Page 1 of Knot Their Soldier: Part One
Prologue
Halley
I’m so excited I might throw up the blueberry muffin I ate for breakfast.
The mid-morning air is warming, causing my still sensitive skin to flare to into bright pink patches. My first heat as an Omega ended yesterday and I’m wrung out. My body aches from days spent writhing in delicious agony, and I yearn to crawl into my bed and sleep for days.
Unfortunately, there is no time. The government official is coming to take me to my Alpha.
I’m giddy with nerves. I have spent countless hours dreaming about my life as a coveted Omega and dedicating even more time to imagining the mysterious person who will be my life partner.
Alphas worthy of an Omega mate are always in a position of power. Perhaps they’ll be a brave military man or a doctor. Every possible outcome has run through my head. My Alpha might even be a famous politician. I won’t mind who they are, as long as they love me.
I feel the yearning for affection in my heart like a hole. A chasm which yawns wide within me, throbbing like an open wound.
This person will fill the void. I know it because it’s biology. An Alpha to my Omega.
Living in our small compound, I’m surrounded by family. Yet every day I feel more and more alone.
Our family homestead, tucked away in the hinterland, nestles between two rivers winding through the endless forestry. My grandfathers, uncles, and male cousins work in the local lumber mill while the women keep everything running at home. It’s a simple life, but I’ve never gone hungry or slept without a roof over my head.
It’s rare for an Omega to be born to a Beta family, and I guess it’s why I never completely fit in. I was different from the day I was born. Instead of my family’s standard black hair and hazel eyes, I have thick, soft waves of brown with eyes the most unusual shade of purple.
It was a telltale sign of my designation. A hint of what was to come.
As I hit puberty, my body developed curves, large breasts, rounded hips, and a plump ass. I’m short, petite, and soft. It’s undeniable. With a single glance, it’s clear I’m an Omega.
I was so excited, impatiently waiting to leave home and attend a preparatory boarding school for suspected Omegas. But that day never came.
My family saw an opportunity.
There is a hefty finders’ fee for reporting a fully presented Omega hiding among the Beta population. So instead of thriving among my own kind, I was reduced to a get-rich scheme.
My father kept me close to home. No school, no friends, and certainly no alerting the authorities to my presence. Leaving on my own wasn’t an option. Horror stories of Omegas beingattacked and forcibly claimed by rogue Alphas haunt my dreams.
As I scrubbed the dried sweat and slick from my skin, still reeling from the violence of my first heat, the nasal voice of my father echoed down the hallway. His glee was barely concealed as he called the officials to notify them of my presentation.
He isn’t around much. He works as a foreman for the local logging company, and he’s gone most of the year. I’d like to think he’s here to see me, but I know better. He’s here to negotiate the terms of my mating.
I spend most of my time keeping the small homestead running and helping my extended family. There are always crops to be sown, apples to be picked, animals to be fed, and meals to be prepped. The only time I get for myself is when I take my father’s rifle and shoot empty cans off a rotting log. It’s a lonely existence, but I’ve held tight to a well-known fact.
I’m valuable.
To my family and to my future Alpha.
My father is eager to see how powerful my Alpha is and what our family will gain from the union.
But after all is said and done, I’ll have my mate. I’ll finally be loved.
“Sit up straight, Halley.” My father’s eyes run up and down my form, and he sneers as he finds me lacking. I roll my shoulders back and straighten my spine.
A plume of dust heralds the arrival of the official, and a sleek silver car pulls up next to our run down weatherboard house.
A Beta woman in a crisply pressed pencil skirt and blouse steps out onto our dirt driveway, her sky-high heels teetering dangerously on the loose rocks. Her appearance is stark against the rustic countryside, like a shiny gem tossed into a bucket of coal. I can’t take my eyes off her.
She snaps her fingers at a smaller, frazzled looking Beta who scrambles forward to pass her a clipboard.
The elegant woman runs a manicured nail down a list on a clipboard before tapping abruptly. “Omega Halley Sparks?”
