Page 64 of Power Shift

Oh god.

Things couldn’t have been worse than this. Dread pools like tar in my belly as I turn to face Jasper. Words get caught in my constricting throat.

“What’s wrong?” he asks, frowning deeply.

I shake my head, my emotions spiking too intensely to make sense of them.

“Talk to me, love.”

“Did we do something wrong?” Dash asks, appearing beside Jasper.

My scent sours, and I lose the vanilla and cinnamon. Something inside of me cracks for the second time since that day as my omega recoils at the idea of missing out on it again. My instincts demand I focus enough to find it again, but that only makes it worse.

“Okay, maybe we need to go outside,” Dash adds, taking charge when Jasper freezes, his nostrils flaring.

I want to crawl into a hole and die because it’s obvious what he’s smelling. A terrified omega’s scent mixed with the slick she’s hopeless to hide.

Pupils expanding, Jasper lets loose a rough sound and nods, smoothing his hand down my arms.

“Outside,” he echoes.

There’s no time.

It’s impossible to mistake the sound of footsteps on the porch steps for anything else. I hold my breath and keep staring at Jasper, trying to find solace in the way he watches me like I’m something precious he’s not willing to let go of regardless of how confused he must be right now.

“Ronan said we were having pizza. Sorry we’re late.”

My eyes roll back into my head at the sound of that gruff voice. Goosebumps cover me from head to toe, and I reach for Jasper on instinct, curling my fingers into his shirt. His bodyhides my view of the man who spoke, but as heavy footsteps continue our way, I know it won’t matter.

“Jesus, what’s that smell? It’s . . .” The footsteps stop.

I see Ronan first when he moves to the side, eyes already on me. It takes all I have in me not to run toward him.

“What’s wrong, Petal?” he asks, voice low.

There’s only one man the stranger could be. Landon’s voice is a whip across the room.

“You brought the omegahere?”

A whine gets caught in my throat, and I risk a breath, allowing it to escape. The other men in the room take it as a sign of distress, but it’s not a fearful noise.

I push myself out of Jasper’s arms and avoid the ones Ronan opens for me. My head swims as I step into the open, searching for Landon and finding him frozen a few feet away. Too far from me.

“You ran from me,” I croak, eyes burning as I blink profusely.

The same alpha from the restaurant stares at me, blue eyes as vivid as they were the first time I looked into them. Everything about him is the same as it was that day, but without the suit, he doesn’t appear as scary. Even with his towering height and wide, bulky shoulders, I know he isn’t a danger to me the same way I thought then.

His jaw is tense, teeth grinding as he watches me step toward him. I don’t stop, even when he narrows his eyes in warning.

“Youranfrom me,” I repeat, harsher this time.

Jasper sucks in a breath while Landon slips his hands into the pockets of his jeans, his expression smoothing to paint a picture of pale-skinned ease. A complete façade that I don’t buy for a minute.

“I did.”

“Why?”

“I don’t want an omega.”

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