Omega Pride Ch 08

The 8

th

Installment of Omega Pride

Thank you, MythOFreak, my new editor. Also once again, thank you L.L for the French editing. You guys are two awesome as hell people to work with!

As always, comments and feedback are welcomed.

Now without further delay, enjoy!

~*~*~

Morning light slowly began to seep through closed eyelids as Delphi took in a silent, gentle breath. She felt warm arms around her waist and a temperate, steady breathing brushing against her hair and neck. The mixed scents coated her nose with every inhale she took. She slowly opened her eyes as she lightly gripped the supple pillow. It had been a night; Wyatt didn't let her get out of bed—or floor or where ever they ended up before somehow making it back to the room—for a second, making her promise with her heart, mind, body, and soul not to avoid and reject him ever again. She had even made that promise to her wolf—to both their wolves.

As furtively as she could, she turned over to look at her mate, feeling his arms twitch as if to keep a firm (and dare she say a possessive) hold on her, but relaxed a bit as if realizing she wasn't going anywhere. Delphi's eyes traveled slowly as she studied his slumbering face. Even in his sleep he had such as serious look on his face, a constant twinge in his eyebrows. His black-brown hair shielded part of his face, and his eyes, though gently closed, were like those of warrior: they could open at any time, surprise, and defeat.

Reaching up gently, she brushed the hair out of his face, revealing a small scar just under his right eyebrow. She hadn't noticed it before, it was so faint, but that prompted her to continue her search. Trailing her hand down her his jaw and then down his neck, her fingers lightly tracing down the unmarked side of shoulder. Her curiosity then led her to find three jagged scars in the trap of his shoulder; those more faint than the one on his face. She glanced up at him to see if he was still asleep. His breathing was steady and his mind seemed blank, so she continued to run her hand slowly down the front of his chest, feeling each muscle and ridge. She smiled lightly when she saw a small mole on his left side between his second and third abdomen muscles. Delphi ventured down even further and reached his belly button and glory line. She shifted her body a little, and with the smile still there, bit her lip and continued.

"You move too much," Wyatt mumbled, causing Delphi to shoot her eyes back up to his as she let out a small gasp of surprise. She felt his muscles twitch as she pulled her hand away.

"Were...were you awake? The entire time?"

"Yes," His words had a rasp from tiredness, "First timed you moved woke me. Decided not to do anything, and see what you would do."

"...Did I disappoint you?" She asked lightly.

"No," His eyes, which had slightly opened before, closed once again, "...But it is early."

"Really?" This actually surprised her. It was around this time she normally woke up, heck, she thought she might have overslept. Then realization finally occurred to her. So it truly was that only Omegas were awake at this hour in the morning? Even the Alpha of this pack didn't get up?

"That's right," Wyatt picked up the thoughts in her mind, "And it came across the mind of any wolf here, especially after last night."

That made Delphi smile, her face coated in a light blush, "...Until now?"

Wyatt nodded his head a little and Delphi shook hers. It should surprise her that she wasn't tired—granted she was a little sore, and definitely sated—but she wasn't. And unfortunately, she wasn't going to be able to bring herself to go back to sleep either.

After lying there for a few moments while he seemed to fall back asleep, Delphi turned again to try and get out of bed. Before she could, she was stopped once again by his possessive grip around her, making him let out a growl mixed with his groan. She rested a hand on his and took in a light breath, "....Wyatt?"

"Hm?" He groaned again.

"....I need to get up," she told him softly.

"...Where?" His eyes didn't even open after his hesitation.

"I'm just going to go take a shower and get something to eat. I'm not running away," She assured him.

After a few more moments, wearily yet reluctantly let her go. Delphi put her feet on the floor after she sat up and glanced over her shoulder at him. After a moment, she bent down and kissed his lips lightly, earning a sound breath from him with a hint of a rumble behind it before she got up and went to the bathroom.

~*~*~

She actually was surprised as she went in. She had seen only glimpses of it, but she never realized just how big the bathroom was! As she stepped onto the cool beige argon floor, she ran her left hand on the slightly arced counter of the same theme. The wooden cabinets of said counter (though she couldn't place its type) was a deep, rich mahogany color, and the long mirror along the faded, crème colored wall reflected her state of wonder. In front of her, a few meters down, laid the Jacuzzi sized tub, two steps leading into it.

As she stepped forward, she could see that it had more than a few features that a Jacuzzi shared. She looked right of her and she could see a neatly folded black towel on one of the counters, and a little more to the left, was the shower, the frosted, rain drop patterned glass of the sliding doors covered the large shower neatly. It was strange really; that out of all the rooms she's seen in the manor, including the bedroom, that it was this bathroom which seemed to have the most color. She also couldn't help but wonder how lonely it had to be living in a suite this large and a bathroom like this. At least....she would have felt lonely....

Finally getting past the point of awe, Delphi opened one of the shower doors, entered, and closed it before turning on the water. She jumped a bit when she turned the cold water on first before quickly adjusting the water to warm, causing her let out a sigh of relief. She looked around before spotting his washcloth and body soap, taking in the added scents before applying them to her body and taking the time to actually caress every trace of her skin. As she bit her lip while lathering herself up, Delphi's mind wondered, and her heart accompanied it as her thoughts focused on Wyatt.

Looking back now, without the clouds of fear glazing her eyes, she had done things to him—both as an Alpha and her mate—that could easily been written off as unforgivable in some packs...even a death sentence in others—fortunately only a few among the ones she knew. But...he wasn't entirely like the "ruthless" Delaney Alpha males she had brought up to know...to expect. Hell, he wasn't anything like what she expected from males in general.

Despite her poor treatment by males, she had been...fortunate enough to have known the males of Méraudin: her cousins Degaré and Fulbert, the Delta Elliot and two of his triplets Pons and Rémi, the Betas Monsieur Sacha and Monsieur Loup, Alpha Raoul...and her father. She also had to thank the brother of the young Omega female that had saved her life in the Stenpryde pack, and even, to an extent, the human males that had helped her out through her journey as a lone wolf. Otherwise, she didn't think she would be able to trust males much after what she gone through with Oakens......

She shook her head under the shower head, both clearing her mind of what little she remembered of the Oakens pack and to prepare her wet tresses as she reached over for his shampoo and started washing her hair. As her mind went back to the original thought, she couldn't help but let a light smile play across her face. Instead of forcing her to his side—which she both felt and knew he could have—Wyatt waited for her to go to him on her own. Instead of getting angry and yelling at her for her...stubbornness, his tone was always calm, even though there was an apparent undertone of irritation. With all of her denials, he had gone out of his way and saved her from that man, and when she had been shot, it was his voice that kept her alive. And even when he did punish her, though it was torturous...it wasn't at all unpleasant and the thought made a blush accompany her smile. He had been patient with her, unlike any male she had seen outside of her birth pack. Perhaps...under his feral, yet aloof and serious shell was a truly caring male she had yet to understand. Remembering how much he had done for her made her heart flutter with feeling. It was beyond the sex they had, beyond the fact that they were mated, and it felt higher than respect. Could....could it be...?

No.

She shook head once again as she pulled back into the warm water to rinse out the soap in her hair. It was too soon for that, even now. He....Wyatt....she knew there was far more to him than what she knew, so how could she possibly fall in love with him without that knowledge? But...then again...she had never been in love. She had never been in a position where she could be, though she knew that humans seemed to do so constantly, yet somewhat early, in their lives.

Stepping out of the water, she looked around for the conditioner. With the bathroom being as neat as it was, she should have known it would be right next to the shampoo. As she started to scrub it through her hair, she thought back to a time in her earlier years. Though the exact memory was fuzzy at best, she knew it had during the spring of her 8

th

year with her pack. She remembered that Elliot and his mate Aline had just returned from the human village of Kuujjuaq with sewing materials and supplies, cloths, and few other necessitates they couldn't find where they lived. Delphi's father and Degaré were out teaching and playing with the triplets and her second cousin Cerise in the back of the manor house. Though she couldn't remember where everyone else was, her mother, Megane, and Cerise's mother and Fulbert's mate, Ninon, were sitting in the new grass, sewing cloths, talking amongst themselves, and laughing about who knew what.

She...she had also been with them as she watched the three mated females sew the cloths. Delphi remembered asking them at that age if they loved their mates. She remembered their looks and scents of surprise. When they all—in their own ways—responded yes, she had asked if they loved them as soon as they met.

Megane had stopped sewing and looked at her with a smile, "I didn't. In fact, the last thing

I

wanted to do was even mate with an annoying troublemaker like Degaré! But my wolf had voiced otherwise."

Delphi's mother had agreed with her, "Everyone had to grow to love their mates, including me to your father." When Delphi had asked why, Ninon had to add a quiet laugh.

Ninon had put down her needle and incomplete shirt as she looked at Delphi, "In a sense, to mate with someone and to fall in love with someone are both opposites on the same coin."

Ninon told her that when wolves like them are born, they have an instilled desire to seek out their mates. The search could take years, decades, or even centuries, but when wolves do find each other, mating happens almost instantaneously, or it can actually drive the two wolves mad with anxiety until they do. Love, on the other hand, doesn't normally happen with normal wolves, and is really only is found in humans, replacing their need to mate.

"Because of this, though we feel love, it doesn't have to happen and isn't instilled. But, as I said, it is on the opposite of the coin of mating. It may not happen, but for us, it could take a long time to feel any love for our mates, and not just on the level where our wolves are after mating, but as this side of us. As we are," Ninon had brought her hand to her chest, "The human side of us, it doesn't stop with just being mated, yet continues deeper than that."

Delphi couldn't remember what they had said after that that had caused them to start laughing hard enough to make Megane fall backwards in a fit of chortles, but...but she remembered what her mother had said when Delphi asked if that emotion of love, that kind of love, was something she could have.

Her mother had brought her close into an embrace and kissed her head, "You just may, Delphinia. Everyone is different, but you just may."

When Delphi asked how she would know when she has fallen in love, her mother let out an airy giggle, "I cannot say; you are not me. But." She pulled back to look her in the eyes as she had brushed her hair away from them, "when it happens, you will know. You will feel it." She remembered that they then got up and went inside with her following after them.

As Delphi finally rinsed out the conditioner, she knew she had taken those words to heart even after all these years. But did she feel it? Did she love him? Ninon did say that it would take a long time until she knew.....And she was right. Right now...Delphi felt that although she really liked Wyatt, she still had a ways to go. But...did he love her? Or even like her? That she didn't have even the slightest inkling of. She let out one last sigh as she turned both knobs off and stepped out to get the towel to dry herself. Time would have to tell for that too...

~*~*~

In the back of her mind, Delphi couldn't believe she was back in his closet and yet again putting on one of his clothes to wear. But once again, she had no choice; she left her cloths in his study on the floor. By the time they had made it to his room, they were both entirely nude. Once again blushing, this time Delphi reached for one of his long sleeved thermal shirts, a navy blue colored one, and put it on, the shirt almost reached her finger tips, reminding her just how small she was compared to him. She really was going to have to bring her clothes up her as soon as she could or she really will be just wearing his clothes...maybe. Deciding that that was all she needed she turned toward the front doors. Smiling at Wyatt's sleeping form, she closed the door after her and rushed down the stairs, passing the Beta and Delta floors, and onto the main floor—

Smack!

"Oof!"

"Ow...."

Delphi rubbed the side of her face. She had run into someone that was for certain. Man that hurt!

"I'm so sorry, Mrs. Delaney..!" The loud whisper came out humbly. The figure stood up, and that was when Delphi caught the scent. She looked in front of her and up the open hand of Jeremy, his scent full of worry now.

"It's okay," Delphi took his hand and got up with his help, "I wasn't looking where I was going, that's all." As she got another look at him, he had shown his neck to her! She quickly held her hands up, "No, no. I'm okay, Jeremy. Really..! You don't have to do that. I'm in the same rank as you too, you know that." After a moment, Jeremy relaxed his neck and that made Delphi let out a breath

. "Sorry," Jeremy told her quietly, "I'm just used to accidently upsetting the higher ups."

"They hurt you?" Delphi asked, a little surprised and concerned.

"Not really. Self-control is something the Delaney pack...mostly masters in...now. Um," Jeremy rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand; the other hand held a hard-surface mop, "But it doesn't stop them from glaring with obvious irritation."

Now that, Delphi could easily understand here.

"I thought our....well...your Omega house has to deal with cleaning the gym today?" Delphi asked him as she looked at the mop and he followed her gaze.

"Yeah, we do, but....I normally get up a bit before they do just to clean the floors, helps clear my head and uh...allows me to feel like I've accomplished something," He told her as he switched hands.

"Really? Like what?" To be honest, this was the most casual conversation she's ever had here, and with a male of all people! Why was Jeremy so different that everyone else she's met here?

"Stuff...in the past," Jeremy shrugged, "Even though it's just floors, and really anyone can do them, it allows me to feel less...inadequate and a liability."

Concern started to reenter Delphi's scent, "Why? Why would you feel like that?"

"...I uh...rather not say...Not when others could possibly hear it." Delphi realized she stepped on a landmine in the conversation a little too late as she watched his shoulders slump slightly and his scent changed to sorrow...and shame.

"I'm sorry," Delphi whispered. Had she been in her wolf form, her ears would have gone down.

"It's okay, Mrs. Delaney," Jeremy gave her a sad smile, "Later, maybe."

"A-Alright," Delphi agreed, to which he nodded and turned to continue his floor-cleaning.

"You can call me, Delphi," Delphi quickly added in.

He turned his head and looked at her, and after a bit, a genuine smile appeared on his face, the first she's received here, "...Alright.....Mrs. Delaney."

Delphi's jaw dropped, "Hey, I said you could—"

"I know," He told her as he continued to clean. Delphi could almost swear she heard small chuckles between his steps. Why

was

he so different...?

Shaking her head slightly as she watched him go near Wyatt's study, stop, sniff the air, and then continue past it to Adeline's study. Delphi then turned and continued to the dining room and through that to the kitchen. As she might have suspected, it wasn't empty. Not entirely anyways. A light blonde female Omega from a different flat had her back to her. From the sounds she was making it sounded like she was chopping, and from the scent she was slicing fruit; apples, strawberries, pears, and peaches. She kept separating the slices into different bowls, and the constant, recurring chopping sounds echoed in the room in a rather quick, martial, and unnerving way.

The moment Delphi stepped inside the room, the female's cutting stopped and she let in a quick sniff shortly after. Turning her head, she looked over her shoulder at Delphi, commencing an awkward silence.

"Um..." Delphi started as she took another step inside, "Don't mind me, just...getting something to eat." The female—her name was....Sonja...if Delphi remembered correctly from the introductions—said nothing to her as Delphi made her way over to one of the six fridge doors. Sonja's light blue, yet dim eyes followed her movements, rather intently. Delphi felt her stare on her back as she reached in and grabbed a blueberry yogurt . Sonja's stares didn't diminish even as Delphi turned back around after grabbing a spoon! Inside her mind, she felt her wolf starting to growl in annoyance, but she didn't let it show.

"...What?" Delphi finally asked. Sonja said nothing to her, but after a second more, she finally averted her eyes and continued cutting and separating the last of the fruit. When she moved passed Delphi to one of the refrigerator doors, Delphi smelt the hint of disgust secreting off her skin. Even though her mouth didn't move other than to slightly press her lips together, Delphi could swear she heard a tiny whisper,

'Why did this damn bitch have to be here, especially in here with me? She's ruined everything for Beatrix. If I was only a step higher I'd put her in her place...'

This made her wolf growl louder and made Delphi react, "What did I do you?!"

Sonja's dim eyes widened in surprise, "What? I didn't say anything."

"But you thought it," Delphi countered.

"I didn't project anything to you," Sonja's eyes narrowed to a glare.

"But you thought it! It's just as rude," Delphi countered once again.

Sonja then raised her chin up to her, making Delphi scoff, "I have no reason to tell you anything, rude or pleasant. We're both Omegas, or did you forget that while you were in the Alpha's room?"

Delphi's hand tightened on her yogurt as she let out a threatening growl. Sonja barely even flinched as she turned and left evenly without another word.

Delphi's wolf wanted to pull forward and beat Sonja to a pulp, but Delphi knew they shouldn't. 'It's just words,' she reminded herself and her wolf, 'Just words from a self-loathing wolf.'