Their Stubborn Omega

Ch. 17 Courtship DIS-Agreement

~Noelle~

I'm curled up comfortably with Dom watching a silly, low budget romcom, when I hear the door to the pack's house open. I'm immediately hit with notes of Xander's pine scent. Dom stiffens next to me and I quirk an eyebrow up at him. What's that about?

"I wonder why he's home already?" Dom questions aloud, probably more to himself than me. He kisses the top of my head, sending my inner omega into a preening, swooning fit, and untangles himself from our little cuddle session. I go to stand as well, but he turns and stops me.

"Just stay here and enjoy the movie, Kitten. I just want to check in with Xander and see why he's home so early. He never plays hooky like us," he states with a wink. Then he's off through the door of the media room in search of the grumpy Prime.

I settle back in to watch the movie, but my stomach lets out a ferocious growl that reminds me I haven't eaten since the few bites of pizza the night before. We didn't finish all the pizza last night, so one of the guys probably put it in the fridge. I pause the movie and make my way out of the media room.

Right, I haven't gotten a tour yet.

I turn to the left and there's a long hallway. Surely the kitchen is somewhere down that hall. As I make my way down the hall in search of the kitchen, I notice the walls are mostly bare. They're guys so I'm not sure making this place feel 'homey' is high on their priority list, but these walls could hold so many memories if the guys wanted them to. For a moment, I let myself picture our future. I see myself pointing to Jax who's on a ladder with a level, because of course it has to be perfect, while Dom makes a joke about how anal Jax is. Even Xander is there, smiling and taking it all in, as his pack hangs a picture from our mating ceremony. The four of us happy and laughing, making this massive, cold home a bit warmer with our bonds.

I smile to myself as I come to a side table. My attention is snagged when I see a packet with my name and in bold at the top it reads:

'COURTSHIP AGREEMENT: PACK BLACKWATER & OMEGA NOELLE BANKS'

The smile slides from my face. I pick up the courtship agreement, whatever the fuck that means, and start reading. Page after page of rules about our courtship, all of them geared towards ensuring the alphas aren't wasting their precious time and money. They truly believe, even though I'm their scent-matched, fated fucking mate, that I'm just a gold-digger after their money and the things they can provide for me.

I feel like I've had the wind knocked out of me. I really thought after this morning Xander was coming around. And I never saw Jax or Dom being okay with this, but clearly they brought this here for me to sign. The packet falls out of my hand and the pieces cover the floor. I don't know where the guys are in this stupid, pretentious mansion, and I don't care. I need to get out of here now.

I take my phone out and order a ride back to the OEC. I never should have gone to the moon gathering. I never should have let something as stupid as fate decide things for me. I'm going back to the OEC and formally rejecting them. I'll join the selection pool. At least then I have some semblance of a choice.

I get a notification that my ride is here, followed by a honk from the driver. Shit. I'm sure they heard that. Further down the hall Dom and Xander pop their heads out of what I'm assuming is an office. The color leaches from their faces when they see my face and the evidence of the contract all around. Without saying a word I pivot and sprint towards the front door. I hear both of them calling after me, but it's too late. I'm already in the car when they reach the door.

As the driver pulls off, I let the tears begin to fall.