Energy of the Omega

Part 7

Caly’s POV

I had hoped to sneak over to my desk and work quietly on the large pile of folders in my inbox.  I heard the unmistakable sound of the door’s lock being engaged and immediately knew that I was trapped.  Apparently, I was going to be locked away from the whole world today, and rather than feel secure, it made me anxious.  We weren’t alone in the office either, Beta Arlo was seated in front of the Alpha’s desk.  Darius gestures for me to take the other seat.

“So what did happen this morning, Caly?”  The Beta asks.  I don’t even look at him.  I know he doesn’t have a problem with me being an assistant in this office, he has even praised my work in the past. He eventually even conceded that sending me to Wolfgard University was in everyone’s best interest. Mostly he disapproved of an Omega being seen as influential to the hierarchy of this pack. Alpha Darius often had me sit with the head group at dinner time, and he probably has already been informed that I would be moving up to the top floor next week.  Even his and the Gamma’s private quarters were a floor below.  

There was also the issue with Jason being Gamma Carl’s son. He has never understood why I haven’t been told point-blank avoid Jase.  Clearly, I wasn’t his Mate.  Even Beta Arlo should realize I have no interest in having a romantic relationship with Jase for his status within the pack or the money he would undoubtedly inherit. I’m sure he thinks Jase would probably be paired with someone better than me anyway. 

‘b***h, please. We are far too good for that squirrel.  He’ll be damn lucky if he ends up mated with an Omega one-tenth as good as we are.  I hope his mate is as dumb as a bag of rocks.  I also hope she hurries the f**k up and gets him out of our hair permanently.  In the meantime, do you think we can convince the Alpha to command his ass to stay away from us?  100 yards should be sufficient.’

I ignore my wolf and look directly at the Alpha.  “Well, the Luna had her meeting with Kyrie this morning.  She had to take some of my measurements.”

“Why would an expensive clothier need your measurements.  We certainly don’t pay our office assistant enough to afford such luxuries. Do we?”  Beta Arlo may be facing in my general direction, but his words are clearly meant to be answered by the Alpha. He’s treading a thin line with questioning the Alpha.

Alpha Darius doesn’t show any emotion as he responds to the question, “We certainly don’t, but my Katherine has insisted Caly’s birthday present this year is to be business attire.  I tend to agree.  We can’t have her working in the office, being such an important part of our pack’s image, in her jeans and training shoes, can we?  Especially when My Kat has put in so much effort planning this Summit.”

Alpha Darius has basically silenced any and all of Beta Arlo’s questions.  He remains silent for the time being. “But that’s not the issue," he continues and turns back to me, “Why did Luna feel so shaken up that she had to lock you in?” 

Well, f**k.  It suddenly feels very warm, in this office. It feels stuffy and I am claustrophobic with the door locked and two powerful werewolves glaring down on me. I focus on my lap and my twitching fingers. Breathe. Breathe, I begin to chant to myself.

‘He’s not angry, Babe.  He’s concerned. Someone needs to look out for you.’ 

‘What happened to us being adults and independent?’ I remind her.

‘Be an adult then.  Just tell him the whole truth, without the histrionics.’ 

“Well, we had the door shut for privacy, but it didn’t start out locked.  I guess we didn’t feel it was necessary.  Long story short, I was only in my underthings, standing on a stool when someone walked in.”

Alpha Darius sucks in a loud deep breath and pinches the bridge of his nose with frustration. “I can just imagine who that might be.  So what did Jason end up doing?”

“As he entered the room he was being impossibly loud, so I was startled and I lost my footing.” I glance back up at the Alpha, “I feel backwards that wasn’t a big deal.  He caught me, and he noticed my state of undress, and he just didn’t want to let me go?”  It sounded more like a question as my voice trailed off and became a high pitch squeak at the end. 

“He lost control,” The Beta surmised.

“Kinda, yeah,” I admit. “Luna asked him to put me down.”

“Asked or commanded?”

“Commanded,” I admit weakly.

“But he didn’t?”

“No, Luna had to pry me off of him.  He was just ~ stuck, almost like he couldn’t move.”

“Then what happened?” 

“While I got dressed, Luna shoved him out of the office and locked the door.  He must have been still standing there, she told him to get downstairs and go burn off his energy on the training field,” I mutter.

“I think Luna has the right idea. Jason needs to spend a few extra hours of training each day. He can double his warrior training in the morning for the rest of this month.  Have Gamma Carl schedule him a six-hour block of time in the afternoon for teaching.  He can be in charge of instructing our teen wolves. It will be good for him to start working towards his future role in this pack.” 

“Alpha, I didn’t mean to get him in trouble!” I blurt out.  Doubling up on warrior training was a common form of punishment, he’s pretty fit and I know he would survive it just fine. Having him start work earlier would piss him off majorly though. I know he was hoping to at least have the summer off before starting work.  

“No. It certainly follows you though, doesn’t it, Caly?”  The Beta’s wave of anger is palpable, his words are dripping in sarcasm. Just because I don’t react to his voice of command, doesn’t mean I don’t feel nervous and small in his presence.

“Arlo!  She didn’t do anything wrong!  I would expect all wolves to show respect to a fellow pack member, regardless if they are female or an Omega.  Furthermore, if this is about status, then Jason is the one who should be held to a higher standard. We have to remain in control even if there are extenuating circumstances. I most certainly will not tolerate anyone in this pack not listening to me or Katherine.”

“You are always protecting her! Perhaps we should be encouraging her to grow up and handle herself!” The Beta exclaims.

“Yes, I do protect her. I am her Alpha, and her legal guardian, so I will continue to do so. We have certain obligations with the Council, remember?  So we will all do our best to protect this pack and everyone in it, am I understood?”  It’s a rare sight to see Alpha Darius so agitated, and I am swimming in my own head. I feel nauseous.  

 ‘Hmm, that is interesting…But you need to breathe, Babe. Big breath in, big breath out.’

‘What do you mean, Athena?’ I don’t get an answer from her though. I move on to the breathing.

“You are right, Alpha. My apologies,”  Beta Arlo doesn’t wait for a response, he only moves to his own desk and starts up his laptop.

‘I am so sorry. I can help send you some energy,’ I mind-link Alpha Darius.  I don’t want Beta Arlo to hear me, and I don’t particularly feel like sharing my gift with him anyway.

Alpha looks at me and smiles, ‘There’s nothing to worry about, Calypso. I am fine, and you will be as soon as I distract you with sorting through all the summit e-mails!’

“Let’s get to work then, shall we?” Alpha Darius says aloud.

For the rest of the afternoon, no one spoke a word.  At dinner time, Beta Arlo left the office just as Luna Katherine arrived with a kitchen Omega and our dinners.  I guess I must still be banished from the dining room and common areas.

“Did you and my Dear Alpha have a nice chat?” Luna asks me, but I don’t have a chance to respond.

“Yes, I’ve decided Jason has far too much free time on his hands. He will be training our future warriors full time.  Gamma Carl is pressed for time with the extra security measures that are in place for our Summit, so this will work out perfectly.” 

*****

The three of us continued working into the night, it was nearly 9 pm when I finally returned to my apartment. All I wanted was a hot shower and some comfy pyjamas. Maybe stream something funny for a few hours to wind down.

I open the door, and Athena is active in my head using her senses to check our surroundings.

‘He was here, lingering in my space.  I want to check the bedroom!’

‘Was it recently?’  I tell myself it doesn’t matter, he barges in here all the time.  Honestly, though, he should be able to sniff out if I’m home from out in the hallway.  He didn’t really need to be in here.

‘He definitely stayed a little while, parked his ass on my clean sheets!  Why couldn’t he wait at the table?’

‘How would I know what goes through his head?’ I snap at my wolf.  ‘I am not his damn keeper.’ I would hate to admit it to anyone, but I think our run-in this morning has affected me quite a bit.

‘Open the top drawer.’

‘Okay, why?’  

‘Because his scent is stronger here.’

‘Why the hell would he be standing at my dresser?’

‘He better not have put his hands on my skivvies, or I will lose my f*****g mind,’ She warns me with a growl.

‘Eww, that’s just too creepy, Athena.’

‘Isn’t that what I have been saying for the past seven years! Why do you never take me seriously?’

‘Was he touching my stuff, or no?’ I impatiently ask. 

‘No. He’s damn lucky if you ask me…’

‘Alright just drop it.’ I find an old nightshirt and grab a pair of panties from the drawer. I head straight to the bathroom for a hot shower.  Time to boil the day away.

I am soothed by the hot water, my skin becomes a pretty pink. The lovely smell of my shampoo hangs in the air, the steam helps to keep the tropical scent clinging through the tiny bathroom. All good things come to an end, and in steamy showers, it ends with a chilling blast of ice water. A little squeak pops out of my mouth as I struggle to turn the faucet off.  I pull myself to the bathroom counter, to brush my teeth before Athena convinces me to have a midnight snack.

‘Mint goes horribly with coffee and ginger snaps, just so you know, Babe,’ she casually mentions.

‘No. I need to be able to fit in the clothes Luna just wasted money on. Besides, we don’t need coffee at nearly ten in the evening. You need to help me get to sleep.  I have lots of work to do this week.’

She doesn’t argue, but it’s less subtle when she fills my senses with the smell of coffee and cookies.

‘Knock it off, no cookies for you.’

‘First off, don’t think for one second if I really wanted those cookies I wouldn’t be capable of marching you down to the kitchen. I won’t because I plan on looking sexy as hell for the Grand Ball.  I have an important mission this weekend.’  Athena purrs out it in a happy little hum.

‘Spare me the Mate lecture.’

‘You make the party happen, I find the Wolf, we both have a job to do. Having thirty or forty extra Alphas coming for a sleepover makes my job easier.’

‘You are forgetting that there will be nearly 150 men in attendance,’ That ought to rile her up, she won’t even entertain not getting an Alpha.  I finish brushing my teeth and pull off the towel from my hair. I think about leaving the towel that is wrapped around me and streaking the whole dozen steps to my bedroom.  I could save myself from walking back with it.

‘Whatever, b***h.  I know better,’ she quips.  She suddenly lets out a loud bark, ‘Hold tight to that towel!  The cookies and coffee are actually heading this way…Damn that squirrel…’

My door opens and startles the crap out of me.  Wait, she said squirrel…

Half a second later I see two coffees and a plate arrive before the pair of hands delivering it.  Jase’s worried look instantly brightens when he sees me. I’m not dressed!  

“Be right out!” I squeal out in an annoyingly high pitch. I sound like a frightened little girl. I rush to my bedroom and push the lock button on the door.  Why am I doing that? Jase wouldn’t actually hurt me. My pulse rushes in my ears.  This is silly, I shouldn’t be scared.  I’m going to get dressed, and have coffee with my best friend.  I rush to throw on my underwear and Athena makes a coughing noise into the word *clothes.  Okay, adding a bra and some shorts would be a good idea. *cough, pants! Leggings, covering and comfy.

I huff out a breath and swing open the door, with a plan to head straight to the kitchen. Instead, I walk straight into a hard body. Arms wrap tightly around me, and he crouches over my short body so he can press his nose below my ear.  I hear his tiny sniffles, even though he’s trying to not sound like he’s breathing in my scent.  He rubs his face against me, back and forth leaving his scent against my cheek and shoulder. He is finally able to calm a bit. I can at least give him this. He’s probably been worried about me since this morning. I pull back a bit, placing a hand near each of his shoulders, and with a little push I lift his head off me and look up into his eyes.  He’s still concerned, his face searching mine for something.

“Better?” I whisper.  I’m not sure how much I want to get into this conversation,  what difference would discussing this morning make anyway.  If I can get him to his happy place, I can still have time to watch a movie or something before bed. 

‘How ‘bout you tell him to stop f*****g touching me!!!!’  Her scream in my head pierces my brain with intense pain. I must have winced because Jase brings his thumbs up to my temples and rubs them in small circular motions.  This could feel nice if he wasn’t the reason for Athena’s outburst. 

“Headache?  I brought you a coffee and some cookies.”  He looks down hopefully at me.  

I decide to let the elephant in the room wither away.  I can’t have any argument right now, I’m too friggin’ tired.

“You better let me go before my coffee gets cold,” I try to smile disarmingly.  I push him a little further away and turn my body in the direction of my caffeine fix.  He doesn’t move with me, so I try again, “Don’t keep me from the cookies, Jase.  C’mon you know me better than this”  I giggle a little, trying to keep this light-hearted.  Laughing is actually the last thing on my mind.  He breaks his hold so I head right to my chair and lift my coffee to my lips.  He steps closer to the table but doesn’t take a seat.  

“I...Caly, I’m sorry. You know I like you, but I don’t want to do anything to f**k up our friendship.  You’re like my life-line, I don’t want to lose you because my wolf is an i***t. Please can we let this go? Please, Caly,” he begs.

“It’s fine, Jase,” I tell him.  He doesn’t look relieved. I pat my hand on the table across from me, ”It really is, come sit down now.” His feet shuffle and his butt lands heavily in the chair.  He slumps down into his seat, and I hand him a cookie. The whole thing goes into his mouth at once. He grabs his coffee and swigs back about half.  He’s probably wishing it was a beer or something even stronger. I offer him another small smile.

“You should totally learn to knock though.  Not just my door, but Luna’s as well.”  I give him the Mom look, the one that says ‘you should know better.’  I have it pretty decently mastered even without having pups of my own.  I’ll be ahead of the curve.

“Have another cookie, I’m getting sleepy,” I tell him.

‘There is a big difference between being tired and being sleepy.  Like being tired of his s**t, and tired of having to placate a squirrel.  Sleepy makes it sound like you are planning to be in bed before midnight.’

“I thought maybe we could watch a movie together.”

‘No!’ She barks at me again.  

“Not tonight, Jase. I’m headed to bed as soon as I finish my coffee,” I say trying to firmly keep up my resolve.

“Oh. Ok. Yeah,”  he stammers out.  Then it appears like the lightbulb goes off in his head, and a huge grin spreads across his face. “Tomorrow night we’ll have dinner together, we’ll make plans for your birthday!”

‘f**k’ Athena and I say at the same time in my head.

“There’s still lots of time to decide, it’s not for a few weeks,” I start on my excuses to avoid the discussion for as long as possible.

“You’re not leaving it to the last minute this year, Caly,” He tells me.  

Crap, he has finally figured me out. I need to step up my game, ”I’m not even sure I can do dinner tomorrow, with the Summit next week, I’ve been working late with the Luna and Alpha. We can talk about silly birthday plans after this weekend, okay?”

“I guess we can wait until after this weekend.  But I want to actually do something special this year.  You always hate your birthday, I want to change that!”

Athena actually presents a siren noise into my head, one of those really loud ones that are supposed to alert you to air raids or hurricanes or something. 

“You know I take my plans to sleep in very seriously that day, Jase. Please don’t be in here waking me up before breakfast this year,”  I try to chuckle to keep myself from gasping at the pain in my head. “Jase, I got to go to bed, before my brain explodes.  I’m sure I’ll see you tomorrow.”  I get up from the chair and Jase rises to follow me.  Instead of heading to my nice soft pillow and blankets, I go open the front door for him. 

“Want me to tuck you in, or get you some ibuprofen?” He asks, and I know full well he would like nothing more than to be ‘nursing’ me back to health while cuddling with me in bed.  Athena must be wearing me down because the thought of a man touching me right now makes my skin crawl. I shiver and shake my head no before I even say it out loud, “No. I’ll be fine, I just need to sleep.  Goodnight.”

He leaves, and I have to hold my hand steady as my wolf tries to force my arm to slam it.

‘There will be no birthday plans, do you hear me?’ the growl rumbles deep in my chest and through my ears.  

‘No birthday.  This year I swear we will sleep the day away. I swear on Mama’s heart.’

I collapse into my bed, not bothering to remove my bra and leggings even though it will be hot tonight.  I’ll just lay on top of the blanket I think to myself before I blackout.