Page 87 of Examining the Bond

“Expulsion?” I snap, a little harsher than I intend to. My frazzled nerves aren't handling the onslaught of pheromones very well. “Why the fuck is she being expelled?”

“Technicalities.” Ziel frowns. He slows down enough for me to walk beside him. “Since she's not technically an omega, they want to give her the boot.”

Rage seeps through my pores, my scent bending dangerously from smoky pine to char. She knew there was a possibility that she would be kicked out of the academy if we couldn't prove her designation. But that was before we had answers.

She may not be an omega yet, but the fact that she can become one should still earn her a spot at any credible omega academy. Kicking her out is basically discrimination, and I’d love to be in a room with their Board of Directors for five minutes. I bet they’d change their opinion real quick.

Especially considering she won’t be a delta for much longer.

Not if I have anything to say about it.

“Ziel,” I say as we round a corner. I’m already hopelessly lost, completely reliant on him and his sense of direction. “Do you think I’m doing the right thing? Do you think she’ll even want to see me?”

He throws his head back with a laugh. “Definitely.”

We step through a doorway into another hall with chandeliers glistening overhead. I have no idea if I’ve been inthis one yet; it looks just like all the others. That, coupled with overwhelming senses, has me completely disoriented.

How do omegas function at these things?

“Are you sure?” I ask.

Ziel steps to the side, dragging me with him, and he levels me with an adorable glare.

“Listen, Juliet, I know my best friend better than anyone else,” he says pointedly before turning to scour the room. “I know she likes peanut butter on waffles. I know she’s always wanted a dog, even though she’s highly allergic. And I know that nothing would make her happier than seeing you here tonight.” He flashes me a glance before jerking his thumb toward the center of the room. “I also know that she would appreciate you saving her from that hungry swarm of alphas over there.”

Dread spreads through my veins like poison as I follow Ziel’s line of sight to the middle of the room, and every alpha urge I possess slams to the forefront of my mind when I spot her.

She’s endlessly stunning.

It’s only been two weeks—the longest goddamn weeks of my life—but it’s like I’m seeing her for the first time.

A little black dress hugs her body like it’s painted on, the neckline dipping low to reveal a delicious spill of cleavage. She’s wearing sharp silver heels, her cherry lips pulled into a smile, and her wash of red hair makes her stand out vividly from the crowd. The rest of the room fades into a muddled mess of color until she’s all I see.

I’m suspended in a weird limbo between wanting to watch her and wanting to launch myself across the room to slam my lips against hers. She’s smiling, but it looks forced, like she’s putting on a show; it definitely isn’t the same smile she has when she’s with me. She says something, and takes a sip out of the stemless wine glass in her hand, but I’m too far away to hear anything.

The moment is shattered when a beefy arm slips around her shoulders.

I blink and everything slams back into focus. She’s surrounded by a pack of four alphas, the burliest of which has his arm draped around her with a smug smile on his face, and they’re all looking at her like they’re ready to pounce.

A growl rolls up my throat, and my feet are moving before I realize it, my instincts ready to tear me—and them—apart. I’m too worked up to play it cool as red bleeds into my vision, but I don’t really want to cause a scene. Ripping an alpha’s head off in the middle of a party hardly seems appropriate, but if he doesn’t get his grimy hands off her, I might just do it.

“Get your fucking hands off my date.” The words come out of nowhere when I’m a few steps away, wrapped with enough bark to catch the attention of everyone around us.

Every one of their eyes whip in my direction, including Riann’s, and the look on her face is a punch to the gut.

Fear. Surprise.Relief.

“S-Skylar?” she whispers, the word barely audible.

The pack leader narrows his eyes on me, puffing out his chest as he pulls Riann tighter against him. My hands clench into fists, my knuckles cracking, and it takes everything in me not to launch myself at him. He has at least a hundred pounds on me, but that doesn’t matter. Not when my omega is on the line.

“This lovely doll isourdate,” the pack lead rumbles with a smirk, his expression asking for an interview with my fist. “Why don’t you go find someone else to play with?”

With a dark chuckle edged with violence, I step so close to him our chests nearly touch. His expression hardens as he stares down at me, and I can feel his packmates tensing around me, ready to intervene.

“Not anymore.” I pluck the glass from Riann’s hand, curious how the academy gets away with so much underage drinkingat these things, and shove it at the alpha, knocking him in the chest. “We’re leaving. Take care of this.”

“Who the fuck do you think you are?” He takes the wine glass and tosses it over his shoulder. It shatters as it hits the ground, but the music drowns it out.