2.9: Oh, bother.

His eyes filled with hunger. She gasped and pulled away. When she moved away, he growled menacingly. She froze. He leaned forward and placed his nose on her neck, and inhaled deeply. He pulled back and frowned.

"Omega… but you smell weird." His eyes were half lidded. He trailed his nose up her neck, and she shivered. He clamped her hands around her arms like iron bands. His grip was firm. She pulled back to look at him, and as she moved away again, he growled again, placing his hands on her hips. He pulled her into his lap, he buried his face in her hair. She flushed bright red and struggled against him.

"What are you doing?!" she cried, indignant. He was manhandling her like a doll. As she struggled, she ground against his hips and squeaked when she felt the hard ridge of his erection against her ass. He groaned and moved against her, holding her hips.

She blushed and moaned softly, still trying to move from his vice-like grip. He brushed her hair aside and bit her neck firmly. She gasped. He feathered the area with kisses to soothe it and kissed down her neck. She trembled.

(Ding! Love meter has increased to 25%)

"Wait, we should stop." She said, pushing away from him. His eyes were fully red. She placed her hands on either side of his face. "We should stop." He looked confused. The haze slowly cleared from his eyes and they turned hazel again. He looked at their position and cringed. He deposited her in the chair next to him.

"Sorry, I lost myself." He said, rubbing the back of his head. She breathed heavily and placed her hands on the table to calm herself.

"So… now you know." She muttered softly. He ran his fingers through his hair and looked at the ceiling.

"You're an Omega. And your father has been hiding it from me and the community." He said sternly.

"Don't blame my father! He just wanted what was best for me." She implored him. He sighed and looked at her.

"He's been deceiving the council about your prospects for years." He explained. She sighed and stared him in the eyes.

"What difference does my status really make? That I'm not in line to be married off or be a breeder? That I'm using my brain to help the community? What prospects were you misled about?"

"If I'd known you were an Omega…" He trailed off, sighing and closing his eyes. If he knew she was an Omega, what?

"You wouldn't have let me in the council?" She finished for him. He slammed his fist down on the table.

"I would have considered you for mating!" He growled. She gasped.

"You would consider me for a potential mate?" She asked him.

"I don't know. I would have liked to know my options." He said grimly. She sighed and ran her fingers through her long, black hair.

"So what do we do now?" She asked him. He turned to look at her.

"We continue to let the council think you are a Beta. They wouldn't be happy with an Omega presence on the council. No one finds out about this." He said sternly. She somehow knew he meant about the moment between them as well. She nodded.

"Okay. And my father?" She asked.

"I will let it go, for now." He growled. She smiled.

"Thank you!" She hugged his arm. Remembering herself, she straightened.

"I think we've done enough for today. We could both use some rest." He said and pushed himself up from the table. Setia nodded, exhausted.

A few nights later, she went to fill her usual enormous glass of wine and plopped down on her couch to relax. She sighed, thinking about the day she met the Alpha. Her run in with Lucien had made her feel hot, wanted, needy. She thought about his powerful arms wrapped around her, his lips on her neck. She shivered.

Then she thought about the familiar pair of icy blue eyes, the soft lips that kissed her the other night. Was it her, or was it the pheromones? You could never tell in this world. He'd set her on fire, too.

"You're doing some deep thinking tonight, not pleased with how it went with the Alpha?" Eli chirped from next to her on the couch. She shook her head.

"I just always wonder how its possible to feel so much, when none of it is real." She said sadly. Eli tilted his head.

"But what is reality? Would you not say to everyone here, and to you right now, this is very much reality?" He asked. She bit her lip in thought. She supposed he was right.

"I guess reality is relative." She mused.

A knock sounded at her door. She went to the door and opened it, seeing a familiar smile leaning against the doorframe.

"Do you ever call?" Setia asked Darien, smiling up at him. He chuckled and walked past her into the apartment.

"I enjoy seeing you." His face flushed, and he ran his fingers through his hair. He was adorable when he blushed. The big powerful alpha showing some weakness. She pulled another glass out from the cupboard.

"Well, if you're here, you might as well indulge with me." She laughed and poured him a glass of wine. He smiled at her and thanked her for the glass. They clinked their glasses together in a cheers.

"To saving the world." She mused.

"To saving the world." He laughed. They sipped, she directed them toward the couch, and they both moved to sit down a healthy distance apart.

"So, business before pleasure, what is your update?" He said, looking at her intensely. She took a healthy sip of her glass and placed it down.

"We had a council meeting a few days ago. They are preparing to draft citizens into the military to fight the beast threat." She said gravely. His eyes widened, and he ran his fingers through his hair.

"A mass draft, that's wow." He said. "Thank you for telling me."

"Everyone is going to have to fight. You, my father.. Everyone except.."

"Omegas" He said. She nodded.

"But people think I'm a Beta." She smiled. "So I'll be with you." His eyes widened in horror.

"No! You can't go to war!" He then caught himself and shook his head to clear it. She smiled and placed her hand on his arm.

"It's alright, I'd rather be with everyone else than sitting back and doing nothing." She smiled reassuringly. The red slowly return to his eyes, and he inhaled. She sniffed and realized her scent was permeating the air. She felt hot, so warm. Her skin tingled where she'd been touching him. She felt her body flushing, her breaths came in shallow pants. She leaned back against the couch.

"Setia…you're going into heat." Darien croaked out, eyes going red.