Page 28 of The Rejected Omega

“Fuck.”

“Mac didn’t tell you?” Apparently things in the Masters’ household were more strained than I realized.

“We don’t exactly catch up often. Who’s running the show now?”

“Francine.”

“You poor thing.”

I smother my grin.Stop letting your guard down,Lana!

“It’ll be right out.”

I hardly see Connor the rest of the night. Someone else takes out his food, and I’m too busy being the birthday party’s bitch to do much more than top up his drink and print his bill.

Grandma’s steak isn’t leathery enough, the kids spilled two drinks and want enough extra ranch to drown a small mammal. Half the party wants to wait for their late guest to order, and the other half is too hungry to wait, which makes their meals come out staggered. Half of them want drinks in to-go cups. They tip under 15%.

By the time I make it back to Connor’s table, he’s gone. I try to squelch the disappointment rising up my throat. He’s tipped twice the total of his meal and left his number scrawled on the receipt.

I sigh and pocket it, even though his number hasn’t changed. Just another thing about him I never managed to scrub from my brain.

CHAPTER TEN

Next Wednesday comes far too soon.When I get to the tutoring room, Connor’s already there. Two large coffees from the best café in town sit in front of him. He slides one across the table. I catch it and glance at the label. He remembered my order, of course. Does he think he can bribe me into friendship?

It would be easy, to slip back into comfortable familiarity with him. To let the taste of that coffee take me back to chilly fall mornings where I wiggled atop his car’s heated seats, trying to get warm. To meandering walks together through fields coated with crunching dead leaves.

I slide the drink to the side and begin unpacking my notebooks.

He looks at the material I’m pulling out, including a copy of the book his English class is reading right now.

“You don’t have to actually tutor me, you know.”

“That’s what I’m being paid to do.”

“What if I pay you not to do it?”

I roll my eyes.

“Seriously. You obviously need the money. Why are you working so much? I thought you had a scholarship. With your grades and a school this small, they must have given you a full ride.”

“Scholarships don't cover much outside of tuition.”Especially black-market omega suppressants.

“If you need help, me and Dad have plenty, you know. And you’re family.”

“I don't need your charity.” Besides, Mac Masters already spends a pretty penny on my monthlyupkeep.

“It’s notcharity. For-profit college costs are ridiculous. Consider it a public service.”

“I’m not arguing with you about this, Connor. If you don’t want to betutored, then just do your assigned reading or something. I have a headache.”

He frowns. “Are you getting enough sleep?”

“Enough, Masters! You’re not my fucking doctor.”

“Not yet,” he winks.

My mind plunges into catastrophic thinking. Going into Kanata’s clinic and seeing him there. A picture of him and Cassandra in a cutesy Christmas card on the wall. They wouldn’t be able to procreate, so they’d have a golden retriever puppy. Maybe he’d even ask me if I wanted to be their surrogate.

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