Page 179 of Claiming the Pack's Omega
“I know she barely said anything, but I wanted to smack the shit out of her, if that’s any consolation,” I murmur, running my hands through his hair.
The movement was intended to help calm Milo down, but cradling him to me also seems to be loosening the knot in my chest ever so slightly.
“It helps,” he says, letting out a shaky huff of laughter under his breath as he stands. His expression grows surprisingly hard as he stares intently into my eyes. “Now tell me how you know Killian’s brother.”
I swallow hard. I knew I’d have to talk about what happened to me in more detail. Hell, I was willing to stand in front of a whole courtroom and do so, but things are different right now.
I never expected that my guys would know one of the Northside men who bought my time. I especially never would’ve expected whatever clusterfuck this is.
“Do you—do you remember how Stone mentioned when he first met me that there were bruises around my neck?”
I feel Milo stiffen in my arms. I don’t know whether it’s the general mood, the eerie, dim balcony lighting, or the situation itself, but Milo’s expression grows darker than I’ve ever seen it before.
It’s like he’s biting back a snarl.
“I do,” he says, his voice barely a whisper. He lifts his hand to trace his fingertips against the column of my neck.
Instead of a necklace of bruises, I’ve got a necklace of rubies, probably worth more than all the money I would’ve earned in a month.
I blink rapidly, trying to fight away the feeling that I’m a fucking fraud.
Killian’s mother clocked it the moment I set foot in her house. I may look good, but this dress, this jewelry, this whole look? It’s like I’m playing dress up.
It’s like part of my brain, part of my body, is more used to abuse than it is luxury. Seeing that hungry, ravenous expression on Max’s face, a face I was used to seeing while stuck on my back in the Southside, seems to have shaken me to my core.
“Tell me what happened, Sunshine,” Milo says through gritted teeth. “Please, I have to know. We have to know.”
My nod is jerky as I cling to Milo’s expensive suit, inhaling his comforting gunmetal scent.
“Does Killian’s brother go by Max here?”
“His name is Maximus, yes,” Milo nods.
“Well, Max used to be a client of mine. I wouldn’t call him a regular, but I’ve—he’s bought my time a few times.”
I glance away. I can’t look at him right now. Not when, internally, I’m fighting the urge to rip myself away from him because of how dirty I feel. It’s a bizarre feeling. Not wanting to be touched at all, but wanting nothing more than to sink into Milo’s skin and become one with him, because that’s the only solace I have in this insanity.
Milo gives me space and time to get the words out. Any of the other guys would’ve pushed, they would’ve demanded, but not Milo.
I think I needed Milo. Needed his approach to things. Because I never would’ve been able to push past the shame and disgust I feel towards myself to answer his question if I’d been pushed to answer.
“Considering the way that fucker has treated Killian all his life, I’m sure it doesn’t come as a surprise to find out he’s the type to go to places like that,” I say, my voice a bit shaky, but my words coming out in one go.
Milo nods, and his arms remain strong around me, offering me the strength I need to finish this.
“He… he had violent tastes. He’s the one who I let choke me. For five hundred stupid dollars?—”
My voice finally breaks when I admit that I let him do that to me. When I admit that I was complicit in it.
For whatever reason, in my head, I wouldn’t feel as dirty if he just did it.
“He fucked me and then choked me so hard I passed out. He loved it. He loved the fear and the look I got in my eyes when I was worried he was just going to kill me,” I whisper, my gaze locked on the buttons on his button-up shirt. “Then he tossed a bunch of crumpled bills on my naked body before he left.”
Like a whore.
Because that’s what I was.
A low growl leaves Milo's throat. I glance up to see his expression twisted in a mix of despair, sadness, and a whole lot of anger. His chest rises and falls quickly as he fights to keep a leash on his alpha instincts that seem to be screaming at him to go and defend my honor.
