Page 53 of Roulette Rodeo
"She's stabilizing," Corwin announces, and the relief in his voice makes me want to snarl.
When did he start caring? Or in act, any of them start caring about an omega we've known for less than an hour?
"Good," Shiloh says, and his hand is stroking her hair, gentle in a way I've never seen him be with anyone. "You're going to be okay, little cherry. I've got you."
Little cherry.
Pet names already. Like she's theirs—ours—when she's nothing but a bad investment that's already nearly died on us once.
"What's the plan?" Talon asks, looking at me. They always look at me for plans. I'm the strategist, the one who sees angles and calculates odds. "When we get home?"
Home. Jackknife Ridge. Our territory, where we're kings instead of customers. Where we run the town and haveeverything from the medical facilities and security to keep anyone safe.
Or prisoner, a dark part of my mind whispers.
"We get her medical attention," I say, voice flat. "Make sure she survives. Then we figure out what to do with her."
"What to do with her?" Shiloh's head snaps up, and there's warning in his green eyes. "She's ours. We paid for her."
The way he’s saying “paid” isn’t the way I like either. It should sound as if she’s the property we just bought but the softened touch in his tone tells me that’s a facade.
A ploy to act like he’s going along with this like its protocol but he wants this to be our pack’s saving grace.
"We paid for a fantasy," I counter. "For your fantasy. One omega isn't going to fix what's broken in this pack."
"Rafe—" Corwin starts, but I cut him off.
"No. We agreed. After Sophia, we agreed. No more omegas. It's safer for everyone."
"That was before?—"
"Before what? Before Shiloh got his dick wet in a storage closet? Before we threw away a hundred million dollars on damaged goods?"
The words hang in the air like poison gas.
Red shifts slightly, a small sound escaping her lips—pain or protest, I can't tell. But it's enough to make all three of them focus on her again, their attention laser-focused on her comfort.
When did I become the outsider in my own pack?
The answer is obvious:
The moment she appeared.
This omega with her cherry scent and her defiance and her ability to make my brothers forget why we'd sworn off this kind of complication. She's been in our lives for less than six hours and already she's dividing us.
Just like Sophia had.
Except Sophia had been innocent, truly innocent. She'd never understood the darkness she'd walked into, the kind of men she'd gotten involved with. This one—Red—she knew exactly what she was doing. That performance tonight, the way she'd claimed Shiloh in front of everyone, the way she'd left those panties like a calling card...
She's dangerous in a way Sophia never was.
And that makes me hate her more.
The van hits a pothole, and she moans—a soft, pained sound that goes straight to my cock despite my best efforts. Her scent spikes with distress, and all three of my brothers respond instantly. Shiloh pulls her against his chest, Corwin checks her pulse again, Talon actually growls at Duke to be more careful.
They're already lost to her.
The realization sits like lead in my stomach.
