CHAPTER 44
DYLAN
This place is a nightmare,concealed by money and hidden in a veil of luxury.
The décor is exquisite, and the kitchen they gave me access to is any chef’s dream.
Everything went according to plan.
Now, I wait with bated breath, acting like best friends to members of the board.
“Truly exquisite, chef,” one says, clapping me on the back as we walk to the reception area. “Best meal I’ve had in a while. Youhaveto give my wife a cooking lesson. She could sure use it. Maybe I’d come home for dinner more often!” He laughs, his breath dank with garlic and alcohol, and I force a chuckle.
“Anytime,” I promise, knowing full well after tonight I won’t see this man, as long as everything goes well.
Brock did his best, faking a personality to fit in. And, if I didn’t know him, I’d say he was a sleazy, entitled businessman like all the other ones there.
He ate everything but the risotto.
As of tonight, he’s allergic to mushrooms.
No one else was, thankfully.
As soon as the meal was over, he went the opposite way of all of us, claiming to look for a restroom.
But hopefully, he found the room assignments.
He still hasn’t returned as I enter the reception area, scanning over the eyes of all the Omegas.
I’ve never seen so many in my life. There’s about forty of them, all with a distinct, welcoming aroma. My inner Alpha roars to life, but there’s only one woman he’s searching for.
And we make eye contact at the same time.
Olive stands next to Hannah, a glass in hand, her eyes wide.
Dressed in a midnight blue dress, her eyes smoked out with makeup and lips painted a dark red, she’s a picture of seduction.
She’s a fucking vixen, and I’ve never been so hard in my life. My cousin glares at me, and I do my best to ignore her stare, guilt pooling in my gut.
“Fuck, man,” one of the men whistles. “God, they all look so fucking hot tonight. I want to knot all of them.”
Ugh.
I walk over to Olive as the other Omegas watch me, whispering amongst themselves.
But before I can reach her, Hannah steps in front of us. “Can I help you?”
And, sighing, I meet the eyes of my cousin, regret tugging at my chest.
What could I possibly say to her?
An apology would never be enough. It would take lifetimes to even earn an iota of her forgiveness.
“Hannah,” I say quietly. “I’m so sorry—”
She shakes her head. “No, I mean, you can’t haveher,Dylan. Leave her alone.”
Olive.