by Penny Bloom
Penny Bloom
Copyright 2017 Penny Bloom
All rights are reserved.
This romance is intended for adults.
Chapter One
Loris
This was against my morals.
I didn’t know whether this person had worked for this car or stole for this car.
But right now it didn’t matter. This was a matter of survival, and this Enzo Ferrari was going to seal the deal.
I was nestled in black outside the stone mansion. The owner to this red super car had left it out like an idiot. There was only one thing going for him and that was this state of the art car alarm.
Heh, state of the art my ass. I had some tricks up my sleeve too. If a security alarm was two steps forward, I was four. And right now I was only a few seconds away from getting into his car.
Good, I didn’t want to do option B. That would strip me of any dignity I had left. I wasn’t the average Omega that didn’t mind lying down for the first Alpha I saw.
This fire engine red Enzo Ferrari would net be about twenty grand in cash. The taste of freedom danced on my tongue.
I heard a click and knew I was in. The wild grin that melted onto my lips felt awkward, but hell, this car was mine.
Rent was due, and I had bills to pay. Things that required money never had patience, it was either you pay or you’d pay.
The smell of new car hit me. This owner had the works, red leather interior and carbon fiber touches. I checked my surroundings again and slid into the car like a snake.
Thank goodness you didn’t need a key these days to start a car, and the motor on this purred like a kitten.
I pushed on the start button and the car rumbled to life.
“That’s a good girl,” I praised. Damn, I was good at stealing cars.
It would’ve been better if I had known the person I was stealing it from.
With a house like this, maybe he was a greedy politician? Whatever he was, I chose to believe he didn’t need the car anyways.
I pushed on the gas and the car turned off.
Uh oh, that was not a good sign. I jumped out through the passenger’s side door and rolled on the ground. A sprinkling of bullets were shot my way.
“Aw come on!” I hissed, ducking behind one of the man’s other cars.
“Come out you piece of shit!” he yelled.
I’d be pissed too if someone was trying to steal a one million dollar car.
His footsteps stomped closer, and I went around his other Bentley, staying low to the ground. He had some other friends running down the driveway too.
And they all had guns.
Abort mission!
If there was anything I could rely on right now, it’d be my speed and agility as a gymnast.
I dashed across the green damp grass, bullets zooming in my direction. One grazed me on the calf, but I still kept going.
*Damn it, they’re still on my tail!*
I jumped up into some trees and swung myself out of view. The mob of screaming men still shot at me blindly, hoping to land a bullet in my ass.
Tough luck, I didn’t go down that easy.
From the smell of it, they were all Beta men. I could’ve easily mistaken them for Alphas the way they charged behind me like bulls.
*Huh, maybe they were bull shifters*
Tree branches and leaves whipped my body and face as I leapt from branch to branch, escaping death.
Well, death and prison.
There was an approaching truck driving towards the city. I positioned myself and leapt down onto it, hitching a ride back to my doom.
*The money I could’ve gotten from that car, I wouldn’t even need to work a day in my life again.*
The ride back to the city was soothing. The night air was crisp and refreshing, carrying the scents of wet grass, trees and honeysuckle.
Hmm. Honeysuckle.
A long time ago someone used to say that I shared the same scent with a honeysuckle.
Funny.
I wondered how he was doing now. I hated leaving him. But I had things to take care of… cars to steal.
Where ever my friend was, I wished him well.
The truck entered the city, and I hopped off near an alley way. The pain from my grazed calf started to radiate and leach up my leg.
Who’d buy an Omega’s heat if he looked like this?
“Oh, I could hide it with some skinny jeans,” I said, sighing to myself.
Looks like I’d have to pay the price. Goodbye dignity, I knew you well.
I limped over to a bus stop and sat down to give my leg a break. Some alcohol and a bandage would do it some good.
A lady came over to the bus stop, puffing her cigarette and glanced over my leg.
“Eww, yo, are you okay?” she asked.
“Yeah, I’m fine! Just a little parkour gone wrong!” I said in my happy voice.
“Shit, you do that, huh? Pretty dangerous.”
“Well, it’s exciting for me.”
The bus honked, and I stood up. Luckily I had my transfer still tucked on the side of my boot. I pulled it out and got on the bus.
God, Milly, my friend and pet cat was going to meow me a new one.
Halo City. The city of dreams and the city of nightmares. For me, it teetered on both sides. Tonight could’ve ended a nightmare or as a dream come true, and yet it still ended up as a nightmare, just on a softer note.
The bus ride was bumpy because of the pot holes the city neglected to take care of. I made sure my calf didn’t rub up against something or shake too much.
My condo wasn’t too far from here.
The bus took a left and went through my favorite part of the city.
It was called Black Alley. It had everything, clubs, bars, porn joints, you name it. The cheesy lights with silhouettes of women and men lit up the streets with Alphas eager to go into each one.
We left the Black Alley district and my stop was coming up. I yanked on the yellow cord of the bus to signal my stop and dragged myself to the front of the bus.
“Have a good night,” I said to the bus driver.
“You too,” he said, nodding his head.
When I got to my door, I could already here Milly meowing and scratching.
*Inhale, exhale. Of course she was right this time. You already knew… kinda. But still!*
I opened the door and Milly jumped into my arms.
“Whoa! Are you bleeding? I smell iron,” she asked me. “It didn’t go too well, did it?”
Milly was a Calico stray that I had found in an alley about three years ago. Since I was a cat shifter, I was able to converse with her.
“No, not at all. And don’t go meowing about how you told me so. I already know. I just—”
“Calm down, Loris. I know. No one wants to lick some sweaty balls of an Alpha anyways. Gross. Yeck. Not unless it was your fated mate or something like that.”
Milly had begun to purr on my chest and I scratched her head. I limped over to my couch and sat her down so I could take this tight outfit off. Alphas must’ve been staring at me like a piece of fillet mignon in this get-up.
“Yeah. But my heat will take my mind off of all that. Speaking of which, I need to call Mauve and ask him how that whole process works.”
Milly followed me into the bedroom of my condo and jumped onto my bed.
“Are you okay, Loris?” she asked.
“I think so. We’ll see how this goes…”
I went into the bathroom and prepared a bath. Too bad there wasn’t any alcohol I had stashed away somewhere.
“Hey! There’s someone knocking at the door!” Milly alerted me, staying at the door since even the sound of water freaks her out.
Carefully, I slid up to the door and looked through the peephole. It was a cop.
Fuck.
I opened the door with the chain still on.
“Hello, officer, can I help you?”
He sighed and rubbed his forehead. “Are you Loris Mogens?” h
e asked.
“Yes, how—”
“Here,” he said, shoving a vanilla envelope in my face. “We’ve been waiting to serve you these eviction papers. You have three weeks to pay the rent or we’re gonna have to boot you out.”
He turned on his heels and disappeared down the hallway.
Great. This was inevitable.
Three weeks? If I were an Alpha I’d be given two months.
I closed the door and threw the vanilla envelope to the side. Being an Omega was too much sometimes. Especially if you were an un-mated Omega. That was much worse.
“Eviction, huh?” Milly licked her paw. “Don’t even worry about it. You’ll be fine!”
“I hope.”
I grabbed my phone and limped back to my bath. I sat my body into the wide tub and relaxed the tension in my muscles.
Scrolling through my contacts, I pushed on Mauve. He hadn’t heard from me in a while…
“Loris?!” he said, answering the phone. “Is that really you calling? God it’s been forever!”
“Sorry, been caught up with life. I need to ask you for a favor. You know how you guys have that auction?”
“The Omega Heat auction? Yeah—wait, you’re not doing what I think you are, are you?”
I crunched my eyes closed and frowned.
“God, I thought you were one of those innocent Omegas,” he teased.
“Oh please, you know I’m not as innocent as I look!”
“Yeah, yeah. Well, he have an auction going on tomorrow evening. Drop on by and I’ll get you hooked up.”
“Thanks Mauve, and it’s nice hearing you again! How’s your mate, Sasha?”
“Pregnant! We’re gonna have us a load of pups!” he exclaimed. Wow, he was totally looking forward to becoming a father.
He had a mate and the whole damn package. Looks like Halo City was holding up the ‘dream’ side of it for someone.
“Wow, tell Sasha I said hi. Congratulations, Mauve, it couldn’t have happened to a better person.”
“Thanks, I’ll see you tomorrow, around six, okay?”
“Alrighty! Good night.”
“’Night!”
I hung up and dropped my head back. I stared at the ceiling and allowed my mind to draw a blank.
Tomorrow evening. I’d be technically selling my heat off to some slimy perverted Alpha. Gross.
*But maybe some good sex would do me some good?* I sighed and dropped my head forward. *Or maybe not. I was really hoping to save myself for my mate… If I even have one.*
I lathered up some soap and gently cleaned my calf. A small tickle of itching happened around the wound, signaling a speedy recovery. Good.
Milley rubbed herself against the door of the bathroom and let herself in.
“Hey, guess what the cat dragged in?!” Milley purred.
“What is it Milley?”
“Remember how I said I had an emergency package for you, if you ever needed to auction off your heat?” she said, walking up to my tub.
Holy snap, she must’ve been serious. Milley did not like water. At. All.
“Yeah?” I said, nodding my head to the side and rubbing the lathered up cloth down an arm.
“Well, it’s time to show you!”
She ran out of the bathroom and pushed in a long white box with a golden emblem on it.
She had my interest now.
“This isn’t lingerie or sex toys again, is it?”
“Nope! Fuck me pumps!” she sung, rubbing her paws together.
“Milley! Really?”
She took the top off to reveal knee high black stiletto boots. God, the heels on those devils were razor thin and high. How was I gonna walk in that?
Milley winked. “You know Alphas, those dirty little bastards love them some pumps and a butt.”
Chapter Two
Gideon
Nothing was in order.
Everything was a complete hazardous mess.
“How can a CEO of a tech company have nothing in order?” I growled to myself.
**Because you need an Omega,** my inner wolf said.
*Leave me alone, I don’t need your comments.**
*Yes. Yes you do. Go get laid. You’re losing your mind.**
“I am not losing my mind if shit is really happening all around me,” I roared.
I caught myself and reclined back in my seat. Fuck, my staff may’ve heard me. Bad enough I didn’t look like the average CEO. No, I wasn’t the skinny lanky kind with suave looks. I was like a wrestler and lumberjack in one.
I could’ve been the alpha of my family, but I couldn’t give them an heir.
I refused to sleep with just any old Omega for a child. It was unfair to not only me, but for the kid and the Omega.
There was only one Omega that I truly had wanted. And he disappeared before I had the balls to tell him I wanted him.
**This time that means you need to nail that piece of ass you like the first time you see it.**
There were a myriad of Betas, Alphas and Omegas that worked under me, but there scents didn’t ring anything special.
Many times I’ve thought of going out and enjoying a one night stand, a fling, something.
Then I’d see his face. And I felt like a fucking failure.
Knock knock.
“Enter,” I said, recognizing the scent of my secretary.
She hobbled in with her glasses on the bridge of her nose and a frown on her face. I read the signals all too well.
“Mr. Jax, we’ve… lost another account. I don’t know what’s been happening.”
“Hmm, I know. Something suspicious is going on,” I said, keeping my tone of voice confident. “I’ll get to the bottom of this.”
She nodded her head and grinned. The last thing I needed was losing the faith of my employees.
I had built this company when I left my family in my younger brother’s hands. Even he didn’t have children.
The clock was ticking for him as well.
When I left my family, I decided to numb my mind from the lost of my first mate, my first love.
He probably didn’t even know.
This business began to boom and instead of the millions that my family was worth, I alone made billions.
With age and lots of regret, things have begun to take a slip. My office didn’t give me that satisfaction anymore. The endless amounts of money didn’t spike my pride.
It was as if I were just surviving day to day with no goal, no plan in life.
**You need an Omega.**
*I know. But I haven’t been able to find him…*
**Any Omega.**
I leaned back in my chair and rocked myself into a calmer state. I haven’t truly invoked my full Alpha in a while.
**Maybe you should shift and have a good run tonight.**
*…*
**Oh, come on! I can sniff out some good Omegas.**
Knock, knock.
I sniffed at the door and the scent behind it was no other than my long time friend, Drew Fatherfeld.
“Come in,” I said, bracing myself. Drew wasn’t the mild type of friend.
**He’s my type of friend!**
“Gideon! Where the hell have you been recently? I damn near thought you were dead!” he hollered, throwing himself down onto one of the sofas in my office.
“Mmm, indeed. I do feel like one sometimes. What drama are you bringing to me today?” I asked, placing my elbows on my desk.
“I noticed the price of your stocks falling…”
“Mhmm.”
He leaned over the foot of the couch and frowned.
“You know what I’m about to say.”
“Then don’t say it.”
He laughed. “Please! You got to stop denying yourself. When was the last time you met a celibate Alpha? That’s got to be breaking some sort of laws. Plus, you know what happens when an Alpha doesn’t mate for a long time.”
“Drew, please—”
“No.” He lifted his hand t
o stop me. “You need to hear this. An Alpha that doesn’t mate starts to get sloppy. It can affect your health, business, everything.”
**Listen, he’s right.**
*I know…*
Drew propped himself out of the couch and strode over to me. Slamming his hands on my desk, he stared me straight in the eyes.
“I have a plan. You’re gonna love it.”
“Your plans scare me,” I said, grinning.
**Shit, they scare me too.**
“Dude, there’s this place called Club Halo. They’ve started this dating slash heat kinda thing. Basically Omegas are auctioning their delectable heats off to wealthy Alphas. They even get virgins every so often.”
Drew was drooling at the mouth. He just wanted to drag me along for the ride. At this point I couldn’t keep ignoring it. I needed to open myself up to finding my fated mate.
As painful as that sounded, it was true.
My business took a decline.
My body’s energy in the mornings was on empty.
**You’re not even masturbating anymore.**
*Shut it.*
And I’ve secluded myself from the world.
I was too damn handsome and rich for this shit. The inner Alpha wolf in me needed to be free.
**About fucking time!**
“Fine, we’ll go.”
Drew’s jaw dropped and hit the floor.
“Woah, wait, I didn’t even have to put up a fight with you to get you to come. What’s going on? You finally seeing the light?” he asked, straightening his tie.
“Yes. When does this Club Halo open?”
“In just a few hours… heh heh!”
Drew dropped himself in one of the chairs in front of my desk. A wide smile plastered itself on his face as he checked his phone. It wouldn’t hurt to try to better myself.
And try to have some sex.
In the back of my mind I wondered if he had moved on too. Had he found his fated mate? What if he were never interested in me?
Too much to think about.
Drew was right. I needed to let loose.
**You do know I said that first.**
*Yes, but I wasn’t going to go strolling down the street on the hunt for an Omega. I’m more strategic than that.*
***
After another closed account and three hours later, Drew dragged me off to Club Halo. I followed him in my Bentley, preparing myself mentally for the will to mate.