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by Alison Aimes
She didn’t bother to ask how he knew how to reach her mother. If Nikolai wanted something done, it got done.
“I’m going to see to that surprise while you’re speaking, but I’ll be back in less than a minute.” He shot her a warning stare. “There are guards stationed outside. I expect you to behave.”
“I will. I promise.” The edges of his comms dug into her palms. “Thank you for this deal.”
His gaze narrowed. “Are you okay?”
For some reason, she was horribly, stomach-churningly nervous. “Yes, of course.”
“Should I stay?”
Another tiny foolish flutter in her chest. “I would prefer to speak to her alone.”
His scowl deepened, but he didn’t push. Instead, he leaned over, swiped at two more panels on his comms, and stalked toward the door.
A final growled, “be good,” and he was gone.
Her heart beat fast. In a frantic dash for presentability, she patted her hair and straightened the bodice of her dress.
Her mother’s top beta servant appeared on the screen. “Omega Dahlia?” She looked stunned. “I will see if the prime omega is available.”
Tasha Lundin often hadn’t been. Not for Dahlia, or Kaiya.
But Dahlia didn’t blame her. As her mother had explained, her time was not her own. As a lowly omega, she was subject to the whims of Olan Lundin.
But the prime omega would make an exception for something like this. She had to.
Dahlia gripped the comms screen tighter.
“Daughter?” Her mother’s face appeared on the screen.
Dahlia’s relief made her dizzy.
With perfect features and marble white skin, her mother had always appeared like a walking statue, too beautiful to be real.
“You’re not dead.” The coolness of her mother’s tone stabbed at her until she remembered that was simply her mother’s way. She’d told Dahlia long ago that, ground down by the weight of Olan Lundin’s boot, she’d had to detach and grow numb. Otherwise, she’d have gone mad.
“No. I’m very much alive.”
“What have you told him?”
The familiar abruptness of her mother’s conversation style was coming back to her. “Nothing.”
“I see.”
Did she? “Prime omega, please. I need—”
“Your sister is gone.”
“I know.”
Her mother’s gaze sharpened. “You know?”
“The news has reached here, too.” She hated to lie, but she would never endanger her sister’s chance for freedom. Or endanger Skolov and his family for making that happen.
“It is a blow. Your father has been worse than usual. I have been left to deal with it alone since your desertion.”
It hadn’t been desertion. Or her choice. But Dahlia could only imagine Olan’s fury and how quick he would be to take it out on her poor mother. “I’m so sorry you have to face this alone.”
Her mother spoke over her, her concern clearly elsewhere. “For your sister to be taken from inside the compound weakens your father’s reputation. It was a terrible humiliation at a time when he can least afford to appear soft. But he shall prevail. Kaiya will be found, rest assured.”
That was the last thing Dahlia wanted. She clutched the comms device tighter and tried again. “I don’t have much time.” Her gaze flickered toward the door, her ears straining for the slightest sound. “I need your help. I’m not sure what to do.”
She didn’t usually ask her mother for help. Caretaking usually flowed in the other direction, with Dahlia pitching in as she could. She’d always been more than happy with that arrangement since her mother’s duties as prime omega were difficult. But Dahlia had also never been so lost before.
“Mother, my gift has returned, but none of my visions have been related to the rotation of the fire.” She hurried to add the last part as her mother’s lips pinched tighter. “I am currently blocking them, but he is so powerful, and he has this . . . effect on me.” She whispered the last words, wrenched from her soul, a confession she’d been too afraid to admit aloud. “I don’t think I’m strong enough to resist.”
“You’re not.”
The sharp assessment arrowed straight to Dahlia’s chest.
“There is only one choice.” There was a softness to her mother’s voice that hadn’t been there moments before. “I am sorry, child, but it is the lot of the omega.”
“What is?”
“Sacrifice.”
A chill ran through Dahlia’s heart. “What are you saying, prime omega?”
“Kill yourself. Do it as fast as you can. Your gift cannot fall into the wrong hands.”
Dahlia reeled. “I already tried. I-I was punished.”
“Don’t try. Succeed. It is the only path left for you. For us.”
Dahlia’s breathing hitched. Her mother had always been practical, but it had never hurt so much. “I have already promised Nikolai I would never try something like that again.”
“Nikolai?” Her mother’s face twisted with disdain. “Are you already so familiar?”
Heat flamed across Dahlia’s cheeks. “He’s not what he seems. He’s . . . more.”
“So, you’ve forgotten your blood already.”
“No. Of course not.” Dahlia sat up and pressed her face closer to the comms as if she could somehow reach her mother that way. “There has to be some way to fix this with the Brotherhood. A deal that punishes the guilty but doesn’t drag down the innocent.”
“There isn’t.”
“It’s not our fight.”
“Of course not. We are merely omegas, but our fates are bound to our Alphas.”
“That’s not fair. Your destiny should not be tied to Olan’s.” Dahlia spoke fast. “What if you ran away? What if you left Olan and came here?”
The prime omega drew back as is if struck. “I cannot. Olan Lundin is my Alpha.”
“He doesn’t deserve your loyalty.” Dahlia’s shout was so loud it rattled the nearby bottles on the bar. She took a breath and lowered her voice. “You could come here. I will convince Nikolai to help you. We can be together. Safe.”
“Is that what you did for your sister? Did you give that bastard your gift in return for his help and some foolish pipedream that will never be?”
“No.”
Her mother’s disbelief was obvious. “You foolish girl! Do you think he cares for you? Do you think he intends to keep his promises? Do you think an omega can actually be truly safe or cared for? No Alpha is capable of such a thing. Your sister is likely dead already because of you.”
Dahlia shot up from the couch. “That’s not true!”
“You have always pushed when you should have simply accepted things as they were. You have always dreamed of things that could never be instead of making the best of what is in front of you.” The prime omega delivered the assessment of Dahlia’s character as if these traits were the greatest of failings.
It wasn’t the first time.
“Prime omega, I am sorry I’ve disappointed you again, but please, there has to be some other way besides bloodshed for this to end.” Unable to stand still, Dahlia paced the room.
“I have told you already what must be done. We omegas do not make the rules. We must live with what is allowed us, but we are not without power. You can still make an impact. Taking away Alpha Skolov’s ability to use your gift is a form of power in itself.” Patting her already perfect coiffure, she leveled Dahlia with the same martyred stare she’d used many times. “Choose selfishly and all Lundins, including myself, will perish. Choose wisely, make the most of the little power that has been given you, and you can at least die knowing you have struck back against a ruthless, arrogant Alpha who, like all the rest, would never suspect an omega could disrupt his plans.”
Her mother’s words, so close to what she herself had been thinking the rotation in the dungeon, twisted Dahlia up inside, making her question what was right, but she knew one thing for sur
e. “I cannot. I told you already. I made a vow.”
“Break it.”
Without warning, her mother’s face disappeared as the background turned blurry and spun.
In the next heartbeat, her father’s face appeared. “Kill Skolov first. Stab that bastard through his black heart.”
“No.” Shock slammed through Dahlia, leaving her swaying on her feet. She hadn’t realized her father was there. How much had he heard? How much had his presence affected what her mother had been forced to say? “I can’t kill him. I won’t.”
“You ungrateful, faithless whore!” Olan roared into the screen.
This time it was Dahlia’s screen that was snatched from her hand.
With a gasp, she looked up to see Nikolai looming above, the veins at his neck popping while his horns snapped straight, and his fangs flashed.
She scrambled back, her spine hitting the edge of the bar. When that didn’t seem far enough, she detoured around it until her back hit the wall.
He gave her a hard look and then shoved his face into the screen. “She may not be the most obedient of omegas, but she is far more loyal than either of you and possessed of a hundred times more courage.”
Dahlia’s mouth opened in a shocked O.
“If you ever insult my omega again,” he continued, “I will make sure your tongue is cut from your mouth and shoved down your throat before you die.” He slammed his palm down, ending the communication.
Her breath rose fast.
He whirled and pinned her with an enraged stare. “You will not do as they asked.”
She shook her head. “I could never kill you.” It was the truth. All she wanted was to find a way for them all to live.
His hand slashed through the air, a dismissive gesture of impatience. “I don’t give a shit about that. I mean you. You will not try to take your life again.”
Mind whirling, she stared at him. Was that really the part making him so furious? “I gave you my vow.”
His shoulders relaxed, some of the fury seeping from his gaze. “Good.” He blew out a slow breath. “Come here.”
Her heart slammed against her ribs. But the truth was, there was nowhere else to go. Even her mother felt lost to her now.
Her breathing hitched.
Steps slow, she reached the middle of the room where he stood, legs spread wide, muscles bunched beneath his shirt. The top of her head was level with his chest.
If he punished her now, she wasn’t sure she could take it. She was so close to shattering.
His hand extended.
She braced herself, but the touch against her cheek was shockingly gentle. “Shh, little one. You are okay.”
She hadn’t realized until he spoke that she was crying. It was the first time she had in a long, long while.
Startled, she swiped at the tears and blinked hard. “Of course, I am fine.” Her voice wobbled. “I’m tired.”
“Hmmm.” He purred low, his fingers slipping through her hair. Petting her. Soothing her.
It felt so good . . . she fought it. “Don’t.”
He didn’t stop. Instead, his arms came around her and he scooped her up, carrying her to the couch and sitting her in his lap so that she straddled him, his arms still wrapped tight around her, her cheek pressed tight to his big, solid chest.
Her tears came harder.
His palm pressed to her back in slow circles, warm and steady, and somehow staunched the worst of the bleeding inside.
“She didn’t even ask how you were faring in the hands of your enemy.” Disgust coated his voice.
She’d expected him to rail about her father, not her mother. Until she realized he shouldn’t know about any of it. Sniffling, she stared up at him. “How do you know what was said at all?”
He raised an eyebrow. “All conversations in and out of the compound are monitored. No exceptions.”
She should have known. “She is worried about the family.”
“But not her daughter.”
His words stabbed deep. “Of course, she worries for me. She has always tried to make me strong. To accept what was in front of me and work within the system to make the most of the limited options afforded an omega. But she is the prime omega of the Lundin family. She must think of the survival of all.”
“I know what it is to carry the burden of responsibility.” He didn’t sound any less angry. “You are giving both your parents far more leeway than they deserve.”
He would never ask anyone in his family to do what her blood relatives had. He would die himself before he risked them.
She knew that about her Alpha now, thanks to the visions. There was nothing more important to him than protecting those lucky enough to be counted in his inner circle, even his own survival.
Was it madness to wish that she was a part of that select group, not because of revenge or biology, but because of something deeper?
Wrapping her arms around him, she held tight.
She had hoped speaking to her mother would help. Instead, she was more lost than ever.
Her Alpha growled low, his cock twitching beneath her bottom. “I like when you hold me like that.”
She hid a shaky smile, suddenly feeling a wealth of other emotions, including need. Always need when he was near. “Like what?”
His hands slid down her back to slide beneath her dress and grip her ass. “Like I’m your anchor and your protector.” His lips skimmed across her temple. “Like you’re not just mine, but I’m yours.”
Her breath seized, his words beautiful and full of promise.
“Nikolai.” On a sigh, her body melted against his. Desire blazed into an inferno. She leaned forward to press her lips to his.
“Come.”
He was standing with her in his arms in the next instant.
“Why?” Disoriented, she tried to catch up with the conversation. “Where are we going?”
“We made a deal, and I am a male who keeps his promise. Especially to an obedient, tenderhearted omega who is keeping her pledge to me to stay safe.” He sounded so pleased with her, she was almost ready to forgive him for leaving her so achy and desperate.
“I will keep my vow,” she reiterated. “Kaiya’s life is too important to me to go back on our deal. But I’m not tenderhearted, I’m fine. Really.” Embarrassment was starting to creep up on her as she recalled how she’d clung to him and sobbed. She was stronger than that.
“No, you’re still sad.” He jostled her in his arms, shifting her until she was cradled in his arms. “You will not pretend with me.” His expression hardened. “Nor is this a situation, like with everyone else in your life, where you’re going to be the one taking care of me. I don’t need handling or managing. You’ve done enough of that to last a lifetime.”
She opened her mouth to protest, but he was already pressing his mouth to her ear, his voice once more back to teasing. “I’m the one who will do the handling. Plus, I’m a betting male, and I’m betting that as bad as my sweet, greedy omega wants my cock now, she’s going to want it even more after my surprise.”
25
They were halfway down the corridor, Dahlia’s body on fire thanks to Nikolai’s dirty-talking, when she finally found her voice. “This is promising to be some surprise.”
He smiled, his perfect lips tilting upward while an indent appeared on his left cheek.
She lost her breath. He was so beautiful.
He winked. “It is a good surprise, but if you keep looking at me like that, you’ll never see it.”
She couldn’t help but grin back. “I can walk. Or run to it, then.” She teased, strangely happy even after the mess with her parents. “No need to carry me.”
He held her tighter. “No need. Just a want.”
Her chest did that funny, fluttering sensation again.
“Well, in that case . . . ” She tightened her latched hands around his neck and licked his collarbone.
Two could play at his game.
He growled low.
<
br /> Her body heated further.
“Maybe the damn surprise can wait.”
Her feet hit the ground as her back was pressed to the wall and his fist tangled in her hair, his cock rocking against the juncture of her thighs through her dress. “I’m going to fuck you in this hallway, omega. Prepare yourself.”
Her leg curled around his hip, her hands already fumbling with the laces of his pants. “You prepare yourself, Alpha. I’m beyond ready.”
“So, it’s not safe to come out?” The sound of Maxheim’s voice had her freezing in place.
Nikolai didn’t hesitate. “No. It’s not. Go away.” Another low growl from her Alpha, but this one was far more menacing.
“We can’t go away forever.” Exasperation tinged his brother’s words. “This is a public hallway, and there are matters that need your attention.”
Matters? Her stomach clutched. The trial and her family, if she had to guess.
Reality intruded with a slap.
With a curse, Nikolai released his hold on her hair, but he didn’t let her go altogether. Instead, he pulled her tight against him and pressed his mouth to her ear. “Do not think about going stiff and cold on me again, omega. If you think I was ruthless before, imagine how I’ll be if you take away the sweetness I’m coming to crave. For fifteen years, I waited. That was hard enough. But to hold you warm and willing in my arms, to feel your light and goodness warming me from the inside out along the fated-mate bond, and then have you slip from my grasp . . .” He paused. “Don’t do it.”
The foolish organ inside her chest fluttered once more.
Whatever the future brought, she could never go back to thinking of Nikolai as only her enemy.
Nor did she want to.
He’d become so much more. Her Alpha. Her protector. Her obsession. And likely her doom.
She tangled her hands in his shirt and held tight. “I’ll be right here. Same as now.”
Relief flickered in his gaze. He covered it with a satisfied grunt. “Good.”
He released her enough that she could turn and see their full audience: Maxheim, Damien, Anya, and a host of guards with the lower half of their faces encased in masks to shield her scent.