Page 39 of Gigi and the Gym Rats

It seems the men are also steering clear of me. At least the men I’m in lust with and live with. Ronin hasn’t asked me again to go jogging with him. In fact, usually by the time I get up and grab a coffee before I head out—and we’re talking early, at the crack of dawn—he’s already out. I know that because he leaves his room door open and I can see it’s empty.

And Casey is like a ghost, flitting in and out of the kitchen, hiding behind his bedroom door, looking distracted and tired whenever I catch a glimpse of him. It occurs to me that he isn’t actually hiding from me. He looks distressed and has dark circles under his eyes, but he doesn’t linger around enough for me to ask… and I don’t go looking for him.

Being man-less is hard work.

Being emotion-free is even harder.

I like Casey. And I like Ronin. And I want them to be okay. I’m kind of dying to talk to them, take a good look at their faces, look into their eyes and see if they’re telling the truth when they say they’re fine.

See? That’s why I need to abstain from the man-buffet. All of them—Ronin, Casey, Zayne, they give me feelings.

The only safe one right now is the beta from the gym. How do I find him again?

What if the girls are right? What if the Alpha Bet bar is his regular haunt and by going there, I meet him again?

And the gym. What if he changed classes, so he wouldn’t have a pissy-ass-dragon Zayne on his case all the time? I could…visitthe gym, like June apparently does, see if I spot him in some other room of the building.

Right.I’m focused again. I have my plan.

Now to execute it.

Wait, that sounded violent…

13

GIGI

“I’m so glad you decided to go out with us!” Coco is dressed in a wrap dress the color of pink cotton candy with pumps to match. Her earrings are giant roses and her eyeshadow and lipstick are all candy-themed.

I keep thinking she can’t be an omega, and she keeps thinking she must be one. The only way to know is if her heat finally comes on. For her sake, I hope it does.

Then again, she wouldn’t be the only case of designation dysphoria in our little group. Ruby has a big bold O for omega on her ID, but she thinks she might be a beta or a delta. And as for Bee, for a long time thought she was a beta, only she turned out to be a full-on omega.

That probably fueled Coco’s hopes even more. I’d hate for them to be dashed.

“So… look.” June smooths down her mini dress, then pops a bubble with her gum. “Are you sure you’d rather go back to Alpha Bet?”

“Sure,” I say. “I mean, yeah. I’m sure.”

“Oh.” She exchanges a look with Coco. “Okay, then fine.”

Her blond curls are artfully arranged, some of them pulled back with golden barrettes. Her dress is white with golden embroidery. Very doll-like.

June has no doubts about what she is. She’s an omega through and through, certified and a hundred percent organic, or so it feels.

“Why?” I suddenly realize they don’t seem as happy about it as I thought they’d be. “Is there a snag?”

“Oh, no. It’s just, we were going to check out another bar. There’s a cool new spot Sophie told us about.”

“Sophie as in my roommate Sophie?”

“Divine Sophie, yes. She’s such a goddess. If was into girls, I’d do her in a heartbeat.” Coco sighs. “Sadly, I’m into unavailable males.”

“You’re not the only one,” June mutters. “Hey, did you ask Bee if she wanted to join us?”

“Sure did. She’s ‘busy.’” Coco mimics the quotation marks with her fingers. “You know what that really means.”

“She’s getting screwed six ways to Sunday,” June says with a laugh. “Or rather, four ways, seeing as she only has four boyfriends?”

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