Page 19 of Harley

“I know this is crazy and you don’t know me, but I have something for you. Something that will explain this more than words can.” He grabs a plastic bag that he has with him. He opens it, and the scent hits me instantly.

“Blueberry pancakes,” I whisper as I dive for it and inhale the scent on the dark tee, burying my nose against it. My alpha, the one from the diner. But... “How? Where is he?” I ask, moving closer to the alpha, worried he’s a figment of my imagination. Maybe I did get sick waiting out here, and now I’m seeing things. Smelling things. But the fabric between my fingers is real.

His hand cups my face, and I nuzzle into them, and he starts to purr. My body wakes up. Oh man, is this a sex dream too? If so, I don’t ever want to wake up.

I hear a deep rumble in his chest, and I whine at the loss of his purr. Is he laughing?

“This isn’t a sex dream, Harley. I’m here. So are you. But Knight isn’t. He needs you. I’m here to take you to him.”

I sit back on my heels and look up at him. His thumb brushes my lower lip, and I lick it.

He growls and shakes his head. “Your scent...it’s even better than he described. I’m already drunk on it, and I was the one who said I could keep a straight head. That’s why I’m here and not the others.”

Others? How many? No, I don’t want to know. I can’t.

“You can’t take me to him, as much as I want you to. The beta I love will be killed if I’m not there for Choosing Day. You’ll all share the same fate if I’m found with you.”

The omega in me whines. I want to go with him...my mind is telling me he’s my scent match. My pack. Mine.

“Gage?” he questions, and I suck in a breath. My eyes meet his deep green ones, and he nods. “He’s the one who told us where to find you.”

My mouth drops open. Gage found my scent match pack and brought them—well, at least Ace—to me.

“Knight...he needs you. You’re his scent match, and being apart for so long has...” He lets out a deep sigh. “Harley, he’s turning feral without you. But with you...”

He doesn’t finish that. Knight—my blue-eyed alpha—is turning feral because of me. He needs me. The unspoken words are there. I didn’t pay much attention in the class that covered feral alphas. But I know they will die without their omega.

“If I leave here, Gage will be killed. I’ve been warned. But if I stay...” Knight will die. But...the ticket. They’re a pack.

“I have a ticket. I have a way.” I grip Ace’s forearm, not wanting him to leave me. But I know can’t touch him for long. His scent will be on me.

Noticing his puzzled expression, I try to explain. “Can he wait until Sunday? Gage will be safe, and I will draw your name out of the lottery on Sunday.” I run my hand over his wet tee; it clings to him, and I can feel every ridge of his abs. Fuck. I need to keep a clear head. My omega hormones are clouding my judgment.

“You have a ticket?” he asks, and I realize I haven’t explained this right.

I reach into my pocket and pull out the now-damp paper. Fuck. I need to get it inside, so I don’t ruin it. I show him and his eyes widen.

“Those tickets are worth fifty thousand dollars each. Where did you get that?”

My mouth drops open. They are worth that much? No wonder the divide between the elite and the rest of the world grows bigger each day.

“Harley?” he asks again.

I shake my head. “Don’t worry about that now. I can pull your pack. Pack Bentley. Just be there when they announce you. This will work. I promise.”

It has to. Or I will lose Gage and my scent matches—Knight and Ace.

He rubs his cheek against mine, scent marking me, and I sigh. I’ll have to wash this off as soon as I get inside. But right now, I love that he’s marking me. He moves away, ready to climb back up the tree and over the brick wall.

“Here.” I push the blankets off and lift my tee over my head, my hair catching on it. It’s my favorite. “Take this to Knight. Maybe it will help?” I have no idea if it will, but I want him to have something with my scent on it.

“I’ll give it to Knight.” He presses a kiss to my hair, and I sway.

“Thank you, Ace.” I breathe in his scent one last time...until Choosing Day. Then I will be able to smell him every minute of every day.

“Harley,” he growls, not in warning to me, but to himself. Like he can’t leave me. He tugs on my damp hair, his eyes piercing mine. The look that passes between us does something to my insides...the omega in me reacts so strongly to him.

“Ace,” I reply, and his body sways to mine.

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