Total pages in book: 62
Estimated words: 58808 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 294(@200wpm)___ 235(@250wpm)___ 196(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 58808 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 294(@200wpm)___ 235(@250wpm)___ 196(@300wpm)
“Oh,” Eric said, his gaze soft and a little curious.
Normally Hugh hated when people speculated on his former marriage, drawing ill-informed conclusions, but to his own surprise, he didn’t mind it all that much with Eric. He felt like his, and his curiosity didn’t feel as invasive as other people’s. Goddamn instincts.
“Walk with me,” Hugh said, touching Eric’s shoulder.
Eric glanced back at Lucien. “Will you be okay alone?”
Lucien nodded, casting another wary look at Hugh. “Be careful. We don’t want more gossip.”
In other words, he didn’t trust Hugh.
Quashing a surge of irrational irritation (of course he could take care of Eric, better than any of them), Hugh said calmly, “We will. Let’s go, Eric.”
Eric laid his hand on his bicep.
It startled Hugh before he remembered that the old-fashioned custom of omegas walking on an alpha’s arm was still popular in Pelugia. It wasn’t that this custom was completely unheard of in Kadar—some people still did it, but it was a very small minority, mostly the traditionalists. These days most Kadarian omegas considered this custom offensive and preferred to demonstrate their independence by walking without support of an alpha. Hugh couldn’t remember the last time he walked arm-in-arm with an omega. Possibly never. His mother scoffed at such outdated traditions, and his ex-bondmate would have rather cut off her own arm rather than willingly put it on Hugh.
Eric shot him a questioning look. “Something wrong?”
“No,” Hugh said after a moment, glancing at the omega’s slim fingers around his bicep. He’d never been more aware of their size difference, and fuck, the protectiveness that welled up in him was overwhelming. He locked his jaw, barely quashing the urge to pull the kid close and walk with a protective arm around him—that old-fashioned custom was definitely unacceptable both in Pelugia and Kadar. “Let’s go,” he said roughly, leading them forward. “I’ll introduce you to some nice alphas.”
The sooner he found the kid an alpha, the better it was for his sanity.
He wasn’t this creature of instinct.
He refused to be.
Chapter 9
It was kind of disgusting how much difference being accompanied by a powerful, influential alpha made. It annoyed Eric to no end that people who had barely glanced at him and people who had been sneering at him all evening were now giving him polite smiles and involving him in small talk. It was maddening, and yet Eric couldn’t deny that a part of him… liked it. That part of him felt good knowing that Hugh wouldn’t let anyone be rude to him. That certainty—the security—was such a new, refreshing feeling after months of being unsure of people’s reaction whenever he left the house.
But even though people weren’t rude to him now, Eric had never been good at being sociable. He wasn’t any good at small talk. He never knew what to say, and he hated the painfully awkward pauses and insincere smiles. But Hugh was there with him, and it made all the difference. Eric couldn’t believe how comfortable and at ease he felt. Hugh’s steady, unflappable presence at his side was marvelously reassuring. Whenever Eric felt lost or out of his depth, it was enough for him to feel the firmness and strength of Hugh’s arm: it calmed his nerves and made him feel wonderfully protected.
Eric knew he couldn’t keep relying on Hugh in the long run. He was self-aware enough to realize that such reliance could quickly turn into a dependency. Into a need. And he couldn’t need Hugh. He had to remember that this alpha wasn’t going to be by his side forever. He had to find another alpha. Someone his age. Someone in his own league.
So he did his best with the alphas Hugh was introducing to him.
They were… fine. Of course they were fine: Hugh had picked them, after all, and Eric trusted him.
“Do you like any of them?” Hugh asked when they were alone for a moment.
Eric shrugged, leaning into Hugh’s side a little and hoping it wasn’t obvious. He kind of wanted to rest his cheek against the alpha’s shoulder and snuggle up to him, but he knew what a bad idea it was. “They seem… nice.”
“Nice,” Hugh repeated flatly.
“Yeah. Minerva in particular was pretty easy to talk to.” Eric peered into Hugh’s eyes. “You’re not happy?”
Hugh’s lips pressed into a thin line. He didn’t say anything for a moment. “‘Nice’ isn’t good enough. You haven’t looked away from me for more than twenty seconds while you talked to them. That’s not promising.”
Eric flushed.
An amused smile flickered through Hugh’s handsome face. “It just means we’ll have to look harder. There are plenty of good candidates here.”
Eric pursed his lips and gave him a pleading look.
Chuckling, Hugh tapped Eric’s chin with his thumb. “Don’t make that face at me. I don’t like this, either, but you know it’s necessary.”