Page 202 of The Omega Exchange: Omnibus
He can’t love me because he doesn’t have the ability to care about anyone but himself.
Or maybe he can, and I just wasn’t the right person for him.
Whatever it is, that’s fine.
I’m willing to accept that I don’t know it all and move on.
I’ve been waiting for this spot for two months. I’m not missing out because my body shuts down under stress.
The Exchange offers omegas the chance to match with alphas outside their geographical region.
They also provide a safe haven for omegas trying to escape a bad situation, but that’s not why I had to be accepted.
I needed them to take me since none of the alphas in my small town consider me an option.
If I can’t find a pack willing to ride out my upcoming heat with me, then The Exchange has alphas on standby.
The shuttle bus has a few other omegas, and the scent of so many of us in one place is giving me a headache and making me a little car sick.
My sense of smell is hypersensitive when my heat gets close.
I shut my eyes and rest my head against the seat. Despite feeling kind of crummy, this is exciting.
Finally finding alphas and a pack is something I should have done years ago. If nothing else, I’ll ride out my heat for the first time with someone who isn’t Ben.
It’s sad, but at this point, even that feels like a step in the right direction.
There’s practically no traffic, and the weather isn’t bad, but the drive is long.
The entire area is incredible. New England in late winter is nothing like Texas. Besides the nightmare Christmas trip to North Carolina, I’ve never really traveled.
This place is beautiful, but totally different from what I’m used to.
We take a long bridge that’s so close to the water it feels like a road directly on top of the ocean. The view is breathtaking, but it’s scary as the waves crash against the tops of the barriers.
We pull up to the massive hotel, and it feels like all the breath leaves my lungs.
The exterior is white with gray accents. There’s a huge circular driveway that has a few parking spots directly in front of the entrance.
The building is almost a U shape and the pull up area is close to the bottom. Each side of the hotel has rooms that face out over the cliffs and have a view of the ocean.
The entire island is covered in trees. Some are lush and still green, and some are barren since they’ve lost their leaves, but I can only imagine how beautiful all this is in the spring or especially in autumn.
It doesn’t take long for everyone to get off the small shuttle bus, and we stand in a group huddled together as we wait to head inside.
Texas can get cool in the winter, especially at night. This seems like it’s an entirely different kind of cold. There’s no wind at the moment, but I’m freezing. I thought I packed accordingly, but maybe I made the wrong choices.
Several large men come out flanking an older woman as she heads down the stairs. She’s pretty and not dressed for the weather at all. She waves a hand, calling us closer, and we make our way up the steps and into the hotel.
The lobby is sleek and modern with white and gray marble flooring... I think that’s what it is. It’s some type of hard stone that fits the decor to perfection. The walls are white with simple silver beams to accentuate the unbelievably high ceiling.
There’s a reception desk, but our coordinator doesn’t guide us to it.
She stops near it and clasps her hands in front of her.
“I’m Kara, the main coordinator for The Exchange. The hotel is a separate business. There are two sides to the building,” she says, smiling brightly. “The right side is the larger tower and it hosts all the guests who are on the island for golf, fishing, or other amenities. The left side houses all of the employees who live here full time and also The Exchange.”
She gestures to the left of the check-in desk. The entire area is open in a bright, airy way. There are several small seating areasfurther toward the glass walls on our right and left, but the wall directly behind her is solid as it houses the desk.
