Page 12 of Two For the Show
“No, there is no world in which this is what’s best for him. You know I care for you, girl, but this press conference proves that your old pack will not stop until they haveyou back. You’re safer with a sword swallower and a knife wielder than an old lady with a coffee cart.”
“You’re not old! You’re my friend.”
“Still old. I’ve loved, Lexi. I’ve loved and lost and loved again. You deserve a romance for the ages after all you’ve been through. One that leaves you breathless. You deserve a pack that would move the Earth to make you happy, and we both know it’s those boys. Lean on them. That’s what a pack is for.”
“Did you have an Alpha?” I’ve never broached the subject of her bite mark, which could only come from an Omega, but this seems a little safer, since she’s the one who brought up the love she used to have.
I watch her throat bob as she swallows and looks up at the ceiling. “I did. And an Omega. Different times. Loved them both, and lost them both.”
The emotion in her voice doesn’t encourage me to ask more about how that happened. Instead, I intertwine my fingers with hers. “How do I even go back, after I ran away like that?”
“With your tail between your legs. Maybe you’ll have to beg them for forgiveness. I doubt they’ll need much convincing, since you left for a good reason and all, but you will have wounded their pride in not thinking they could take care of you.”
“I barely know them,” I whine, rolling over on my back to stare at the aged popcorn ceiling. “How can I trust them with this? This isn’t like asking a neighbor to water your houseplant while you’re on vacation. This is my life. I can’t gamble with my life.”
“You already are. You think this is going to get any better?” She gestures at me and the trash can full of frothy vomit. “You and that Rotting Alpha of yours are going to get worse. And what’s that going to do to your Beta, huh?You think he’s not feeling your pain right now? Because I doubt you know how to block that from the bond.”
She’s right. I don’t know how to block the bond. I’ve been trying, but I know that it’s not working because Matteo’s feelings always seem to answer mine.
But right now?
Right now, I can’t feel anything over the pain. I don’t know if it’s the FOS or just guilt, but either way, I know that all roads lead to the circus.
Chapter 5
“Teo,”I say softly, trying to keep my voice quiet and soothing. “It’s okay, baby, let it out.” He’s curled over the toilet, hurling his guts out, again. “You gotta get better. I’m supposed to be the sick one. I know how to be taken care of, not how to take care of you.”
He laughs, but it’s without any real humor. “Jealous of the attention I’m getting?” he says weakly.
“Of course I am!” I say, stroking down his spine. “The whole pack is worried.”
It’s not a lie. Dario, Dexter, and Jude are in Matteo’s sitting room, probably asleep, like they have been every night for the past two months. We all want to be close to Matteo, to catch a whiff of Alex’s scent within his. It’s smothering him, I know, but he hasn’t been a dick and pushed everyone away.
But recently, he’s been getting sick at night, and we all know it’s because somewhere out there, our Omega is sick, too. And we can’t help her. She’s sick and hurting, and all I want is to wrap her in my arms and let her know that we’ve got her.
That we’re going to take care of her.
I wasn’t aware that a bond works the way it seems to between Matteo and Alex. It’s strange, the way he is not only feeling her emotions but her physical illness, too. Matteo says it feels almost like carsickness. Like it’s not really an illness and you know it’ll go away fairly quickly, but it still sucks when you’re in it.
The door to the bathroom cracks open a little. “You two good?” Dario asks sleepily. “Need some ginger ale?”
Every night for weeks, Teo’s been sick, and every night, Dario wakes up from the noise and tries to give him water or ginger ale. It’s like a reflex now, and I’m not sure he even remembers doing it when he wakes up in the morning.
Matteo shakes his head and waves the other Alpha off. “No, I think it’s passed.” He sits up and wipes his mouth with the back of his hand.
Ew.
Still love him, though.
“She must be in a bad place,” Teo says, moving to the sink to wash his hands and brush his teeth. “If she’s getting this sick, this often, I mean.”
“It’s the FOS,” I tell him. “It’s gotta be. We need to find her.”
“Well, first we have to exterminate the rats in our midst,” my Beta reminds me. “Hopefully, Dexter’s plan to let her know it’s safe to return works.”
“And if it doesn’t?” I ask for what has to be the thirtieth time.
“It has to.”
