulder. Quick flicks of his eyes. Shy and uncertain. It was the first time the omega had looked at him at all since he arrived at the health center. He probably looked intimidating to the omega. Tarymn wasn’t exactly small. Broad shoulders, tall frame, the usual imposing build that came with being an aggressive alpha. But unlike Hym, who thrived on being an aggressive alpha with his unruly hair and preference for all black everything, Tarymn kept himself meticulously groomed. His black hair was always neatly trimmed, his clothing crisp and refined.
Controlled. Measured.
Still, if the omega had grown up around their dad, he’d been exposed to an aggressive alpha before. So then…Why the stares? What was he seeing in Tarymn that made him keep glancing at him like that?
He was handsome. That much he knew. The kind of handsome that made omegas stumble over their own feet.
But that couldn’t be it.
They were stepbrothers.
Family.
Tarymn didn’t know what to do with that, didn’t know what to do with any of this.
“You could at least try to be nice to them,” Hym said, his voice low as they waited outside the PulseQuarters. The late afternoon sun reflected off the polished glass exterior, casting long shadows across the pavement. Behind those walls, Luci and Ludiin were gathering their things.
Tarymn glanced at the building, anger simmering just beneath his skin. His jaw clenched, every second stretching his patience thinner. “What the fuck is taking so long?” he growled. “They’re wasting my time, like I don’t have a million things to do than sit here.”
“They’ll come out soon. They probably have a lot to pack.”
“And I have things to do.”
“Chill, brother. They didn’t ask for any of this,” Hym said, unfazed. “They’re just like you and me. Pieces of a life Dad left behind.”
Tarymn’s eyes narrowed. “They’re nothing like us.”
Hym sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “Fine. But they didn’t do anything to you, Tarymn. Dad did. You're aiming your anger at the wrong people. Don’t punish them for someone else’s betrayal.”
Tarymn stared at him, arms crossed tightly over his chest. “So, you're okay with all this?”
