Page 34 of Broken Alpha

He didn’t need to know that I was already contemplating termination. He was right, I can’t have this baby, but he didn’t have the right to that information anymore. Our friendship was over the second he decided that I was nothing more than what was between my legs and that he couldn’t have me. Maybe our friendship ended the second I said yes to sleeping with him. I should’ve considered his feelings for me, but my heat was spiking, and I wasn’t in my right mind when I gave him an answer. I refuse to blame my designation and how my body works. I was still lucid enough that I could’ve told him no and locked myself in my room, but I hadn’t. I’m part of the blame, and I’m aware of that, but I could also be an adult about it and acknowledge that it was a mistake, and I thought we could move past it.

“It’s for the best,” I said finally. “Now, please, leave so I can get dressed for class.”

Erik blinked at me before stomping out of my bedroom, muttering ‘go fuck yourself’ under his breath as he left.

I was tired before I even got to school. Fighting with Erik this morning, saying my peace and ending a five-year friendship took more out of me than I expected it to, and I couldn’t help but wonder if it was because I didn’t have access to my nest anymore or because the creature inside me was already zapping my energy. But there was still one more person I had to visit before my school day started.

I didn’t know if my relationship with Luke was over. I still felt drawn to him, and my Omega missed him terribly and was practically urging me to go to him. But what he did was inexcusable, and the bite on my collarbone throbbed under the bandaid I had placed over it, as if to remind me of his betrayal. I didn’t know how we would move past this or if it was possible. I went to Luke’s office and froze in the hallway, already smelling his citrus tea scent, except this time, it was tinged with spice and stronger than it normally was. The last time this happened, he had been pissed off at the Alpha in his class, and I hesitated at his door before knocking.

When I opened the door, I couldn’t help but gasp at how much stronger his scent was in the room, thick and choking, coating my nose and throat. The strong scent was mild compared to what I was scenting now, and my Omega let out an inhuman sound as a response. Luke looked up from his desk, and there was a look of shock on his face, but something was wrong.Very, very wrong. He looked gaunt as if he hadn’t slept in days, which I knew wasn’t true. He had dark circles under glassy blue eyes, and his skin took on an almost ashen complexion, save for a purpling bruise on his cheek. It was very clear that he was sick, but he hadn’t looked anything like this when I saw him yesterday.

“Aidyn,” he said, a soft expression crossing his face as he stood up from his office chair.

He approached me but halted before passing his desk, the expression dropping from his face. My Omega let out another involuntary whine, Luke’s head snapping up to look at me when the sound reached him. I stifled the purr that threatened to vibrate through my chest, knowing that my Omega was reacting to the Alpha’s distress and wanted to soothe his anguish. Without thinking, I wrapped a protective hand around my middle and winced when Luke followed the movement. His scent increased with a burst of citrus, indicating he was happy about the idea, and a low purr rumbled from his chest, causing me to close my eyes against its pull. I could feel my body responding, slick gathering at my entrance.

“You’re pregnant?”

I had hoped I had a little longer before my scent change was more noticeable, but it appears I couldn’t deny it anymore, and he could detect the light floral scent like I had when I first woke up after my heat.

“I’m not keeping it,” I said, defiantly raising my head.

Luke looked like he wanted to say something, his scent changing again, but he swayed slightly where he stood, grabbing the desk to support himself, the tone of his skin growing ever paler. Unable to resist any longer, I moved toward him as he swayed, reaching out to hold him upright and move him to one of the chairs in front of his desk. I pulled out my water bottle from my backpack and offered it to him, which he acceptedslowly. He seemed lethargic, and I became genuinely concerned about his present state.

“You should’ve stayed home. You don’t look well,” I said, kneeling beside him to look at him better.

“I hoped you would come see me. I had to come.”

My stomach knotted at his words. I wasn’t here with the best intentions. I wanted answers and to return his keys until we could sort out whatever this was. My Omega whimpered in distress, and he turned to look at me, a sad expression on his face as he tapped the bandaged mark on my shoulder.

“I’m being punished, as I should be. It’ll pass.”

It took a second for my brain to realize what he was telling me, but it clicked once I analyzed the symptoms I was seeing. Bonding sickness was a serious matter, and there was zero reason why Luke should be at work right now. Although rare, people have been hospitalized and even died due to the illness. Bonding sickness typically occurs when an Alpha bites an Omega and initiates the bonding process, but the Omega doesn’t reciprocate, the first symptom showing up within twelve hours of the incomplete bonding. While the bite on an Omega fades after three days if it is not tended to by the Alpha, bonding sickness lasts about a week, as if they were being punished, which is clearly how Luke saw it.

“Why?”

He looked at me, his gaze searching my face, but I could see the pain and regret in his expression.

“I have nothing but excuses. The night of your heat, my parents invited an Omega and her parents for Thanksgiving. The second I arrived, they had me take a shower, washing all traces of you from my body. I was annoyed, but I wanted to keep the peace, foolishly thinking it was because they didn’t want to scent you, until I saw her. I realized that they were just torturing this poor woman with false hopes. I had already chosen my mate,and my parents wouldn’t hear differently, so we argued. I left when I saw your message, and I found you in your nest. You were so perfect, waiting for me, and I became weak. Through the haze of rut, I realized that our bites and marks would heal and no one would know that we were together, and I lost it. I have no other excuse besides the fact that I gave in to my Alpha before I even realized what I had done. It’s not how I would’ve done things, I swear to God. It’s not where I would’ve placed my mark, and I wouldn’t have done it in the thralls of your heat.”

“The condom?” My voice cracked at the question, and Luke groaned, putting his face in his hands and threading his fingers into his hair.

“My mind was elsewhere, consumed by rut and the need to show the world that you were mine and I was yours. It wasn’t intentional by any means. I know I fucked up, and I swear to God, I will spend the rest of my life trying to make it up to you.”

I sat back on my heels and watched the Alpha before me. I could tell by his scent that he genuinely felt guilty about the situation we now found ourselves in, and my brain was a jumbled mess trying to make sense of what he told me. I needed time to think about what he said, the future, and us, to process everything.

Luke’s alarm cut through the silence, reminding us where we were and that the world had moved on despite our turmoil. I watched in mild fascination as Luke mustered up all his strength to slowly move out of the chair, his face blank as he reached for his phone.

“I brought something for you, in case you came. I thought…I thought you might need it.”

I cocked my head to the side, curious about what it could possibly be. He moved around his desk, picked up his bag from the floor, and pulled out the stuffed otter from my nest. I couldn’t help the squeal of excitement that left me as I dashedtoward him to grab the otter, clutching it close to my body. I buried my nose in its fur, inhaling the mixed scent of us. Some of the tension in my body left as I had a part of my nest with me, and I couldn’t help the overwhelming desire to cry. I had a piece of my nest with me, and I instantly became calmer than when I walked through his office door.

“Thank you,” I whispered, glancing at him through damp lashes.

Aidyn

Pheromones are a tricky thing. While I can scent the pheromones of Alphas and other Omegas, I cannot scent my own. My pheromones smell different to each person as well. While I may smell like a forest to Luke, I also have the potential to smell like rotting pumpkins to someone else. When the pheromones of another person smell pleasant to us, we know that they have the potential to be our mates as long as we click outside of our pheromones. Just because our scents are agreeable doesn’t mean we would work out as a couple; it just helps attract attraction. But because I couldn’t smell my own scent, it took me a moment to realize why some of the studentsalready in Luke’s classroom were staring at me as I headed toward the back of the class. I realized that, despite the de-scenter spraying on my body when I left Luke’s office, it didn’t cover up the scent of my pregnancy. I clutched my backpack against my chest, feeling the otter that I had placed inside as my bag rested on my lap. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath, trying to drown out the whispering and the eyes that seemed to be fixated on me.

“Aidyn?”

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