Page 62 of The Don’s Omega

“You don’t even know me, Elio. It’s arrogant of you to think you can predict what I’m capable of.”

“Maybe it is. But judging by how you’ve been with me since we met...” I sigh. “Can… can I speak freely?”

“Go for it,” he snaps.

“Well, to be brutally honest, you’re selfish. Conceited. You’re used to doing what you want and answering to no one.”

“Of course. I’m the head of the Foschini syndicate. Who would I have to answer to?”

“But that’s my whole point,” I rasp. “With that attitude, why would an omega feel confident they could rely on you for emotional anything? An omega would have to be crazy to think they’d come first for you. You will always come first for you.”

He truly looks insulted and confused. He’s not acting. His face is flushed and his eyes dark and serious. He dislikes what I’m saying, but I don’t think he knows how to counter it because I’m telling the truth. He’s all the things I’ve said he is. He knows that. Everyone knows that.

He doesn’t speak for a few minutes, he simply watches me. I can see the struggle going on inside of him. His arrogant side wants to crush me for daring to say the things I said. But there’s another side that’s trying to hear my words more logically. Less emotionally.

When he finally speaks, he sounds hurt. “Perhaps instead of only seeing what I’m not, you could try to see what I am. Am I selfish? Yes. But you know what else I am, Elio? Loyal. Protective. Will I be the sort of alpha who remembers anniversaries and brings you flowers for no reason? I’m not sure. But I am the kind of alpha who will die for you. Kill for you. And never abandon you.”

Guilt nips at me because I see he’s wounded. It’s surprising to realize because Marcello acts cold and untouchable most of the time. Knowing my words hurt him makes me feel like a jerk. “I’m sorry if I was too blunt.”

A muscle works in his jaw. “If that’s how you feel then that’s how you feel.”

I didn’t expect my words to mean anything to him. “Marcello, I know you have good qualities. I didn’t mean to imply you don’t. I know you love your family deeply. I know you’re very protective of them. But I’m not your family and I’m… I’m just afraid to go through the next three years alone.”

“What makes you think you’re alone?” He scowls. “What are you lacking for? I’ve given you everything you asked for. I’m even adjusting the contract to please you. How is it I’m still falling short? How can you feel alone when I’m right here giving you anything you ask for?”

“You’re talking about material things.” I grimace. “When we first met, you yourself said you didn’t want a real relationship. You said the omega would expect affection and time from you. You said you only wanted an heir and freedom. Those were your words, not mine. None of that makes me think you would support me emotionally. Quite the opposite.”

His expression changes as I throw his words back at him. “Okay, fair enough. I did say that. But that was before I gave you my bite. I didn’t know what it would do to me. How it would make me feel.”

My chest tightens at the raw emotion in his voice. “How did claiming me make you feel?”

He scowls. “Possessive. Obviously.”

My pulse spikes at the territorial look in his dark eyes. “And now you don’t want to share me?”

“Of course not,” he mutters irritably. “I claimed you. You’re mine.”

It’s impossible not to feel flattered that he wants me all to himself. His bite makes me crave that from him too. But can he be trusted to be faithful? I don’t know and I lean toward probably not. “When we first met, you said you understood why I might want the comfort of people who were more like me.”

Impatience flashes through his eyes. “There’s no point in reminding me of what I said before I claimed you. I didn’t grasp what would happen between us. Things are different now. What I need and want is different.”

“So, as usual, you want things your way.”

His eyes flicker and he steps back. “I guess the claiming wasn’t the same for you as it was for me.”

I sigh. “That’s not true. I feel what you feel. I didn’t enjoy seeing you and Sandro together tonight. It pissed me off. But I also don’t trust you. Right this moment, I think you have good intentions. But what happens in a year when you’re bored with me?”

His nostrils flare. “That won’t happen.”

“You don’t know that. You were with Sandro two years, but then you dropped him the moment you decided another option suited you better. How can I trust you won’t do that same thing to me?”

“I didn’t claim Sandro.”

“I guess that’s true,” I murmur. “But maybe that supports my point. You spent two years with him but still didn’t give him the one thing he truly wanted from you.”

“That’s because I always knew he was temporary.”

“I’m temporary.”