Page 89 of Wild Omega

I snort. “Would be a waste of good tinted glass anyway.”

“Very practical.” He chuckles. “You’re entitled to have a lawyer present for any statement you give. If you nominate me as your counsel, they must notify me every time they move you to a different location.”

I nod slowly, sorting through my thoughts. “They want to know what happened at Rickon’s house, and then they’re taking me back to the Omega Center.” I clear my throat and scrunch my wrinkled jumpsuit legs with my left hand. How much should I tell him? Gotta start somewhere. “Oddly enough, it appears I didn’t quite have all my exit paperwork in order before I left. Not sure how that happened.”

He laughs, a strangled, gurgling sound somewhere between humor and despair. My cheeks heat.

“Red,” he says. “Please let me officially be your legal representative. I—” Another pause. “I know everything. I know I fucked up, and I know why the Center won’t release you. You see, I’m assigned to the prosecution of those caught at the omega trading hub, so I know what they did to you.” He chokes again, and his labored breaths sound down the line as he struggles to speak. “Let me help you find freedom.”

Tears prickle their way up the back of my nasal passage, but I absolutely refuse to cry in a situation like this. Undeniable sincerity shines in his voice; makes me wonder what kind of expression he’s wearing, which in turn makes my heart throb painfully.

I sniff down my hateful tears. “You know all that, but you still want the job?”

“Yes, unequivocally.”

I lean against the wall. “That’s a big word.”

“Yeah, it is. Means absolutely, definitely, or without a doubt.”

The pounding in my head won’t go away, and it’s only getting worse with Rickon’s alpha buzz back in the mix. I don’t want to get tangled up too tightly with Callisto, the alpha who rejected me. But I can’t free myself alone.

“Okay. I’ll pay for your services after I get my acting sign-on payment.”

“No, Red, I’m offering—”

I interrupt him. “A business relationship, that’s all we have. I’m too busy to consider anything else.” I inspect my fingernails, as if something important lodges on the hardened tips. Throwing his words back at him was supposed to feel like a victory, but it leaves a sour taste in my mouth.

The line goes silent, and I switch around to look at Samantha and the OCB agent, who both do their best to pretend they can’t hear a thing—which is impossible in the small space.

Callisto sighs. “All right, Red. Whatever terms you want. Do you want me to come in for your statement? I can be there in ten minutes.”

I catch Samantha’s eye. “No, I think I can handle this.”

Callisto’s voice hums down the line. “Okay. Tell them the truth about what that bastard Hudson did, but don’t comment on any way you touched him. You can say ‘no comment’ if they ask for specific details.”

“Roger that.” I suck in a breath and find myself trembling. Well, it has been an exciting day, more so now I know this man who rejected me heard the gory details about my stay at the House of Bitches. Is that why he suddenly sounds like he’d give me the world if I asked? He should have done it when we first met, if he was going to bother.

“And Callisto?” I grind out. “I hate pity more than anything. It’s very unattractive.”

“Understood.” The pain’s back in his voice, notching it to a lower resonance. “I’ll be in touch soon.”

Let him be in pain. Let him feel the sting of rejection since it canes like a bitch.

Am I trying to punish him? No. What I said was truthful—too much is going on to entertain another relationship right now, and I’m worried sick about the alpha who did accept me, since last I saw he was struggling to breathe.

Just because Callisto’s my scent match, it doesn’t mean he’s my soulmate, no matter what tradition dictates. As they say, timing is everything, and Callisto missed his chance.

I hang up the receiver and draw myself up before turning around. “I’m ready to give my statement now.”

Let’s hope I can get through it with an alpha howling in my brain.

Chapter thirty-seven

Callisto

An unnatural shiver runs down my arm as the line goes dead. I slowly lower the phone from my ear, each inch of movement accompanied by a growing agony in my chest. Red only wants a business relationship with me. I had the chance to sweep her off her feet and give her everything she needed, and I blew it.

With my own two hands, I obliterated a future with my omega.

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