Page 13 of Scheme
“I am,” I insisted. “I have quite the fearsome reputation in the world of restructuring and insolvency.”
“I find that impossible to believe,” Kit said flatly. “I’m struggling to believe you’re a lawyer at all.”
I tutted. “First the assumption that I only wanted to get you alone, and now this. On behalf of lawyers and omegas everywhere, I am offended by the stereotyping.”
Kit opened his mouth to reply before closing it again, his cheeks flushing red.
“I’m joking,” I assured him. “Well, I’m kind of joking—you really should work on the whole stereotyping thing. Anyway, here we are. Told you it wasn’t far.”
Kit grumbled something, rubbing the back of his neck as we approached my house.
“You’re very… unexpected,” Kit managed eventually, having given it some thought before landing on that word. Perhaps he’d initially been considering a more offensive one?
I was going to reply, to tease him a little more, but a faint scent that absolutelydidn’tbelonghad the words dying in my throat. Cautiously, I made my way up the short path, freezing when I saw the bouquet of red roses sitting on the stoop. The scent of alpha clung to the front door, as though he’d been leaning against it, but there was no question in my mind that the action had been deliberate. Jimmy had been scentmarking myhome.
“Friend of yours?” Kit asked quietly, making me jump. I’d forgotten he was even there.
“Friend of my parents actually,” I mumbled, silently cursing them again six ways from Sunday for giving Jimmy my address. I grabbed the flowers, hastily shoving them in the bin and slamming the lid down. “Anyway, thanks for walking me home, you really didn’t have to.”
It was rude, but I was unsettled, and desperately wanted to get into the shower and wash off all the scents of the day before cocooning myself in the safety of my nest. “Nice meeting you, Kit. I hope you enjoy your time at home.”
Chapter 4
“Idon’tknowwhattodo, Margot. You know what Kev’s mother is like—shehatesmy cooking, but now Kev is saying that his mum is right and it’s poor form for an omega to insist on having takeout whenever the family come round, and that if I was agoodomega…”
I tuned out slightly, Michelle’s complaints still coming through my headphones loud and clear as I went through the supermarket aisles, checking items off my list and the Clarksons’ list as I added them to the trolley. Mrs Clarkson had bad hips, and Mr Clarkson got overwhelmed by the fluorescent lights and digital payments, so I did most of their shopping for them. It was blessedly early in the morning—my favourite time to run errands since no one was around—but Michelle’s family drama never slept.
“I just can’t cook a decent meal. No matter what recipes I follow, they don’t turn out right. And the kids are a nightmare when I’m in the kitchen—they just want my attention the whole time and it’s madness. What would you do, Margot?”
I wouldn’t have mated a selfish alpha like Kev,I thought wryly, but there was no benefit in saying that out loud. What was done was done, and Michelle—who’d been the receptionist at the first firm I’d worked at—was stuck with Kev now, for better or for worse.
Kev, whose mother had never cut the umbilical cord, had been waiting outside Michelle’s nest once her heat had ended, glaring at the omega who’d dared to snag her precious baby boy. Three grandchildren later, Kev’s mother still had a bone to pick with Michelle.
This was why I knew I wasn’t the nice person Kit had accused me of being. If I was nice, I wouldn’t feel frustrated at having to listen to Michelle repeat the same three problems every few days.
“Why don’t I ask Violet for some recipes you can prepare in advance? I think part of it is that you can’t relax with Kev’s mother breathing down your neck,” I replied absently, selecting some different types of nuts off the shelf. My heat was due in the next few weeks, and I knew from experience that it was even more unpleasant if I hadn’t upped my protein intake beforehand.
“Oh my gosh, what a great idea! Ooh, I’d love to see the look on Jenny’s smug face when I set a delicious meal down on the table that I cooked myself. She’ll be kicking herself for all that stuff she said.”
I highly doubted that. Even if Michelle was the perfect homemaker who grew her own vegetables and baked her own bread and hand-poured her own scented candles, Jenny would still find reasons to complain about her.
“I’ll message Violet now, I’m just going to go pay. I’ll talk to you later, okay?”
“You’re the best, Margot. I’d be lost without you!”
I shook my head slightly, quickly going through the checkout and packing my things into my rolling bag so I could drag them home. I fired off a quick text to Violet before heading home, the quiet morning streets only just now starting to fill up as more weekend workers headed for the station and kids shouted at each other from across the street.
A wave of something akin to grief hit me as I watched a young alpha teen carefully tearing a pasty to give half to his smaller omega sister. There had been glimpses of Calum’s alpha instincts manifesting as protectiveness for his siblings—he’d been the one to half drag, half carry me away from that horrible pool party all those years ago—but they’d been few and far between.
When had he become so twisted? Had the potential for that kind of darkness been within him all along?
I fired off a quick message to check on Asher. I’d managed to delay the art school by letting them know Asher’s older brother had died, but I’d need to get back to them with a date for the entry interview soon.
I couldn’t even contemplate Dad’s ultimatum to invite Jimmy to my nest, but I couldn’t contemplate denying Asher the opportunity to attend Sutton-Harris either. He hadn’t heard Dad’s demand, and I’d never tell him about it. Asher didn’t need that pressure on him.
Asher: I’m fine. Jules is practically living with her almost-mate with Mum & Dad’s blessing. I’m trying to convince them to let me sign up for more extracurriculars. Get me out of the house more.
I sighed heavily. That sounded like he’d already given up on Sutton-Harris.
