“It wasn’t easy. Nor was living in constant fear of being caught, especially under Deimos’s rule.” She gave a small smile. “When Arius found me—and discovered my secret—let’s just say he wasn’t pleased. But since then, I’ve discovered that being an Omega is really a blessing, at least for those of us who end up with a kind, good Alpha.”
Clara felt her brow knit. “How so? How could it possibly be a blessing?”
Saskia regarded her curiously. “Let me ask you a question first: do you share your father’s sentiments about Omegas? Do you think we’re inferior, somehow?”
A hot flush of shame spread over Clara’s face. “Of course not!” But even as she said it, she wondered if it was true. Hadn’t she always looked at the Omegas in the Facility with pity? Gods, she’d thought of them as wretches, in a way, trapped, with no escape from the plotted paths of their lives. Could it be that a tiny part of her did share her father’s opinion?
“Do you know what it was that made me change my mind about becoming Arius’s mate?” Saskia’s cool voice broke into her thoughts. “Aside from my physical reaction to him, and the way he treated me, of course.”
“What?”
“I realized that, as his queen, I would have the power to change things. Omegas are rare in number compared to Alphas and Betas. Only we have the ability to have Alpha babies. We are nurturing by nature, calm, fiercely loyal, and protective of those we love. Those are all good qualities. Sadly, in our society, instead of being cherished, Omegas are sent away, locked up with nothing to do but wait for their mate. They’re taken out of school at the age of twelve as further education is not considered necessary for them. But Omegas can be just as smart as their Alpha peers. You’re a prime example of that! Now, consider how many brilliant minds and ambitious, kind souls are wasting away in that awful place. It’s no wonder there are other Omegas in hiding. Who would want such a fate?”
Clara watched Saskia speak, the young queen’s passion for the subject matter clear in her turquoise eyes.
“I want to change all that,” Saskia went on. “I want our society to recognize all Omegas for the precious jewels they are instead of locking them away. I realize they still need to find mates, but there are other ways in which we could bring Omegas and Alphas together.
“So no, I didn’t ask to become Arius’s queen, but now that I am, I can work toward making that ideal scenario a reality, one step at a time. One amended law at a time. And I’m so thankful that Arius fully supports me in it.”
Clara leaned back and exhaled. “Wow,” she said at length. “I’m not sure what to say.”
“Don’t you see?” Saskia said. “You can help me!”
“How?”
“You’re the perfect example! You lived—and especially worked—among the Alphas for years without them even noticing. That’s concrete proof that individuals are more than just their biological status, should any people like your father try to claim otherwise. Proof that there are intelligent, capable Omegas out there who can contribute more to society than just bearing children.”
Clara’s mind was reeling, and she wished she’d thought to bring her goblet of wine with her. “But what about the low birth rate? Wouldn’t it get lower?”
“I’ve been thinking about that,” Saskia said. “Arius’s mother hated his father because he always treated her with contempt. Like your father, he thought Omegas were inferior and he never failed to let his mate know it. As soon as Arius was born and she considered her duty done, the heir produced, his mother never allowed his father near her again. She took suppressants for the rest of her life to help maintain the distance—and died too early as a result.”
“That’s horrible,” Clara said softly. “But familiar. My parents had a similar relationship—although, of course, my father would never have allowed my mother to take suppressants.”
“Just imagine, though, if they had had a happy union. If your father had been kind to your mother and treated her well. If they had enjoyed being together. Chances are they would have had more children. As would Arius’s parents. As would any couple in love.”
It all made such sense, Clara was speechless for a moment. The way their society treated—and thought of—Omegas was so counterproductive to the actual goal that it was almost laughable. “Gods,” she breathed. “I never thought of any of that.”
“Believe me,” Saskia said, “when I’m not thinking of Arius, I think of little else. And talking to you has just reaffirmed my theory. So while I can’t guarantee that your father will accept your real status, I can promise you this: I will do everything in my power to ensure your peers respect what you’ve done rather than judge you for it.”
“Thank you,” Clara whispered. “Sorry, it’s just so much to take in.”
“I know.” Saskia reached out and clasped her hand. “You should go home and think about it all. It’s late, and Evander will be wondering what’s been keeping us. Before we go back in there, though, can I ask you for a favor?”
“You want a favor from me?” Clara was astonished.
Saskia nodded. “Will you help me change people’s minds about us? About Omegas? Be the example I talked about?”
Clara hesitated. If she agreed, she would be thrust into the spotlight and, worse, possibly face danger from powerful Alphas like her father who didn’t agree with the queen’s desire to change things.
Saskia seemed to read her thoughts. “I know it won’t be easy. I know you might get some negative attention. But please, at least just consider it. There are some stubborn, powerful people out there—as you know only too well.”
“Of course,” Clara said. “I do want to help you, I absolutely do. But I want to get things settled with my father first.”
“Naturally. I’m sorry, I’m getting ahead of myself.” Saskia rose gracefully from her chair and Clara followed suit. “One thing at a time, right?”
Clara inhaled deeply, then expelled the breath in a rush, her mind still spinning. “One thing at a time.”
It was all well and good, helping the queen in her quest to change society’s view of Omegas, she thought, but she still didn’t know how she would confront Neros.
The mere idea of doing so was enough to make her heart stutter in her chest and her skin prickle with panic. It was easy for everyone else to tell her she had no option but to stand up to him, but she would be the one who had to do it.
And she wasn’t sure she was strong enough.
Clara had been extremely silent and subdued ever since they had returned home from their impromptu visit to the royal apartments. She seemed to be in a world of her own as she sat, curled up on her sofa, clutching a glass of the wine Evander had brought her.
Her long, streaked hair cascaded over her shoulders, gleaming in the low light, and he thought again how much softer and more vulnerable she looked when she wore it down. Until recently, he’d only ever seen her with a perfectly neat chignon.
Unsure what to do with himself, he ached to pace back and forth across the apartment to expel some of his nervous energy. Instead, he decided to try initiating a conversation yet again.
“Clara,” he said gently, taking a seat in the armchair beside her sofa. “Please talk to me. Was Saskia able to help you?”
“Mmn,” she said absently, still not meeting his gaze.
“Is that a yes?”
“She wants me to help her.”
Evander was dumbfounded. “She does? How?”
“Did you know she wants to change things for all the Omegas in Sandor? Has she ever talked to you about it? Or has Arius, maybe?”
“No, sweetness. I mean, Arius might have mentioned something along those lines,” he cast his mind back over previous conversations, frantically trying to remember, “but I still don’t see how you can help.”
“She asked me to be an example,” Clara went on, still in that odd, distracted monotone. “To be proof that Omegas can study, work, contribute to society as well as any Alphas or Betas can.
”
Evander got to his feet, prowled toward the kitchen counter, and poured himself a glass of wine, using the time to keep a handle on his temper, which was rising rapidly. Clara had enough to deal with right now; what was Saskia thinking? Besides, he was working night and day to bring out Clara’s soft Omega side—and here the queen was trying to put her in a position of even more power.
“Is that something you’d like to do?” he said tightly.
“I think so. But first, I still need to work out how to deal with my father.”
“Actually, Arius and I might have come up with a plan for that,” Evander said, gratified by the way she finally looked at him, and the hopeful expression in her eyes. “How about if we combine the news that you’re an Omega with his introduction to Arius? We know Neros is desperate to get ‘in’ with the new king. To help you, Arius said he’s willing to meet with your father.”
“In other words, if we combine good news with the bad, my father might not be so angry?” Clara said thoughtfully. “It could work. If we time it right and catch him in a reasonable mood.”
Evander was only just able to suppress a snort. He couldn’t imagine Neros ever being in a reasonable mood, but figured now was not the time to say as much to Clara. “Exactly.”
Clara drained her wine and set the glass on the low table. Evander noticed the slight tremor in her fingers. “I guess he’ll have to find out sooner or later,” she said. “He’s been calling and calling this past week, but I just can’t bring myself to talk to him.”
Putting down his own glass, Evander went to her side and drew her into his arms, burying his face in her silky, pear-scented hair. “I know you’re used to handling everything on your own, sweetness,” he murmured, “but you’ve got me now. And that doesn’t mean you’ve suddenly become incapable,” he added hastily when he felt her stiffen, “it just means that, at times like these, when you do need support, you have it. I’ll always be there for you.”
Pulling back far enough that she could see his expression, Clara gazed at him searchingly. “You really do want me to maintain my independence, don’t you? You don’t want to stifle me.”
“I want you to be happy,” he said. “I want to make you happy, but I realize that I’m not—and never will be—the only source of satisfaction in your life. You thrive on your work, you love your social circle. It would be selfish of me to chain you to my bed forever…”
In fact, coming to that realization had been a process. Even though he was now on the tail end of his rut—at least for this month—Evander felt more dominant, protective and possessive of the little Omega in his arms than he’d ever felt before in his life. The beast within him was clamoring for him to do exactly that: chain her up, hide her from the world, and sire children on her, with little care for her own feelings or fantasies of independence. After all, he was the Alpha, and her body was so tailor made for him. He could slake his lust on her until the end of his days, and never be tired of it.
But while there were no doubt meek, submissive Omegas who lived to please their mates, unfortunately, Clara was not one of them. At first, he had assumed it was purely due to her upbringing and position in Alpha society, and her father’s influence, but lately, he had begun to wonder. Something told him that even if she’d been taken out of school at twelve and sent to the Facility at eighteen, she would still rage against her bonds and refuse to submit to anyone without a fight.
Aside from Neros, of course. That man had her wrapped around his little finger, as far as Evander was concerned. And he still wasn’t sure why. Was it truly respect? Or fear? Or was there something darker?
“I would hate you if you chained me to your bed forever,” Clara admitted, pulling him back to the present. “As much as I enjoy being in your bed, I like being able to get back out of it.”
Evander chuckled and stroked her back softly. “You’re only saying that now because you’re no longer in estrus.”
“Thank the gods,” she admitted with a sigh. “I love the physical sensations, but I cannot stand the way it makes my brain go foggy.”
Idly, he wondered whether she still desired him at all now that the raging hormones had died down. Even though his rut had abated somewhat, he still ached for her, still got hard in her presence, still wanted to feel her silky heat wrapped around his cock. “I’ve heard that gets easier to handle the more used you are to being in heat,” he said. “It’s the same for me, too. The hormones are so overwhelming, it’s hard to think clearly.”
To his astonishment, Clara leaned forward and kissed him then, her tongue slipping between his lips for a delicious, tantalizing few seconds before she broke away and gazed at him. “Thank you,” she said, “for what you said before. About wanting me to be happy. I realize there are other Alphas out there, some of whom are cold, cruel, and selfish, who wouldn’t stop to consider my feelings at all. While I still don’t appreciate the way you did it, I’m glad you were the one to claim me.”
It was the closest she’d ever come to admitting how much she cared about him. Aside from that one careless moment in which he’d told her he loved her, they had avoided talking about their feelings altogether—Evander, because he didn’t want to appear weak, and Clara… well, she undoubtedly had her own reasons. So this sincere declaration sent a tingle of pleasure up Evander’s spine and he felt himself grinning broadly. “I’m glad too,” he said gruffly.
Unwilling to break the magic of the moment by saying any more, he leaned down and kissed her hungrily, his fingers finding the soft, bare flesh of her thigh and sliding up, up, until he encountered her bare sex. She was wet, he realized with delight, his cock jerking in his pants as he stroked tiny, feather-light circles over her clit and was rewarded with a moan and a slight gush of slick.
“Gods,” Clara breathed, tearing her lips away and spreading her thighs further apart to allow him better access. “That feels so good.”
He stroked faster, increasing the pressure just the slightest amount, watching her face carefully as he drove her toward a swift, powerful climax.
Clara’s eyes were closed, her cheeks flushed, the tiny diamond around her neck glinting with every beat of her pounding heart. Her fingertips dug into his shoulders as he ordered her to look at him. “For me,” he added, his own pulse racing as he gave the stiff, swollen nub at the apex of her thighs a series of flicks he knew would push her over the edge.
Being able to see and think clearly while giving his mate pleasure was a new delight, and Evander relished the look in her stunning eyes as she came, panting, gushing into his hand. He drew it out for as long as he could, wringing every last shudder from her, before once again capturing her lips in a kiss.
Clara didn’t resist when he scooped her up into his arms and carried her to bed, where he undressed her and proceeded to show her, over and over again, that he didn’t need to be in rut to enjoy her incredible, responsive body.
Chapter Thirteen
Clara was nervous. She had decided to test the waters by coming clean to a few of her closest friends—who happened to also be her colleagues. She couldn’t be off sick forever, and besides, she missed working.
Over the past week, they had called several times to enquire after her health, and even offered to bring her groceries. Having to lie to them outright had felt awful, and with Evander’s encouragement, Clara had decided to invite them all over on the Sunday afternoon before she was due back at work. Evander had agreed to go back to his own apartment before they arrived, but had made Clara promise to call him immediately after they left—or even beforehand, should she deem it necessary.
Now she was alone and waiting for their arrival, pacing her apartment, straightening an ornament here, readjusting a picture there. It was unusual for her to be so on edge but then again, she was terrified that her closest friends would judge her harshly.
Clara couldn’t stand the thought of losing them. That would be worse than their anger.
There was a knock at the door and she sm
oothed a hand over her hair once before inviting them in. Elena, Lucia and Zandra were their usual perfectly coiffed, polished selves, and as Clara ushered them to her sofa and offered them something to drink, she tried to imagine any one of them in estrus. Losing control when the right Alpha touched her. Able to imagine for one moment what it had been like for her.
Try as she might, she couldn’t picture it.
Her pulse racing, she poured two mugs of coffee for Lucia and Zandra, and got a glass of water for Elena, wishing at least one of her friends had asked for wine so she could have some too.
“I love the scarf,” Lucia said as she passed Clara. “Blue suits you.”
“Thank you.” Clara tugged at it self-consciously before taking the drinks over to the low table and setting them down.
“You’re still a bit pale,” Zandra said solicitously, reaching over and patting Clara’s knee as soon as she settled in the chair opposite her. “Are you feeling better, though?”
“Yes and no,” Clara admitted. “Look,” she began, suddenly desperate to get it over with, “there’s something I need to tell you.”
“I knew it!” Lucia crowed. “I knew something was up! Didn’t I tell you girls?”
“You did,” Elena confirmed, tucking a strand of jet black hair behind her ear.
“You found your mate, didn’t you?” Lucia went on.
Clara could almost feel the color creeping into her face. “Wh…” She swallowed hard. “What makes you think that?”
“Oh, come on! You vanish right after market night and then hide away for a whole week?”
Clara blinked, clenching her hands together to hide her trembling. Had they seen her at the Facility with Evander? As Alpha women, they would have gone too. “All right, yes, I’ve found my mate. But it’s not as simple as that.”
Her three friends’ initial grins faded as Clara remained serious. “Gods, hon, something’s really bothering you, isn’t it?” Elena said softly. “I thought you’d be over the moon.”
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