Page 60 of Unbonded
But my mother isn’t going to be put off by my apparent indifference. “And what about these rumors I hear of him being in a relationship with another omega? An employee of yours, if I’m not mistaken.”
Despite her refusal to travel to New York, my mother has spies all over the city. “Kate Valentine. She doesn’t work for me. She’s part of my pack.”
“But I heard she’sunbonded.” The word rolls off her tongue like a cockroach scuttling away from the light. “You’re not seriously thinking of making her aJanssen, Corbus.”
“We haven’t discussed our pack name,” I say with a cool shrug, even though the idea rolls through my veins like molten lava. “But I’m not making her anything. Kate is perfect as she is.”
I don’t add that I’ve already changed out every flower display in the Paragon empire from my mother’s signature hyacinths to bouquets of white florals and orange blossoms.
My mother gives a disapproving sniff and dabs at her bitter little mouth. “I suppose I see the appeal, since this dancer is a male.” She means Kate’s ability to give me children – the necessary genetic offspring to continue the Janssen line. “Although, why you chose him when you have every ballerina in the world just dying to be a Janssen Jewel is beyond me.”
“Perhaps because I love him.”
The words are out of my mouth before I can stop them. At the age of thirty-two, I’ve learned to hide most of myself from my mother, but she pounces on this revelation with a brittle laugh. “Oh, Corbus, that’s very sweet, but we both know love isn’t something you’ll ever be able to feel.”
She’s never put her opinion of my emotional capacity quite so bluntly. “What does that mean?”
“It’s fine, my dear.” She gives my hand a condescending pat, and I snatch it away as if it’s frostbitten. “Let your pack love you. Your name and money are more than enough to keep them invested. But don’t expect to truly bond them.” Her hand flits towards her bonding mark, covered in its lace-and-diamond choker. I’ve only seen it a handful of times in my life, and from memory it looks more like a skin tag than a mating bite. “You simply don’t inspire that connection.”
The fact that she scorns Kate for being unbonded – when her own husband could barely sink his teeth into her - has me on my feet, my napkin dropped on the table. “You’re the one who knows nothing about love, Mother. Don’t wait for an invitation to the bonding ceremony, because you won’t get one.”
“Corbus!”
I don’t bother to kiss her cheek - I have the emotional capacity of a rock, after all. “Goodbye, Mother.”
“You can’t seriously be leaving like this!”
“Ah, but that’s the beauty of money. I don’t have to see you to keep you fed and clothed.”
It seems it’s a day of hard truths, but my mother’s eyes narrow like a viper’s. “If you’re going to settle for a mediocre pack, don’t expect my blessing! From the moment you were born, I knew you’d never live up to the Janssen name!”
The words bounce off me, as harmless as the rain against the window pane. “I hope that thought follows you all the way to your cold, lonely grave.”
It was only as Bram and I drove to the airport that I realized I never got around to telling her that I’m a scent match. Not that she would’ve believed me, but I don’t like denying our bond, even if the omission saved me from more ridicule.
I was being honest when I told my mother that Kate is perfect as she is. I understood Dash’s infatuation from the moment he voiced it – I just didn’t think the potential was there for me to feel that way, too. She smelled divine, but Dash was my goal, and I’d spent six long, frustrating months trying to pass myself off as a worthy suitor. My mother is right about one thing – emotional regulation is the mountain range I have to conquer every day. The highs are euphoric, but the lows are like plunging into an abyss, and most days it’s just easier to don a mask and pretend I’m a normally functioning person.
My brain chemistry is already a mystery to me, without adding in the complexity of a scent bond. If it wasn’t for Lachlan - the third piece to the puzzle - I’d wonder if it wasn’t just a case of wishful thinking, like Kate said.
But I can see the truth of it now, as I stand in the scent-soaked bedroom and strip my travel-chilled clothes from my body. The three of them are slotted together in the nest like two big spoons cradling a little one. As always, the golden boy is guarding the back of his lifelong love, and I study him as I drop my cufflinks on the vanity.
Lachlan is handsome with his golden hair and square jaw, but his scent holds the real allure, like sunshine pooling on a warm rock. It’s ironic that he looks like the prince in the Ice Queen book I read as a child, trying to imagine myself winning the favor of a princess in a distant land. My gaze moves to his prize – our scent match – and I feel my heart thud in my chest as I loosen the knot on my tie. They look so happy together – so complete – how can there possibly be a place for me?
“Don’t drop it on the floor, Bram!” Dash’s scolding tone penetrates my haze, and I watch as my best friend sheepishly scoops his shirt back up. He looks at the crumpled fabric with skeptical eyes, but Dash is snapping his fingers as if it’s another box ofhandgemaakte chocolade. “Can’t you see I need it righthere?” Dash stabs a finger at the corner of the nest and snatches the shirt out of Bram’s hands, before turning his fierce regard my way. “Yours too, Mr. Egyptian Cotton.”
Kate snorts at the command, but I hand it over with a slight bow. I have more titles than silk ties, but if it puts dimples in her cheeks, I’d happily add it to my letterhead.
“Do you want the pants too?” Bram asks, looking perplexed. He’s unflappable in most areas of his life, but he’s always been self-conscious about his clothes. He refuses to shop at the designer stores, preferring the same boxy suits and basic shirts he gets from an online tailor. “I could go grab some clean ones from my room.”
“The whole point is for them to beused…” Dash gives an impatient click of his tongue and snaps his fingers again, this time under Kate’s nose. “Can you help me with them, please? Disrobe Corbus while I take care of this one.”
I’d laugh at his bossy tone if Kate wasn’t already sliding my way. I think she’s forgotten she’s naked, rising from the rumpled bedsheets like Venus from her clam shell. It’s the first time I’ve seen her naked, and my breath stutters out of my body as she stops in front of me. “I know you don’t need any help,” she says under her breath as she takes my tie from my hands, “but I think it’s just best we play along, don’t you?”
There’s a twinkle in her soft gray eyes, but I’m already shaking my head. ”I don’t want to play,” I say in a voice that doesn’t sound like my own. At the surprise on her face, I hurry to amend, “That is, I don’t want topretend. I want you to see who I am, beneath the layers.”
I know it’s an awkward thing to say, but she just gives an understanding nod, her gaze fixing on my throat as she slips my top button from its mooring. “Then we should definitely take this off.”
As her practiced fingers relieve me of my shirt, I find myself watching the movement of her breasts. They’re full and round, the peaks crowned by nipples as alluring as pink diamonds. “You’re so beautiful.” I feel like an adolescent as I ogle her, but I’m certain I’ve never seen anything as mouthwatering in my life. “Are you as soft as you look?”
