Page 3 of Pack’s Prize

Desirable. The most important quality in an omega.

Step one: check.

Step two was to find a pack. Alphas. Rich was a given, if they could afford this place, and handsome would be a perk, but I wasn’t that bothered either way, as long as they weren’tunattractive or 100 years old or anything. I didn’t think this part would be hard; alphas weren’t known for saying no to omegas, were they?Only Roman,my treacherous subconscious reminded me.

Step three was to get them into bed. A one night stand, or a weekend. Definitely not a serious thing. Not a capital-RRelationship. Just a fling. Fun. Casual.

And then… another, and another, until I was fully over him. Roman.

That was the only way I could know for sure that I was ready to settle down, move on with my life. I wanted a pack and a family, but first, I wanted to have some fun.

I shook out my hair and smiled grimly.

It was time.

I had only taken a few steps toward the bar before I collided with the protruding edge of the neighboring booth.Damn.It had been a while since I’d broken out these heels–strappy in a way that I knew made my legs look miles long despite my somewhat less than average height. My hip would bruise unattractively, and I had spilled the drinks that littered the table. Four drinks, nearly untouched, each with a person seated behind it: three men and a woman, three alphas and a… I tried to pick out her scent; there were too many pheromones swirling in the air. She didn’tlooklike an omega–she was slender where I had curves, and her face, while pretty, had none of the cherubic sweetness of an omega. Besides, why would a pack who already had an omega be here? Beta, then.

I had wanted someone to buy me a drink, but then again… I could do the buying, couldn’t I?

“Oh, sorry,” I said, my pout half real, half show.

I noticed the smaller man’s eyes drop to my chest, just for a second.Yes.I leaned forward, just a fraction, not enough for it to seem like I did it on purpose.

“It’s fine,” the tallest of the three alphas said, and held up his glass.Cheers.It was violently blue, but I supposed good taste wasn’t on my list of qualifications for tonight. “We all get a little clumsy after a few of these.”

I laughed, and leaned further forward over the table, fixing my eyes on the woman. “A pack with a beta, hmm?” I smiled. Her dress was some sort of clingy material that emphasized her angles, in a shimmery dark color. It looked expensive, as did the mens’ suits. “I’ve never been with a beta woman before, but…” But that was what this was supposed to be about, right? Exploring? Having fun? “There’s a first time for everything…”

“I think there’s been a miscomm–” the third man started, but the beta woman cut him off. I flinched. If a beta had tried to talk over Roman there would have been hell to pay. Then she surprised me for the second time in as many seconds.

“Actually, I’m this pack’s omega.” I saw it then–as the tall man threw his arm over her shoulder, her hair fell away, revealing the pink smudge on her neck.

She was claimed.

My heart clenched.Why her? Why not me? Why–?

I stammered through another round of excuses, but my eyes were fixed on that scar on her neck. The beta man beside her probably had one too, hidden away from sight under his clothing. I wanted it, wanted it so badly that it hurt, and for a moment, I wondered if I hadn’t made the wrong choice, coming here tonight.

What if they would have done it, finally, this time?

What if that was my only chance at a pack, at a family?

What if I had ruined it by wanting more?

No. I shook my head to clear it, and continued over to the bar once more. This kind of thinking wasexactlywhy I was here tonight.

I would have more chances, better ones, and besides I didn’t need to settle down just yet. I was ready for someone new, something fun to clear my head and rid Roman from my system.

I perched at the bar, nodding at a gray-eyed beta bartender, and waited for my new life to begin.

CHAPTERFOUR

Theo

I hadn’t realized justhow tense I was until I stomped onto the dance floor, Michael ahead and Elias behind me, and felt each tendon and muscle of my body loosen under the pounding of the bass line.

Michael had been getting to me. He had been on edge recently, and I’d let the anxiety of our pack’s leader leach into my own life. Stupid of me: Michael was always anxious.

We were close, Michael and Elias and I, closer than I was to anyone else, even my family. Which was one reason I didn’t understand Michael’s desperate scheme: find an omega to pretend to court for long enough that the family business formerly owned by his late grandfather would become his. Something about wills, and conditions. I hadn’t paid that much attention during his explanation; I’d been too surprised by step one: court an omega.

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