Page 12 of Omega Scorned

"Thanks."

"How long have you lived there?" Oren asked. "Know any juicy gossip about the neighborhood?"

"You're actually the first neighbors I've met." Now that I thought about it, that was kind of weird. "I moved in a year ago."

Jude and Oren exchanged looks. It was so quick that I almost missed it.

"Well, since we're your first neighbors, I hope we make it worth your time to get to know us," Oren told me. "You're welcome over here any time."

Grateful to leave the subject of Candace behind, I thanked him and scratched Gertie's head when she came and sat next to me. Maybe all I needed were some friends. Especially ones that didn't seem to care about my scars.

Omegas

Jude

Istood at the window, watching Emilia walk back to her house with Oren. He was always perfect in situations like this, knowing exactly how to behave. Walking her home was obviously the right move.

The tiny blonde omega was as sweet and darling as they come, but that pack was all wrong for her. I'd seen how they doted on the other omega and here was Emilia, waiting for them at home, all alone.

The thought made me curl my lip in disgust. Those alphas didn't deserve an omega. Especially not one as delightful as Emilia. My heart broke a little for her. She'd obviously been through a lot. The jagged scar on her face told me that much, but her timid nature was evidence of mistreatment, too. Omegas should be pampered and cared for, fed properly, and respected.

I looked over as Oren came back inside. "That was interesting."

"Right?" He shook his head, gorgeous curls bouncing. "That girl has some serious issues with her pack."

"I like her," I told him, watching for his reaction. We were a pack, but as a beta, I couldn't claim him and that bothered both of us.

"She's amazing." Oren sank onto the sofa and laid his head on my shoulder. "I want to keep her and make sure she's looked after the way she deserves."

The garage door rolled open in the distance and I smiled. "Sounds like the alphas are home."

"Good, they should know about Emilia," Oren declared.

We sat there quietly until Grayson and Santi came in. They both smiled when they saw the two of us snuggled up on the sofa and Santi came straight over to sit on Oren's other side, kissing his cheek.

"How are you two?"

"We have something to tell you," I said.

Oren gave me a reproachful look. He liked to ease into conversations, but quite frankly, that was a waste of time in my opinion. Besides, my men were used to my methods.

"We met one of the neighbors today," Oren said. "An omega."

Grayson raised an eyebrow. "Okay…"

"Her pack is stepping out on her and they're not looking after her. She needs us."

Santi bit his lip to keep from laughing as he looked at me over Oren's head. "You can't just take someone's omega, babe."

"Why not? They're mistreating her." The uneasy bubble in my chest was growing. We needed to get Emilia out of there.

"Hang on, before we go storming off to rescue an abused omega, let's get some intel," Santi suggested. "Tell me how you met."

Oren told the story, going into more detail than I would have, but he had it all right. He told them about the scar on her face,the way she glanced at our eyes and then back down again, the bitterness in her voice when she spoke of the other woman.

"It does sound like an unpleasant and complicated situation," Santi agreed. "But we can't take her. Why don't you befriend her and see if you can get more evidence of abuse or neglect? We'll call the Omega Protection Agency if needed and they can make sure she's looked after."

Oren sat up straight, frowning. "I don't like that idea. She'd probably end up in the Omega Reassignment Center and you know how awful those places are."