Secured by the Buyer (Taken by His Alpha #3)

Chapter 17

17

A welcoming smile spreads over the smaller man’s face. “Milo, I’m so happy to finally meet you!”

I blink, surprised by Oliver’s friendly greeting.

But before Oliver moves toward me, a firm hand grips his shoulder, holding him back.

Caleb appraises me coolly. “Retract your claws, kitten.”

I force my fingers to relax at my sides as I take in the other Omega.

He’s not stunning like I expected for the husband of a billionaire. Rather plain, actually, with unremarkable features and straight black hair in need of a trim. The only thing of note is the nape guard around his slender neck, with a thick silver ring hanging from it.

Dismay fills me. If this is what Liam is into, no amount of polishing my appearance will help me win.

Oliver’s happiness falters under my intense scrutiny, and he takes a small step back toward Caleb, reaching up to clutch at the Alpha’s hand. As he does, his sleeve slips downward, exposing the dark bruises circling his delicate wrist.

Anger flares white-hot in my chest, and my focus snaps back to Caleb. If he’s abusing this Omega… I consider the guns on the table.

Without a hint of shame, the Alpha lifts Oliver’s arm, putting the wound on full display. “This is consensual.”

I scoff in disbelief. My dad used to give excuses for my injuries, too, until I got old enough to make them up for myself.

“Don’t believe me?” Caleb presses his thumb into the mottled skin, and Oliver lets out a breathy whimper.

The Omega’s lashes flutter down, his face slackening in pure bliss.

In one swift motion, Caleb grips a fistful of Oliver’s hair and wrenches his head back. “Who do you belong to? ”

“You, Alpha,” Oliver gasps out. “Only you.”

A familiar expression of raw possession contorts Caleb’s features, one I’ve seen on Liam’s face many nights, directed at me.

With a throaty growl, he bends and slings a euphoric Oliver over his broad shoulders. “Start the training while we’re gone.”

Then he’s striding away, the slender Omega bouncing with each long stride, leaving a trail of sweet pheromones in their wake.

Oliver giggles and waves. “We’ll catch up later.”

Mouth agape and cheeks burning with embarrassment, I turn to watch them go.

Jade yells after them. “Thank you for not fucking right in front of us!”

Caleb flips him off without looking back before disappearing through the door, Oliver holding onto his belt. The heavy steel slams shut with a resounding clang.

Jade turns to me, a smirk twisting his lips. “So, they’re like that. Rumor says they have chains on the bed, and Oliver has a toy collection. They’re obsessed with each other.”

I have to give it to Jade. He’s better at playing the board than I first took him for, and I now wonder if he’s been throwing our chess games to suss out how I think. He knew telling me not to worry about Oliver would do no good, and offering to introduce us would have sent me running in the opposite direction.

He maneuvered me into this meeting with the skill of a master.

“It’s not Oliver’s intentions I have to worry about.” I join Jade at the shooting bench, running a finger over the cool metal of a pistol. “It’s whether Liam’s moved on.”

My free hand drifts up to touch my hair, the vivid red strands sliding between my fingers. For the first time, I consider coloring it, but black would turn me into a ghost.

Deep down, I know Liam finds me attractive. He’s told me as much, murmured words of praise against my skin every time we’re together. And he claims his flirting was meaningless, so there’s no reason to be jealous. Unless he just said that to soothe my jealousy.

My hands curl into fists, short nails biting into my palms. I hate being this self-conscious. This unsure. It’s not who I am. Growing up, I rarely thought about my future. When I did, it was always the same bleak picture - me, alone in some dingy apartment, still living paycheck to paycheck. Stealing food while dodging my dad’s debts and fists.

It’s hard to trust that this, being here with Liam, is real. That he wants me when he could have anyone.

Jade’s giving me a considering look, his blue eyes intent. “You know, the Rockfords have houses all over the world.” He picks up a rifle and checks the chamber with deft fingers. “If Liam didn’t want you around, he would have stashed you in some far-off corner and moved on with his life.”

He snaps the rifle parts back together with a sharp click. “But he keeps you here, at the family estate.” Jade’s voice softens a fraction. “And he seeks you out the moment he gets home. I grew up with Liam, and I’ve never seen him like this. The man is smitten with you.”

A slow warmth blooms in my chest at his words, soothing a few of my doubts. “Did you bring me down here for relationship advice? Or to shoot guns?”

“Who says we can’t do both?” Jade grins, sliding me a box of ammo. “Learning how to kill a man is a great way to boost your confidence.”

Chuckling, I shake my head. “Okay, show me how to handle one of these while you tell me about what’s happening between you and the Alpha behind the big desk. ”

Jade’s head whips toward the door before he makes a shushing noise. “Don’t say that kind of stuff around the others.”

I turn to him in surprise. “What? Why?”

A blush rises to his cheeks. “I let slip once about my crush on Aaiden—he’s the oldest of the head family—and now it’s a joke among the younger generation. And he won’t take me seriously because he remembers me in diapers.”

“That’s rough.” I wince in sympathy. “He didn’t appear uninterested the other day, though.”

“Lord give me patience with that man.” Jade blows out a hard breath. “Okay, we’ll start with a pistol.”

He shows me how to check the safety, discharge the magazine and load it before directing me on how to take aim at the paper target at the other end of the range. It hangs from a wire track attached to the ceiling, and Jade brings it to the halfway distance to make my first time easier.

I grip the cold metal of the gun, my finger curling around the trigger as I raise it to eye level. The weight feels strange, unnatural. I take a deep breath, trying to remember Jade’s instructions.

“Keep your hold firm. Squeeze slowly. Don’t jerk it,” Jade says from beside me, his voice coming through the speaker in my ear.

My focus narrows on the silhouette of a man. A tremor runs through me, and I will my hands to be still.

Inhale, then exhale slowly as I apply pressure.

The gun kicks back with a sharp crack, the recoil jolting through my arms and causing me to stumble back a step. Jade’s hand on my shoulder helps me find my balance as the acrid scent of gunpowder fills my nostrils.

I blink in surprise, my heart hammering against my ribs.

“Not bad.” Jade nods toward the target. “You hit it at least.”

I squint and make out a hole in the outer ring of the paper. A grin tugs at my lips. It’s a start.

Jade grins back. “Ready to try again?”

“Yes.” I raise the gun.

This time, I plant my feet and prepare for the kickback. I shoot off several rounds, the bangs echoing in my ears despite the protective muffs.

With each squeeze of the trigger, it becomes more natural, the weight less awkward in my grip. I slip into a focused rhythm.

Inhale, aim .

Exhale, fire.

Soon, a tight cluster of holes pepper the center of the target.

A flashing light catches my attention, and I lower the gun, looking over at Jade in question.

“Someone’s coming in,” he explains. “Here, engage the safety and set it down like this.”

He shows me how to put the weapon down properly, barrel pointed away. I mimic his actions, and then we both step back.

Jade reaches under the counter to press a button, and a moment later, the door opens.

Caleb strides in, followed by Oliver, whose flushed cheeks and ruffled hair make it clear what they got up to while away.

Caleb walks over to bring my target in and assesses it with an appraising eye.

He raises one eyebrow at me. “This your first time firing a gun?”

“Yeah.”

“Huh.” Caleb studies the grouping of bullet holes again. “Not terrible. Keep practicing with Jade like this, and you’ll be a better shot than him soon.”

“Hey!” Jade protests. “I’m an excellent fucking shot.”

Caleb claps him on the shoulder. “Prove it. ”

A pang of longing fills me at their back-and-forth. It’s clear they’re close, more like brothers than teacher and apprentice.

As Jade and Caleb move further down the counter, I’m left standing awkwardly with Oliver.

I glance at him, unsure of what to say to this stranger who I have an unreasonable insecurity about.

Oliver extends a hand. “It’s great to officially meet you, Milo. Liam told me how he found you at the auction. I’m so relieved you’re safe.”

I accept Oliver’s handshake, searching his face. He seems sincere. Faced with his kindness, I just can’t bring myself to resent him anymore.

“Thank you for helping them.” I drop my gaze. “I don’t know what would have happened to me if you hadn’t.”

A shudder goes through me as I consider what my fate would have been. If I hadn’t met Liam and had been sold to a different bidder.

“I’m just glad I could help,” Oliver replies softly. He hesitates, then adds, “I’ve been trying to expose what’s happening to the Omegas in our neighborhood for a while now, but I didn’t have the influence or resources of a family like the Rockfords. It’s because of their support that we’re finally making progress. ”

That catches me by surprise. “Our neighborhood?”

Oliver’s expression turns a little sad. “I grew up only a few blocks over from where you lived.”

Now that he reminds me, I remember my old coworker, Kayla, mentioning how the playboy Caleb had fallen for a poor Omega from our neck of the woods after a mugging or something. Now I wish I’d paid more attention, or read the article in her magazine.

I study his face and realize he looks familiar.

The memory clicks into place, and I blurt out, “You’re that guy who was always coming into the convenience store and taking pictures of the missing persons’ flyers! The one always asking nosy questions…”

I trail off with a wince. Way to put your foot in your mouth, Milo.

Oliver just laughs, unoffended. “Guilty as charged. I suppose I’ve always been too curious for my own good. Digging into other people’s business is an occupational hazard of being a reporter.”

He winks, and I find myself cracking a smile in return, surprised by how at ease he makes me. I still can’t wrap my mind around the fact that a billionaire like Caleb married someone from my crappy neighborhood. And Leo used to be a server at some strip club before catching Nolan’s eye…

I frown as a thought occurs to me. “Do the Rockford Alphas have some kind of kink for slumming it with poor Omegas? Is that why Liam chose me?”

Oliver laughs. “I understand why you’d jump to such a conclusion, but I think they just see an Omega they want and that’s it for them. Society’s opinion be damned. They’re the black sheep of the elite but too rich to be snubbed.”

Hope unfurls in my chest. Maybe it’s not so farfetched to dream of being with Liam. “So, are you training down here to get into the same business as Caleb?”

“Oh, no.” Oliver shakes his head. “I just want to learn how to defend myself the next time someone shows up to kill me.”

Taken aback, I half reach for his arm before thinking better of it. Who knows what his psycho husband would do if I touched his Omega. “Do you fend off a lot of assassination attempts?”

He shrugs with far less concern than he should. “Often enough that I want to be able to take down an assailant. ”

I touch the handguns. “Does the thought of killing bother you?”

He shrugs again. “Not if it’s to protect what’s mine. You?”

“I’m not sure, but probably not if it’s to defend myself or a loved one.” The words surprise me, because I never thought I’d have someone I’d be willing to kill for, but I wouldn’t hesitate if it meant saving Liam.

Down the counter, Jade takes aim with the rifle, his posture self-assured and almost cocky. I’d fight for Jade and Leo, too.

My mind drifts back to my last encounter with my father before the casino, the drunken accusations and threats he hurled at me.

What would he think if he saw me now? His worthless Omega son, shacking up with a rich Alpha and learning how to use a gun?

The flashing light startles me out of my dark thoughts. I blink as Caleb walks over to answer a blinking phone on the wall.

After a short conversation, he hangs up and turns to me. “Dr. Wallace is here for you.”

My stomach ties itself into anxious knots. The doctor is here to give me a pregnancy test. And I still have no clue if that’s what I want or not .

“You need me to come with you?” Jade offers.

I’m tempted to say yes, to beg him not to make me face this alone. But Jade isn’t my friend or my family, yet. So I force myself to shake my head.

“Nah, you stay and practice,” I say, injecting false bravado into my voice. “Try not to miss me too much.”

Jade snorts. “Yeah, yeah. Leave before Caleb gives you my job.”

With a wave, I turn to walk out of the room on shaky legs, my heart lodged in my throat.

It’s time to find out if my life is about to change forever, one way or the other.