But while many articles online really recommended increasing the dose of suppressants after losing one’s bondmate, they also advised caution and didn’t recommend that course of action for long. The articles said that an omega needed either to be around an alpha they trusted or to employ the services of alpha doctors who specialized in that kind of therapy.
Frowning, Jules considered the latter option, but he knew it wasn’t viable for him: Uncle Wayne couldn’t find out that he had been bonded—it would be too easy for him to put two and two together and realize that Jules must have been bonded to the Xeus. The mere thought made him cringe. No, he couldn’t employ the services of a professional.
That left only Westcliff.
But should he really accept help from Westcliff, of all people?
“Why not?” Liam said when Jules told him everything over breakfast.
“I don’t like him,” Jules said, poking at the sausage on his plate moodily.
“I don’t think you’re being fair to him. If he’s offering help, it shows that he’ll be a good, caring alpha for us.”
Frowning, Jules looked at his brother across the table. “It freaks me out that you’re talking about your marriage to him like it’s a done deal.”
Liam shrugged. “You know it isn’t, but at this point, it would be stupid to pretend that the possibility isn’t there. Westcliff’s caring attitude toward my little brother shows that he’s serious about me.”
Caring attitude.
Jules thought of the way Westcliff had held him against his broad chest. He thought of the way the duke had tucked Jules’s head under his chin, and the feeling of absolute safety and comfort that had settled over him.
Pushing the unsettling memory away, Jules grumbled out, “I don’t trust him.”
Liam made a skeptical noise, but whatever he was going to say was interrupted by the sound of the door opening.
Their uncle strode in, a strange smile on his face. “It’s official now!”
Tensing up, Jules exchanged a look with Liam. Their uncle’s smiles were so rare these days that seeing it was a little disturbing.
“Uncle?” Liam said.
“Anthony’s death certificate has finally been signed.”
Oh.
Jules looked down at his hands, biting his bottom lip. Neither he nor his siblings remembered their eldest brother well enough to truly grieve him—they’d grown up without him and lived without him most of their lives. Jules had been four when Anthony had left for the war after their father’s disappearance. All he remembered of his brother was his strong shoulders and laughing blue eyes. It had been fifteen years. He couldn’t miss someone he barely remembered, right?
Except it wasn’t that simple. Anthony’s death being officially recognized… it meant an end of an era. An end of their childhood. With the title and estate going to Uncle Wayne, the three of them would be alone in the world, without any protection, and completely at their uncle’s mercy.
Jules looked at Liam and saw the same thoughts reflected in his eyes.
“Congratulations, Uncle,” Liam said with a wan smile. “I’m sure you’ll make an excellent alpha for us.”
“Hmm,” Uncle Wayne said, looking at him speculatively. He wasn’t as pale and unhealthy-looking this morning, and Jules wondered if he had started getting treatment for whatever sickness he had. He wondered if the experiments on his Xeus had finally borne fruit.
The thought had him clenching his fists under the table. Gods, he’d never hated anyone more. He didn’t want to depend on this man. He didn’t want to call him alpha.
“Is the duke going to propose to you soon?” Uncle Wayne said.
“I believe he will, Uncle,” Liam said.
“See that he does,” Uncle Wayne said gruffly. “And tell him that I’ll not be giving you a dowry. If he wants you, he’ll pay a tokal.”
Jules cringed a little. The custom of the tokal, or “omega price,” as some called it, was considered outdated in modern times. But he probably shouldn’t have been surprised that their uncle would demand it.
“All right, Uncle,” Liam said, his polite smile still firmly on his face.
Jules really envied his brother’s acting skills, because he couldn’t make himself smile when their uncle turned to him.
“You,” the alpha said, eyeing Jules with displeasure. “Don’t worry—I’ll find someone willing to have you. I’ve heard Viscount Korf is looking for a young omega to breed. He might take interest in you. Of course you aren’t a beauty like your brother, but all cats are gray in the dark.” And with that charming remark, Uncle Wayne strode out of the room.
Jules and Liam stared at each other.
“Viscount Korf?” Jules finally choked out, blinking rapidly. “Isn’t he, like, eighty?” Eighty wasn’t old by Eilan standards—their species’ life span was one hundred and forty years, and alphas remained virile for most of it, but such an age difference was still considered distasteful. Older alphas generally chose older omegas.
Liam sighed, rounded the table, and hugged Jules’s head to his chest. “I won’t let him do it to you,” he said grimly. “I’ll marry Westcliff soon and he will take guardianship of you and Eric. Uncle won’t be able to sell you to anyone. Everything will be fine. I promise.”