Page 36 of Her Knotty Alphas

"Listen," she continues, "he really didn't take part of any of the shit the Sheffield pack put me through, and he showed up that night, remember? The night they tried to take me? He brought the police."

She's right. I know she is. But the rest of the Sheffield pack is in jail, safely away from my fury, and this one is right here. Ready for an ass kicking.

"I don't like it," I tell her petulantly. Like a child who isn't getting what she wants.

"Babe, if I can move on, you can too. I was the wounded party. Besides, this is why he owes me a favor, and will continue to owe me as many favors as I want until the end of time." I eye Brody warily, but he doesn't seem to take offense to my hesitance.

"Fine," I snap, bringing the phone down to hit the end call button. Before I do though, I quickly bring the phone back up to my ear, not wanting my friend to think I'm mad at her. "Thanks for this, I really appreciate it. Okay, love you bye."

Cady's laughter is still echoing on the line when I finally hit that red "hang up" button, and I turn, facing Brody fully. This is the guy that's going to help me sort out Nana's will. I can't afford to piss him off.

Taking a deep breath, I nod once. "Sorry. I was just…surprised."

"Completely understandable," he says, motioning towards a nearby table. "Cady's not the only omega I've failed over the years, but I'm hoping she'll be the last."

My brows raise in surprise at his confession. In my experience, which is pretty limited, alphas don't normally admit when they're wrong.

We take a seat at one of the smaller, round tables, and a waitress comes by to take our order. Once that's out of the way, he gives me a kind smile, folding his hands in front of him. "Before we dig into why we're here, I'd like to tell you a little bit about me, if that's okay?"

Swallowing roughly, I nod. "Sure."

"Great." He leans forward slightly, making sure to meet my eyes. It's not anything besides professional. He's not sizing meup, or raking his gaze over me. He wants to make sure I hear him. "I originally specialized in corporate law. Yes, it's just as boring as it sounds." He gives a small chuckle. "But, admittedly, it was what the rest of my then-pack was doing, so wouldn't it make sense for me to join them?" He shrugs. "I know I've spent a lot of my life not seeing the everyday struggles that other designations go through, mainly omegas. That I've, whether unknowingly or not, contributed to those struggles in some ways. Six months ago, my…ex-pack gave the omega we were courting an ultimatum. One that I didn't agree with…" He shakes his head, then focuses back on me. "But I didn't stand up to them. I let them drive her away. Then, I sat back while my pack put Cady De Lucca through the worst first date in history."

"You're not exactly endearing yourself to me, you know." I mutter, then smile and thank the waitress as she brings my iced caramel macchiato and Brody's vanilla latte.

"It's part of what brought me to where I am," he says simply. "I've found that being honest about my shortcomings drives omegas to trust me more quickly."

My brow furrows. "Why would you need omegas specifically to trust you?"

"Because that's what I do now." He doesn't look proud, only repentant. "I put my trust fund money to good use, against the behest of my parents. I am now the founder of the Omega's Legal Council. Free, pro-bono representation for omegas in rough spots. Cady is lucky that she had the financial backing of the De Lucca name to represent her during the trial. Otherwise she might have had to depend on a court-appointed attorney. One that could have been paid off by the pack themselves. The fact that part of that would have been my fault, does not sit right with me. I won't sit back and watch the way things unfold anymore, Hannah. I want you to know that I'm doing everything in mypower to make sure what happened to Cady, never happens to anyone again."

Wow. That's…a hell of a lot to take in.

"It's a lot, I know," Brody says gently, reading my mind. "But I just wanted to let you know where I was coming from before we dove into things."

"I appreciate it," I tell him truthfully. I had been so angry when I first saw him, but now I'm seeing that he actuallycares. He left his cushy corporate law job to start a company that helps omegas? For free?

"Now." He smiles, taking a sip of his latte. "Do you have the paperwork that they served you with?"

"I do." I grab the manila folder out of my bag, passing it to him. "My…my alpha went through it with me last night. It looks like my step-sisters are suing me for the entirety of my Nana's estate."

A hissed curse leaves him when he reads the envelope, and my brows shoot up. "Sorry." He shakes his head. "It's…Herman & Sons. They're ruthless bastards. It'll be fine though," he says quickly, taking in my alarmed expression.

My mouth is dry when I nod, and I sit in silence for a moment, drinking my coffee while he looks through the stack of papers. His brow furrows deeper the longer he's reading, and five minutes later, my foot is bouncing, my fingers are tapping, and anxiety is threatening to burst out of my chest like a damn hurricane.

He sighs, setting the papers down and rubbing his eyes. "So…how bad is it?" I ask, my voice cracking slightly.

"That depends," he says gently.

"On what?"

"On your side of the story. Can you tell me why your step-grandmother would leave you everything, save three dollars?"

"Well…" I bite my lip, looking down. "It's best if I start at the beginning." He nods, pulling out a pen to take notes, and I continue. "My mom and Paul got married right after I turned nine. I had been so excited to gain three new stepsisters. They….they didn't feel the same." I say lamely, internally cringing at the understatement of the century. "Nana…she was the only one who treated me likefamily.Paul was fine, he wasn't mean or anything, but he also was just kind of…there. Same with my mom. My brother and I had to fend for ourselves for a few years after Dad died, so we were sort of used to it. But Nana?" I chuckle, shaking my head at the memories. "She treated us like we werehers. She brought us just as many Christmas presents as my step-sisters, whohatedthat, by the way. She went out of her way to spend time with each of us, one-on-one. I feel like I was the only one who soaked up the attention, though. My brother, Kieran, was a typical teenage boy, and my step-sisters acted like spending time with her was achore." I still feel the anger in my chest. How they called her names under their breath and rolled their eyes when she fussed over them.

I used to look forward to the day, once a month, when she would pick me up from school and we would spend the afternoon together. "Well, the summer I turned fourteen, she retired and moved from Laguna Falls to Starbrook City. It was a little lonelier without her, but I knew she was having fun in retirement. I had Cady, Kieran, and…"Charlie.

Trailing off, I focus my attention on my drink before speaking again. "Then, two years later, she got sick enough that she ended up in the hospital, and they wouldn't let her go home unless she had a support system in place. I volunteered. Paul drove me down to Starbrook City, helped get his mom settled, and then I was her support system, just like she was mine. I lived with her until she checked herself into an assisted living facility three years ago. She was afraid that she was 'holding me back'." I putair quotes around the last three words. "I still visited, she started sending her friends to me to get their hair done, and then, a year ago…" I sniffle, tears filling my eyes at the memory of the phone call. The one where she told me she had been diagnosed with lung cancer, despite never having smoked a day in her life, and she would not be pursuing treatment. "She got sick. Honestly, I thought all of her money would have gone to paying for the living facility and medical bills." Shrugging, I meet Brody's sympathetic gaze. "I didn't realize she left me everything, either. I thought I only got a portion of it. Until Cat's pissed off voicemail."

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