Page 101 of Power Shift

“Sadie’s place is just around the corner. She has the back . . .”

Her voice dies off when we turn the corner. My first instinct is to shove her behind me, but she’s too quick.

My omega takes off toward the three people facing off in front of the front door. Clover stands firmly in front of two males—alphas, with her arms crossed and feet planted wide. The largest alpha towers over her and sneers at her. Sadie is nowhere to be seen. That’s for the best.

“Get the fuck out of the way, omega.”

“No,” she snaps. “You can feel free to leave before I call the cops.”

“If you were going to, you would have already.”

I rush after Briar on full alert. Panic threatens to shackle me, but I ignore it. Fear has never done anything for anyone but make them sloppy.

She stands right beside Clover and squares her shoulders. “Thorne, I’m assuming? You’re not allowed to be here. Do you not care about Sadie’s well-being at all? She’s nine months pregnant. This stress isn’t healthy for her.”

The shorter alpha beside this apparentThornelooks Briar up and down, his eyes a bit too narrowed for my liking. Fuck, any amount of eye contact from either of them in her direction is too much. Depending on what happens next, maybe I’ll get to rip them out and eliminate their looking entirely.

“She’s nine months pregnant with my baby. It’s my right to check in on her whenever I please,” Thorne hisses, inching forward.

I’m there before he can get any closer. He can be taller than my omega, but he’s not fucking taller than me. Our height difference is so large that it startles him. He falters, jumping back the step he’s just taken.

“I don’t recommend getting any closer to her,” I warn lowly.

His eyes are almost black as he braves a full glance at me. “I didn’t know Sadie was making so many friends.”

“Is the red car out front yours?”

“Depends. Is that omega behind you yours?”

I pause, considering how to handle this. The sheer possessiveness in his stare is coming from one place, and it isn’t because he wants Briar. No, he wants to know if she’s mine so he can eliminate me as an object in his way of Sadie.

Pushing forward, I force him to move further back until the women aren’t directly behind me. “If that car is yours, I want to know why the fuck it was parked outside of my omega’s apartment building.”

“Your omega,” he echoes, relief blooming as he gets approval that I’m not seeking out Sadie.

The relief evaporates when I curl my fingers in the top of his shirt and yank. He curls his lip at me and struggles, trying to get away. The fight only makes me tighten my grip.

“Answer me,” I demand, a bark lingering at the back of my throat.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

I slide my eyes to the alpha beside him. He’s too fucking quiet while his packmate is making a complete fool of himself. Does he always stand by while he acts out? Encourage him even?

“What about you? Are you capable of speaking?”

He swallows, glancing at Thorne for confirmation before speaking. “There are plenty of red cars in Rayton.”

My laugh is hollow as I shove Thorne away, enjoying the sight of him stumbling over his feet. “Not enough to keep me from picking out yours. If you go near her again, a visit from the cops will be the least of your worries.”

“She shouldn’t have taken Sadie as a patient if she didn’t want us hanging around,” Thorne snaps back, teeth clacking.

“If you’re going to make a threat, make it obvious. Come out with it loud and proud. I’m more than happy enough to beat your ass into the ground right here, right now instead of later.”

Thorne lifts a hand to fidget with the hoop in his earlobe, an anxious tell that I latch onto. “Sadie belongs to me.”

Tohim. Not them. Not herself. The sense of ownership has unease coiling low in my gut.

Suddenly, there’s warmth seeping into my body, soothing me. Briar’s lemon scent hits me before I sense her pressing against my back.

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