For once, could he not be the famous hotel tycoon Vincent Laurent? At least for just one weekend. Heaven knows we need him. I feel like I hardly see him anymore.
“Yes, she is,” I sigh right along with him.
Dad’s right. Chloé couldn’t be more like our mother right now. She inherited her looks and her bubbly disposition.
“I see the paparazzi have their claws out ready...” I don’t fail to hear the Alpha in him as he growls on the other side of the phone.
Mother was an Omega, and Dad is an Alpha. So it came as quite the surprise when I never awakened. Even all my aunts are Omegas. Expect for Aunt Rose, who is beta. Ironically enough.
I have a theory. The only reason why Aunt Rose hates me is because I remind her of her. The disappointing daughter of the family.
There’s another reason why Chloé’s a fan favorite tonight. Her Daddy is super, super rich. Everyone is eager to see the sweet little hotel heiress debut her Omega. It’s also the night she will be unveiling her new fragrance. It has accents of her Omega’s perfume. Lemon cake frosting.
Chloé stops to blow a kiss at the crowd, and I roll my eyes for the umpteenth time when I see she has glitter in her palm. She’s all about the sparkles and the glitter.
“Make sure she doesn’t do anything too worrying, Renée.”
Honestly, Chloé has always been well-behaved. She has never done too much to tarnish our family image. There was that one time when the paparazzi snapped her stumbling out of a nightclub, but that’s the only worrying thing she has ever done. Chloé is squeaky clean. The press tries so hard to soil her sweet image.
She truly is sheltered. A sparkling princess who has no clue how the world truly works. That’s why I have to protect her.
My aunts cheer in the crowd below as Chloé gives one last spin. I never got allocated a seat by the stage. It truly is as if the world forgets about me.
Sometimes the press is surprised that Vincent Laurent hastwodaughters.
“Well, it’s getting late, Renée. I best go to bed. I have an 8 am meeting.”
Despite how annoyed I am that he couldn’t be here this weekend, I smile. Then I get up from my seat so I can meet my sister backstage. “Good night, Dad.”
“Good night, sweetheart. Love—”
His voice cuts off as my phone goes flying from my hand. Its screen cracks on the floor, and I look up at the one responsible. “Hey, watch where you’re... where you’re...”
The blood rushes through my head when I meet a pair of vivid blue eyes, framed by inky black curls. My tongue swells in size when I get an eyeful of the Alpha in front of me, and I suddenly forget how to talk.
He wears a dark navy suit, perfectly cut to fit his lean, muscled frame. Who knew men could be so pretty?
He’s not just pretty. He smells good, too. It’s a scent that my brain can’t even place at that moment. It’s there at the back of my mind, but thoughts fail me. It’s a dark, musky scent with a hint of something spicy and woodsy, and my head swirls as I try to get my bearings.
My father’s tinny voice can be heard over the speaker of my phone. “Renée, are you there? Hello?”
The Alpha grips my arms to steady me, and I lean closer without thinking, breathing in his warm, spicy cedar.
Spice and cedar. That’s what he smells like.
I’m sure I will figure out what spice later...
“Are you all right, love?”
His accent. So British. My panties dampen as I imagine the way my name would sound on his carved lips.
“Y-yes... I’m fine...”
He chuckles, bending to pick up my phone. “It looks like I broke your phone. I’m awfully sorry.”
The Alpha places it back in my hand. My dad is still trying to reach me. “Renée, don’t make me call the police...”
I place the phone to my ear. “I’m good, Dad, gotta go. Have a good night’s sleep.”