Their Forbidden Bonds

Chapter Four

Nuru's Pov

Time seemed to race by as I longed for it to stand still. We’d only just begun our classes on Monday and suddenly Friday was here.

Anna's meaningful glances and questioning made me suspicious that she knew what was happening.

Once darkness had settled in and the boarding master had made sure we were in for the night, I kept waiting for the signal from Anna that it was time for us to leave.

I almost dozed off when I heard three consecutive coughs followed by a sneeze, which was the sign.

Sluggishly, I crawled out of my bed, dragging my shoes which were below my bed before wrapping a scarf around my hair covering my mouth and nose in the process.

Despite few people knowing what I looked like, I did not want to take any chances.

Making sure I locked my door, I headed towards the exit door where Anna and four other omegas were waiting.

“I almost thought you were not coming,’’ Anna whispered when I got closer to the group.

“Welcome, your majesty.” Phoebe, who seemed to be the ringleader, snickered while the other three gasped. We were a few omegas, so we all knew each other by name.

“Anyway, since you are here, we are going to a brothel,’’ she continued while looking at each of us.

Anna expressed shock, whereas the other three omegas showed enthusiasm.

Camilla, the quieter of the three, chimed in, “At least we get to hear from actual omegas having s.ex how to please our alphas,’’ she said while giving each of us a knowing look.

Our classes were a lost cause, none of us grasping anything useful from them. That finally piqued my interest. Knowledge was power, and I needed it.

“A smart one,’’ Phoebe continued, appreciating Camilla’s words.

“ I know of a brothel that I overheard my brothers speak of. It’s close by and it’s highly rated. What better place to get practical knowledge? We can ask for an omega,’’ she continued in a hushed whisper.

I nodded, agreeing with her.

“So, everyone knows the drill. As for you,’’ she said while pointing at me, “keep that scarf on. I don’t want to be responsible for your stained reputation,’’ she finished before she turned towards the door, unlocking it and beckoning us outside.

How she could do that remained a mystery. She then locked it and led the way toward the edge of the fence before heading toward the gate at the rear end of the school.

There at the end was a guard whose face twitched in recognition as we came into view.

The closer we got, I realized he was smiling.

“Found another innocent girl to corrupt,’’ he joked while Phoebe smiled as he handed her a phone and she passed him three gold coins.

“The more the merrier,’’ she replied as he unlocked the small gate. I passed him, not wanting to make any eye contact.

Despite that, he made sure to whisper right next to my ear,

“Have fun,’’ and I shivered in disgust.

Now that we were outside, I started second guessing the whole idea, but even before I could utter my discomfort, a car was making its way towards us.

“Our ride is here,’’ Phoebe said as the driver rolled up towards where we were.

We shuffled in quietly and he drove off. Neither we nor the driver said a word till we got to our destination. The drop-off location looked more like a residential building despite the few movements of people going inside and outside.

The guard at the door said nothing as we passed him and were guided by the sensual music into the building.

At the entrance, a smiling omega who guided us up a flight of stairs and left us there received us.

Phoebe, always the leader, steered us into the room which was occupied by other omegas, to my relief, but that did not stop me from keeping myself hidden.

The room itself seemed to overlook a ground floor where most of the women were hanging off the balustrade, looking below.

The lady who had escorted us once again joined us again with wine glasses.

“What will you be having?’’ she asked, but somehow kept her gaze on me.

“Get us a red wine,’’ Phoebe replied, getting the attention off me.

After handing each of us a glass, she left before a server who poured the wine and showed us to an empty spot on the balcony joined us.

Nothing could have prepared me for the sight below.

Nearly naked bodies of both omegas and alphas were sprawled on couches and pillows, some talking and others looking up at us. Had I not been clinging to my glass, I would have dropped it right at the bottom.

My eyes could barely find a place to land with all the skin on display. My mouth was wide open, probably trapping trespassing mosquitoes in the room.

“So, who will you choose?’’ the lady from earlier whispered right beside us.

“Who is your most popular omega? “Phoebe asked immediately after.

“That’s who we want,” she added as she handed the lady a gold coin, who raised her eyebrows in surprise. That was way above anyone’s pay grade.

“Let me send her up,” the lady replied before slightly bowing before us.

Below us, we could see the lady head towards a pretty, pale, brown-haired omega who looked up towards where we were sitting, eyes widening before she nodded, making her way toward us.

“Hello guys, this is surprising,” she greeted us as she joined us. We all tried to smile as we replied before she guided us to the couches. All the other ladies looked at us suggestively, others smiling knowingly as if they knew a hidden secret.

“My name is Mimi,’’ she introduced herself with ease, then looked around at our small group of six expectantly. We went around, each of us introducing ourselves.

When it was my turn, she seemed curious about why I was hiding, and Phoebe picked up on it.

“Don’t mind her. She means no offense.” She came to the rescue. I had to give it to Phoebe, even if I did not like her that much. She was great at picking up things that were not said.

“So we are here, not for your services but expertise with alphas,” Phoebe began, clasping her hands excitedly towards Mimi, who seemed relieved.

Letting out a giggle, Mimi then went on to give us a rundown of everything. There was not much that she spoke about that our instructor hadn’t told us. Just that she was more detailed in her explanations, and our flaming cheeks were a testament to it.

“You all seem to be unmated?’’ she asked curiously, and we all nodded, not wanting to elaborate more.

“We are preparing for the presentation weekend. The Moon Goddess bless the princess because we are about to make a year’s worth of money with all the visitors coming in, “she said.

“You girls could come and scout for potential mates. I know it’s not the most ideal place, but trust me, we get some prime crop here,’’ she winked and I recoiled.

The chances of finding my mate there were nil, and I was pretty sure of it.

“So none of you are interested in speaking to an Alpha? Or don’t high-class omegas like yourselves slam with their likes,” she mocked, and I could see everyone get uncomfortable.

In as much as we had all been daring, that was a line no one seemed to want to cross.

“I have a friend who can give you an alpha’s perspective on all that you were asking me earlier,” she added.

Like a well-laid trap, I fell for it and ended up volunteering myself out without so much thought.

My streak of impulsiveness ran a record high for the night.

She pointed him out and I noticed he was a pale-looking male with brown hair, nothing about him striking from my point of view. They seemed to communicate between themselves when she caught his eye.

“Follow the stairs on your right, his room is C,” she said, smiling, and I headed out, leaving behind five pairs of worried eyes and one amused one.

The stairs led to another floor, the hallway dimly lit and the doors all signed in alphabets. C was the fifth door, and I tried the handle, which had a red tag on it and did not cross my mind as strange. I let myself into the room, which I realized was untidy.

The door after a few seconds rattled, and I glanced behind me, beckoning the alpha inside, not taking much care to look at him, wanting to have some distance while trying to hide my nervousness.

That’s what led me to bursting out the first thing that crossed my mind. The state of the room. We were not going to even be using the bed. I wondered why I had blurted that out.

The alpha quickly came to defend himself, sounding really apologetic that I felt bad enough about it.

His next question on if I was not from the city was what finally made me turn, wondering what had given me away. I had picked my simplest clothes, nothing that stood out.

Did I smell different?

“Does that matter?’’ I asked as I finally made eye contact with my counterpart.

I was convinced my eyes were playing tricks on me. No way was this the guy I had seen before.

I studied his silhouette, illuminated by the faint light coming from the bare bulb overhead.

I was looking at his muscled tanned arms, trying to figure out when he got time to bask in the sun.

I almost missed his question, which once again threw me off. To him, I stood out like a sore thumb, and with quick thinking, I played along, remembering what Mimi had told us.

I grinned, feeling playful all of a sudden.

There was something uniquely handsome about him. His hair was all patched up in two colors and on him, it looked pretty attractive. And his eyes….I had never seen anything like them.

“Well, I’ll do my best to meet your expectations,” he replied, startling me from my ogling.

“I have no doubt that you will,” I said, my voice low and husky, hoping I sounded seductive and not like I was losing my breath.

None of us moved, taking our time to look at each other. I was strangely curious about him. We both knew none was expecting the other and the alpha must have been playing at something.

If I needed him to talk, I would need to share something about myself.

“I’ll be honest. You are right. I am not from here. My husband died immediately after our wedding and it’s been really hard. All the alphas are weary of me and I have been very lonely. I just wanted to feel appreciated just for the night,’’ I said, hoping my impeccable acting skills would sell my story.

A sad sigh left the alpha’s mouth before he hesitantly moved towards me.

I wanted to move away, never having been this close to a man who wasn’t my father.

“Can I hug you?” he asked, the sympathy and understanding in his eyes unhidden.

I nodded before warm, muscular arms wrapped around me. I tried subtly scenting him, but on suppressants, I got nothing, which made me surprisingly irritated.

I took that as an opportunity to ask about himself.

“Why are you here yourself?” I asked, taking advantage of our vulnerable position.

“The money,” he replied bitterly.

“Does it pay that well?’’ I couldn’t help but wonder.

“Not really, but it’s better than most of the shitty jobs out there. If I had a better option, I honestly wouldn’t be here,’’ he replied.

Finally, he unwrapped his arms around me, giving me a small smile. There was an air of sadness around him and I felt the need to help him out. The few gold coins I had in my pocket probably could help him, but not for long.

He was a nice guy and from our brief conversation, I could tell there was a possibility we could become friends.

Without thinking much about it, I remembered my mother’s letter.

“You know, in the palace, there is a job opening to be advertised soon. Will be paying well,’’ I started before he furrowed his eyebrows and stepped away.

“Are you royalty or something?’’ he spat out, and I was taken aback.

Where had that come from?

“I..work at the palace. A cleaning girl,’’ I mumbled.

“We get told about the postings before they are advertised,’’ I continued, hoping he believed my lies.

“Sorry, I don’t think I can work around there without accidentally choking someone,’’ he laughed, and I joined in awkwardly, still wondering what he held against the palace and its people.

Wringing my hands in front of me, I looked at him and hoped he would feel the sincerity in my words.

“Just try it out,” I said before the door was thrown open and a concerned Mimi rushed in.

“You had us so worried. Zion couldn’t find you and your friends are anxious and want to leave,’’ she said, not sparing the alpha a look.

“I told you, Z. How did you get in here?’’ she asked, pulling me out and heading to the lower floor where Anna was pacing and Phoebe met me with an angry glare.

“We are leaving,’’ Phoebe said before I could apologize to everyone.

A felt a twinge of sadness that I had not bid the alpha goodbye or even known his name.

But guilt covered that emotion up.

I felt like I had betrayed Cedric.