Page 40 of Happy Valentine's Day, Omega
Another step.
"To me."
I stop before him and bend at the waist, plucking the glass from his large hand and take a sip. The whisky burns its way down my throat, leaving a fiery trail of heat behind.
I place the empty glass on the table.
He stands, and I'm closer than I expected, but I refuse to step backwards.
"You captured my alpha king, yes."
I crane my neck back to hold his gaze. Reflecting at me is the same self-assured glint he gets amid a match, and he knows my next three moves before I do.
"I won something much more valuable," he intones lowly, his voice gravelly and deep. My pussy flutters, and the sweet scent of my slick weaves its way through the air between us.
"And what do you think you won?"
He grins wolfishly and his pupils dilate, but he doesn't answer me. Instead, he raises his hand and gently dusts his fingers over my flushed cheekbone.
I don't flinch or pull away.
"We're so similar, you and I," he says, studying my reaction to his touch. "After I won our first chess match two years ago, you came back the next week with such brilliant determination flashing in your pretty eyes."
I narrow those same eyes at him, recalling the event.
"I remember, you called me an 'aggressive little thing'."
He chuckles. "You were. Still are."
He says it like it's an endearing trait, and my heart softens.
"The way you play is intoxicating. All grit and competitive fire. I think we'll be a formidable team."
His hands settle on my waist, and he pulls me close. I place my hands against his chest, and I can feel his heart beating wildly.
I feel drunk on his scent, his presence, his touch.
"That's presumptuous of you, Alpha Novikov. We might tear each other apart instead."
"Call me Magnus."
Magnus. I'm struck by an urge to ask why his parents gave a baby such a sexy name. 'Cause it is stupidly sexy.
I ask a more reasonable question.
"So, Magnus, you want me to be your Omega because I'm a good chess player?" I raise my eyebrow incredulously.
He laughs, and the rumbling reverberates through my chest. He leans in, and his lips brush against my ear as he speaks.
"I want you because, Natalia, you're an ambitious and intelligent Omega who doesn't let her status define her. I don't need a docile Omega without ambition. In a few years, I'll be taking over Novikov Corporation, and I need a partner who is brave, strong, and not afraid to challenge me."
I still can't reconcile what he's telling me.
Why would he pursue the Omega who failed out of The Omega Academy for being unsuitable?
It makes no sense.
Unless…This has been a game for him. The ultimate challenge.
