Page 47 of Hunting Their Omega

“Hey, do you have a moment?” I asked when she came over to refill the paints.

April’s wide brown eyes darted back and forth before she slowly nodded. “Sure, what’s up? Do you need help with anything?”

Was that fear in her voice?

I decided to cut to the chase. Something had happened, and I didn’t want to be left in the dark longer than necessary.

“What’s going on?” I inquired, concern and frustration lacing my words.

April looked over my shoulder, and I turned to see Cynthia, a soft-spoken Alpha female, behind me. The women exchanged hesitant glances.

“Listen, whatever it is, I won’t be upset. It’s just, well, everyone has been ignoring me, and if I did something wrong, I want to know. Please. I’ve never lived in a pack before, so it could all be a big misunderstanding.”

Finally, Cynthia spoke up. “The men . . . they have orders to stay away from you.”

My brows furrowed. “Orders to stay away? Why? From whom?”

“The Alpha,” April murmured, casting a furtive glance around the room as if afraid of being overheard. “After what happened with your heat, Alpha Wynn made it clear that any unmated males approaching you would be seen as a threat.”

No. He wouldn’t.

The revelation inspired a mix of surprise and displeasure. What would cause him to take such drastic measures? I understood what happened was less than ideal, but how the hell was I supposed to integrate with a pack whose members were afraid to talk to me?

Our mate only wishes to protect us, my wolf said.

A part of me accepted that as the truth, but another couldn’t help but feel trapped. Isolated.

I couldn’t deal with the uneasy looks and turned heads for the rest of my life. Wynn was going to make me an outcast.

Suppressing a surge of irritation, I forced a smile.

“Thank you for telling me.” I squeezed April’s shoulder. “My unit is being unnecessarily overprotective right now, but it’s not a big deal. I don’t want you guys to be afraid of me. We’re a pack, so please don’t treat me any differently, okay?”

They held my eyes for a moment, deciding whether or not to believe me. When they finally nodded, I let out a relieved breath.

“We’ll let the other girls know,” April said before they went back to work.

Choosing to channel my emotions toward the wall in front of me, I pushed aside the disturbing news and lost myself in colors and shapes. The simple strokes and bold washes eased the ache that built in my chest.

My mates had restricted my access to others like I was their property instead of a person who could make her own decisions.That thought soured the glow of affection I’d been basking in since my heat. At the boarding house, the Den Mother controlled who we spoke to, how we dressed, and what we studied. I was nothing then. Would they make me nothing now?

Huffing out a sigh, I threw myself into my work. The women grew more comfortable with my presence, and by the afternoon, we were laughing, joking, and sharing our visions for the completed project once again.

Hours later, I dusted off my hands and looked over my progress on the wall. The scene was starting to come together.

“Nice work,” Winnie said as she walked up behind me.

“So far, so good. There are still a lot of dimensions I’m missing, but I’m confident it will all come together by the end of the week.”

“I am too.” Winnie smiled. “The girls are glad you’re here.”

I glanced at her hesitantly. “Are they?”

She nodded. “Most of us are just happy the pack will have children again. Getting to help raise them is the next best thing to having your own.” Her blue eyes were sincere. “Your child is going to be loved, and you’re going to have more offers to babysit than you’ll know what to do with.”

The ice that had formed around my chest after finding out about the Alpha’s order melted.

“You know, I think you might be the best thing to come out of this mating,” I said.

---