SAME KIND OF NUTS

JAY: 

“One thing, Jason. Just one instruction,” my father barked through the phone. “Keep your dâmn head down, but no, you went soaring in a bar!”

“It wasn’t my fault.”

“Like it wasn’t with the Hawks?” he snapped.

I am not offended; he never trusts me. He always blames me for everything.

“The Unions are going to the West next week,” he said after a long pause. “We need a good camouflage.”

The Unions aren't just political. They are dangerous. They are an elite, secretive council of the oldest and most powerful Alpha clans across the territory. They maintain balance, peace, and hierarchy among the ruling clans…particularly among rival Alphas.

Inside their Blood Court, they judge the misconduct of the Regions, especially Alphas. Alpha, who initiates war, disrupts the natural order… kills another Alpha. And among these, I am guilty of all.

“I can lie low.”

“I can see that,” he scoffed. 

My father's asking me to lie low was mostly to shield me from the Union’s wrath. Their quest now is to strip me of my Alpha traits. Oh yes, they can. They can not only take it away from me, they will strip me to nothing…more like a living corpse.

And losing my trait is losing my hierarchy. My claims over the South.

“You’II go to Midville. Get busy during the day as you always wanted.”

“Going to school isn't getting busy.”

“I have talked with the administrators,” he said, ignoring my protest. “Make sure you have a haircut.”

“No,” I said flatly. “I won't go.”

How could I? How could I sit in a classroom with a bunch of clueless brats and play pretend?

But my protest was worthless. Days later, I found myself behind the wheel, driving, something I hadn’t done since birth, and crashing into some sharp tongued bîtch on campus.

And the second I looked him in the eye, I met his secrets. Thanks to my strong senses, I uncloak him.

He burned up. Heated like a furnace. His scent screamed Omega even if he tried hiding under that false-Alpha swagger.

And when he dared kick me in the balls? That sealed it. He was mine now…my toy. Mine to torment. My entertainment in this godforsaken town.

“Find out who that bîtch is?” I told Luo as he arrived with two of my men in the restroom.

“He is Delvyster Breon,” he said, tapping his phone and showing me a photo. “That is his father.”

Interesting.

Delvyster Breon. The supposed Alpha heir of the Broen Clan, the same low-class name my father warned me to steer clear of. The one he said had a notorious reputation. The dominant West, I shouldn’t interfere with?

Well, Daddy dearest was wrong. He’s not a threat. He’s a lie in Alpha’s clothing.

Driving out, my brain swirled with ideas…ways to make the bîtch pay. For his punches. For pretending. For turning me on.

“Luo,” I smirked, eyes gleaming. “About Denny, bring him to me. Tonight.”

************

By 11 pm, I still hadn’t heard from Luo.

He’d taken two men with him; it should’ve been easy. I even told him not to raise alarms, just bind and bring. Quiet and fast.

It made me so furious that Luo couldn’t carry out a simple task. If I weren’t trying to keep a low profile, I’d drag that bîtch here myself.

“He doesn’t seem to be home,” Luo said from his end.

“What do you mean he isn’t home?!” I muttered, bolting in anger.

“No one is here, Jay.”

“Stay there until someone appears.”

I stormed out of the mansion and climbed into my car. I drove recklessly through the night, headed straight to the downtown bar, the same bar from last week.

No, I wasn’t looking for Denny. Not now. 

I am only desperate and impatient. I needed to cool off. I needed release.

The pretty singer with the honey-silk voice that made me forget how to breathe would do just fine. And no, I won’t be taking her home with me tonight. I would be taking her right on the goddamn stage if I had to.

And there she was. Under the warm stage lights, crooning into the mic like she owned the night.

The moment her gaze landed on me, I saw it, recognition. Her eyes widened, and her voice trembled just slightly. Whether from fear or desire, I didn’t know.

I followed her offstage.

She slipped behind the bar, and I trailed her quickly. It wasn’t clear if she was trying to escape, but I didn’t care. I grabbed her and pulled her against my chest.

“I hope you’re not trying to run from me, pretty dear,” I said, breathing her in. “You should be happy to see me again.”

“I am…so pleased to see you,” she stammered, her voice slightly hoarse.

“You should be,” I whispered, lifting a hand to her perfect make-up, one I would be ruining soon.

Her face…now that I saw her up close, she looked oddly familiar. Something in the shape of her mouth. Her posture. Her scent.

She oozed heat, I know for sure. But it was dimmed, coated with undetectable redolent.

She flinched as I gripped her neck lightly and sniffed her. My sense struggled to figure her out. It was both taunting and challenging.

I sniffed her again. This time, I caught it. A masculine scent hidden in a feminine fragrance.

I recognized that masculinity. That heat. That masked Omega scent.

Denny!

What the actual hell? Was I thinking about him in a moment like this? Was my côck reacting because of her…or him?

“You smell too familiar,” I said, narrowing my eyes. “Tell me something, have we met before?”

“You mean…the night you saved me?”

Right. The night she sang me to life. 

I leaned in closer. “You owe me for that,” I growled softly, my voice thick. “And you will repay me. Right here. Right now.”

My words hadn’t even landed when she broke free from my grip, surprising me with her strength. I took a step forward—

“Becky?” a voice called from the side entrance, slicing through the tension like a blade. “Come on, it is time.”

I gritted my teeth, eyes flaring. I could take her in a minute. I was that boned to finish quickly, but the owner of the voice refused to leave without her.

“I should get back,” she said and half-ran off, disappearing backstage.

And I…I was left there. Raging. Throbbing. And suspicious as hell.

Denny, Becky? Why am I going through the same kind of nuts for these bîtches?

I pulled out my phone, eyes still on the darkened hallway. “Luo,” I barked. “Do you have him?”

“Not yet.”

I slammed a fist into the wall, hard. “Don’t come back without him!”

Back in the bar, Becky had vanished. The stage was empty. The music was low and forgettable. But I sat there, beer in hand, waiting.

Not for her. Not anymore. I was waiting for the real call.

And it came, my phone vibrating across the table, snapping me to attention.

“Jay,” Luo’s voice came through. “We’ve got him.”