Page 77 of The Omega

And the hour before that. Like clockwork. Volk Pack had a security team that patrolled the borders, but I don’t know who they were worried about.

Unless it was me.

That riled my beast a bit. Pretentious pricks assuming we’d do anything to them. Maybe decrease property values or some shit.

“We need to talk.” Atlas buttoned his pants and pulled on a shirt as he came up to the fire.

“That was fast. Two pumps this time?” My teasing lacked any real malice. I was too tired to fight. Opal’s soft snores drifted from the nest, making my wolf relax. Neither of us had the energy to do much more.

“No jokes.” Atlas crouched on the other side of the firepit so he could keep an eye on the nest behind me. “We need to figure this out.”

“Figure what out?” I added another cut log to the fire. That’s what I should’ve told Georgie to bring. More wood.

“Don’t be stupid. We need a plan,” Atlas barked.

I moved the meat off the rock before it overcooked, stalling. True, we’d been locked in a sort of stalemate the past few days while we tended to Opal’s needs. The full Worm Moon shone overhead, reminding us that the rut was at its peak, but that had been negated by her early heat.

And we still had more to do here.

“Opal… She…” Atlas stared into the fire. If I didn’t know better, I’d have asked if he had a stutter. “She doesn’t deserve to live like this. We can’t keep her here forever.”

“Can’t we, though?” I smirked. “I was thinking we could build her a place right here in the middle. Give her a castle to invite us to when she sees fit.”

It’s not a bad idea…

Atlas grabbed a stick to stir the fire higher. “I shouldn’t expect someone like you to understand.”

“Someone like me?” I scoffed. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean? Is the little country boy still mad the riffraff moved next door?”

“It’s not even about that.” He clenched his jaw. “Opal is a Luna. We can’t keep her isolated away from the pack.”

“Your pack, you mean.” I glared at him. “And you’re an idiot who hasn’t been paying attention. She doesn’t want the spotlight. She wants this. Something simple. To be loved and cared for. Building a place here is perfect.”

“No, you don’t understand what she’s been through and how that makes her want to hide away,” Atlas growled.

“And what do you know about that?” I growled in return, feeling a sinking sensation in my gut. I’d known she’d experienced some hardship. She wouldn’t move like she did without it. But to think that she’d confided in Atlas and not me… That she felt safer around him and knew he could give her more.

Nope. Don’t like that.

“I spoke with her Alpha,” Atlas said.

“You… You… What?” I sputtered, outraged on Opal’s behalf. “How could you go behind her back?”

“This is why you’re not fit to lead a pack.” Atlas’s eyes narrowed. “Opal knows I spoke with him. I wouldn’t have lied or kept that from her. But it’s an Alpha’s job to protect his pack and his mate. When I saw traits in her suggesting abuse, I needed to get the whole story before my wolf took control.”

With my tongue in my cheek, I turned my face to the night sky and the shining moon above. His words touched something that shouldn’t have mattered.

“You’re not fit to lead.”

Yeah, well, he’s not fit to please my mate.

“Journey is a decent Alpha,” Atlas kept talking. “I ended up asking for his permission to take care of her and he made me promise I would.”

My fists clenched at my side as I nodded.

I should’ve thought of that.

“And I intend to honor that promise,” he said. “Which brings me back to my original question. How are we going to give Opal the life she deserves between the two of us?”