Page 2 of Harley

The one with the bushy gray beard nods at me, and I can’t help but nod back in greeting. It would be rude if I didn’t. He seems nice.

Their scents are all different, yet similar. It’s fascinating. Why are they out for a ride in Riverton, of all places? We never get alphas here. Ever. We are a beta-only town.

I wonder if they have an omega? Omegas are rarely seen out. I’ve heard it on the news enough to know they are so rare, that the government is trying to get packs to have more children in the hopes of boosting omega numbers.

There are at least ten packs per every omega. That’s a lot of packs missing their omega. And a lot of alphas going feral. About sixty years ago, the government took over the rights of an omega to choose her own pack. Packs in the city have to place their names in a lottery to even get the opportunity to have an omega in their pack. They pay a lot of money for that chance. Nothing is for free... especially omegas.

They call it Choosing Day, and it’s a fully televised event every month. The omegas go on stage and draw the name of a pack. Then that’s it; she bonds to them and leaves, never to be seen again. Omega kidnappings are a serious problem in Crescent City, so those packs hide their omegas. I feel bad for the omegas. Not only do they not get to choose their packs, but they have to hide from the world just to be safe.

It isn’t until one of the alphas shifts to the side that I see him. Those pale blue eyes, framed with dark lashes, find mine, and all the air from my lungs whooshes out. I can’t breathe. He stands straighter, his broad shoulders and the way his tight shirt stretches across his chest, gives me butterflies. He takes a step in my direction, and it hits me.

Blueberry pancakes.

He’s my favorite food. He smells like comfort and home.

He tilts his head as his lips lift into a sexy smile. Oh those butterflies are back. No boy has ever smiled at me like that before. He’s young. The youngest of all the alphas here, and I watch as he turns back to the bushy beard one. I realize then that they share similar features. Is that his father?

My heart races as he takes another step toward me. He’s coming to talk to me. I want to go to him and inhale his scent. Is this the reason everyone looked away? Because alphas draw you to them like a bee to honey? Or is this just me?

The bell above the door dings, interrupting the moment as the sheriff and a deputy enter the diner. We all turn to them.

“We’re not looking for trouble here, alphas. We’re a beta town, and some of the folk here get nervous around your kind. So, I’m going to have to ask you to move on to another diner outside of Riverton. There are alpha-friendly towns out east. We’re not one of them.”

There’s a low growl, and Deputy Michaels puts his hand to his holster. The bushy bearded one stands and pushes on the chest of Blue Eyes. My mouth drops open. He growled at the cops? My chest lights up in a way it has never done before. I like that. I like that he growled at them.

The sheriff has had to take me home to my father many times over the years. I get into a bit of mischief. This town is boring, and what’s going down right now is why. Let the alphas stay. I want to know what Blue Eyes was going to say to me.

They all start to move out, and I feel my father shift beside me as I stand. Why am I standing? Blue Eyes turns back to look over his shoulder as he leaves the diner. I catch his eye for a split second before Deputy Michaels follows him out, his hand never leaving his holster.

The growl of motorcycles revving drowns out the sound of chatter as the diner’s patrons seem to begin talking at once. I find myself rushing outside, watching as the alphas peel away from the parking lot. When they pause at the stop sign at the end of Main Street, Blue Eyes looks back at me again. In those few seconds, it feels like so much is communicated between us. But when his father claps his hand on his back, he turns away from me and rides away.

I feel like I just lost something.

Him...

It’s evening at the Omega House, and I’ve had all day to obsess over my Choosing Day. That's too many hours. I thought of him again...the blue-eyed alpha. But the man I spent most of today thinking about is waiting for me outside.

Storm is playing games with Frankie, the guard. He blushes as she teases him. I can't even smile at her antics; I need to see him. Gage. I'm just biding my time until I can slip outside to the garden, where he protects us from alphas trying to get in. Or from me trying to get out.

Mostly the getting out part.

Who knew caging me up was gonna cause so much drama for the Omega House. They’d never encountered an omega who didn’t want to be here. I’m the first escape attempt ... And the second, third ... you get the picture. I didn’t want to be here. I wanted out. Now I have the chance to get out with my Choosing Day, all I want to do is stay in. Isn’t that a bitch.

When I see the beta minder Kiera watching Daisy—the most precious pure omega in the whole house— I make my move and slip out into the cold night air. I wrap my arms around myself as the chill from the day’s rain leaches into my bones. I should have worn warmer clothing, but someone likely would have noticed and figured out where I was going. So, my thin cardigan and jeans will have to do. At least I get to wear jeans, something the pure omegas aren’t allowed to do. But we beta-born “don’t know anything else.” I’m not going to fight them on that.

Outside, I can just smell him on the breeze...vanilla beans. My whole body relaxes as I follow the scent to the guardhouse in the back corner. I can’t sneak up on him, since the cameras display my every move. I smile up and wave at one.

The other guards who can see the cameras probably just think I’m messing with them. I know they follow my every move out here. After I tried to escape multiple times, they set up a permanent guardhouse. Funny enough, that’s the best thing that could have happened to me here. Because Gage works there now and has for the past six months.

Guess how many escapes attempts I’ve made in the past six months? None. One of the things I want is now on the inside with me.

As I round the corner, the light from the small guard room illuminates him. He leans against the doorway with his arms crossed and a huge grin on his face. “Trouble. What brings you out here tonight?”

He asks the same thing every night I visit him. He works four nights a week, and I know which are his. They are the only nights I come out here… it’s too cold otherwise. And lonely without him.

“Thinking about jumping over that wall,” I reply. That’s not what I usually say in reply but today has really shaken me up.

He pushes away from the doorway and takes a step toward me, mindful that the cameras are always watching. “What do you mean?” His hand reaches for me, but it drops to his side as he quickly thinks better of it. I want to run into his arms and hug him. Want to hear him say, everything will be okay. But I know I can’t do those things. I can’t risk it.

---