Page 156 of Carmichael's Omega

She nods firmly. Her eyes, already shadowed with dread and residual shock from the past twenty-four hours, dim even further with sorrow for me. She's sad for me, thinking her son is just a carbon copy of his father. Maybe she even thinks Carmichael is worse.

"I'll ask him about it." I jolt to my feet and rush off without even saying goodbye to Lily or Leilani. I can scent Carmichael coming back, my wolf on her feet, wriggling with joy at seeing her mate.

Carmichael is walking back into thehacienda, looking as though he's been chewing on iron spikes. His ice-cold eyes only soften when he sees me.

"Conejita," he catches me when I fling myself into his arms. He stinks like his father and blood, but underneath is the desert and danger, just the way I like it.

"Your mama is afraid you won't Claim us in front of the pack," I whisper fiercely in his ear. He goes solidly stiff, his arms locking around me tightly.

"Ah, what now, Bee?" I hear a male ask. I lift my head and meet the narrowed green gaze of Devel.

"Cassidy is referring to a tradition for the packs here," Carmichael sounds strangled. I pull away to look at him. His heated gaze makes me blush.

And that's when the lightbulb goes off.

"Oh," I say lamely. "You mean you want to... um... with us. In front of other wolves?"

"Sí, mi Alma. I will 'um' with you and Mattie in front of the pack," he teases me in that husky, lust-filled voice.

"I'm going to go find Leilani," Devel snaps, stalking past us with a stern glare tossed Carmichael's way. "Goddess-awful pack," he mutters under his breath.

I think about the public claim, ignoring my uncle. My tummy feels heavy, my legs widening around my mate's waist as if my body is already all-onboard. Anotherpartof him is stiff as the iron he's been chewing. I smile smugly into his shoulder. One public Claim coming up. Easy-peasy lemon-squeezy.

"Don't tell Mattie," I tell Carmichael suddenly. "We'll just surprise him, OK?"

Carmichael's eyes widen on me, then, walking back into the dining room with me wrapped around him like a koala, he tosses his head back and laughs. Real laughter.

Mattie walks over to us and is pulled into our embrace. The males kiss while I sneak a look at a shocked-looking Lily. My omega-wolf wags her tail in approval. Words mean nothing to Lily. We'll show her that her son isn't like his father.

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40 - A Night of Firsts

Matthew

Cassidy is finally running with our mate. At first, Carmichael didn't seem to understand Cassidy's particular habits. Still, after she found the third den and thoroughly inspected it, he appeared to resign himself to waiting... and waiting... and waiting.

He probably thinks that Cass is doing this because she's pregnant. I don't have the heart to tell him that she does it all the time. We tend to run familiar routes, or we spend half the run inspecting caves and holes.

Her tiny omega-wolf emerges from the fourth cave and huffs, then starts to run in her ever-widening circles. Another thing I won't mention to Carmichael. We both do this, explore slowly and cautiously, in concentric circles, so that we can't be snuck up on.

He'll figure it all out one day. Hopefully, well after it's too late for him to take back his whole mating thing.

I run alongside my sister, sniffing for predators and threats while she searches for the next possibility. Odd, but about twenty minutes ago, I stopped scenting the females. Now, only the strongest males surround us. It makes me worried, more than usual, that there is some threat nearby that Carmichael doesn't want to tell us about.

Cassidy's wolf lets out a little yelp of happiness when she spots another good cave. This one is an actual cave instead of a rock formation. Even I think it looks promising. Tail wagging eagerly, I follow my sister into the cave. She turns, spinning, pawing at the floor, sitting, then standing and circling happily.

Finally, she sits in the middle of the space and barks for Carmichael. When the colossal alpha-wolf appears in the opening to the cave, we both wag our tails happily.

He sniffs, then snorts out a sneeze before he withdraws from the cave and disappears.

Cassie whines, and he reappears. He looks at us, tilting his head to the side as if wondering what we're doing. OK, so he will find out about this habit on the first run with Cass.

Carmichael growls, and Cassie barks at him again. She spins as if showing off the space. He stares, then he barks.

His bark is loud and sounds much more threatening than anything Cassie and I could ever do. Another growl makes it very clear, Carmichael wants us out of the cave.

We pout as we leave. I get the sense that the alpha-wolf is amused at our reluctance to leave the cave, but I understand why Carmichael wants us out when I emerge. Gathered around the cave entrance is the pack.

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