Page 11 of Harley

“You'll be able to meet these omegas over the next week, giving you a chance to put your name into the lottery.”

There are a lot of murmurs around the theater, and I think the alphas are just as surprised as Storm and I were this morning. But if the protest outside didn’t alert them that something is up, the fact they are speeding up our ceremony does.

Veronica ushers us up to stand with the announcer as my ears start to ring with panic. The announcer is saying my name, and I’m frozen on the spot.

“Harley likes to take walks in the gardens and enjoys watching the TV series Friends with her Omega friend Storm. Storm is—”

I can’t believe what they’re saying about me. I sound boring and like some meek omega who doesn’t do anything fun. I blink and look to where Storm is now, what is she?... Oh fuck. She just grabbed the microphone from the announcer before he says the exact same boring rehearsed stuff about her, and Veronica gasps beside me. My mouth drops open in surprise, but really… when Storm is involved, you better know there’s gonna be some mischief afoot. But this really takes the cake. This is a live broadcast.

“Just so you know, Harley is so much more than that. This girl is one of a kind. She’s caring, sweet, and has the mouth of a sailor. So, you better get used to the word fuck, as she uses it a lot.”

My mouth drops, and Storm winks over to me. Holy fuck.

As I start to laugh, Veronica and the announcer try to peel the microphone from her. I wish I had her confidence, but what I really dream for is a pack who will treat me right. An alpha with pale blue eyes who smells like blueberry pancakes.

Fuck it. I’ve got to make my dreams come true too.

When I reach out, Storm somehow wrestles the microphone away from them both and gives it to me. I can’t wipe the grin from my face as I turn to the crowd and the cameras. “I want to find a pack that won’t mess me around. I love the scent of blueberry pancakes, sleeping in, and yes, I like to be in the garden.

“I want someone to watch movies with me and try to beat me at chess. I want someone who will sit and read quietly and want to snuggle. I don’t like being told what to do, and I don’t want to be a sex toy that you lock away between my heats. I want a pack that knows I won’t change. This is me. Take me or not. Love is love.”

With Veronica hot on my heels, I trip over my dress and fall as I run from her. Gage is there to catch me, and I pause, smiling up into his gorgeous face. He wears a look of concern, like I’ve gone crazy. And maybe I have, but if this gets me the right pack, I know they will have room for my beta. I won’t change who I love, and I can feel it deep inside.

I love him.

Because I know my fate, no matter which way I choose. Alphas will always be a part of my life. As long as I can keep Gage...that’s all I care about. Love is love. I don’t care that it’s illegal for betas and omegas to be romantically involved. It’s a bullshit law and one that needs to be abolished.

I look back to the cameras and over to Storm, who’s holding the announcer and Veronica back. With a laugh, I do for her what she did for me.

“Storm is just like her name. She will sweep you up and toss you around a bit. But it’s worth it, I promise. Thunder and lightning. Tornados and hurricanes. Nothing in your life will be the same once she’s a part of it. But you will be so grateful she is, because once you get to know her...you get rainbows.”

I don’t know who the perfect pack for Storm would be, but I hope they’re out there and that she gets her dream. Because as soon as we’re somewhere private, I’m going to tell her what I now know.

The microphone is ripped from my hand, and Gage pulls me away to the back of the stage, where Storm is with a few guards, Veronica, and—fuck—Jonathan.

“What was that?” he demands, and she shrugs her shoulder and cocks her hip out. Shit. I watch his eyes grow harder and shrink back.

“Harley,” he growls at me, my instincts telling me to not anger this alpha any further. He looks like he’s about to pop a blood vessel in his eye, the way his jaw clenches and his face grows red.

“I’m sorry. I just wanted the alphas to know I like more than walking in the garden and watching TV.” But was it really just that?

It’s only then that I hear the protesters outside, louder than before.

We might not have been willing participants in the uprising, but Jonathan made us ones when he put us up here today. If anyone is to blame for our behavior, it’s him. What did he expect with me and Storm?

We’re not good omegas, and now the entire city knows it.

CHAPTER 5

JAX

“What the fuck is happening?” Dash sits up on the sofa, staring at the two beta-born omegas as the one with wild hair grabs the microphone and starts listing the qualities of her omega friend.

“That’s new.” I admit, I’m just as intrigued. They never, and I mean never, let the omegas talk at these things. Well, I guess in some ways they didn’t let her talk. She’s just taken it upon herself to do so while fighting off the beta and announcer.

I love it. I chuckle, that omega is gonna make a pack very crazy… in the best ways.

“Hurry up, Ace,” I call out, and Zayd taps my leg and points to the omega now on the screen. It’s the friend—Harley.

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