Page 19 of Claim Me
I am in the section marked with a green Second Chance banner, and besides me there are five other alphas in the program, all first-time offenders, all young, around my age, some a little younger, some slightly older.
The convicts were selected by the agency because they believed these alphas had the best chances at so-calledrehabilitation through domestic life.
I have to admit, our section draws a lot of attention.
Plenty of omegas and betas, all at least thirty-five and usually closer to fifty, keep stopping to look us over, their curious expressions and little smiles following us since the moment Fate’s Choice opened its doors this morning.
The most popular booth belongs to a twenty-four-year-old, fresh out of college, convicted of financial fraud, and he's the first among us to find a buyer.
The buyer is an omega who looks about forty-five, with a streak of gray at his temple and a bit of extra weight.
Apparently, according to my handler, Mr. Gessler, the buyer owns a company that provides financial services, whichis… interesting. You could almost say he's not just looking for a thick cock at night, but also someone to help him get creative with his company’s finances.
The omegas browsing the alpha contracts all look serious and accomplished, like people with careers and life experience behind them who are now looking for a chance to start a family later in life.
Omegas can get pregnant well into their sixties, sometimes even longer, so being forty-five or fifty doesn't disqualify them.
A lot of them seem to operate on the same logic. They buy the contract of a young alpha in his twenties, have a child and raise it with him, and once that is done, the guy takes the money from the contract and uses it to buy a younger omega’s contract. The cycle just keeps going.
Then that younger omega, after raising kids with his new husband, takes the money and buys a young alpha’s contract.
Apparently, this has been going on for years, and people more or less accept it.
Yes, marriage contracts are controversial, but no one denies how effective they are. They function like business agreements, protecting both sides from abuse and violations the same way any formal contract would.
That structure makes people more disciplined than in regular marriages, which explains why there are so many interested buyers here.
The hall is packed, with people moving from booth to booth, reading the Second Chance profiles while deals happen constantly. There is real business being done here.
My booth, on the other hand, is not exactly drawing a crowd.
I have a good body, but when it comes to my looks, people have always told me the same things.
Smile more.
Why do you always look so down?
You would be more attractive if you believed in yourself.
It is about the energy you put out.
What you think about yourself becomes a filter that shapes how others see you.
Apparently I am good-looking, but I don't project it, and that is my problem. I have always lived in the background, never had an outgoing personality, never believed I deserved anything special.
That is something I got from home. My brother Marlow ended up with something similar. Maybe it is because we were raised differently from most people here.
Our dad is from Russia, and in his culture, confidence is not something people show off. Modesty and staying in your lane are considered virtues.
In many Slavic countries, you don't see a lot of openly cheerful people on the streets. Everyone seems a little muted.
I am the same way.
I never had much confidence. I never pushed myself onto others, avoided confrontation, and people were always telling me not to be so reclusive because I was sabotaging my own chances.
Now I can see where that got me. Because of that lack, that extra spark, that presence, the charisma, my booth is one of the least visited among the six of us. Still, it’s only the first hour. Who knows what will happen later?
People keep flowing past like a river, reading the Second Chance boards.
