Page 47 of Scapegoat

“She wants to jump all over him, hump his leg and rip his face off all at the same time,” I replied.

“Oh, so it’s like that. Well, angry sex is the hottest kind—”

“Oh my god, no.”

“I love you, I hate you? That shit combusts in the bedroom,” she continued, making me want to pour a bottle of bleach in my ears. I told her that and she just grinned in response. “But you gonna talk about it? I know your mum was a bitch and you ran the hell away from her, but I’m assuming tall, blond and hot had something to do with it.”

I sucked in a breath then. It wasn’t in Jamie to press, but somehow her presence had it spilling out much more quickly than if she demanded an explanation. I opened my mouth, starting the story back when we were kids, the sheep looking up occasionally from cropping the grass to stare as I spoke.

Of golden boys, with me as their dark shadow. Of my sister—who I now knew got all her good looks from having the same father as the guys—and then of how pretty much everyone had assumed she would be the boys’ mate. Of me leaving my mother’s house and thinking for just a moment that all my dreams would come true. Then of my mother’s betrayal, and Anna’s and the guys’ and the whole fucking town’s, until my words trailed away.

“Fuck…”

Her small gasp seemed a fitting response to my Australian Gothic story. But when she turned to me, her eyes narrowing slightly, I pulled into myself, against the wall, ready for her criticism. I was pretty sure I knew how Jamie would respond, what she would say, how she would condemn me. Why didn’t I stand up for myself? Why didn’t I push back? Why didn’t I take skin that day at the town square, and shove my sister out of my way, stepping up to take my place beside the guys? Why—?

“So your mum wins,” she said, nodding to herself. “Cunning really.”

“What? They kicked her out of the pack. She—”

“C’mon, kid.” She stared at me then with that same even gaze. The one that saw everything and commented on nothing all at the same time. “You know what she wanted. If what you’re saying is true, then the chance of your little sister being accepted as their mate? It’d only last as long as it took for Anna to have a shower and then boom, she wouldn’t smell like you anymore. If your mother was smart, she’d have locked you away somewhere to use as a giant scratch and sniff to keep your sister sweet, but…”

Jamie smiled slightly, a wistful thing.

“I think she knew her dreams had died the moment you transitioned. You’re their omega.” It felt so fucking weird, hearing a human say that. “The one fated to be with those boys. Not her golden child, but you.”

Jamie stared at me steadily and somehow I knew I wasn’t going to like what she had to say.

“You. The daughter that came from a relationship that she didn’t want. The one she couldn’t love because of it. It must’ve fucking destroyed her, realising you were the chosen one and not your sister. One more fucking thing she couldn’t control.”

“That’s why I’m keeping out of this whole thing,” I told Jamie earnestly, staring at my hands as they raked up and down my thighs. “I don’t want anything to do with that town, the pack, anything.”

“Then I’ll get you the fuck out of here.” She reached across and took my hand, holding it hard when I tried to go back to clawing at my jeans. “We’ll head up north. Too fucking hot for wolves. Who’d want to take fur up there? You can get the fuck away from all of this, there’ll be nothing to remind you of them.”

Again, she was telling me everything I wanted to hear, but… But…

“If that’s what you want.” Jamie peered over at me, but when I didn’t respond, she settled back against the cottage wall and stared out at the sheep. “But… would you have taken the three of those boys as mates if your mother hadn’t succeeded? Would you be Omega Campbell, lolling around on a bed of silk, eating bonbons all day?”

I snorted at that, then shook my head.

“Omegas aren’t like that. They help run the town, support the alphas.”

“And would you have done that?” she asked me, looking at me closely.

“I…” My mouth moved automatically to answer, but my throat caught on the words. Jamie’s gaze had sharpened, grown more observant as she watched me struggle. I let out a long sigh. “Of course, I would’ve. That night, with Atlas.” My fingers moved to the bite mark on my neck, the one that still throbbed in time with my heart. “It was the last time things felt right…”

She smiled slowly when I met her eyes, but there was something sad in it.

“Your mum didn’t want you to be the omega—wanted it to be your sister who was—and then when it was clear that nature had other ideas, what did she do? Sounds like she was intent on making sure one of her daughters was mated to the alphas. Why not you?”

That was a good question. One I couldn’t answer, my brows creasing as I considered it.

“But for whatever reason she chose not to accept with pride that fact the guys chose you, instead…” That smile twisted, reflecting pain more than humour. “Instead she made damn sure to sabotage your relationship.”

She shifted on the porch, elbows now resting on her knees.

“You know I listen to a lot of podcasts when driving.” God, did I. I’d learned about crypto investment scams, worldwide child trafficking rings, about women’s metabolic health and how it changes over time, as well as the impact of daily meditation. Jamie was eclectic in her podcast tastes. “Well, I was listening to one recently that made me think of you.”

I knew her eyes were on me, but I didn’t move to meet them.

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