Page 21 of The Omega

“Clara Klevean at your service,” a female voice came from the other side—someone with shifter hearing presumably.

“I sent help your way.” I could hear Aspen smile over the phone and wasn’t sure I liked the sound of it. “Open up and let her in before someone from the show sees.”

I threw open the door to a freckled woman with curly red hair that frizzed in all different directions. The scent of coyote hit strong. She wasn’t much taller than me, but the beast of a male wolf shifter behind her was bigger than the two of us put together.

I sniffed again, frowning. They didn’t stink so that meant they were… mated?

Not that it mattered. I wasn’t one to judge.

“Aspen sent us.” Clara nodded at the phone as she and her mate pushed their way into my hotel room.

“Have fun,” Aspen said as she hung up.

Fun? I swallowed as my wolf whined. We weren’t used to anyone being in our space.

“Oh, don’t worry, sweetie.” Clara crooned as she looked the room over like she owned it. “We’re here for you.”

That bristled my fur a bit, but Aspen had sent them and I didn’t want to be rude. “Thanks for coming. Can I offer you some… coffee or tea?”

I hadn’t touched the complimentary packets that came with the room. Might as well have someone use them.

Clara gave me a funny look. “Is that an Omega thing?”

“Is what an Omega thing?” My heart sank, preparing for the snide comments and jabs.

It was too early in the morning to do this.

“Being nice even though you’re freaking out.” Clara’s blunt statement caught me off-guard. That was not the direction I thought we were heading.

“I… Um… I don’t know,” I stuttered. “Isn’t that a polite everyone thing?”

You know what was an Omega thing? Being hyper aware of everyone’s emotions all the time. It wasn’t often shifters picked up on subtle emotional hints when they weren’t paying attention.

“Definitely not everyone. And honestly, I’m okay with it. I wish more grown women would speak their minds instead of trying so hard to keep the peace. Other than a few Karens, I can’t think of many women who don’t have something fun to add to the conversation once they get talking. But I know of more than a few men that I’d prefer keep their mouths shut,” Clara paused her rant to look at the big guy and her expression softened.

“Not you though, Ivan. Can you put cameras over here?” She pointed to a spot above the kitchenette.

Ivan grunted in response.

“Cameras?” I stepped back as he moved about the room. Vaguely, I remembered him from last season, hovering around Aspen.

“Not in your private space or anything,” Clara spoke fast. She was angry about something, but I got the feeling it didn’t have anything to do with me. “For your protection. We can keep an eye on you and make sure no one else comes in your room.”

No one? My wolf gulped.

That didn’t sound like a good time at all, especially not with the anxious mix of hormones that were swirling in my body now.

“You don’t need to do this,” I said, taking the coyote’s advice and trying to speak up for myself.

“Pssh.” She waved me off. “You took one for my girl, now you’re basically family. Plus, Ranger and Aspen are stinking the place up with pheromones as they get ready for this mating season. Honestly, you’re doing us a favor by being the excuse to get out of the house.”

I couldn’t help but smile as she continued to word vomit all over the place.

“And, don’t tell anyone, but Ivan and I love this show,” she continued.

My eyes went to the big guy who was installing a pin-sized device above the heater vent. He nodded.

See? Everyone loves love.