Page 9 of Puck Your Neighbor

I shake my head."Uh, thanks, but I'm good."

She looks surprised."Really? You sure? You kept glancing my way; I thought you were into me, too."

"Sorry, but I'm sure." I clear my throat and give her an awkward wave. "Thanks for coming to the Iron Wolves' practice. We appreciate your dedicated support."I turn and walk away, heading towards the locker room. Leo and Maverick are already there, towels around their shoulders.

Maverick grins."Did you get her number? Just remember, we have a game next week."

I shake my head."I turned her down. She didn't smell right to me."

Leo and Maverick glance at each other.

"Omegas rarely have scents for us unless we're matched. Are you sure she wasn't our omega?" Leo asks.

I tug off my gear, needing to be out of it. "I'm positive. If she were, I wouldn't be standing here talking to you."

Maverick raises an eyebrow."Something's off with you, man. You've been acting weird all day."

I sigh."It's nothing. Just a bit distracted. I'll get over it."

I can't shake the feeling that something's wrong.Why hasn't that chick left my brain since last night, and why does my inner alpha have such an interest in her?

Chapter 5

My mind's been on those two alphas I met last night all day. I'm working on my commissions, but just barely. I want to paint their faces, but that won't pay the bills. I keep glancing at the phone number on my arm. I already put it into my phone, but I don't have the courage to text him for no reason. They haven't been home, as far as I can tell, since early this morning, and there's no reason for me to text him. It feels strange to just randomly do it.

But my inner omega wants nothing more than to have his attention, even if it's just through text.

At least we would be the center of his focus.

Even as these desires cross my mind, I try my best to push them down. My hand goes to my neck, always making sure it's covered and that no one, not even me, will see what's underneath. I try to focus on adding details to the bubbles floating through my ocean scene. Soon, I'll be adding in the fish and coral. Those will take the most time.

A buzzing fills my ears as an alarm goes off on my phone next to me. I reach over to pick it up. It's my heat app letting me know I'm due to start my heat in five days, which I already know. I've been like clockwork with my cycle for years. But as I turn off the alarm, I notice the date. A rush of tingles floods my body as I realize what date my heat falls on. It's been years since it fell on that day. It makes me realize I haven't even noticed theanniversary, which feels wrong – it's not really a word to use for what happened.

The tingles settle in my neck until they grow to burn like a thousand ants biting at my skin. I drop my brush, stand up, and rush to the bathroom. Flipping on the light, I stare at myself in the oval mirror. One hand grips the cold, white tile of the counter, trying to get a hold to help me ground myself as black spots skitter across the edges of my vision.

With my other hand, I tug down my turtleneck. There, red bite marks meet my gaze, along with the silver scars cutting across my larynx. The bite marks are as healed as they'll ever be. The doctors said they'll only heal if I'm claimed by alphas I want a bond with, but the idea of ever letting anyone near my neck again sounds impossible.

A pulse grows under the marks the longer I stare at them. I know the pulse is in my head. They never bother me anymore, unless I see them. Turning on the cold water, I splash my face, trying to push off the panic attack that's threatening to overwhelm me. As I open my eyes and let the water drip down my face.

A black shadow appears behind me in the mirror.

"Come here, Flower."

I jump, I swear I see him standing in the hall behind me. I glance over my shoulder and find no one. Despite knowing there's no way they can ever hurt me again, it doesn't make me feel safe.

I jump as footsteps thunder from upstairs—the new alphas are coming home.

Reach out to them. Our alphas. They belong to us, and we belong to them. They won't hurt us, they'll heal us.

The voice whispers at the back of my mind, but I push it down. I know we're scent-matched with them, but that doesn't mean they're safe, it just means that we're compatible. It's an evolutionary trait that ensures those with the highest genetic compatibility get together to continue humanity.

I never put much thought into it. Finding scent-matched alphas is difficult, so many omegas just settle for any pack. It's not a perfect fit, and you'll never feel fully satisfied with the sex, but I guess that most beta relationships are them settling as well, with what works. It's because of that mindset, being talked into settling, that I lost my voice. I trusted when I should've run. I didn't know better; I wanted security after years of being in bad spots, and I was a fool to think that. Because of my desperate need for security, I lost a massive part of myself.

Now, there are alphas above me that could give me something I've never had, but the idea of letting them, of telling them we're compatible, is terrifying.How can I trust anyone again?

Shutting off the water, I wipe my face with a hand towel and head back to my work. That's the best thing to focus on. With a sigh, I lean down and pick up the brush from the floor, thankful for the tarp I use. Miss Landlord would never let me live it down if I got paint on her hardwood, even though I'm certain it's vinyl, and she's lying about it being something like hardwood.

Someone laughs above me, and the hairs stand up on the back of my neck.

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