Page 17 of The Omega Switch: Part 2

Most of all, I remembered the warmth in his gray eyes whenever he looked at me. I hadn't realized how desperately I'd missed that look until he was standing twenty feet away. Emotion rose in me so quickly that it caught me off guard. I blinked my eyes hard before tears could form. The last thing I needed right now was to lose my composure.

Elias slowed as he approached the table, and for just a fraction of a second I saw his body lean toward me as though instinct had taken over. It was such an unconscious movement that I wasn't sure he even realized he'd done it. Then he stopped, his hands frozen at his sides. Instead, he looked at me and gave me a small, cautious smile.

"Hi, Ivy."

His voice was exactly the same, warm and gentle - but there was something more. It sounded like he was in pain.

"...Hi," I responded, and then looked at him awkwardly. Then, I gestured toward the empty chair across from me.

"I saved us a table."

We sat down, and I tried not to let my past with him cloud my judgment. Then something else registered - as I sat across from him, I realized I couldn't smell him. He'd covered his scent, likely from what Ronan had told him about our interaction. I appreciated that he’d taken the time, but part of me had also kind of hoped I would get another hit of it.

His scent had been the only thing that had brought me any comfort during my heat. Long after everyone else had abandoned me, I'd clung to the scarf, the faint traces of tea and cotton fading slowly as I rocked my body in pain. It had been the one thing my body reached for while my heart was breaking.

He didn't know that, and he never would. But today, he’d hidden his scent, because he thought it was what I wanted.

"You covered your scent," I said before I could stop myself. His hand instinctively brushed the collar of his shirt.

"I wasn't sure if it would make you uncomfortable." He said, his eyes searching mine.

"It probably would have," I admitted, and he waved down a server for us.

“I'll have a cappuccino, and for you?” He asked, looking at me.

“A latte, and two scones, please. The chocolate ones.” The server nodded and left.

“This is a cute place,” Elias said, looking around as he tried to make awkward small talk. I looked around.

“It’s one of my favorites,” I replied. The server arrived with our coffee and food, giving us both something else to focus on. Elias looked down at his drink.

"Thank you for writing back." He said. I shrugged lightly.

"I almost didn't," I said.

"I hoped you would,” he said, then his breath caught. “But I expected that you wouldn't." Another silence settled between us, but unlike the strained silences I'd grown up with, this one didn't feel demanding. I felt like I could let the silence linger as long as I wanted. He, after all, was the one who needed to feel uncomfortable.

"So Ronan told you he saw me?" I asked eventually.

"He did," Elias said, taking a sip of his coffee. I hated that he still looked so handsome. His gray eyes were gentle as always, his chestnut hair just a little longer than when we'd worked together. But what got me was his smile, so hesitant and painfully familiar. It was making my heart remember feelings I'd spent months trying to bury.

"He said things aren't going very well for him,” I mentioned.

Elias let out a quiet breath that sounded like a laugh. "That's one way to describe it." He looked down into his coffee for a long moment before speaking again. "We're not exactly okay. Hunter barely sleeps anymore. Ronan throws himself into work and barely talks. Not that it was ever his strong suit." He smiled faintly, though it didn't reach his eyes. "And I spent half a year trying to understand how I failed someone who was standing right in front of me." There was no attempt to make me feel guilty, nor did I need to comfort him. So I remained silent. "And I started volunteering at an omega shelter." He added.

"Ah, yes. You mentioned that in your letter. So how’s that going?” I asked, trying not to stare at him too much. I wished he wasn’t so perfect-looking.

"I learned a lot. I thought I knew what the signs were, but now I realize that there was so much more going on.”

I leaned in, my brows creasing. “What do you mean?” I asked.

“I mean, I didn’t realize they were restricting your food. The staff told me after… after we looked for you.” I straightened. I didn’t know they went looking for me.

“Why were you looking for me?” I asked. Elias swallowed.

“Your family never told you?” he asked, and I shook my head. “Figures. Well, I noticed Arabella was using a scent replica. There were so many things that didn't make sense, and I knew I needed to talk to you. I went to your family’s house, and when I went inside, all I could smell was…” Elias closed his eyes, his face looking ashamed. When he opened them, he looked so sad that I almost felt sorry for him. Almost. “Ivy, what your family did, it’s beyond horrific. You never should have been suppressed that long.”

I gasped. He’d been to the house after I ran away, after my heat. Elias kept talking.