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Professor Wolf

Omega University

By: J.L. Wilder

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(Full length)

Professor Wolf

Chapter One

AIT

“Name?

“Caitlin Sterling.”
The registrar typed in her name. Caitlin held her

breath; this was the moment. She was about to find
out if her attempt to alter the student records had
been successful or not. If it hadn’t, she would be
sent across the road and into the complete
nightmare that she knew awaited there. But if it had
—

“Caitlin Sterling, freshman, wolf, beta, age

eighteen?”

A smile of pure relief broke over Cait’s face.

“That’s me.”

Well, almost me. With one little detail changed.
The registrar handed her a thick blue folder.

“Welcome to Shifter University.”

Shifter University. It had worked. She was

really there.

She traced her fingers over the institution’s logo

on the cover of the folder and waited as the
registrar scrolled through screens on his computer.
“Okay,” he said. “Your orientation group is meeting
by Claw Hall. There’s a map in your folder that will
tell you how to get there. Your group leader is
Victoria.”

“Okay,” Cait said.
“You’re living in Dormitory One, room 163.

After orientation, you’ll be able to go there and
settle in. Then, you’ll have the rest of the night to
yourself.”

“When do classes begin?” Cait asked.
“Tomorrow,” the registrar said. “You’ve got a

schedule in your folder too.”

“I didn’t sign up for any electives,” Cait said.
“We don’t have any during the first semester,”

the registrar said. “You’ll all be taking the same
course load. Then, after the first semester is over,
you’ll be able to specialize in something if you want
to.”

“That’s great.” Cait felt a rush of excitement at

the idea of choosing a specialty. Hell, just the idea
of making a choice felt magical. When was the last
time she had actually chosen anything for herself—
apart from walking onto this campus.

“Of course, some classes are reserved for

alphas only,” the registrar said.

Cait nodded. That was no big deal. She felt no

desire whatsoever to enter the world of the alphas.
It would be a relief, actually, to have most of them
on a separate track after the first semester ended.
“I’m sure the course offerings for betas are more
than enough to interest me,” she said.

The registrar smiled. “I hope you enjoy your

time here at Shifter U,” he said. “Go ahead and

head over to your orientation meeting now. You
don’t want to be late. That’s where a lot of people
make their first friends.”

Cait tucked the folder under her arm and left

the administrative building. Once outside, she
pulled out the map she had been promised.

It was so confusing! The campus was huge.

Well, that was to be expected, she supposed. This
was the only place for shifter learning in all of
Canada, and she knew that wolves and bears alike
came from all around to study the ways of shifter
life there.

I’m just lucky I got the chance at all.
It hadn’t been easy convincing her father to let

her come to school. He was deeply traditional,
rooted in shifter culture, and he had wanted her to
marry young. There were a lot of alpha potentials in
their pack who had had their eyes on Cait for years.

A bunch of assholes.
She located Claw Hall on the map and made her

way over, doing her best to put her father and the
pack back home out of her mind. She didn’t want
to think about what they would say if they could
see her now.

A cluster of students stood in front of the stairs

leading up to Claw Hall. Cait hesitated, but then
she berated herself. If you’re going to do this, you
have to be tough. You have to act like you belong
here.

So she walked over with her head held high.

“I’m looking for Victoria’s orientation group,” she
said.

“I’m Victoria,” a tall, slender, dark-haired girl

said. “Are you Caitlin Sterling?”

“Yes,” Cait said. It was never going to stop

being amazing the way everyone here seemed to
expect her, as if she belonged, as if she weren’t
completely out of place.

Victoria nodded. “That’s everybody, then,” she

said. “Let’s go inside, and we’ll talk about what
you can expect during your first semester at Shifter
U.”

Victoria led the way into Claw Hall and down a

corridor with tile floors. Cait looked around at the
rest of the people in her orientation group. They all
looked to be about her age, and there was a mix of
male and female students.

They entered a classroom. Victoria grabbed

some folding chairs from the wall and began to
arrange them in a circle, and the rest of the group
caught on and helped. A few moments later, they
were seated, facing inward. Victoria smiled.

“I’m glad you’ve all got your folders,” she said.

“That means registration went all right for
everyone. You should have a dormitory key in the
little envelope stapled to the top of your folder—
yes, that’s the one. Don’t lose that, or you’ll be in
for a hassle from the administration.

“Now, does anyone have a problem with their

schedule?”

A young man raised his hand. “I want to study

combat, but it’s not included on my schedule,” he
said.

Victoria nodded. “Combat isn’t available to

incoming freshmen,” she said. “You’ll be able to
choose Theory of Combat second semester. You’ll
also have the option to sign up for excursions that
include physical sparring in both human and animal
form.”

“I want to learn battle tactics, though,” he said.
“I’m afraid battle tactics is a class that’s only

offered to alphas,” Victoria said. “Everyone in this
group is a beta, and our experience here at Shifter
U is designed to be different from that of the alphas
because our lives and our roles within the packs are
different. An alpha’s job, his responsibility, is to
lead his pack into battle. Tactics aren’t something
you’d ever need to know unless you were planning
to challenge your alpha, and that’s not something
we encourage betas to consider. It’s against our
nature.”

The young man sat back, looking frustrated.
Cait could sympathize.
Someone ought to tell him that he can learn

whatever he wants, she thought. Someone ought to
tell him to take matters into his own hands instead
of waiting for permission.

But that wasn’t the shifter way, and Cait knew

it. Shifter life was centered on waiting for
permission before doing anything. And everyone at
Shifter University was there to learn how to better
integrate themselves into shifter life.

Everyone except me. I’m just here because I

have no better choices.

She wondered how many of her fellow students

had come here from packs, the way she had. Was it
possible that anyone here had been living on their
own, an independent life, and had simply chosen to
come to learn more about the shifter world?

Cait couldn’t imagine doing that.
Then again, maybe if I really were a beta, like

the rest of them, things would be different for me.

Victoria was passing around handbooks now.

“One for each of you,” she said. “It contains the
code of conduct here at Shifter U. We’re going to
go over it now as well because it’s something the
administration really takes seriously. Everyone at
Shifter U comes from a different background, and
you’ve all lived under different rules. But the
Shifter Council set up this institution to bring us all
back into shifter culture because the standard of
living was beginning to drift. So the rules here are
stringent, and if you’re found in violation of any of
them, the punishments can be severe.”

“How severe?” a blonde girl asked.

“Expulsion,” said Victoria. “Shifter U takes

pride in graduating every student who makes it to
their senior year. But we also lose several along the
way. Only the best and the most dedicated will
make it to graduation day, and if you do graduate
from Shifter U, it’s a seal of approval from the
Council that you’re a great example of shifter
culture.”

Cait glanced around the room. The betas

around her had a lot of different reactions to what
Victoria was saying. Some of them sat forward in
their seats, clearly eager to begin proving that they
were good examples of shifter culture. Others
looked wary or even mutinous, and Cait guessed
that they, like her, weren’t there strictly by their
own choice.

“So let’s talk about the rules,” Victoria said. “If

you want to follow along, you can turn to page
thirty-six.”

A few people did. Cait flipped her guide open,

dog eared the corner of page thirty-six for
reference, and closed it. She was more interested in
watching Victoria’s face as the rules were laid out.

“The most important rules we have here have

to do with the dynamics between ranks,” Victoria
said. “All of us are betas, of course, and that gives
us a lot of freedom. But there are still restrictions
on what we can do.”

“Like when it comes to what classes we can

take,” said the young man who had wanted to study
combat.

“That’s right,” Victoria said. “The alpha-only

classes are taught in Alpha Hall, and unless you
have a special permission form, you’re not to go
there. It’s a place for alphas to focus on their
learning without having to worry about anybody
else.”

“Is there anywhere else we can’t go?” another

boy asked.

“Not on our campus,” said Victoria. “Although

you can’t enter another student’s room without
their permission, of course, and all the academic
buildings are locked after midnight. But there aren’t
any places that are off-limits.”

“On our campus?” a girl asked. “What do you

mean?”

Victoria hesitated. “Come to the window,” she

said. “You can see it from here.”

The group of betas left their seats and clustered

around the western-facing window.

“There,” Victoria said. “On the other side of the

highway, just beyond that row of pines. See the
building?”

They nodded.
“That’s Omega University,” Victoria said.
Cait felt a chill crawl over her.

“That’s where all the omegas go,” someone

commented.

“That’s right,” Victoria said. “And none of us

are allowed to visit their campus. Not us, and not
the alphas either. There are organized social events
when the two schools come together, and you’ll be
able to socialize with them, befriend them if you
like, on those occasions.”

“Befriend omegas,” one of the boys spat.

“That’s a joke.”

“It’s not a joke,” Victoria said, her voice

suddenly stern. “Omegas are a vital part of any
pack. They may not play the same role you do, but
the roles they play are very important.”

“Yeah, fucking,” said the boy. “That’s all

omegas are really good for.”

“Now, pay attention,” Victoria said. “This is

important. You’re not to have sexual relationships
with anyone at Omega U. That’s forbidden by the
administration. The alphas may date the omegas, if
they want, but we betas can’t. Make sure you
understand that because it’s crucial.”

“What happens if we do?” a boy asked.
“Expulsion, generally,” Victoria said. “I know

of one or two exemptions that have been made. But
if you’re considering breaking this rule, let me
advise you to go to the administration and seek
permission first.”

There was grumbling around the room.

“Knock it off,” Victoria said. “The betas have it

pretty good. We can date each other, and we’re
permitted to date the alphas, too. We have nothing
to complain about.”

Isn’t that the truth, Cait thought, staring out the

window at Omega U. To her, it looked like a prison,
and the tall pines shielding it from view were the
bars. These betas have no idea how lucky they are.
If I were truly one of them, if I really belonged
here, I wouldn’t be able to find a single thing to
complain about.

“If you have any questions,” Victoria said, “you

can always come to me. I live in Dormitory One,
room 101. Now, I suggest you spend the rest of the
evening studying your handbooks, familiarizing
yourselves with the layout of the campus, and
getting to know your new roommates. Classes begin
in the morning. Welcome to Shifter University.”

Cait wandered out of Claw Hall and out onto

the campus lawn. She made her way to the western
side of the building and stood in front of the
window they’d all looked through together, gazing
across the road at Omega University.

That’s where I should be, she thought. That’s

where I belong.

She couldn’t ever allow anyone at Shifter U to

find out that she was an omega. If they would send
you away for dating an omega, they would
certainly kick you out for being one.

Coming there had been a long shot. She had

always known that. She had known how little
chance there was that she would get away with it.

But everything about the venture had been a

long shot. Cait’s father had wanted her to marry,
and it was only her pleas that she be allowed to
attend Omega University that had forestalled that
plan. Then she had managed to enroll in Shifter U
instead, dodging the indoctrination that all the
omegas across the road were facing.

Now I just have to get through the next four

years without being found out, she thought. If I can
do that, if I can graduate from Shifter U and earn
the approval of the Council, then I can strike out
on my own. My father won’t be able to control me
anymore. I won’t have to marry. I’ll do something I
want to do. Something I choose for myself.

Getting through four years without being caught

sounded impossible.

But then, she had already made it through the

orientation meeting.

So I know I have what it takes.
She squinted at the school across the road,

trying to catch a glimpse of the omegas who lived
and studied there, but she couldn’t see a thing. It
was as if they were fairy tale creatures as opposed
to living breathing people.

I’m so glad I’m not over there with them, she

thought.

She turned her back on Omega University and

made her way over to the residential side of
campus, where Dormitory One stood four stories
high. The next test would be meeting her roommate
and convincing her that there was nothing
remarkable about Cait. That she was just another
beta there to expand her understanding of shifter
culture.

This is going to be a long four years, she

thought.

But God, was it going to be worth it! Just the

feeling of being out from under her father’s thumb,
away from the tight control of her pack...it was like
coming up from underwater.

I’ll do whatever I want for the rest of the day,

she thought. And no alphas will be able to stop me.

It was the most freeing feeling in the world.

Chapter Two

RANT

“How are the new girls?” Jim asked.

Grant Larson held up two fingers, signaling the

waitress to bring another round, and shrugged.
“How are they ever?” he asked. “They come in
here not knowing a thing.”

“You can’t fault them for it,” said his friend.

“Look at the backgrounds some of these kids come
from.”

“I can’t look at their backgrounds,” Grant said.

“You’re the one who reads the student applications.
You’re the one in the admissions department. I’m
not allowed to look at those records.” He drained
the dregs of his beer as the waitress brought two
new bottles over. “Although I’m beginning to
suspect that you’re just admitting everyone who
applies.”

“Basically, yes,” Jim agreed. “If a girl wants to

reconnect with omega culture, we’re not going to
tell her no. That’s the whole reason the Council set
up this school in the first place.”

“What’s amazing to me is how far these girls

have drifted from the norms of omega culture,”
Grant said. “They’re born into such a rich tradition,
and by the time they get here...I don’t know.
They’re practically human.”

“Got some difficult ones this year?” Jim asked.
“Nothing extraordinary, I guess,” Grant

admitted. “It’s just that, by the end of a school
year, I get used to working with girls who have
been studying their true natures for nine months. I
get used to really educated girls who understand
their place in shifter society and embrace what they
can bring to a pack. And then the new year starts,
and I get a new batch of omegas, and it’s like
starting all over.”

“Your class is one of the most highly rated in

the school,” Jim pointed out. “You get consistently
high reviews from your students. I’m sure this
group won’t be any different. They just need some
time to learn the way things work here at Omega
U.”

“I hope you’re right,” Grant said.
“I don’t know why you’re worried,” Jim said.

“It’s the same every year. They start out not
knowing their place, and then they find it.”

“But there are always some who drop out,”

Grant said. “There are always some who can’t
make the adjustment from the life they knew into
proper shifter life. Every time that happens, I feel
like I’ve failed them. I’m not just a teacher. I’m a
guide. It’s my job to help these girls find their way
in the shifter world. It’s my job to help them find
happiness.”

Jim nodded. “You do a good job of it,” he said.

“You need to stop beating yourself up.”

“I just look at the incoming class and wonder

which of them won’t make it,” Grant admitted.
“They’ll never know how rich and fulfilling their
lives could have been. It hurts each time I fail
them.”

“You know that it’s possible that they’re still

happy, right?” Jim asked. “I mean, I know they’re
not living the omega life if they leave our school.
But that’s not the only good life that exists in the
world.”

Grant shook his head. “You’re a beta, Jim, so

you can’t really understand this,” he said. “I know
how it’s different for you. You weren’t born with a
specific role to fulfill within a pack. Betas really are
the closest things in the shifter world to humans.”

“Rude.” Jim flicked his bottle cap across the

table into Grant’s arm.

“It’s just the truth,” Grant said. “I like you. You

know I do. And I respect that you chose to come
and work at Omega U when you could have gotten
a job at Shifter U. We need more people to do that.
Shifter U pays more, I know, and that’s a mistake.
Someone needs to provide these girls with the
education they deserve.”

“Sometimes, I think it would be for the best if

we just put them all in the same school,” Jim said.

Grant shook his head. “That would be a

mistake,” he said. “Omegas need structure and
control. They need to be guided. They crave it.
There’s a part of them that will never be
comfortable unless they’re in the hands of a strong
leader.”

“That can’t be true of all of them,” Jim said.
Grant turned his beer bottle in his hands and

didn’t answer. This was something Jim would never
understand. Jim was a beta. Betas were different.

But Grant knew.
Grant was an alpha, and he understood how it

was never possible to fully relax unless he was able
to exert dominance over a group of people. He
understood how the need to be in charge of a
situation could only be satisfied by flexing his alpha
power.

And the same was true of omegas. They needed

to be led. They needed to know that someone was
in charge, that someone was taking responsibility
for them and seeing to their needs.

That was how things had been with Marisa.
But he wasn’t going to allow himself to dwell

on Marisa. That was in the past. The present was
this job at Omega University and the responsibility
he had to the girls in his class.

Today had been the first day of classes. Grant

had plenty of students back from years past, and he
was happy to see them and to hear about the ways

they had put his lessons to use within their packs.
Some of them were mated now and had come back
to finish their education while their mates finished
attending school at Shifter U across the road.
Others were mated and had pulled out of Omega U
entirely to focus on their responsibilities. Some of
these had sent him letters, thanking him for his
guidance.

Grant saved every letter. They all meant the

world to him. Every girl he could help was a little
victory.

Maybe this year, he thought. Maybe this class

will be the one where I help one hundred percent
of my students.

But the other painful thing about the start of the

year was seeing who hadn’t come back. Not the
ones who had found mates—that always made
Grant happy. But those who had abandoned their
omega roots.

Five girls in the sophomore class were missing

and unaccounted for.

Of course, he knew what had happened. It was

always the same thing. They had decided to try
getting a job—that life would never make an omega
happy—or they had met a man.

A human man.
A man who would never understand the omega

nature.

And they had chosen him over themselves.

It pained Grant to see omegas choose human

men. They would never know the pleasure of
submitting to an alpha. And, of course, there was
the matter of the shifter bloodline. A bloodline
ended with every omega who chose to mate with a
human.

That was another reason Shifter U and Omega

U were so important.

There were fewer shifters now than there had

ever been before. Their race was dying out.

Grant wouldn’t allow that to happen. His job

title might be professor but he understood that his
real job was to safeguard the future of the shifter
race. That was why it was so important to have
alphas teaching at Omega University. Someone had
to keep the omegas in line.

If the pay here was what it is over at Shifter U,

more alphas would be willing to take these jobs.

But the Shifter Council had never regarded

Omega U as highly as it had Shifter U. The Omegas’
school was an afterthought, a place to send omegas
to isolate them from real learning.

That infuriated Grant. Omegas had a different

role to play, certainly, but that didn’t mean they
were less important. They couldn’t be brushed
aside. If anything, omegas were the most important
members of the pack.

The omegas were the ones who could provide

for the pack’s future.

So many alphas thought it was their job to exert

their authority, to corral the rest of the pack and
compel them to serve. But good alphas understood
that their job was to use their power for the
common good, to help the pack thrive and be
successful.

That was why Grant had chosen to take the job

at Omega U when it was offered to him, even
though he could have earned more money across
the street. He knew that by working there, he was
doing the most good. He was providing the girls
with a guiding force that was sorely needed in their
lives.

“They start classes across the street tomorrow,”

Jim said. “I saw the kids over there running around
and doing their orientation thing today.”

Grant nodded. “They give them so much

freedom over there,” he said. “I’m not sure it’s
good for the freshmen.”

“They’re not omegas,” Jim pointed out. “Part

of their education is learning to be accountable for
themselves. The alphas especially.”

“But on the very first day?” Grant asked. “I’m

not saying everything needs to be structured, but
these schools are about learning to thrive in a pack.
Shouldn’t they be in group activities?”

“Group activities,” Jim scoffed. “It’s a whole

group of alphas over there, Grant. Dozens of them.
They can’t simulate the pack dynamic. It’s amazing

they manage not to murder each other in their
sleep.”

“Don’t be dramatic.” Grant took a sip of his

beer.

“You don’t really think you and I would be

friends if we were both alphas, do you?” Jim asked.
“We wouldn’t be able to agree on anything. We
wouldn’t get along at all.”

Grant shook his head. “It’s a strange idea of

alphas you have,” he said. “We don’t live to give
orders, you know. Yes, we like to be in control, but
we don’t have to control everyone we come into
contact with. You’re not my packmate. You’re my
colleague. I wouldn’t try to dominate you.”

“Do you have other alpha friends, then?” Jim

asked.

“Don’t start,” Grant said.
“You don’t.”
“You know I don’t,” Grant said. “And you

know why, too. There are no other alphas teaching
at Omega University.”

“But you could go across the street,” Jim said.

“There are tons of alphas teaching there.”

“It’s not a good example to set for my girls,”

Grant said. “They can’t just go across the street
whenever they want. They have to live the life
that’s been provided for them and find a way to be
happy.”

“But you’re not one of them,” Jim said. “And

that’s an example you have to set too, isn’t it? You
have to show them that the same rules don’t apply
to you. You’re the alpha, and they are the omegas.
You’re allowed to live the way you want to, and
they have to follow orders.”

“It’s not that simple,” Grant said. “Being an

alpha doesn’t mean I can do whatever I want all the
time. Often, it just means I have to make the most
sensible choices for myself, rather than depending
on somebody else to do it for me. That can be
challenging, you know.”

“What do you mean?” Jim asked.
“I mean that it’s actually safer for an omega to

have a rebellious nature,” Grant said. “She knows
that she has an alpha whose job is to bring her to
heel. She knows there’s a safety net to stop her fall
if she makes too big a mistake. For an alpha, that
kind of personality is much more dangerous. If I do
something that risks my wellbeing or the wellbeing
of those around me, there’s nothing to stop the
situation from ending in a catastrophe.”

“Now who’s being dramatic?” Jim asked,

arching an eyebrow.

“You’re right,” Grant admitted. “I just think of

the girls who didn’t come back this year. The
rebels. They’re the ones I feel like I failed. It was
my job to corral them, to keep them on the right
track. And I didn’t do it. Now they’re out in the

world among people who have no idea how to
manage an omega.”

“You worry too much.” Jim drained his drink.

“Let’s get back to campus. I want to go to the alpha
vs. beta basketball game at Shifter U.”

“You know the alphas always win that,” Grant

pointed out. “Why do you bother?”

“This might be the betas’ year,” Jim said. “You

never know.”

Grant nodded, even though he did know. There

was no point in even having alpha vs. beta sports.
The dynamics were too askew.

If I were in charge over there, I would

integrate the teams. I would make an alpha captain
of each and have him choose a squad of betas to
lead. That was the way to prepare students for pack
life.

Everything should serve the structure of the

pack.

If it didn’t help students prepare for pack life,

what was the point? Why were they playing
basketball at all? The idea of betas approaching
alphas as rivals to be defeated was counter to
nature. No wonder they never won.

“Are you coming to the game?” Jim asked.
“No,” Grant said. The last thing he wanted to

do was spend his evening watching a group of
young alphas defeat betas. That was just as
unnatural as betas trying to overthrow alphas. The

role of the alpha wasn’t to suppress or defeat the
beta, but to help the beta succeed.

He had discussed the matter with the Shifter

Council, and he knew they all thought he was
taking things too seriously. It’s just basketball, they
had said. The students learn about pack dynamics
all day. After they graduate, they’ll spend their
lives in a pack. Let them blow off some steam.

But he disagreed. That mindset was the whole

problem. It was the whole reason the shifter race
was failing. It had started with packs telling
themselves it was okay to do a few human things—
to get the internet in their homes, to buy
smartphones, to make human friends.

Then they had begun to fall in love with

humans.

They had begun to abandon pack structure.
Omegas had gotten the idea that the omega

lifestyle was a choice to be made, that they could
decide whether they wanted to play the omega role
within the pack or run off and live a human life.

They didn’t understand. They didn’t understand

how fulfilled they would feel once they embraced
their roles as omegas. It wasn’t the kind of thing
you could understand intellectually. You had to
experience it. You had to feel it.

Grant knew that. He knew because it was the

same for him as an alpha. He could have walked

away. He had even considered it once when he was
younger.

But now that he had experienced the power of

his role, now that he knew what he could bring to a
pack, he understood that there was nothing in the
world that could ever give him as much joy.

He just had to help the girls in his charge come

to the same realization.

Chapter Three

AIT

Cait woke promptly as the sun came

through her dorm room window.

Remembering where she was, she smiled. My

first day of classes at Shifter University, she
thought. If Dad could see me right now, he’d
absolutely lose his shit.

She rolled out of bed and went to her suitcase.

She hadn’t unpacked last night. She and her
roommate, Liz, had spent the evening exploring
campus together. It still felt like a small miracle that
there was no required time at which Cait had to be
back in her dorm. She could stay out as late as she
wanted to, and nobody would care.

Liz sat up in bed, yawned, and rubbed her eyes.

“I guess you’re an early riser,” she said.

“I’m excited for classes to start,” Cait admitted.
“Brown-noser,” Liz said mildly. “What do you

think it’ll be like? Not too hard, I hope.”

“I just hope we learn a lot,” Cait said. “I really

want to do well.”

“Well, slow your roll,” Liz laughed. “It’s only

the first day. I doubt there are going to be any tests
or anything. We’ll probably just meet the professors
and get a lecture on what studying here is going to
be like.”

“That’ll be fun too.” Cait examined her

suitcase. “What should I wear, do you think?

Liz came over to join her. “Your wardrobe is a

little, um...”

“Conservative?”
“Yeah. Not that there’s anything wrong with

that if it’s what you’re into, of course, but if what
you’re going for is blending in...”

“Can you help me?” Cait asked. “My father

was really strict, but now that I don’t live at home
anymore, I’d definitely be into mixing it up.”

“Yeah, of course,” Liz said. “We’re about the

same size, right?” She went to her own bag and
pulled out a pair of jeans and a tank top that laced
up the sides. “Try these on.”

Cait bit her lip. It was definitely more immodest

than any outfit she’d ever been allowed to wear at
home. But if she wanted to blend in with the betas,
she needed to act like one. She changed into the
jeans and top, marveling at the way the fabric clung
to the curves of her body.

“Perfect,” Liz said, stepping into a black skirt

and zipping up the side. “You look great. All the
alphas will be howling.”

“Oh, I’m not here for that,” Cait said. She knew

that if she got close to any alphas, there would be
no way to conceal her true nature. They would sniff
her out in a minute. “I’m just here to study and
graduate.”

“But there are so many hot guys around!” Liz

protested. “And so many of them are alphas, and
there are no omegas. They’re all across the road,
and the alphas can’t go there except on special
occasions. They have to date us if they want to get
any action at all.”

“You sound really excited about no omegas

being here,” Cait observed.

“Oh, definitely,” Liz said. “I’m surprised you’re

not. But then, I guess if you’re not here for dating,
it wouldn’t matter to you so much.”

“What difference does it make if there are

omegas?” Cait asked.

“It’s obvious, isn’t it?” Liz asked.
Cait shrugged. “I never thought about it.”
“Every girl wants an alpha,” Liz explained.

“They’re the most powerful. The manliest. They’re
the toughest, and the strongest, and the sexiest. But
every alpha wants an omega. When the omegas are
around, the beta girls don’t stand a chance. No
alpha would even look at you or me.”

“What about the beta guys?” Cait asked.
“Yeah, it sucks to be them,” Liz said. “Any girl

on this campus who dates a beta guy will be
settling, and he’ll know it. I mean, they’re not going
to have any trouble finding girlfriends. There are
way more betas than alphas, obviously. But they’ll
know that they weren’t the first choice.”

“And they’re not allowed to date the omegas at

all,” Cait remembered.

“Right,” Liz said. “So basically, you and I are in

the best dating pool we’ll ever be in in our lives.
We’re on campus with a bunch of young alphas
who have no access to omegas, plus a bunch of
betas to fall back on. It’s open season.”

Cait nodded. But she knew that while all that

might have been true for Liz, it definitely wasn’t
for her. Omega status came with high fertility, and
if she were to get pregnant, this would all be over
before it had begun. She would have to keep herself
distracted from the plethora of attractive young
men on campus.

After consulting their schedules, Cait and Liz

saw that they had the same first class—shifter
history. They walked over together, reveling in the
warm weather of late fall. Cait tried her best not to
look over at Omega University and indulge her
curiosity about what her fellow omegas were doing
today.

I’m not one of them. Not anymore. I’m going to

learn and travel and have the life I always wanted.
It all begins for me today.

The classroom was almost full when they

entered, and they found two seats in the back. Liz
leaned over to talk to a girl in the row in front of
them, and Cait looked around the room at her
fellow students.

And froze.
No. Oh, fuck. It can’t be him.
But as he turned toward her and she saw the

claw tattoo on his temple, she knew that it was.

Bart.
He was sitting in a group of raucous guys, all of

them laughing and punching each other, and she
would have known even if it weren’t for his
presence that these were the alphas.

She slipped lower in her seat, hoping to God

that he wouldn’t notice her. Please don’t let him
see me. Please, please don’t let him—

“Caitlin?”
Her heart sank.
He was on his feet, crossing the room, staring at

her. “What the hell are you doing here?” he asked
loudly, silencing the conversations of everyone he
passed. “You don’t belong here.”

“Excuse me, young man.” The professor had

entered the room, briefcase in hand. “May I ask
what you’re doing?”

Bart turned. “Professor, this girl is from my

pack back home. She’s an omega.”

Liz gasped.
Cait couldn’t believe this was happening. It was

only the second day! “Professor—”

But no one was listening to her. No one was

even looking at her. Now that she was a known
omega, her input was no longer required. “Of

course,” Liz said. “It makes sense. I can’t believe I
didn’t figure it out. She dresses like a schoolmarm. I
had to dress her in my clothes. I thought her family
was just really strict!”

“We need to take this up with the

administration,” the professor said. “Class is
dismissed for the day. Young man, you’d better
come along too.”

“Bart,” said Bart importantly.
The professor took Cait by the arm and hauled

her out of her seat.

“I can walk,” she said, jerking her arm away.

“You don’t get to manhandle me just because I’m
an omega.”

“She’s always like this,” Bart said. “That’s why

our alpha decided to send her to Omega U. She
needed to be taught her place. I don’t know how
she got over here. I can’t say I’m really surprised,
though. It’s just like her to go sneaking around like
this.”

“Omega U has a great rehabilitation program

for girls who are having trouble accepting their role
within their pack,” the professor said.

“I hope so,” Bart said. “I’m supposed to be

mated to her someday, but if she keeps acting like
this, I don’t know if I want her. I told her father
that if she got some education in her, maybe we
could work it out.”

“That’s not what happened,” Cait sputtered. “I

told Dad that I wasn’t ready to settle down, and he
agreed I could come to school. I was the one who
wanted it! You’re only here killing time waiting for
me to get out, I’ll bet! You weren’t even planning
to go!”

“See what I mean?” Bart asked.
They had reached the administrative building,

and they walked inside single file. The professor
pointed to a couple of chairs. “You two sit here,”
he said. “I’m going to confer with the dean about
this.”

“Yes, sir,” Bart said, adopting a smarmy tone

that Cait had never heard come out of his mouth in
her life. Bart was a textbook alpha, bossy and
controlling and sure he was always right. He had
never been obsequious.

Faker.
The moment the professor was gone, Bart

dropped the act. “What the fuck are you doing?”
he snarled at her. “What are you doing at Shifter
U?”

He wasn’t her alpha. She didn’t have to answer

him. She stared resolutely at the floor and said
nothing.

“I know you just came to school to get away

from me,” Bart said. “You don’t care about getting
an education. You just think everyone back home
will forget that you were promised to me. Well, you

can think again. You’re going to be my mate. I
don’t care how long I have to wait for you.
Eventually, you’ll get out of that slut school across
the road, and you’ll have to come home, and then
we’ll see what’s what.”

Cait ignored him.
“You better learn how to act right,” Bart said.

“If you get home and you’re still pulling this shit,
I’m going to have to teach you how to submit to an
alpha the old-fashioned way, and it’ll be a hell of a
lot worse for you than whatever they’re doing
across the road. Know that.”

He sat back triumphantly in his seat as if he had

won something.

I’m not yours, though, Cait thought firmly. I

don’t have to submit to you because you’re not my
alpha. No matter what Father decided, you don’t
own me. Not yet. And I’m not out of options. I’ll
find a way out of this somehow.

The professor returned. An older man was

walking alongside him. The dean, Cait supposed.

“This is the omega?” he asked.
“Yes, sir,” the professor said. “Fortunately,

young Bart here was able to identify her. No harm
was done.”

“Okay,” the Dean said. “Since it’s the first day,

we’ll send her across the road and say no more
about this.” He looked at Cait for the first time.
“But, young lady, your headmistress and instructors

across the road will be informed of this. If you
misbehave again, you’ll be dealt with very harshly.
Is that understood?”

“Yes, sir.” Cait ignored Bart smirking in the

background.

“Very well,” the dean said. “Headmistress Cleo

is on her way over to collect you. Stay right here
until she arrives.”

Bart and the professor took their leave. The

dean retreated into his office.

Cait stared at the wall. She couldn’t believe it

had all gone so wrong so fast.

Fifteen minutes later, a woman in her mid-fifties

bustled in. She wore a long skirt and a long-sleeved
button-down shirt, and her hair was tied in a no-
nonsense bun at the back of her neck. She looked
down her nose at Cait and frowned.

“So, you’re Caitlin Sterling,” she said.
Somewhat intimidated, Cait nodded.
“I don’t mind telling you you’ve caused

everyone a lot of trouble, miss,” the woman said.
“Come with me.”

It couldn’t have been more different from her

pleasant welcome to Shifter U. Cait already felt like
this woman hated her. She followed her out of the
office and across the road, every step feeling like
swallowing rocks.

“I’m Headmistress Cleo,” the woman said. “I

don’t know what things are like where you come

from, Caitlin, but I can promise you that here at
Omega University, we have very little patience for
rebelliousness. The girls at this school are here
because they want to learn how to become better
omegas. They want to thrive as members of a pack.
If that’s not what you want, then I suggest you
leave now.”

What could Cait say? Of course, that wasn’t

what she wanted. She dreaded the very idea of
living as an omega. But the alternative was worse.
If she left Omega U right now, she would have to go
home. And if she was expelled on her first day, her
father would hear no further arguments about her
not being ready for a mate. He would take it as all
the evidence he needed that she had to be mated as
soon as possible.

“It won’t happen again, Headmistress Cleo,”

she promised.

“I suppose you were over there to meet boys?”

the headmistress guessed.

Cait was so surprised that she stopped in her

tracks. “No,” she said. “That’s not it at all. I
wanted...” How much did she dare admit? “I
wanted to learn about shifter history and politics,”
she said. “I’ve always been really curious about
those things. And I knew those classes weren’t
offered here. Honestly, I’m not thinking about
relationships at all.”

The headmistress studied her face. Perhaps she

saw honesty there because her own expression
relaxed ever so slightly.

“That’s good,” she said. “That’s a good start, at

least. The girls who come here boy-crazy are the
ones who don’t do well. Always remember that as
an omega, it’s your job to be chosen, not to do the
choosing.”

Oh, fuck that, Cait thought, but she said

nothing.

“You’ll join your students in classes tomorrow,”

Headmistress Cleo said. “They’ll be finished for the
day in a few hours. For now, go to your room and
settle in.” She pointed to a round tower. “You’re in
room 933, all the way at the top.”

Of course, I am. “What about my things?” she

asked. “I left my luggage over at Shifter U.”

“Your things will be sent over,” Headmistress

Cleo said. “They’ll be here by dinner.”

“Okay,” Cait said. Then, remembering herself,

she added, “Thank you.”

“One more thing, Caitlin,” the headmistress

called.

Caitlin turned back. “Yeah?”
“You’re confined to your room when you’re not

in classes or at meals until further notice,” the
headmistress said. “Infractions will be punished
severely.”

Oh, come on!

But she didn’t dare argue. She knew she had

been dealt with leniently. As awful as all this was, it
could have been a lot worse.

At least I’m still here. And that means four

good years away from Bart. I can figure something
out in that time. I can think of a way to get out of
ever having to be his—or anyone’s—mate.

She climbed the stairs to her room. She was

gasping by the time she reached the fifth floor. This
was going to get old in a hurry.

The window of her dorm room stood high

above the trees, allowing her to look over at Shifter
University and see what she’d almost had.

Another hit for the omega, she thought and

dropped onto her bed in despair.

Chapter Four

RANT

Grant stood at the head of his classroom,

surveying the young women assembled there.

It was only the second day of class, but already

he felt like he knew so much about them. You could
tell a lot about omegas by the subtleties in their
behavior, and for someone like Grant, who had
worked up close with them for so long, it really was
like reading a book.

The girls in the front row were the ones whose

motivations couldn’t be trusted. To the casual
observer, they might look like eager students who
were just there to learn how to be the best omegas
they could be. But Grant knew omegas well enough
to know that they could be deceptive and
manipulative, especially when in the presence of an
unmated alpha like himself. There were plenty who
would make an attempt to seduce him.

Not that he could blame them. As an alpha, he

was highly credentialed. He had been at the top of
his class ten years ago when he had graduated from
Shifter University. He wasn’t a proud man, but he
did know what he looked like, and he knew the
effect that his looks had on women.

But he also knew what would happen if he were

to become involved with any of the girls. It would

mean the loss of his job. The entire purpose of
Omega University’s separation from Shifter U was
to create a place where omegas could learn without
being preyed upon by alphas. There would be no
tolerance for an alpha professor who engaged in a
relationship with a student.

So Grant was always cautious with the girls

who chose to sit in the front row.

The girls who were genuinely eager to learn and

to adopt the omega lifestyle tended to sit in the
middle of the classroom. They were timid, not bold
enough to claim seats right up front, but they still
wanted a place where they would be noticed by
their professor. They wanted to be a part of things.

And then there were the girls in the back.
Grant knew they thought they weren’t showing

their cards by sitting in the back of the room, but he
could see right through them. Those girls were the
ones who didn’t want to be there. Most often, they
had men in their lives forcing them to go through
the education that Omega U offered, men who
understood what was best for their omegas. But the
girls were bitter and resentful, and they chose seats
that communicated clearly that they would rather
be anywhere else.

Yesterday, he had taken a headcount of how

many girls had chosen those seats. There had been
three.

Today, there were four girls in the back.

Had somebody moved?
He did a quick headcount of his entire class.

No. There was an extra person. How had that
happened?

“I believe we have a new student with us

today,” he said to the class at large. It was
important to approach omegas, not by asking
questions, but by issuing directives. “I’d like our
newcomer to stand up, please.”

Nobody stood.
So she was going to be that kind of student.

Grant knew what she was thinking. He’d had
enough omegas talk back to him in his time as a
professor that he could have written the script.
You’re not my alpha.

“Maybe I was unclear,” he said, knowing that

he’d gotten himself into a power struggle with this
newcomer without even meaning to. In a classroom
full of omegas, it was vital that he demonstrated
where the true power lay. “If you were not here in
class yesterday, stand up now.”

Nobody stood.
It didn’t matter. He had been using the time to

study the room, comparing the students to the ones
he had seen yesterday, and he had spotted the
newcomer. She sat slumped in the back, dressed in
a long skirt and a sweater, staring out the window.
She wasn’t even paying attention to him.

Grant walked to the back of the room and stood

beside her seat.

She didn’t look up.
“You’ve come to Omega University to learn

your role within a shifter pack,” he said. “You’ve
come here to learn how your kind can best serve
the interests of the group. There’s nothing more
destructive to a shifter community than an omega
who won’t heed an order. I know you think you’re
being tough right now, but this act is accomplishing
nothing. The only thing you’re doing is
demonstrating that your own selfishness and pride
are worth more to you than the health of your
community.”

No response.
“I am going to give you one last chance,” he

said. “Get to your feet right now. If you fail to do
so, there will be consequences for everyone in this
room, because an omega who doesn’t obey causes
harm to everyone around her.”

A low murmur went up around the room.

Nobody liked the idea of consequences for
everyone. Suddenly, this disobedient omega had
enemies.

And she could see it. No one wanted to see her

win this fight. Not anymore. There was no way for
her to win because even if she refused what he was
asking, the repercussions would make her the one
who suffered.

Slowly, she got to her feet. He could see the

tension in her body as she moved. He could see
how angry she was. But that didn’t matter today.
What matters today is that she’s being obedient.
We’ll work on the attitude later.

“What’s your name?” he asked.
For a moment, he thought she was going to

make a fight out of that too. But after a short
hesitation, she spoke. “Cait.”

“Welcome to class, Cait,” he said, and he

turned and walked away. There was no need to
drag this out. He had shown his dominance. Now
the best way to demonstrate strength was to show
that he had the ability to walk away.

Back at the front of the room, he turned to face

the group as a whole. “As omegas, one thing you
must always be mindful of is the power and
authority of any alpha you encounter,” he said.
“You may be tempted to think that an alpha to
whom you haven’t submitted directly has no power
over you, but that’s a mistake. Alphas are authority
figures, always, and omegas are always subject to
that authority.”

One of the girls in the front of the room raised

her hand.

“Yes?” he asked, knowing that as much as he

would have liked to avoid engaging with the front
row, it would only harm those girls in the long run

to be neglected by their teacher. “What’s your
name?”

“Georgette,” she said.
“What’s your question, Georgette?”
“If alphas are authority figures, does that mean

they can have whatever they want?” She pressed
her arms together beneath her breasts, pushing
them up.

He kept his eyes on hers. “The responsibility of

an alpha is to not abuse his power,” he said evenly.
“An alpha who takes whatever he wants all the
time is just as destructive a force within his pack as
an omega who refuses to follow orders. Here at
Omega University, you’ll learn all about how every
member of a pack has a responsibility to contribute
to the pack’s success.

A girl at the back raised her hand.
“Yes?” he asked.
“What if we don’t want to contribute to the

success of a pack?” she asked. “What if we’re
happier living alone?”

Grant shook his head. “No omega is ever

happier on her own,” he said. “Although you may
not realize it yet, the best way to achieve happiness
as an omega is to fulfill the role that’s expected of
you in life.”

A soft noise of disbelief came from the back

row.

It wasn’t the girl who had asked the question. It

took only a moment for Grant to identify the source
of the sound. “Cait?” he said. “Do you have a
problem?”

She shook her head.
“If you have a problem, say so,” he said. “I

think you see by now that I can compel you to
behave. I know you think you’re not subject to my
authority in this classroom, and my authority as
alpha. If you’d prefer it, I can continue to
demonstrate how that isn’t the case. Or you can
just cooperate and answer the question I asked
you.”

“Fine,” she snapped. “I have a problem.”
“And what might that be?”
“The only way I can be happy in life is if I live

the way you want me to?” she asked. “That’s big
talk coming from someone who doesn’t even know
me. You couldn’t tell me three facts about myself,
and yet you presume to know what’s best for me in
life. It’s a bunch of bullshit.”

The rest of the class seemed to inhale

collectively.

Privately, Grant was astounded. He had never

had such an unruly student before. Some omegas
were more difficult than others, but he had never
had any doubt in the past that he could bring them
to heel as long as they stuck around long enough to
be taught.

This girl is prime dropout material.
And yet, there was a part of him that embraced

the challenge he saw in her. He didn’t want her to
drop out. He wanted to keep trying to teach her. If
he could convince a student like this to accept her
omega nature and to embrace the omega lifestyle,
there was no one he couldn’t win over.

“Come to the front of the room, Cait,” he told

her.

For a moment, he thought there would be

another power struggle. But then she shrugged
expansively, got to her feet, and swaggered down to
the front of the room. She threw herself into an
open seat right in front of his desk.

Once again, he decided to let the attitude go,

for now, at least. To the rest of the class, he said,
“One of the things that happens in every pack is
that a hierarchy is established. Cait has provided us
with our first object lesson, so we should all be
thanking her.”

“What do you mean?” one of the girls in the

middle of the room asked.

“This class is Pack Dynamics and Alpha

Appreciation. Who knows what that means?”

Georgette raised her hand halfway. “It’s about

knowing that alphas are in charge and knowing how
best to please them,” she said. “The omega’s job is
to please the alpha.”

“The omega’s job is to obey the alpha,” Grant

corrected her. “It’s not about being a source of
pleasure. In fact, if the pack dynamics are in
balance, alpha and omega will be equal sources of
pleasure to each other. But this only works if the
alpha both earns and is given the proper respect by
every other member of the pack, and that’s where
leadership and hierarchy come in. Which member
is at the top of the pack structure?”

“The alpha,” someone answered.
“Correct. Easy enough. Now, who comes

second?”

“The second.”
“Very good. And on down the line through the

group of betas. Now, which pack member is at the
bottom of the hierarchy?”

“The omega?” Georgette guessed.
“No,” Grant said. “And that’s the point I want

you all to take away from today’s lesson. The
omega isn’t at the bottom of the hierarchy, because
she’s outside the hierarchy altogether.”

Again, a scoff from Cait.
“Enlighten us with your view on the matter,

Cait,” he invited.

She turned and addressed the rest of the class.

“Well, he makes it sound so nice,” she said. “But
it’s really not nice at all if you think about it. We’re
outside the hierarchy because we’re not full
members of the pack. Because they don’t even

think of us as people. We’re sex objects to them.
That’s what he’s really saying.”

She turned back and raised an eyebrow at Grant

defiantly.

He smiled mildly. “We’ll have a social

experiment,” he said. “For the rest of the week, in
our class, we’ll experiment with the idea of social
structure in a pack. I want you all to imagine that
Cait here is the lowest ranking pack member, and to
treat her accordingly. At the end of the week, Cait,
you’ll give us a report on your findings and tell us
whether you found it worse to be the lowest
ranking pack member or to be an omega.”

“I can give that report right now,” Cait said.

“There’s nothing worse than living as an omega.”

“I’m sure you think you could,” Grant said.

“But the reason I chose you as the subject for this
experiment, Cait, is that you need to learn how to
submit. You need to learn that what you believe,
and what you want, is not always what’s most
important. And you need to stop trying to gain the
last word in every situation. Believe it or not,
you’re only hurting yourself with that kind of
behavior.”

Cait scoffed again, but Grant was finished with

her. He turned to the rest of the class.

“There will be no violence directed toward

Cait,” he said. “Anyone deviating from that rule
will face harsh consequences indeed. And she isn’t

here to take orders from any of you or to do your
work for you. Your role in this experiment is merely
to try to think of her as a lower social order. This
will help you develop an understanding of the
concept that, as omegas, you will live lives where
people are far less important to the health and unity
of the pack than you are. There’s nothing more
heartbreaking to me than an omega with low self-
esteem.”

He surveyed the room. Some of the girls were

taking notes on what he had said. Some were gazing
up at him raptly. A few seemed disengaged.

And then there was Cait.
She stood out like a sore thumb in the front row.

She was slumped down in her seat again, staring at
her shoes.

She’s unhappy, he realized. That’s where the

bad attitude comes from. She’s a really unhappy
person.

Well, it only made sense. She was an omega,

and she was rejecting her station in life. The one
thing that had the potential to make her happy, and
she was pushing it away.

At least she was there. As long as she was at

Omega University, there was hope. If she ran away
from school and went off on her own, Grant knew
that she would be beyond saving. But as long as he
had her there, there was a chance he would be able
to make her see wisdom.

You probably think I hate you, he thought,

looking down at her. You probably think I’m a
heartless bastard. If only you could see how the
only thing I want is for you to live a good life.

Chapter Five

AIT

Fucking asshole, Cait thought as she left

the classroom. Bad enough that she was stuck there
with all those brainless omegas. Bad enough that
she actually had to attend a class called Pack
Dynamics and Alpha Appreciation. Alpha
appreciation! That wasn’t education. That was just
alphas brainwashing omegas into doing whatever
they said. Just like alphas always did.

All that was bad enough. But to have to be

taught by this complete bastard of a professor...that
was more than Cait could stand.

He had singled her out. That was obvious. And

it was equally obvious why he had done it, she
thought. There could be no reason for it except for
her stint at Shifter Academy. He had heard what
she had done, no doubt, and he had decided to
punish her for it.

She smiled bitterly. She must have really upset

the alphas at this institution, and across the road, by
daring to challenge their precious hierarchy. God
forbid an omega doesn’t stay in her place at the
bottom of the totem pole, she thought. God forbid
anyone challenge the status quo.

They were scared of her. That was what it was.

They were scared to know that she wasn’t

intimidated by them. And that man, Professor
Larson—he thought that by humiliating her and
making a show of her, the way he had, he could
stop her from trying to assert herself any further.

But he doesn’t know me very well.
He didn’t know that men and alphas had been

trying to control her all her life. He didn’t know
that she had always resisted and that she fully
intended to continue to do so.

She climbed the stairs to her dorm room. Of

course there were no elevators on this campus, and
no nice low buildings like they had over at Shifter
University. Of course they would force the omegas
to climb up nine flights of stairs just to get back to
their rooms.

The door was open when Cait returned. Her

roommate, Sarah, was sitting on her bed and
flipping through a magazine. She looked up when
Cait came in, but said nothing.

Cait suspected that Sarah was a little bit afraid

of her. She had seen the way the other girls looked
at her on this campus—as if she were some kind of
renegade, somebody dangerous and disturbing.
Sarah hadn’t been in the room last night—she had
come back first thing in the morning to change for
class. Cait wondered if she had chosen to bunk with
a friend after learning that her new roommate was
going to be the rebel who had tried to infiltrate
Shifter U.

Cait tossed her backpack onto the bed. “What

did you have today?” she asked.

Sarah’s eyes widened.
“Look, you might as well talk to me,” Cait said.

“I’m not going to infect you.”

“Herbalism,” Sarah said quietly.
“Using plants for medicines?” Cait couldn’t

help rolling her eyes. “You know there are real
medicines out there, don’t you?”

“They’re designed to be used on humans,”

Sarah said. “Everyone knows that. Our shifter
natures respond better to natural medicine. Even
something like a simple painkiller can have an
adverse effect on the biology of a shifter.”

“You sound like you ate a textbook,” Cait said.
“You don’t have to be mean,” Sarah said. “Just

because you don’t want to be here, that doesn’t
mean nobody does.”

Cait swallowed the retort that rose up in her

throat. Sarah was right. There were girls who
genuinely wanted to be omegas, to learn about the
role and do all they could to fulfill it. Personally,
Cait thought those girls were brainwashed, but that
was no reason to be mean to them.

And especially not someone I’m going to have

to live with for the next nine months.

“You’re right,” she said contritely. “I’m sorry.”
“That’s all right,” Sarah said.

“Were you avoiding me last night?” Cait asked.

“Is that why you weren’t here when I arrived?”

Sarah hesitated. “Yes,” she admitted. “My

friend Georgette lives down the hall, and she said
you would be weird and toxic.”

“I think that girl’s in my Pack Dynamics and

Alpha Appreciation class,” Cait said. “Does she
have long straight black hair?”

“That’s her,” Sarah said.
“Well?” Cait asked.
“Well, what?”
“Do you think I’m weird and toxic?”
“Oh.” Sarah blushed. “I don’t know. Not really.

I mean, I do think you’re weird if you want the
truth.”

“Of course I want the truth,” Cait said.
“Well, I don’t understand why an omega would

try to go to Shifter U,” Sarah said. “It’s not like
there isn’t a school for us right here. You didn’t
have to try to break into theirs. And you must have
known you’d be caught.”

“All we learn over here is how to suck up to

alphas and birth babies and things like that,
though,” Cait said. “Do you realize that across the
road, they’re learning real life skills?”

“Those are life skills for us,” Sarah said.

“Submitting to alphas and producing children is
what omegas are supposed to do in life.”

“But that’s so stupid,” Cait said. “Don’t tell me

you really believe that there’s only one possible
path in life for an omega.”

“I believe there’s an ideal path,” Sarah said.

“I’m not saying it’s literally impossible for omegas
to choose something else, but I do think that no
omega will ever be as happy with another choice as
she would have been if she had opted for the
traditional route. That’s why I’m here.”

“You sound like my professor,” Cait grumbled.

“I can’t believe they have alphas teaching at
Omega University. That’s messed up. I’d bet a
million dollars there aren’t any omegas teaching
over at Shifter U.”

“Of course not,” Sarah said. “Omegas aren’t fit

to teach anyone besides other omegas.”

“You don’t see how demeaning that is?” Cait

demanded. “What, because we’re not as smart as
betas and alphas?”

“Intelligence has nothing to do with it,” Sarah

said. “It’s about pack structure. The role of the
omega is to take instruction, not give it.”

“That’s sick.”
“You can’t honestly be telling me that you want

to be a professor,” Sarah said, disbelief clear in her
voice. “No omega could want such a thing. We’re
not wired that way.”

“I can do whatever I want to do,” Cait

protested.

But deep down, something about what Sarah

had said had struck a chord within her.

The truth was that Cait didn’t want to be a

professor. In fact, the idea of taking on any kind of
leadership position was uncomfortable.

But that’s not because I’m an omega, she

reassured herself. Not everyone is meant to lead.
That doesn’t mean their role is to follow.

The important thing was having options. And

Cait definitely wanted to have options in life.

And she definitely never would, as long as she

was at Omega University.

“Well,” she said to Sarah, “the good news is,

you’ll have the room to yourself over the weekend
anyway.”

“Why? Are you going home?”
“I wish.” Even home would be better than

Omega U, especially now that Bart was away. “No,
my class is going on some campout excursion thing.
Professor Larson gave us a handout about it at the
beginning of the hour.” She unzipped her bag and
fished out the piece of paper she’d been given.
“The Wild Wolf Excursion.”

“I’ve heard of that,” Sarah said. Cait was

surprised to hear a note of envy in her voice.
“That’s where you get to go live wild in the woods
for two days. You get to run with wild wolves and
try your hand at getting your own food.”

“You’re kidding,” Cait said. “They’d never let

omegas hunt. Are you sure we don’t all sit around
talking about breastfeeding or something while the
professor hunts and then brings food back for us?
That sounds more like what Omega U is all about.”

Sarah shook her head. “It’s good that you’re

here,” she said. “You have an unfortunate
misunderstanding about what omegas are.”

“Meaning what, exactly?”
“We don’t just sit around and let alphas do

everything for us,” Sarah said. “There’s a lot of
work involved in being an omega. A lot of
responsibility. We’re the ones who have to nurture
the children in a pack. It’s also important that we
take care of our own needs because it’s so
important to everyone in the pack that the omega
be healthy.”

Cait flopped down on her bed. Lately, she felt

torn between hating the things that were expected
of her and wondering whether she had ever truly
known what was expected of her. There was a part
of her that had assumed that once she completed
her course of study at Omega U, she would have to
hole up in a bedroom and start breeding right away.

But maybe that wasn’t true.
If omegas were truly free to hunt, to explore the

wild...did that change how Cait felt about being
one?

No. Because as soon as she pictured embracing

her life as an omega, the inescapable detail crept in.

Bart.
Even if being an omega didn’t have to be pure

hell, being his omega certainly would be.

That was the thing girls like Sarah would never

understand. She probably didn’t have an alpha all
picked out and ready to go for her, so she could
fantasize about a decent, caring man who would
provide for her every need and make her feel safe
and cared for. She didn’t have to live in fear of an
alpha who would use his power to cruelly dominate
her and destroy her life.

Professor Larson couldn’t possibly understand

that kind of fear either.

But maybe there was something Cait could do

to show him what it was like when you followed
your nature without heeding the call of common
sense.

In almost every aspect of life, omegas were the

ones who were vulnerable, and men—alphas—had
all the power.

But there was one exception. There was one

way in which Cait knew she had power over him. It
was the same way in which she had always had
power over Bart. It was the very power Bart sought
to neutralize by dominating her, taking her fully
under his control.

She had the power to seduce Professor Larson.

Alpha Appreciation, my ass! Oh, she’d show

him some alpha appreciation, all right. And when
she was finished, she would leak the news of their
little affair to an administrator, who would surely
fire Professor Larson for his indiscretions. The staff
would see nothing but an alpha taking advantage of
his power, and they’d never imagine that she had
been the one to orchestrate the whole thing.

But he’ll know. He’ll know, and I’ll know, and

he’ll think twice before he tries to make a
spectacle out of any omega ever again.

It would be the perfect revenge. He would

always know that he had brought it upon himself,
that his attempts to dominate her and put her down
had led to his professional demise. And if Cait were
lucky, maybe it would even lead to some kind of
new awareness among the Omega U administrators
of how stupid and unfair it was to have alphas in
positions of authority over the omegas at the
school.

She could hope.
Cait went to her closet and pulled down the

duffel bag she kept there. She would start packing
for the campout. The informational paper she’d
been given said to pack long pants and sturdy boots
—hiking gear—as well as several changes of
clothes. They would be spending the majority of the
retreat in wolf form, but there would be several
interludes during which they would shift back to

their human forms, and they would want to be
prepared for that.

But Cait ignored the advice.
She hesitated only a moment before pushing her

long pants to the back of the drawer and reaching
for her only pair of short shorts. If she wasn’t
dressed appropriately, she supposed Professor
Larson would just have to make her stay back
while the rest of the class hiked.

And wouldn’t that just break my poor heart?
She gathered all her makeup together. She

wasn’t supposed to own makeup—her father had
always thrown it out when he’d found it, but he
hadn’t always been able to find it. Makeup was a
human thing, he’d told her over and over. An alpha
prefers a natural look.

Cait was more than ready to put that notion to

the test.

She knew she was good looking. She knew she

had the kind of body men liked. If she had
questioned it at all, the fact that Bart wanted her
would have taken away all her doubts.

Bart doesn’t even like me. The fact that he

wants me for his omega proves my attractiveness
pretty definitively.

She would be able to seduce her professor. She

was sure of it. And he wouldn’t have the slightest
idea what was happening until it was too late.

The only way it won’t work is if he actually

does have some moral hang-up about sleeping with
his students.

But she was sure that wouldn’t be the case.

Hadn’t he demonstrated clearly in class that he had
no problem with the idea of flexing his authority
over her? He was a controlling man, an alpha to the
core, and it seemed clear to Cait that he was proud
of it. He probably wouldn’t even be surprised to be
hit on by a student. It probably happened all the
time.

I bet he’s sleeping with a bunch of the girls.

Why else would an alpha bother coming to teach at
Omega University, if not to be surrounded by hot
young omegas? She nodded to herself, feeling even
more resolved in her plan. I’m protecting the other
girls here at Omega U by taking this guy out. I’m
doing everyone a favor.

She finished her packing and zipped up her

duffel, placing it at the foot of her bed. She had
been positively dreading the trip this weekend,
dreading the prospect of spending an extended
amount of time with Professor Larson. But now
that she knew what she was going to do, she was
looking forward to it.

Sarah set down her magazine. “I’m going for a

walk,” she said, and then hesitated. “Do you want
to come?”

“I’m confined to my room,” Cait said.

“Now you care about the rules?”
Cait laughed. “Maybe next time,” she said.
She was glad she had broken the ice with Sarah,

glad she could actually talk to her roommate, even
if they didn’t seem to agree on very much. And
Sarah was right—breaking rules wasn’t something
that mattered to her that much.

But you had to pick and choose your battles.
Cait was about to seduce a professor. The best

thing she could do was appear to be a model
student until then. With luck, the administration
would believe her when she claimed she had been
trying to turn over a new leaf.

Chapter Six

AIT

“All right, everyone,” Professor Larson

said. “You can go ahead and drop your bags here.”

Cait shrugged out of her backpack and dropped

it on the ground. She was tempted to slump to the
ground herself, as some of the omegas around her
were doing. They had been hiking for hours, most
of it uphill, and it had seemed that they might never
reach their campsite.

But now, finally, they were there. The ground

had flattened out in front of them, and the woods
had thinned enough that they could pitch their
tents.

To Cait’s absolute consternation, she had been

assigned to share a tent with Georgette. It was
painfully obvious that the other girl had a crush on
Professor Larson. She had scampered along behind
him as if he’d been dropping bread crumbs the
whole way up the hill. Now she sat on the ground
staring raptly as he went over the instructions for
how to set up a tent.

Cait stood still, trying not to betray her regret at

her skimpy attire. She hadn’t realized they would
be hiking to get to the campsite. She’d been
walking through the woods for hours with bare legs,

and she felt as though she’d been eaten alive by
insects.

If only we could have made the trek in wolf

form.

But Professor Larson had been firm about that.

Nobody was to shift. Not yet. Not until they
reached the campsite and set up the tents. There
would be a run with wild wolves that afternoon, but
there were human responsibilities to tend to first.

Georgette looked both exhausted and unlikely

to move anytime soon, so Cait started unpacking
her tent. She had never set one up before, but she
was no idiot, and the professor’s instructions had
been basic enough. Before long, she was using the
mallet to drive the last peg into the ground. She sat
back and admired her handiwork, wiping the sweat
from her brow.

“Oh,” Georgette said, coming up behind her.

“You already put up the tent.”

“Yeah.” There was no way she hadn’t noticed

what Cait was doing. Who did she think she was
kidding?

“I would have helped with that,” Georgette

said.

“Uh-huh.” If you would have helped, then why

didn’t you?

“Looks like someone’s first off the blocks,”

said another voice.

She turned. There was Professor Larson. “You

started working while I was still giving the
instructions,” he said.

There was no point in pretending otherwise. “It

just seemed really basic,” she said. “I knew what
needed to be done, so I did it.”

He nodded. “It’s all right this time, but in the

future, you should wait for an order before you act
while on this excursion.”

Cait smirked. She knew why it was fine this

time. He wouldn’t have been saying that if he’d
been able to do anything about it. He was upset that
she’d undermined him, but it was too late for him to
do anything but act benevolently. He was trying to
reclaim his power.

But you can’t, she thought. I defied you. Not

much. Just a little bit. But I did it, and we both
know it.

Cait wanted him feeling nervous and off-

balance when it came to her. She wanted him
worried about her.

It would make her coming seduction that much

easier.

Georgette beamed up at Professor Larson. “I

didn’t even get a chance to help with the tent,” she
said, affecting a pout. “It looked so hard. But I was
ready to try!”

“I’m sure you were,” Professor Larson said

kindly.

Cait thought she might be sick.
“Everyone, gather by the fire pit when your

tents are up,” Professor Larson said.

Cait headed over to the fire pit to wait. It

wasn’t long before the others gathered around her,
their tents arranged in a wide circle around the
clearing.

“We’re heading into the woods now,” Professor

Larson said. “There’s a wolf pack that lives around
here. We’re going to seek them out and run with
them for a while. I’ll take point. Everyone should
stay formed up around me—don’t go off on your
own for any reason. In addition, the person you’re
sharing a tent with is your buddy for the run. If you
get separated from the pack, make sure you stick
with your buddy.”

“What should we do if that happens?” one of

the girls asked.

“Don’t try to find your way back,” Professor

Larson said. “You could end up getting more lost.
Let us know where you are with a howl, and we’ll
come to you. If you find the wild wolves while
you’re alone, keep your distance and don't engage,
and you should be fine.”

In spite of herself, Cait felt a rush of

excitement. Running with real wild wolves! Was
Bart doing anything like that at Shifter U? She
doubted it.

“Make your way into the woods and shift,”

Professor Larson said. “When you return, drop
your clothes in your tent. Then come to the same
place where you’re sitting right now. That way, you
can get to know your buddy. Learn her markings so
that the two of you can recognize each other while
we’re on the run. That’s very important. You don’t
want to lose track of who you’re with.”

Cait really didn’t want to admit to herself how

much she was looking forward to this run. She
wanted to remain aloof, to keep telling herself that
it was another stupid omega thing and that
Professor Larson was trying to control her.

But it didn’t feel that way.
Cait felt as though the shifter world might

actually hold some beauty for her.

She jogged into the woods, just far enough that

she couldn’t see any of her classmates, and quickly
stripped down. Back home, she had so infrequently
been allowed to shift that it felt like a rare treat
now. Her father had always told her that being an
omega was about control, and the most important
thing she could do was keep her wolf side locked
away.

Now she was ready to let it out.
It was like stretching the kinks out of her body

after a long night’s sleep. Her limbs lengthened and
strengthened, and her back bowed into a new
shape. Her senses flooded with information that she

would never have been able to perceive as a human
—the sounds of leaves rustling and birds’ wings
flapping, the smell of the earth and the little plants
all around.

She pressed her paws into the earth, feeling the

way it gave beneath her, the new weight of her
body in this form, the strength she had. Nothing felt
as powerful as this. It was enough to make her
forget all the weaknesses of being an omega.

Maybe that’s why Father never wanted me to

shift if I could avoid it. Maybe he just didn’t want
me to feel strong.

She knew for a fact that Bart would hate the

idea of her feeling strong.

But Professor Larson wants you to do it.
She pushed that thought from her head.

Professor Larson didn’t know the first thing about
being an omega. He didn’t know what made her
feel strong or weak. He wouldn’t have cared if he
had known. He was just using this excursion as a
way to boss them all around. That was all it was.

She came out of the woods and took her seat by

the fire pit. A few moments later, a gray wolf with a
lean face came over and sat beside her. Georgette.
Though she found the other girl annoying, Cait
turned and made a full study of her, learning her
markings as Professor Larson had directed. She
didn’t want Georgette getting lost or hurt on the
run. She didn’t dislike her that much.

There was no mistaking Professor Larson

himself when he appeared from the woods. He was
taller and more muscular than any of them, with a
broad face and a thick scruff of fur around his
neck. For just a moment, Cait felt captivated. Even
like this, he was handsome. And it was more
difficult in wolf form to maintain the irritation she
felt with him when she was human.

She found herself wanting to submit.
What a stupid inclination! She shook herself,

shook off the impulse. She wasn’t about to submit
to anybody, and certainly not him.

He tipped his head to one side, and Cait

understood that he meant them to follow. She and
the others stepped into a loose formation behind
him, and Professor Larson set off at a trot toward
the woods.

Once they were in the trees, he opened up and

began to run in earnest. He probably wasn’t going
full speed, Cait thought—she wasn’t even going full
speed at the moment—but it was such a relief to
accelerate at all after the slog up the hill to the
campsite that she might as well have been flying.
She felt like howling for joy, but she restrained
herself. She didn’t want to alert the wild wolves to
their presence any sooner than was necessary. She
knew enough to know that they would need to be
approached with caution.

Professor Larson took a sudden sharp left turn.

The omegas wheeled to follow him unthinkingly,
unquestioningly. Cait found herself doing the same.
It was only after they had been following the new
path for a few moments that it occurred to her to
wonder what was going on. Why did we turn?
We’re not going back toward camp already, are
we?

Then she smelled it.
Wolves.
Professor Larson must have picked up their

scent, or seen some other sign of them, back when
he had first made his turn. But now Cait could
smell them too. The scent of them grew more and
more powerful as they ran, and she knew they were
getting close.

Then she smelled something else, something

tangy and sharp. Something she almost didn’t
recognize.

But it triggered a memory within her. Running

through the woods by her house as a teenager and
stepping on a sharp rock. A lance of pain. The
sharp scent of blood in the air.

Blood in the air.
She dug in her heels and skidded to a stop.
Around her, a few of the others had done the

same. Professor Larson was looking over his
shoulder at them, brow furrowed. He gave a short
bark that was clearly meant to be an order.

Cait ignored him and turned toward the smell of

the blood.

A few of the others turned with her.
Professor Larson padded over, sniffed the air,

and then set off in the new direction, moving
toward the unpleasant smell this time. Cait trailed
him. She had no idea what to expect. Had someone
been injured or killed? Did a fight await them at the
end of this journey?

Professor Larson stopped.
Cait came up beside him.
A low whine escaped her before she could bite

it back.

A wolf lay on his side on the ground, bleeding

from a wound in his shoulder, panting heavily with
pain and exhaustion. Cait searched the wolf’s eyes
and knew immediately that this was no shifter.
There was an intelligence there, but it was animal,
not human. Not on the level of the wolves who
stood around her.

This was a wild wolf.
And it was hurt.
The class circled around the wolf. It bared its

teeth, but only weakly. This animal was no threat.
Cait could see that plainly.

Then, to her left, one of her fellow shifters

stepped forward and bowed.

Cait felt a jolt of recognition. It was Georgette.

She had thought of Georgette as worthless, as

nothing but a silly girl along for the adventure. And
now here she was, taking the lead. Approaching the
wild wolf before anyone, even Professor Larson,
had been willing to do so.

The wolf relaxed and closed its eyes, clearly

acknowledging that she was no threat.

Georgette walked forward. She hunkered down

beside the injured wolf and licked its fur gently. It
looked up at her and whined.

Slowly, one by one, the other omegas

approached. They circled around the downed wolf,
nudging it with their noses, until finally, the wolf
got to its feet. It whined a little as it tried to walk,
but it managed to stay upright.

Now Professor Larson turned and walked off in

the direction he had been heading before Cait had
turned them. He was walking at a pace that was
almost leisurely now, and Cait knew he was doing it
so that the injured wolf would be able to keep up.
Several of the other omegas walked around the
wolf, leaning their shoulders against his.

They’re helping him, Cait thought. How do they

all know how to do that?

And how had they known that the wolf would

accept their help? This was a wild wolf, after all,
not a shifter, and he had been showing his teeth
when they’d arrived. Approaching could have been
very dangerous. Hadn’t Professor Larson even

warned them not to approach wild wolves without
his guidance.

And yet, Georgette had done it. Georgette! Of

all of them, it had been that bimbo who had made
the move.

It should have been me, Cait thought, fuming

with herself. I’m the one in this group who’s brave.
I’m the one who’s not a mindless slave to orders. If
you’d told me yesterday that this would happen, I
would have been sure I would be the one to
approach the wolf.

But when she’d been faced with it, she’d been

afraid. She had to admit that she couldn’t have
done what Georgette had.

Why? Was the girl just too stupid to understand

the danger she’d been putting herself in?

Cait was tempted to believe that was the case,

and yet, she couldn’t quite write it off as that.
Because Georgette’s move had worked. She had
gotten the wolf on its feet. So you couldn’t really
call it stupid, could you?

The group entered a clearing, smaller than the

one they’d been camped in, and came to a halt.
About ten wild wolves were scattered around the
clearing, most of them lying down, one upright on
his feet.

The injured wolf perked up, broke free of their

group, and picked his way over to the pack.

This is his pack, Cait realized. We brought him

home. They’ll take care of him now.

She noticed how Professor Larson stood far

away from the pack, his head dipped low to the
ground, as the omegas escorted the wild wolf back
to his family. They bowed and backed away.

Then Professor Larson barked for their

attention, turned, and led them away at a run.

The observation must be called off, Cait

thought. It would be too dangerous to try to stay
now that they had an injured packmate.

And she was glad. Because nothing about

today’s excursion had made any sense to her, and
as much as she was tired of listening to Professor
Larson talk, she was eager for an explanation of
how the omegas had managed to help the injured
wolf.

Chapter Seven

RANT

“Professor?”

Grant turned. Cait, the omega who had

questioned him in class, was perched on the tree
stump beside him, barely squeezing onto it.
Instinctively, he scooted forward a little,
simultaneously making more room for her and
putting a little distance between the two of them.

Cait closed the distance, moving closer to him.

Grant felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up.
If he had been in wolf form, his hackles would have
raised. She was up to something. He could smell it
on her.

“How are you enjoying the excursion?” he

asked, knowing that as alpha and professor, it was
his responsibility to keep things professional and
appropriate.

“Oh, it’s been great,” she said, her voice just a

little breathy. “That run today was really
something. The way everyone just knew how to
help that injured wolf like that!”

“It’s an ability that omegas have,” Grant said.

“No other member of a pack would have been able
to help that wolf quite as well as an omega.”

“Why not?” she asked.

“Because to an alpha wolf, or a beta, there’s

nothing threatening about an omega,” he explained.
“That wolf knew that a bunch of omegas weren’t
there to harm him or to pick a fight. He knew it was
safe to allow himself to be vulnerable in your
presence.”

“That’s why you didn’t approach him,” Cait

said.

“That’s right,” Grant agreed. “And that’s why I

stayed back when we found the rest of the pack.
The alpha might have thought I’d done something
to harm his packmate, but he’d never believe that
an omega was capable of such a thing.”

Cait looked down at the ground and said

nothing.

“That bothers you, doesn’t it?” Grant asked.
“I don’t like to be seen as weak,” Cait said.
“It isn’t weakness,” Grant said. “It’s

compassion. It’s nurturing. Omegas have those
qualities on a level that other members of a pack
simply don’t. If you embrace your true nature, Cait,
you’ll come to realize that you have them too.”

“I don’t know,” Cait said. “Maybe I don’t have

them. Maybe I’m not a very good omega.”

“What would make you think that?” Grant

asked.

“You don’t think I’m a very good omega,” she

said.

“I don’t think that at all,” he said, surprised. “I

never said anything of the kind.”

“You think I’m disobedient,” she said. “You did

say that.”

“Well, you disobeyed me,” he said, unable to

keep a small smile from his face. “What sort of
response did you expect?”

“I suppose that’s true,” she said.
“But that’s why you came to Omega University,

Cait,” he said. “No one is perfect when they arrive.
You have your four years here to study omega
culture and the place of the omega within the pack.
You have your time here to learn how to embrace
the omega lifestyle. It’s all right that you haven’t
done it yet. If you open your mind to what I have to
teach you, you can become a good omega.”

She scooted closer to him. “I can open myself

to you,” she said, eyes wide, staring up at him.

Oh, good lord.
He knew exactly what she was doing. He had

seen it before, a million times. This was why she
had come on the excursion dressed so
inappropriately. This was why she had come over to
sit beside him.

She was trying to seduce him.
He had to admit, he hadn’t expected it from

her. The girls who tried to seduce him weren’t
usually the rebellious ones. Ordinarily, he got this
kind of behavior from girls who thought they had

come to Omega University to meet a man and settle
down. Girls like that tended to throw themselves at
every alpha in sight.

What was Cait doing? She didn’t want to

submit to an alpha. She’d made that clear.

So why would she flirt with him this way?
For a moment, he wondered whether he had

misunderstood her advances—but then she leaned
her body into his, blinking up at him, and he was
sure. This was definitely a flirtation.

But why?
She wants to get me fired.
As soon as the thought came to him, he knew

he had it right. It was revenge. She thought she
would seduce him, lead him into a trap, and then
report him to the school. She thought she could get
him to lose his job.

She thought she was so smart.
Grant stood up, putting distance between the

two of them. “Omegas are good at that, too,” he
said. “In fact, they’re usually better than this. But
don’t worry, you’ve got time to learn.”

Shock crossed her face. She hadn’t expected

him to be able to resist her. He could see that.

“You’d better go on back to your tent,” he said.

“We don’t need to discuss this any further, as long
as it never happens again.”

She jumped to her feet. He was sure, for a

moment, that she was going to burst into tears and

go running back to her tent. He even wondered if
perhaps she might be so embarrassed by her
behavior that she would stay in there for the rest of
the trip.

But just as Grant was about to get up and

apologize to her, her face changed. She was alight
with rage now. “You can’t talk to me that way,” she
hissed. “You think you’re so big just because
you’re an alpha and I’m an omega, but the truth is
that you’re nothing. You’re nothing to me,
Professor Larson. I don’t care what you say. I don’t
care what you think.”

“Calm down,” he ordered. He was somewhat

taken aback, and without really considering it, he
found himself injecting his command with some of
the weight of his position as alpha. She needed to
calm down. The whole group needed it. This kind
of drama would do no one any good.

“Fuck you,” she snarled. “Fuck you and your

whole institution. I’m done with it.”

She turned her back on him and sprinted off

into the woods.

Grant swore violently. He couldn’t very well let

her go. She was an omega, and there were wild
wolves out there. She might not have thought much
of his trying to dominate her, but that was nothing
compared to what she would experience if the wild
wolves found her and tried to incorporate her into
their pack.

Or they might just attack her. That was a

concern too.

And yet, he couldn’t just leave camp. He had a

dozen other girls there, all of them depending on
him for leadership. They couldn’t just be left on
their own.

He was torn for several minutes. What could he

do? How could he choose?

But they’re safe as long as they stay in camp,

he told himself. The wild wolves won’t come to the
campsite. They’ll be all right here. No harm will
come to them.

At least, he hoped that was true.
“Everyone, gather!” he called.
The girls grouped up around him quickly. At

least no one else was feeling rebellious. Thank God
for small mercies.

“I have to go into the woods for a bit,” Grant

said, deciding not to tell them what Cait had done.
He didn’t want to give the more rebellious among
them any ideas. “You’ll all have to promise me that
you’re going to stay here in camp.”

“How long will you be gone?” one of the girls

asked, a nervous expression on her face.

“Not too long. No more than an hour.” I hope

that’s all it is, at least.

“We’ll stay here,” another girl said.
“Promise. Everyone say it.”
“I promise,” they chorused.

“You can start making your dinner,” Grant said.

“There are sausages in the cooler there. I’d hoped
to take you hunting tonight, but we’ll do it for
tomorrow’s breakfast. Not to worry. Someone tend
the fire. I’ll be back shortly.”

With a last glance over his shoulder to ensure

that they were obeying, he jogged into the woods.

He longed to shift. Tracking Cait would be easy

in wolf form. There was no way a hysterical omega
would be able to elude his finely honed senses. But
if he shifted, he would have to leave his clothes
behind, and that definitely wasn’t something he
wanted to do. Catching up with her naked would
put him at a disadvantage that he didn’t want to
deal with.

Fortunately, she was easy to track.
She had been so enraged when she’d taken

flight that she hadn’t bothered to disguise her trail.
Or maybe she simply didn’t know how. It was
something he would have to teach her eventually,
something he would have to teach all of them. He
was struck anew by how helpless omegas were on
their own.

Omegas weren’t powerless. That was what Cait

believed, and she was wrong. Omegas were some
of the most powerful people in the world.

But they weren’t powerful on their own.
They needed their pack. They needed an alpha.
Without that, they could never be complete.

He followed Cait’s footprints. He followed

broken twigs and disturbed rocks. And before long,
he had come close enough that he was able to
follow the sounds she was making as she crashed
through the underbrush.

Cait. You have so much to learn. You could be

so much more than what you are right now, but you
refuse the lessons that could help you. Why do you
sabotage yourself like this? Why do so many
omegas insist on doing this to themselves?

He wished he had the answer.
Just then, he heard a cry of pain and a loud

crash. Abandoning the distance he had been
maintaining and his attempts to remain subtle as he
followed her, he raced forward.

She was on the ground, cradling her ankle

between her hands, and he saw at once that it was
beginning to swell. “Shit, Cait.”

She glared up at him. “Get back.”
“You can’t walk on that. Come on, let me help

you.”

“I don’t want your help! You think I can’t do

anything without your help.”

“That isn’t true. Cait, come on. We need to get

back to camp.”

She opened her mouth to retort, but before she

could get the words out, lightning flashed above
them.

Fuck.

The lightning was followed almost immediately

by a crash of thunder, and then, without warning,
the sky split open, soaking them in a sudden
downpour.

“Are you goddamn kidding me?” Grant

hollered at the sky. First, an out of control omega
on an excursion, and now this? He turned to Cait,
moving to help her up. “Come on,” he said. “We
need to get to shelter and wait this out.”

She scooted backward out of his reach. “You

better not touch me, asshole.”

“What, you’re going to sit out here in the rain?”

he asked. “Don’t be crazy.”

“Go back to camp if you don’t like it.”
“Can’t do it. Sorry.” He bent over and scooped

her up in his arms.

Cait howled in protest, kicking and beating at

his chest with her fists, but Grant was much
stronger than she was. He ignored her struggles and
set off at a jog. “There was an old hunting cabin
over here,” he said. “I saw it when we were on our
run earlier. We can go there and wait this out. Fall
storm like this shouldn’t last long. Maybe an hour.”

He found the cabin easily and carried Cait

inside. There was a sagging sofa, and he laid her
down on it and went to the fireplace. Someone had
stacked some wood there, but there were no
matches and no lighter.

He was just going to have to try to make a fire.

Cait stared as he arranged wood in the

fireplace. “Do you know what you’re doing?” she
asked him.

“I’ve done it before,” he said. “I’m not exactly

a professional.” He took a likely looking stick,
stripped it of its bark, and began to twist it rapidly
in the notch of a log.

“That’s not going to work,” Cait scoffed.
Grant ignored her and continued twisting the

stick.

After a moment, a curl of smoke rose up. Grant

held a piece of bark to it, and it caught. He added
more bark to the pile until he had a flame that was
big enough to catch a few sticks, and then, finally,
one of the logs.

He stepped back and admired his handiwork.

Cait was staring at him in frank amazement.

“How did you learn to do that?” she asked him.
“Shifter University,” he said. “Now, let me look

at that ankle.”

She was too awed by his fire-making to protest

as he knelt beside her and began to manipulate her
ankle carefully back and forth.

“I don’t think this is broken,” he said. “It’s

probably just sprained. Ideally, you’d want to ice it
and wrap it, but there’s nothing we can do about
that here. It’s too bad we’re not back at camp.”

“There’s no ice back at camp,” she said.

“No,” he agreed. “But there are a bunch of

omegas.”

“What difference does that make?” she asked.
“I told you,” he said. “Omegas are natural

healers. Omegas have instincts that serve well in
situations like this. I don’t have those instincts.”

She was quiet for a minute. “Do I have them?”

she asked.

He glanced at her. “Are you going to curse at

me and run away if I say you do?”

She gestured to her ankle. “I’m not running

anywhere. No promises about the cursing thing.”

He smiled. “You have the instincts,” he said.

“But you reject them. You push them away. I’m not
sure why you do that, but something about you
doesn’t want to be your best self. And as long as
you keep doing that, you’ll never have the natural
talents that come with being an omega.”

“And if I let you teach me?” she asked.
“Are you saying you’re willing to learn from

me?” he asked her.

“I’m saying I’m considering it,” she said.
“What changed your mind?”
“I don’t know,” she admitted. “I suppose I

just...want to learn. I do want to be the best version
of myself, you know. I’m sure you probably just
think I’m rebelling for no reason, but I do want to
improve myself. That’s why I wanted to go to

Shifter U in the first place. I still want that. But
nobody’s going to let me have that.”

“It’s not the right place for you, Cait,” he told

her.

“Whatever,” she growled. “The point is, I

should make the most of what I am allowed to
have. Otherwise, I’m just languishing, and I’m not
going to amount to anything at all.”

He came over and sat on the floor beside the

couch. “All right,” he said. “If that’s how you feel,
then let’s get started.”

“What, right now?”
“We’re stuck here, aren’t we?” he said. “Why

waste the time?”

She sighed. “Why, indeed?”
Grant smiled. It would be a long battle to get

her on the right path, but at least she was working
with him now.

Chapter Eight

AIT

“So,” Professor Larson said, “the role of

the omega in the pack.”

Cait pulled her legs close to her chest. This was

a lecture she had heard a thousand times before
from her father. I know the role of the omega, she
wanted to say. You don’t have to tell me.

But she had promised to listen.
She couldn’t have said exactly why she felt like

listening to Professor Larson all of a sudden. She
had despised him when they’d left the university to
come on this little camping trip, and the way he’d
rejected her attempts to seduce him hadn’t
endeared him to her.

But he had been so masterful when he had

found her in the woods after she had hurt her ankle.
She’d fought against his attempts to take control of
the situation, but he hadn’t listened. He had picked
her up and brought her to the cabin almost as if he
had planned it.

And yes, she had hated the fact that he had

taken control without even listening to her. Without
seeming to value her input at all.

But she could hardly deny that she was in a

better situation now than she had been before.

He was right. I hate to admit it, but he was. And

if he was right about that, he might have something
to teach me after all.

“Okay,” she said. “The role of the omega.”
“Is what?” he asked.
“You’re asking me?” She frowned. “You’re the

professor here.”

“I want to know what you think the answer is,”

he said.

“The role of the omega is to do what she’s

told,” Cait said. “She serves the alpha. She’s the
lowest member of the pack, and her entire
existence is about making the alpha happy.
Everyone knows that.”

He nodded. “I thought you would say that.”
“I might be new to Omega University, but I’m

not new to this life,” she told him. “I’ve lived under
alphas all my life. I know exactly what they think
I’m good for.”

“And what’s that?” he asked her.
“Mating,” she said. “Making babies.”
He nodded slowly. “It’s true that omegas are

the most fertile members of the pack,” he said.
“They produce the most and the healthiest
offspring, and they’re prized as mates for that
reason. But you talk about it as if it’s a burden.”

“You have no idea what it’s like,” she said.

“You’re an alpha.”

“I’m an alpha,” he agreed. “But as an alpha, I

understand pack dynamics better than most shifters
you’ll meet.”

“What do you mean?”
“The majority of us are betas,” he said. “Betas

are ordinary. They follow the alpha’s orders, but
when they have no alpha, or when their alpha
hasn’t given an order, they’re happy enough left to
their own devices.

“But I’m like you. I know what it’s like to be

born for a specific role. I know what it’s like to
have my nature compel me to live a certain life,
whether I think it’s what I want or not.”

“Why wouldn’t you want to be an alpha?” Cait

scoffed. Every alpha she had ever known had loved
flexing his authority. Why would anyone resent
having that station in life?

“Because it’s an enormous responsibility,”

Professor Larson said. “It’s the alpha’s job to make
sure the pack is happy and well cared for. In
particular, it’s his job to make sure his omega is
healthy and content. You say omegas are meant for
breeding, and in part, that’s true. But the role of the
omega in the pack is more complicated than that.
She’s the pack’s healer and caretaker. She’s the
heart of the pack, while the alpha is the head. And
if an omega is unhappy or ill cared for, the pack as
a whole will be weaker as a result.”

Cait frowned. This didn’t tally with her

experience at all.

“My father was the alpha of our pack,” she

said. “He wanted me to marry.”

Professor Larson nodded. “That’s typical,” he

said. “An omega should marry young, to make the
most of her prime childbearing years.”

“He chose a mate for me,” Cait said. “Is that

normal too?”

“It’s uncommon,” Professor Larson said. “But

it’s not unheard of. And knowing you, Cait, I can
only imagine that you had to be compelled to
marry. I don’t imagine you would have done it
unprompted.”

“No,” Cait admitted. “I wouldn’t.”
“Then, it makes sense for your father to try to

get the ball rolling.”

“But the man he chose for me,” Cait burst out,

her frustration boiling over. “He was all wrong. He
was terrible. And my father only chose him for me
because he was an alpha.”

She expected that Professor Larson would

dismiss this, would say that of course, her father
had wanted to see her with an alpha, that an omega
should be with an alpha. That it was only right.

Instead, he frowned. “What was wrong with

this alpha?” he asked.

Cait hesitated. How could she explain Bart to

someone who had never known him?

“He was...” she struggled for words. “He was

bossy.”

“Young alphas often are,” Professor Larson

said.

“No,” Cait said. “It wasn’t like that. It

wasn’t...normal. At least, I don’t think it could have
been normal. I don’t know what others are like. But
he was cruel with his power. We grew up together,
part of the same pack, and he was always the
bully.”

“It’s common for alphas to exhibit some

bullying traits in childhood,” Professor Larson said.

He wasn’t understanding her. She felt

frustrated. “The other boys in the pack rallied
around him,” she said. “By the time we were
teenagers, several of them had submitted to him. It
drove him crazy that I wouldn’t do the same. I used
to run away from him and tell him he wasn’t my
alpha, and I didn’t have to listen to him. He would
slap me to try to make me obey, but I never gave
in.”

Professor Larson turned and stared at her.
“He hit you?” he asked, his voice strangled.
She was confused. Why had his demeanor

changed so abruptly? “I told you he was a bully,”
she said. “You said that was normal.”

“I imagined him ordering the other children of

the pack around,” he said. “Controlling the games

that were played. Not letting others have a voice.
That sort of bullying.”

“Well, yes,” Cait said. “But that’s how he kept

his control.”

“By hitting the others?”
“That was mostly just me,” Cait said. “He gave

them...I don’t know. A common enemy. The other
members of the pack knew that if they joined him
in hating me and pushing me around, that his
attention wouldn’t shift to them.”

“My God,” Professor Larson breathed. “And

your father wanted you to be mated to this
person?”

“We were supposed to marry,” Cait said. “I was

only able to put it off by asking to come to Omega
University. I lied and told my father I wanted to
learn how to be a better omega, how to be a better
shifter and a better mate.”

“That’s why you went to Shifter U instead of

coming here,” Professor Larson said quietly. “You
were trying to escape.”

“But Bart decided to go to Shifter U,” Cait said.

“I guess he needed something to fill the years
before I would be able to marry him. And he caught
me there, and now I’m here.”

Professor Larson was quiet for several minutes.
Then he looked up at her.
“I owe you an apology,” he said, his voice thick

with emotion.

She looked into his eyes and felt her heart beat

a little faster.

“What?” she asked.
“I assumed you were just rebelling to cause

trouble,” he said. “I assumed you wanted to disturb
my class. I had no idea, Cait.”

He reached out and rested a hand on hers.
Her heart pounded. His touch was electrifying.

His eyes seemed to search her very soul. “You
couldn’t have,” she managed. “You couldn’t have
known.”

“Alphas like that...” he exhaled slowly. “I’ve

known a few of them in my time. They’re the worst
thing imaginable for the health of a pack. They’re
the worst thing for shifter life as a whole. It’s
because of alphas like that that some omegas don’t
want to settle down. It’s because of alphas like that
that some packs splinter and some betas can’t trust
enough to let their own alphas take the lead. It’s a
crime against our nature for them to act that way.”

“I thought...” she hesitated. “I thought you

would be the same.”

“Because I’m an alpha too.” He closed his

eyes.

“Yes,” she said. “You were so controlling on my

first day of class. So quick to order me around. I
was sure you would punish me if I continued to
disobey.”

“And yet you did continue to disobey,” he said.

“You weren’t afraid of me.”

“Bart’s been hitting me all my life,” she said.

“Why would I start being afraid now?”

Professor Larson reached out, hesitantly, and

rested a hand on her cheek.

“I would never hurt you,” he said. “I would

never do anything to cause you harm.”

She closed her eyes and nodded, leaning into

the warmth of his hand.

Outside, the thunder crashed.
Something seemed to pass between the two of

them. Some kind of understanding. Cait slid down
off the couch to sit on the floor beside Professor
Larson, her hip up against his. His arm settled
around her shoulder.

She looked up at him.
The moment seemed to stretch. She knew what

was about to happen, and yet she couldn’t quite
believe it.

Then he closed his eyes and lowered his lips to

hers.

Cait thought it might be a gentle kiss, a kiss of

comfort after the story she had told him. A balm.
But it wasn’t.

It was desperate, filled with sudden passion.
He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her

on top of him, falling back to lie on the floor. Cait
came with him willingly, straddling his hips, her

hands untucking his shirt and sliding up across the
planes of his chest.

She felt him lift away her shirt. He pulled it up

over her head, turning it inside out as he went, and
tossed it into the corner. His fingers were so thick,
and yet he had no trouble with the clasp of her bra,
twisting it open as easily as if he were merely
snapping his fingers. She shrugged free of it, and his
hands went to her breasts.

“You’re beautiful,” he moaned. “You deserve

to be worshipped, Cait, not bullied. Let me show
you. Let me.”

She was too overwhelmed to find words. All

she could do was nod.

He rolled them over so that she was on her

back. Eyeing her hungrily, he peeled away her
pants so that she lay naked before him.

She wished he were naked too. He was still

almost fully clothed. She wanted to see him. She
wanted to touch every inch of his skin.

He hooked his arms beneath her knees,

lowering himself between her legs, and looked up at
her for just a moment. That moment was so full of
lust that Cait thought she might burst into tears. She
had never experienced anything this powerful
before. She couldn’t take it.

Then he lowered his mouth to hers.
She arched her back, lifting her hips to him,

desperate in a way she had never been in her life,

terrified that he might stop. If he stopped, she
would die. She couldn’t believe she had lived so
much of her life without this feeling.

Her hands grabbed at his shoulders, almost

unwittingly. She struggled beneath him, trying to
wrap her legs around him and pull him in closer, but
he was stronger than she was. He held her still, and
she could actually feel the movement of his lips
against her as he smiled, amused by her efforts.

Her orgasm came without warning, crashing

over her, and she screamed just as the next crash of
thunder hit outside, drowning her out. Every
muscle in her body seemed to lose control at once,
trembling violently, and she sobbed her way
through the aftershocks, thrashing on the floor,
feeling helpless and wonderful.

When she returned to herself, he was sliding

into her, his arms wrapped tightly around her, his
forehead pressed to hers.

Cait had imagined this moment—her first time

—a hundred times. In every imagining, it had
always been filled with pain and fear. It had always
been a nightmare.

But this was wonderful.
He stroked her cheek with his thumb as he

buried his hard shaft deep within her, and Cait
gasped for breath as she adjusted to the new
sensation of fullness. The pain of it lasted for just a
few seconds and then gave way to the single most

satisfying thing she had ever felt. It was as if she
had always had a hunger, a hunger she had never
fully been aware of, and now it was being sated.

She clung to him as he moved within her,

unable to do anything but hold on and lose herself
in the power of what she was experiencing.

“Cait,” he moaned, his voice raw and broken

with pleasure. “I’m going to come, Cait.”

She had the strength to move her lips to his, to

kiss him, to taste him as he thrust into her a few
more times. He moaned against her and shuddered,
and Cait felt a second wave of pleasure crash
through her. She clung to his body, burying her face
in him, surrounding herself with his scent and his
strength. He was the only thing that mattered. He
was the only thing that was real. The rest of the
world fell away.

And then it was over.
They lay there, side by side, holding each other

as their breathing returned to normal.

“That was your first time,” he managed after

several minutes had gone by.

“Yes,” she said.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
“I’m...” she didn’t know what to say. “I’m

amazing.”

“You are amazing,” he agreed. “Cait.”
“Professor Larson.”

He chuckled. “I think you’d better call me

Grant now.”

She felt a smile steal across her face. “Grant,

then.”

He sat up slowly, pulling her with him, keeping

his arm wrapped tightly around her. “You’re sure
you’re all right?” he asked.

“I’ve never been better,” she said. “But...but I

thought you didn’t want me. When we were back
at camp...”

Grant sighed. “It’s complicated,” he said. “You

knew, back at camp, that if you and I did anything
together, it would mean trouble for me.”

“Yes,” she admitted. “So what changed your

mind?”

“I think...” He shook his head. “I wasn’t

expecting this. I promise. I’m as surprised as you
must be. But Cait...I think I’ve imprinted on you.”

Chapter Nine

RANT

“Imprinted?” She stared at him.

“I know how it sounds,” he said.
She burst out laughing. “You’re messing with

me,” she said.

“I promise you, I’m not.” He thought of the

way he had felt when he’d first touched her, the
attraction that had passed between them. The
powerful urge he had felt. “I’ve never been surer of
anything.”

“But it’s just a myth,” she said. “Imprinting. It

isn’t real. It’s one of those stories people tell little
kids, like love at first sight and happily ever after.”

“No,” Grant said. “You’re wrong. A lot of

people believe that, Cait, but the truth is that
imprinting is real.”

“But...but it can’t be,” she said.
“Why can’t it be?” He felt very acutely that he

was her professor at that moment. It was still his
job to teach her about the ways of the shifter world.
That aspect of their relationship hadn’t gone away.

“Because people would know about it if

imprinting was a thing,” Cait said, reasonably. “It
would be happening all over. People would be
imprinting on their mates.”

She reached for her shirt and pulled it back on,

but she hadn’t bothered to put on her bra, and
Grant took a moment to appreciate the shape of her
breasts under the thin layer of cotton before he
answered her. “That’s not necessarily true,” he
said. “Look at your situation. Your father wanted
you to be mated to an alpha in your own pack, so
he chose someone for you. If you hadn’t come to
Omega U, you might never have even met another
alpha. Who would have ever had the chance to
imprint on you?”

“Okay,” she admitted. “But my situation isn’t

typical. You said so yourself.”

“No, it’s not,” he agreed. “But most omegas

who live within the shifter world do so under the
tight control of a single alpha. Even if that alpha is
benevolent, he’s still likely to guard his omega
pretty jealously. No alpha wants to risk some other
guy trying to claim his omega.”

“What about omegas who don’t live within the

shifter world?” Cait asked.

“They’re generally on the run,” Grant said.

“I’ve lost girls from my classes, girls who should
have been under my control but who chose to take
off and try to live a more human life. When that
happens, they tend to lose themselves in big cities.
They surround themselves with humans and keep
any shifters at arm’s length. Girls like that usually

don’t find themselves around alphas at all, so
nobody imprints on them.”

“I don’t know,” Cait said. “It still doesn’t seem

like a real thing to me. It sounds like something
alphas say to omegas to control them.”

“I suppose it makes sense that you would think

that,” Grant said. “All the alphas in your life have
always tried to control you, so what else are you
supposed to think?”

She hesitated.
He waited, knowing it would do no good to

press her.

“I don’t think you’re trying to control me,” she

admitted.

“I didn’t think you would.”
“It’s different with you,” she said. “Different

from how it always was with my father, and
especially different from how it was with Bart.”

“What’s different about it?” he asked.
“I can’t put my finger on it,” she admitted. “It’s

not that you’re not as demanding as they were. You
might even be more demanding.”

“I’m your teacher,” Grant pointed out. “I’m

supposed to tell you what to do.”

“Sure, you’re my teacher,” she said. “But

you’re not my alpha.”

Grant hesitated. “Are you sure about that?” he

asked her.

She looked up at him. “What?”

“If I’m right,” he said. “If I really did imprint

on you...then you’ll have a natural reaction. You
must have felt it just now when we were intimate.
You didn’t resist me at all. You embraced what was
happening.”

“I wanted it,” she said. “I didn’t want to resist

you.”

“But why did you want it?” he asked her. “You

tried to seduce me earlier, but that wasn’t because
you were dying for sex with me. It was because you
wanted to make trouble for me. Right?”

She looked down.
“You can admit it,” he said. “I already know

that’s what you were doing.”

“All right,” she confessed. “That’s what I was

doing.”

“But it wasn’t like that just now, was it?” he

asked her.

“No,” she said. “I wasn’t thinking about that

anymore at all. I just...wanted you.”

“That’s because I imprinted on you,” he said.
She frowned. “So because you imprinted, I

don’t have a choice?” she asked. “What I actually
want doesn’t matter anymore?”

“What you want matters just as much as what I

want matters,” he said. “But you said it yourself,
Cait. What you wanted was me. And I wanted
you.”

“You said that was only because of the imprint,”

she countered.

“It’s a biological imperative,” he agreed. “But

that doesn’t mean we don’t also desire it. When
you’re hungry, don’t you want food?”

“Yes,” she said. “But I can choose what I eat.”
“And you can choose not to be with me,” he

said. “I would never force you. But I think you’ll
find that this is what you want.”

She hugged her knees to her chest.
“I know it’s what I want,” he said softly,

reaching out a hand to touch her cheek.

Cait closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

Grant kept his gaze on her face.

She’s so young. She’s so new to this world, to

this life. She needs someone who can take care of
her, someone who can protect her from all the
terrible things out there. She needs someone who
can keep her safe from the alphas of her pack, the
men who always treated her badly and never
taught her to value what she was and the role she
had to play.

Grant wanted to be the guardian she needed.
He could protect her.
She had grown up to be a rebel, resentful of

everyone who had ever tried to control her. But
Grant knew he could show her the joy of being
controlled by someone who had her best interests at
heart.

“You’ll always be safe with me, Cait,” he said.

“I’ll make sure you have what you need in life, and
I’ll help you navigate the world. As long as you and
I are together, you’ll never have anything to be
afraid of.”

“What about Bart?” Cait asked. “He’s still out

there. He still wants me. And he still has a claim to
me, doesn’t he? My father said he could have me
once school was finished.”

“That gives us a lot of time,” Grant said. “A lot

of time to figure things out, and to decide what
we’re going to do next.”

“But if he comes to claim me,” Cait said, “what

are you going to do? What if he tries to take me
away?”

Grant was in awe. She was so different from the

callous and contentious girl he had argued with in
his classroom. She was soft and vulnerable. He had
penetrated her defenses so easily.

“I won’t let him take you,” he said. “If it comes

to a fight...well, I’ve had to fight to protect the one
I love before.”

“You have?” she asked, gazing up at him.
Grant sighed and pulled on his shirt. He got up

and fetched his pants, then stepped into them. He
took a seat on the couch.

Cait climbed up and sat beside him. “When did

you have to fight?” she asked him.

He knew he had to tell her. He owed her

complete honesty about his past. And yet, it was so
hard to open up about what had happened. It was
so hard to even allow his mind to revisit it.

Marisa.
“I’ve been in love before,” he told her. “You

have a right to know that.”

“You have?” she asked.
“Once.”
“Was it...did you imprint on her?”
“No,” he said. “It wasn’t like that. We knew

each other for years, and our relationship grew
naturally. She was an omega. I was her alpha.”

“Was she also a student at the university?”
“No, this was before I came to work at the

university,” he said. “I was a rogue shifter back
then, not a member of any pack, and Marisa had
run away from her own pack. She was working as a
barista when I met her. We recognized each other
for what we were, and we became friends, and then
lovers.”

“What happened to her?” Cait asked.
“She got pregnant,” Grant said. “We were so

excited when we found out. We were going to have
our very own pack. We couldn’t wait to raise our
family of pups.”

He glanced at Cait. He could see the worry

etched across her face. She knew this story wasn’t
going to end well.

“You know that the students at Omega

University study midwifery,” he said. “That’s
because shifters—and omegas in particular—can’t
give birth in human hospitals. It would arouse too
much suspicion. The size of the litters omegas tend
to carry isn’t normal for humans, of course, and
that would attract a lot of attention that we don’t
need. And there’s always the chance—unlikely, but
possible—that a newborn baby will shift into
animal form.”

“So, we have to have home deliveries.” Cait

nodded. “I know that.”

“Marisa and I didn’t have any help,” he said.

“There was only her and me. And when she was
delivering...something went wrong.”

Cait reached out and rested a hand on top of

his.

He swallowed hard and forced himself to keep

talking. “I lost her,” he said. “I lost Marisa, and we
lost all five of our babies. It should have been the
best day of my life, and instead, I lost everything I
cared about in the world.”

“I’m so sorry,” Cait said softly.
“If I had been part of a pack,” he said, “I would

have had people around me that day. People who
could have helped.”

“It might not have changed anything,” Cait

said.

“But maybe it would have,” Grant countered.

“You can’t torture yourself with thoughts like

that,” Cait said. “You don’t know what would have
happened if more people had been there. There’s
no way to know.”

He nodded slowly, unable to look at her.
“When did this happen?” she asked him.
“Years ago,” he said. “A long time. It’s just a

memory now.”

“Memories can have a lot of power,” Cait

pointed out.

Grant nodded. “That’s why I decided to teach

at Omega University,” he said. “I was offered a job
at Shifter U. It paid more. But I thought of Marisa,
and how her life might have been different if she
had had someone to help her see why it was
important to belong to a pack—to learn the role of
the omega and to surround herself with people who
cared about her and valued her for what she was. I
wanted to do what I could to help other omegas
since my mate was gone.”

“And now you’ve imprinted on me,” Cait said.

“What does that mean? You were already mated to
someone else...”

“Marisa is my past,” Grant said. “She’ll always

be a part of who I am. I’ll always be affected by
having loved her. But this—you—you’re my
present, Cait. You’re my future. Everything I feel
now is for you.”

“Are you sure?” Cait asked.

“I know you feel it too,” Grant said. “The

connection between us. It’s powerful. It’s visceral.
You feel it, don’t you? It’s like we’re being pulled
together.”

“I don’t think I could ignore you now even if I

wanted to,” Cait admitted. “I don’t know how I’m
going to be able to go back to class and act normal
around you in front of the rest of the students.”

“But you have to,” Grant said, feeling a faint

prick of alarm. “You know that, don’t you? We
can’t allow anybody else to know what happened
between us here.”

“I’m not going to try to get you in trouble with

the administration,” Cait said. “You know that,
right? It was a bitchy thing to try in the first place,
but I’d never do that to you now. Not after...after
everything.”

“I know that,” Grant said. “But it’s not just

going to the administration that I’m worried about,
Cait. You can’t tell anybody. You can’t tell your
roommate. You can’t tell your friends—”

“What friends?” she scoffed. “I don’t have any

friends at this school.”

“Nobody. Nobody can know. It’ll be bad for

both of us if they do.”

“Still?” she asked. “Even though you

imprinted? That doesn’t change the way people
would look at it?”

“Definitely not,” he said. “If anything, that

makes it worse.”

“But we couldn’t help it,” she said. “It’s not

like it was something we planned. It just
happened.”

“I know,” he said. “But there are already

enough people who feel doubtful about allowing
alphas to teach at Omega University. There are
plenty of people who think we pose a threat to the
omegas’ learning environment, of course. And there
are others who think it gives us an unfair
advantage, that it leaves us free to take our pick of
the young and fertile omegas before any other
alphas can get to them.”

“That’s not why you teach here,” Cait

protested. “You’re here because you want to help
omegas, not mate with us.”

“I know that,” Grant said. “And you know that.

But how does it look when I say I’ve imprinted on
one of my students? If you already suspected that I
was here to find a mate, how would that strike
you?”

“As suspicious,” Cait admitted.
“People will think I’ve been taking girls out into

the woods all these years just hoping to find the one
I could imprint on,” he said. “Some might even
think that I didn’t imprint at all, that it’s just a story
I’m using to justify sleeping with you. Even you
didn’t think it was the truth at first.”

“I believe it now,” she said quietly.
“You have to promise me that when we go

back, you’ll keep it to yourself,” he said. “We can’t
allow anyone else to know.”

“But what does that mean for us?” she asked.

“Will we still be able to be together?”

“Yes,” he said. “You’re the most important

thing to me, Cait. We’ll find a way to see each
other, no matter what. We’ll just have to be clever
about it. We’ll have to make sure no one else
catches on to what we’re up to.”

“I can be clever,” Cait said. “I snuck into

Shifter U, didn’t I?”

He glanced at her skeptically. “You were caught

in less than twenty-four hours.”

“A fluke,” she said. “I can be stealthy. No one’s

going to catch us.”

He nodded, hoping she was right.

Chapter Ten

AIT

It was strange to be back on campus, back

in class. It was strange to leave her dorm with her
backpack slung over her shoulder as if nothing had
happened.

At least Cait didn’t have Grant’s class today.

Much as she missed being around him, she wasn’t
sure she was ready to face him in the classroom.
She would have to look at him and pretend that her
skin wasn’t burning with desire. She would have to
sit in her seat and not touch herself, as she had
done every night since he had imprinted to ease the
relentless ache she felt.

Her need for him beat within her like a heart.
How was she ever going to face him and

pretend she wasn’t feeling this?

She had midwifery class today. It was her first

day of that particular class, and she anticipated
boredom. She would do her best to pay attention
for Grant’s sake—after the story he had shared
about his mate, Marisa, she couldn’t deny that
midwifery was an important skill to learn. But it
didn’t seem to have anything to do with her own
life. It was hard to imagine ever using the things she
would learn.

She was surprised, upon entering the classroom,

to see that Georgette was there. More surprising
still, the girl raised a hand and waved Cait over.

Bemused, Cait walked over and sat beside her.
“Hey,” Georgette said. “Looks like you and I

have another class together.”

“Looks like,” Cait said.
“We should be study partners,” Georgette

suggested.

“Study partners?”
“Sure,” Georgette said. “We’re friends, aren’t

we?”

“Are we?” This was news to Cait.
“Sure we are,” Georgette said. “We shared a

tent on the campout, and if that isn’t bonding, I
don’t know what the hell is.”

“All right,” Cait said. It would be good to have

a friend at Omega University. Hell, it would be
good to have a friend at all. She’d never really had
someone she could call her friend before. In her
pack back at home, everyone had always been on
Bart’s side. Even the people who hadn’t been
outwardly cruel to Cait hadn’t ever been friendly.

“Great,” Georgette said. “Do you know

anything about midwifery?”

“Nothing,” Cait admitted.
“Neither do I,” Georgette said. “But I’m really

eager to learn about it.”

“Are you?”

“Of course,” Georgette said. “It’s one of the

best ways for an omega to have a job outside the
home, right? Neighboring packs will call omegas in
to help with deliveries.”

“I didn’t know that,” Cait said.
“What did your pack do when your omega gave

birth?” Georgette asked.

“We didn’t actually have an omega before me,”

Cait said. “My mother was a beta. My father was
the pack’s alpha, but he never had an omega.”

“Wow,” Georgette said. “That’s wild. Doesn’t it

usually run in families? Omegas can only be born to
other omegas? That’s what I thought.”

“I don’t know,” Cait said. “I guess not. I mean,

since my mother was a beta, it must be possible.
But I never knew her. She ran off when I was just a
baby.”

“That’s sad,” Georgette said.
Cait shrugged. It was something she didn’t like

to think about. Her mother must not have found her
worth sticking around for. Cait wasn’t going to start
crying for her now. She could have stayed. She had
chosen to leave.

Their professor, a woman with steely gray hair,

came in then, and the girls fell silent. Cait spent the
rest of class taking diligent notes and trying to pay
attention, but she couldn’t seem to turn her mind
from the things Georgette had told her.

Was it true that omegas were only born to other

omegas? If that was the case, why had Cait always
believed her mother to be a beta?

Because that’s what my father told me.
What if he had lied?
What if the truth was that Cait’s mother had

been an omega?

But why would her father want to lie to her

about something like that?

She couldn’t understand it. She couldn’t wrap

her mind around it. But there was something about
it that made her feel uneasy and upset.

When class ended, she shoved her things in her

backpack, thinking she would go back to her dorm
room and spend a few hours brooding about the
idea that her mother might have been an omega like
her. But Georgette caught her by the arm.

“Come to lunch with me,” she suggested. “I’m

meeting some people.”

“Lunch?” Cait hadn’t eaten in the cafeteria

since coming to Omega University. She had grown
to expect that her fellow students would stare at her
wherever she went. She had a reputation as the
rebel who had tried to infiltrate Shifter U, and she
knew people were curious about her. She didn’t
want them staring at her while she tried to eat.

But if she was going to be a person who had

friends now, she was going to have to learn how to

do social things. And that included eating in the
cafeteria.

“All right,” she agreed. “Lunch.”
“Good!” Georgette hooked her elbow through

Cait’s and towed her along. Cait allowed herself to
be led. “I heard they’re serving steak today,”
Georgette said. “Don’t know about you, but I could
go for some red meat.”

“I could always go for some red meat,” Cait

admitted, laughing.

The cafeteria was packed. A few people looked

up as Cait and Georgette passed them, and Cait saw
one girl lean over to whisper in her neighbor’s ear,
but for the most part, the girls passed through the
crowd unnoticed.

I guess people aren’t as interested in me as I

thought they were.

That was a freeing thought.
Georgette led her to a table. Sarah, Cait’s

roommate, was already sitting there, and so were
two other girls Cait didn’t know.

“This is Cait, everyone,” Georgette said.
“She’s the one who snuck into Shifter U, isn’t

she?” a red-haired girl asked.

“That’s her,” Sarah confirmed. “She’s also my

roommate.”

“She’s cool, Heather,” Georgette said. “I mean,

I thought she was weird at first—she is kind of
weird, actually—”

“Thanks, Georgette,” Cait said.
“But she’s nice enough as long as you’re not an

alpha trying to push her around,” Georgette
continued.

“She was a real bitch to Professor Larson last

week,” the other girl at the table said, crossing her
arms.

“Chill, Mikayla,” Heather said.
“You weren’t there, Heather,” Mikayla said.

“You didn’t see how she treated him.” She frowned
at Georgette. “You like Professor Larson,
Georgette. Why would you bring this girl here?”

“She was new, Mikayla,” Georgette said. “Give

her a chance to improve.”

“She wasn’t any better on the excursion,

though,” Mikayla said. She turned to the others.
“She ran away from the group, and Professor
Larson had to go and get her and drag her back. In
the middle of a storm! They were gone for hours,
and the rest of us were just huddled up in our tents
trying to figure out what we were going to do if
Professor Larson had been killed by wild wolves or
something.”

“No, we weren’t,” Georgette scoffed. “Nobody

thought Professor Larson had been killed. He’s a
serious badass.”

“I’m sorry for running away like that,” Cait

interjected. “It was a mistake.”

“You’re damn right,” Mikayla said.

“I won’t do anything like that again,” Cait said.
“I don’t know why you think we would trust

you,” Mikayla said.

Frustration bubbled up within Cait. “Frankly,”

she said, “I don’t really need you to trust me,
Mikayla. I don’t need you to like me. So if you
don’t, that’s fine. That’s your business. But I think
Georgette and Sarah are cool, and Heather, you
seem nice. So if it’s all the same, I’m going to keep
hanging out with them as long as they’ll have me.”

Sarah laughed. “I told you she was tough,” she

said to Mikayla.

Mikayla glared at Cait, but there was nothing

she could say.

“I’ll go get the food,” Georgette said, jumping

to her feet.

“Do you need a hand?” Cait asked.
“No, no.” Georgette waved her off. “Stay and

get to know everyone.” She disappeared off toward
the buffet line.

Heather took a sip of her soda. “So what did

you do to Professor Larson, exactly?” she asked.

“I don’t think it was that big a deal,” Cait said.

“I just...I think he was making an example of me.
Trying to compel me to follow orders. And that’s
never been my strong suit.”

“You’re an omega,” Mikayla snapped. “We’re

supposed to follow orders. Why are you even here
if that’s not something you want to do?”

“She didn’t want to be here,” Sarah pointed

out. “She tried to sneak across the road,
remember?”

Mikayla muttered something that sounded like

freak.

“Why do you care so much?” Cait asked her.

“So what if I’m not behaving the way you think an
omega should? Why is that your problem?”

“It’s not her problem,” Heather said. “She’s

pissed because she has a thing for Professor
Larson.”

“Shut up, Heather,” Mikayla barked.
“Why?” Heather asked. “It’s the truth.

Everybody knows it. And it’s not like you’re the
only one. Georgette’s mad about him.”

“Half the school is mad about him,” Sarah said,

rolling her eyes.

Cait felt a chill crawl up her spine. “They are?”
“Oh, God, yeah,” Sarah said. “You put a bunch

of omegas in the prime of their fertile years in one
place, and he’s the only alpha any of us see on any
kind of a regular basis. He’s single. He’s sexy—I
mean, you saw him. Yeah, every girl here carries a
torch for him.”

“But some are more serious about it than

others,” Heather said with a laugh. “Me, I can
admit I’m attracted to him, but I also know that my
best chance to meet a potential mate is at the
mixers we have with Shifter U. I’m not going to get

too hung up on my professor. But Mikayla and
Georgette think they actually have a chance at
him.”

“You don’t know that there’s not a chance,”

Mikayla said.

“Please.” Heather rolled her eyes.
“He’s an alpha,” Mikayla said. “He’s single.

He’s a man of a certain age. You don’t think
someone like that wants a mate? Wants children, a
pack of his own? That’s probably why he came to
teach at Omega U in the first place. He knew this
would be the best place for him to meet lots of
eligible omegas.”

“That’s not why he’s teaching here,” Cait said

before she could stop herself.

The other three stared at her.
“What do you know about it?” Mikayla asked

her.

“I mean...I don’t think that’s why,” Cait

amended hastily. “He doesn’t...he doesn’t seem like
the kind of person to do something like that.”

“What do you think he’s doing here then?”

Mikayla asked. “If you know so much.”

“He seems like he just cares about omegas,”

Cait said. “I think he teaches here because he
just...genuinely wants us to understand who we are,
and to have good lives.”

“You hate him,” Mikayla said, narrowing her

eyes. “Why would you suddenly have such good

things to say about him?”

Panic stabbed at Cait like an icepick through

the heart. She couldn’t let Mikayla see what she
really thought of Grant. She couldn’t let her new
friends know the truth of what had happened
between them on the excursion, during the hours
they had been away during the storm. It would
destroy him if the truth got out.

“It’s just a theory,” she said. “I don’t have to

like him to have a theory about him. And it’s not
like I think all alphas in the world are evil and
controlling. Some of them are probably, you know.
Nice people. I’m just not very good with authority.”

“An omega who’s not good with authority,”

Heather grinned. “I guess we know who’s not going
to be at the top of our class.”

The lighthearted teasing was like a balm. Cait

grinned. “Shut up,” she said. “You don’t know. I
could be a quick study. By the time we graduate, I
might be the best one here.”

“I’ll believe that when I see it,” Heather said.
Georgette returned bearing a tray with two

plates and two cans of soda. She passed one of the
plates to Cait. “Dig in,” she said. “The cafeteria
food’s actually surprisingly good here.”

Cait shook out her roll of silverware, put her

napkin in her lap, and cut into her steak. It was
cooked to a perfect medium-rare, just the way she

liked it best. “There must be really great cooks on
staff here,” she said.

“The cooking class makes the meals, actually,”

Sarah said. “They’re third years, and it’s an
elective. You can take it yourself when the time
comes if you want to. I probably will.”

“Cooking is an omega skill?” Cait asked. “I

didn’t know that.”

“Of course,” Georgette said. “Anything that

relates to nurturing the pack is the responsibility of
an omega. Feeding everyone is a big part of that.
We can even take hunting classes in fourth year if
we want to.”

“Wow.” Cait had no idea there were so many

different options available to omegas. She had
hated the idea of coming to school there, of wasting
the next four years on learning things that would
have no value to her. But maybe she had judged too
quickly. It was hard to see what she would do with
the lessons she had learned today in midwifery
class, but if she could study hunting one day, she
would be able to fend for herself.

I wonder what Grant would say to that?
It was a strange feeling, wondering how he

would respond to something she wanted. Stranger
still, Cait realized that she actually cared what he
would say. She had always had alphas in her life, of
course. She had always had men who wanted to
make their opinions about her choices known. But

those opinions had always been unwelcome in the
past.

She couldn’t imagine caring what her father had

to say about her choice of classes.

If Bart had his way, she knew, he would try to

choose for her. He would put her in classes that
would best serve his own interests. He probably
would want me to take cooking, but only so I could
learn to make him a perfect steak. He wouldn’t
give a damn about me feeding myself.

But Grant was different.
Grant would want her to feel fulfilled and

happy. He would want her to learn as much as she
could, to become the best version of herself.

It was strange, but knowing that actually made

Cait want to enroll in cooking class even more than
she already did. She actually wanted to learn to
make him a perfect meal.

He deserved that from her.
It was like nothing she had ever felt before.

Chapter Eleven

RANT

“Grant?”

Grant looked up. Jim was staring at him, his

head cocked to one side, frowning.

“Sorry,” Grant said. “Did you say something?”
“Yeah, I’ve been calling your name for a full

minute,” Jim said. “You were completely lost in
space. What’s going on with you? I know your
waffles can’t be that interesting.”

Grant pushed his plate of waffles away. In truth,

he didn’t think he could have managed to eat them.
His stomach had been churning all morning.

Today was the first day his Pack Dynamics and

Alpha Appreciation class would be meeting since
the eventful excursion.

It would be his first time seeing Cait.
It was all he could think about. He would be

sharing a room with her. He would look across the
classroom and see her face.

And, he remembered suddenly, he had ordered

her to sit in the front row the last time their class
had met. Which meant she would be just feet away
from him

How was he going to teach with the distraction

of the woman upon whom he had imprinted right in
front of him?

It had already been next to impossible to get

anything done over the past few days. All he could
think about was her. Her body, and the way it felt in
his hands. The way she moved against him. The
way her face looked in the midst of her orgasm.
The way she cuddled up against him when they
were finished as if he were her port in a storm.

“Grant!” Jim said.
“What?” Grant asked.
“Seriously, where are you today?” Jim

demanded. “You’re not sick, are you? I always
worry someone’s going to get sick after that
excursion you do. You know, there are people in
the administration who want to cancel it.”

That was news to Grant. “Why would anyone

want to cancel the excursion?” he asked. “It’s good
for the girls. For some of them, it’s their first real
exposure to their shifter nature. Some of the girls
who end up here have been living human lives, and
they have no real idea what they’re capable of in
the wild.”

“Hey, don’t look at me,” Jim said. “I’m not the

one who wants to call it off.”

“But you’re a part of the admin team,” Grant

said. “If it’s something they’ve talked about,
you’ve been in on those conversations. So what’s
the reasoning behind it?”

Jim sighed. “You already know, man,” he said.

“It’s the usual thing. An alpha alone in the woods

with a bunch of omegas. There are plenty of people
who think it’s sketchy that you even want to teach
here. But taking them off into the woods like that,
where no one can see what you get up to—”

“What do they think I get up to?” Grant asked,

offended. “I don’t get up to anything.”

Although I can’t really justify feeling offended,

can I? he thought to himself. After all, I did exactly
what they were afraid of. I took one of the omegas
off on her own and mated with her.

But he had imprinted. It was different. It was

outside his control. Cait had been right when she’d
said that the same rules shouldn’t apply after
imprinting. He should be able to make some kind of
appeal.

Besides, he thought, she wants me too. It’s not

as if I’m preying on a helpless omega. Shouldn’t
that make a difference?

But he knew that it wouldn’t.
The omegas were a valuable resource.

Everyone wanted an omega, especially one who
had been educated at Omega University and taught
the ways of pack life. Graduates of the university
were obedient and compliant. They were ideal
omegas.

And there were so few of them.
The competition was fierce. Every alpha over at

Shifter University felt that he was entitled to an
omega of his own upon graduation. Many of the

alphas who worked at the school harbored a secret
hope that one day, a graduated omega would find
her way to him.

If anyone knew that Grant had laid claim to

even one omega before graduation day, he would
be cast out of Omega University forever.

It isn’t fair, he thought unhappily. She’s not a

resource. She’s not something anyone should feel
entitled to. I didn’t take her away from anybody
else by imprinting on her, because she didn’t
belong to anybody else.

But, of course, that wasn’t how anyone would

see it.

Especially that alpha from her pack. The one

who was currently attending Shifter University.

Bart.
He thought she belonged to him. He would

never tolerate what Grant had done.

Grant had no doubt he could handle the kid in a

fight. But he didn’t expect that Bart would come
over and challenge him to hand-to-hand combat if
he found out that Grant had imprinted on Cait.
More likely, Bart would file a complaint with the
school, because he would be assured of winning in
that arena.

He got to his feet, grabbing his tray. He was

being rude to Jim, he knew, but he couldn’t sit there
and have this conversation about the suspicions of
the administration any longer. He was already

stressed about the prospect of facing Cait in class
today.

I just need to do it and get it over with. I’m

sure it won’t be as bad as I’m imagining.

He was fifteen minutes early to the classroom,

and at first, he was glad—being early meant that he
had time to settle in and relax before the students
started to arrive. But soon, his anxieties began to
trouble him again.

This seat is going to be Cait’s, he thought. This

is where she was last time. So where should I stand
to put the most possible distance between the two
of us without looking like I’m trying to put distance
between us?

He wished he could write off his concerns as

paranoia. He wished he could believe that no one
would be analyzing them that closely, that no one
would be looking for any change in the chemistry
between himself and Cait. But he knew he couldn’t
be assured of that.

Some of these girls are hoping I’ll take an

interest in them, after all. They’ll definitely have
an eye out to see whether I get interested in any of
their classmates.

He went to his desk at the front of the room and

leaned up against it, waiting.

Some minutes later, the girls began to arrive.

They came in from breakfast, talking and laughing,
some of them still finishing granola bars or pieces

of toast. They found their seats and pulled out their
notebooks, ready for the lesson to begin.

Grant didn’t move. He couldn’t move. Not until

he saw her. Not until he knew what kind of reaction
he would have.

All I need is for all these girls to see me get an

erection. That would give the game away in a
hurry.

Cait was one of the last to arrive. She ran lightly

down the steps of the classroom to the front row
and slid into her seat.

And he saw at once that she had no intention of

making this easy for him.

He could have killed her right then and there.
She was dressed to provoke, in a bright red skirt

so short that he was sure it violated the Omega
University dress code. She had worn a long-sleeved
cream-colored sweater, but it hugged her body so
tightly that Grant couldn’t help remembering what
she had looked like without her clothes on.

She caught his eye and winked.
He turned away from her. They had talked

about this. He had warned her of the need for
secrecy. How could she come to class so obviously
ready to seduce him?

For a moment, he contemplated sending her

back to the dorms to change. She was in violation
of the dress code, after all.

But he couldn’t. The last thing he wanted to do

was let on that he had noticed the way she was
dressed. He couldn’t risk drawing anyone else’s
attention to it, and he certainly couldn’t let the
other girls realize that he was looking at her.

He would just have to get through this lesson.
But he’d be damned if he was going to let her

get away with it.

He put his lesson plan for the day back in the

folder he had brought with him. This called for a
change of plans. “Today’s lesson is about the
disobedient omega and the ways in which she can
damage her entire pack,” he said.

Somebody snickered. A few whispers went

around the room. And Grant noticed that several of
the girls’ eyes had gone to Cait.

There’s just no getting around the fact that she

has a reputation. She had singled herself out as the
troublemaker in his class. There wasn’t much he
could do to protect her from that now.

But he noticed that the girl sitting next to her,

Georgette, wasn’t joining in on the laughter. Maybe
Cait had someone on her side. That would be a
good thing. A sense of community was vital for an
omega. The more isolated she felt, the less likely
she would be to put the good of a pack before her
own individual needs.

Georgette nudged Cait with her elbow and tilted

her notebook toward her. They were writing notes

to each other. Grant would have recognized that
behavior anywhere, and yet each new class of
students seemed to think they were the first to have
invented it. He decided to ignore it for today.

I can’t be seen paying any kind of special

attention to Cait.

He spent the rest of the lesson talking about

rebellious omegas who made a sport out of trying to
defy the orders of their alpha. He explained that
when an omega rebelled against her alpha, she was
really asking him to demonstrate his authority.
“Omegas who rebel are afraid,” he said. “They
want to see that their alpha has full control of them.
They want that control to be demonstrated.”

“Always?” one girl asked. “Don’t some of them

really just want their freedom?”

“They might think they do,” Grant said. “But

they really just want to know that they’re safe and
taken care of. They want to see that no matter what
happens, no matter what they do, their alpha will be
able to keep them firmly in line.”

The bell rang, and the girls packed up and

moved toward the door.

Grant tapped Cait on the back of the hand.

“Stay a moment,” he said quietly, out of earshot of
the others.

She took her time packing up her things. Grant

returned to his desk and sat down, making a show
of organizing his papers. If any of the girls looked

back on their way out, they wouldn’t see that he
was waiting to talk to Cait. He would look like he
was waiting for her to leave.

Finally, the classroom emptied, and Cait

approached the desk. “You wanted to see me?” she
asked, her voice velvety and seductive.

He refused to look up at her. “What do you

think you’re doing, Cait?”

“I don’t know what you mean.” She feigned

innocence.

“You do know what I mean,” he said. “Showing

up to my class dressed like that. Is that how you
dress for your other classes?”

“Well—”
“You’re in violation of the dress code,” he said.

“I should have sent you back to your dorm to
change.”

“I just wanted to look nice for you.”
Now he looked up at her. “Don’t pout at me

like that,” he said. “I know exactly what you’re
doing, Cait.”

“I missed you,” she said, drawing closer to him.

“Didn’t you miss me?”

Grant sighed. “Of course I did,” he said. “You

know I did.” God, he had missed her every moment
since the last time they had been together. Just
being in her presence again was electrifying. He
wanted to grab her and throw her down on the
desk. That skirt was so short. Deliciously short. He

could tear away her panties and be inside her in a
matter of seconds.

She bit her lip. “Are you angry with me, I made

this skirt last night for you?”

“Cait,” he murmured. “Don’t do this here.”
“I’m not doing anything.” She met his eyes,

then slowly ran a hand down the length of her neck
and over the top of her breast. She cupped it gently,
breathing in as she did so, arching her back slightly.

He stood abruptly, shoving the chair back from

his desk and grabbed her in his arms, spinning as he
did so, backing her up against the wall. Her legs
wrapped around his waist, and he felt himself grow
painfully hard as he crushed his mouth against hers.

She smelled so good. She tasted so perfect.
He fumbled with his zipper. With a quick shift

of clothing, his cock was free and she was exposed.
He fucked into her, rough and needy, starving and
desperate. Angry.

He came before she did, biting at her shoulder

as he did so. Sated for the moment, he backed away
from her and rearranged his clothes. Then he went
back over to his desk and sat down, unable to look
at her.

“I...” She swallowed. “I didn’t...”
“You don’t get to come,” he said. “Not today.

You came in here and played me, Cait. You knew I
wouldn’t be able to resist you. Well, you win, but
you also lose.”

“You’re angry with me,” she said softly.
“I told you we had to keep this a secret,” he

said. “I told you how important it was. If anyone
finds out, it could mean the end of my career.”

“But no one’s here,” she pointed out. “No one

is going to find out. We were careful.”

“You’re not being careful enough,” he snapped.

“Flirting with me openly in class. Throwing
yourself at me in a public place, where anyone
could walk in and catch us. If this happens again,
there will be consequences that you won’t like.
Believe that.”

Cait looked pale and upset. “I didn’t mean to

make you mad,” she said. “I just...couldn’t stop
thinking about you, Grant. It’s all I can think about.
I dream about you. Sometimes, I can’t sleep at
night. I need you. I need your hands on me. You
don’t know what it’s like, walking around this
campus, knowing you’re here, knowing we can’t
—”

“I know exactly what it’s like,” Grant said,

allowing a little more sympathy into his voice. “I’m
going through the same thing, you know. We’ll find
ways to be together, I promise you. But you have to
follow my lead. You can’t do this again. Promise
me you won’t.”

“Promise me we’ll be together,” she countered.
He nodded. “I promise.”

“Then I can wait,” she said. “But don’t keep

me waiting too long.”

Chapter Twelve

AIT

“Cait,” Georgette wheedled, “you have to

come tonight.”

Cait looked up from the magazine she had been

flipping through. She had borrowed it from Sarah,
and she found it so uninteresting that it was
impossible to focus on.

But tonight’s social event sounded far less

appealing than staring at the pages of a magazine.
“I don’t have to,” she objected. “And I don’t want
to. I don’t know why you do. It sounds like pure
hell.”

“What are you talking about?” Georgette

asked. “There are going to be alphas there.”

“She’s right, Cait,” Sarah said, holding up first

one matronly dress and then another in front of her
full-length mirror. “The entire point of these socials
with Shifter U is so that we’ll have a chance to
meet mates.”

“And what good would that be to you now?”

Cait asked. “It’s not like you could have a real
relationship. They’re across the street all the time.
They’re not allowed to come over here.”

“Well, if you see someone you really like, you

could always drop out of school to join his pack,”
Georgette said, giggling.

Cait made a face. “I wouldn’t drop out of

school to join some guy’s pack. Are you crazy?”

“I probably wouldn’t either,” Georgette

admitted. “But it’s a fun fantasy.”

“I’d do it,” Sarah said, deciding on one of her

dresses and hanging the other one back up.

Cait stared at her. “No, you wouldn’t,” she said.

“Tell me you’re joking.”

“Of course I would,” Sarah said. “The whole

reason we’re here is to prepare ourselves for life as
part of a pack, Cait. If that comes my way a little
earlier than I expected...well, I’d be crazy to turn it
down, wouldn’t I?”

“You’d be crazy not to finish your education,”

Cait said, turning back to her magazine.

“Come on, Cait!” Georgette pulled the

magazine out of her hands. “Come with us.”

“I don’t want to meet an alpha,” Cait protested.
“I know you don’t,” Georgette said. “But

people already think you’re weird. You don’t want
to let everyone find out that you’re weird about
alphas and mating too, or they’ll probably start
thinking you’re not even a real omega.”

As if she cared. Cait rolled her eyes.
But then she wondered.
Grant had made it clear that he was upset with

her. He was concerned that her behavior might
have drawn the attention of her classmates. Since
the day they had fucked in the classroom, Cait had

done her best to tone things down, but she couldn’t
help remembering what he had said to her when
they had finished that day.

You don’t get to come.
Since then, she had felt anxious and starved for

him, and yet he hadn’t so much as looked her way.

Maybe there was something she could do about

it.

If I go to this social event, Grant will see that

I’m taking what he said seriously. He’ll see that
I’m trying to fit in with the other omegas. Staying
home would only show that finding an alpha isn’t a
priority for me. If I go to the social, it’ll look like
I’m alpha shopping just like everyone else.

It was the perfect cover.
“All right,” she said, sliding off the bed. “I’ll

come.”

Georgette squealed happily. “Let me help you

pick out something to wear!”

“Oh, no.” Cait shook her head. “If I’m going to

this thing, I’m wearing what I have on. It’s a deal-
breaker.”

“Come on, Cait,” Georgette wheedled. “It’s a

party. You have to dress up.”

“No way,” Cait said firmly. “Those alphas

across the street can take me as I am or not at all.”

“First Sarah and now you,” Georgette griped.

“Doesn’t anyone else at this school ever want to
look hot?”

Cait grinned in spite of herself. “You look hot

enough for all of us, Georgette,” she said. “Come
on, let’s get over there if we’re going. I don’t want
to be out too late tonight.”

THE SOCIAL WAS BEING held on the Omega
University campus. The alphas and betas from
across the road had trickled over and found seats
around the fire pit in the middle of campus. Some
were roasting marshmallows and talking. Others
were dancing to the music from a speaker someone
had set up on a stump.

Cait sat on the ground, staring into the flames

and wondering how long this party could last. She
knew there was a point to her attendance, but it
was mind-numbing.

She had hoped to be able to socialize with

Georgette, but her friend had allowed herself to be
whisked away by a cute guy almost immediately.
From the way he grinned at Georgette and asked
her permission before leading her into a dance, Cait
suspected that he was not the alpha Georgette had
dreamed of. Still, maybe any guy was better than
none.

Sarah had disappeared on a stroll along a

candlelit path that some of the faculty members had
set up. It was romantic enough to look at, but Cait

suspected that the path was being watched at
intervals to ensure that nobody got up to any
hanky-panky.

All the teachers and faculty members were

chaperones. Of course, that included Grant. His
presence was the most frustrating thing of all. He
hadn’t so much as looked at her.

What the hell is the point of going to a social if

I can’t socialize with the one person I really want?

She was aware of someone coming over to sit

beside her, but she ignored them. Cait had been
doing her best to project don’t talk to me signals all
night long, and for the most part, it had worked.
Very few people had intruded on her solitude
except to say hello.

But someone clearly wasn’t getting the

message. “Hey,” he said.

She knew that voice. “Bart,” she said, not

bothering to turn and look at him.

“Got a dance for your alpha?” he asked.
“You’re not my alpha,” she said.
Back at home, that had always been a taunt

guaranteed to raise Bart’s hackles. But today, he
just laughed. “They still haven’t gotten that attitude
out of you?” he asked. “If your father had let me
have you first, instead of wasting time on this
school lark, I’d have it beat out of you in a few
days. But I suppose they want to ease you in.”

“You know you can’t do anything to me,” she

said. “Not in front of all these professors. Why are
you even bothering with this? Why are you even
talking to me?”

“Because like it or not, I am your alpha,” he

said. “You were promised to me, and I fully intend
to claim you when the time comes.”

“I won’t submit to you,” she told him. “Not

ever.”

He laughed again. “Yes, you will,” he said. “I’ll

make you. That’s what being an alpha is, Cait. It
means I have all the power, and you have none.”

She thought of Grant, of the gentle explanations

of alpha authority he had given her and the way he
had helped her to see that a good alpha would
actually value his omega’s happiness. “I guess you
haven’t learned anything at school yet either,” she
said.

“And what do I have to learn, exactly?” he

asked.

She grinned. “If you don’t know, I’m not going

to tell you. That’s not my job.”

“No,” he said. “It’s not your job.” She could

hear some anger in his voice now. “I don’t mind
telling you, Cait, I’m not at all convinced that this
education thing is what’s best for you. It’s turning
you into a know-it-all, and that’s not what I want in
my omega.”

“It doesn’t matter what you think,” Cait said.

“My father already decided that I could go to
school. He’s given his permission. You can’t do
anything now except wait for graduation.”

“I can do more than you think,” he shot back.

“I can tell him I don’t like you being here. He’d
pull you out if I told him I wouldn’t take you like
this. He wants you to be mated to the alpha of the
pack.”

Cait felt a chill run down her spine.
Was Bart right?
She couldn’t be sure. But he was making some

good points. Her father did want to see her mated
to an alpha—that was true. If he thought her time
at Omega University was making her less desirable
instead of more, he might change his mind and
order her to come home.

“What do you want from me?” she asked Bart.
He grinned. “I’m easy to please—for now. All I

want from you tonight is a dance.”

“That’s it? One dance?”
“That’s it.” He got to his feet and held out his

hand.

Reluctantly, Cait took it.
Dancing with Bart was like dancing with an

insect. It made her skin crawl. She hated even to
have him touch her. He wrapped his arms around
her waist and drew her close, pressing her body
tightly up against his.

“There, now,” he said, his breath hot and damp

against her cheek. “That’s not so bad, is it?”

“No,” Cait lied, gritting her teeth.
He ran his hands up and down her sides. “I

think you might be eating a little too much here,”
he said. “You’re filling out. Have you gained
weight?”

“I haven’t been weighing myself.”
“Well, maybe you should do some exercise. Go

running in the mornings.” He looked her up and
down critically. “I don’t want you getting fat.”

“Why not?” Cait demanded. “Fat women can

carry babies just as well.”

“Don’t talk back to me,” Bart said. “I don’t

want you getting fat because I like you in good
shape. You don’t need any more reason than that.”

Cait’s blood boiled. It was her body, wasn’t it?

She shouldn’t need Bart’s permission to do
anything. She should be able to gain or lose weight,
cut her hair or grow it out, or get a tattoo if she
wanted one, without asking his permission.

But that wasn’t the way Bart’s world worked.
That wasn’t the way her father’s world worked.
There was no point in getting into an argument

in front of everyone, so Cait bit back her rage. “All
right,” she said. “I’ll go running.”

“That’s my girl.” Bart slid a hand down and

squeezed her ass.

Outraged, Cait stepped out of his arms.

He pursued her, grabbing her by the wrist and

pulling her close again. “Our dance isn’t over,
baby.”

“It is now,” she said. “You can’t do that. I’m

not yours that way until we’re done with school.
Even my father agreed to that.”

“Hey, I’m just sampling the merchandise,” he

said, slipping his fingers down the waist of her
jeans. “No one would object to that. Gotta try
before you buy, right?”

She squirmed in his arms. “Let me go, Bart.”
“I know you like this,” he said, sliding his hand

down deeper and pulling her tight against him. He
was hard, and it sickened her. “All omegas like it.
You just don’t know how much you like it until
someone gives it to you. You’ll see. As soon as
you’re mine, you’ll realize that you had no idea
what you were missing all this time.”

She shoved at his chest. “Let me go!”
“What’s going on here?” a voice boomed from

behind her.

Grant.
Cait wanted to cry—both from relief and from

humiliation. The last thing in the world she would
have wanted was for him to see her in that
situation.

Bart immediately let her go and stepped back.

“Just having a dance,” he said, but there was an

insolence in his tone that let Cait know he had no
intention of deferring to another alpha.

Grant frowned. “You were in violation of the

code of conduct,” he said. “Alphas and omegas
aren’t permitted to have sexual contact at the
socials.”

“Oh, sorry,” Bart said, not sounding remotely

sorry. “Everyone’s dancing close. I just thought—”

“I heard her tell you to stop,” Grant said.
“Misunderstanding,” Bart said. “She told me

she wanted it. I guess she changed her mind.”

Cait felt like melting into a puddle on the

ground. She never wanted to see either of them
again.

“I think you’d better head back to Shifter U

now,” Grant said.

“I’m not ready to go,” Bart countered. “The

party’s just getting started, and the people I came
with are still here. I think I’ll stick around, maybe
go and find a new dance partner since she’s being
such a frigid bitch—”

Grant moved so fast that Cait didn’t even see

what he had done until it was over. In a split
second, Bart was lying on his back on the ground
and Grant was kneeling over him, a hand planted
firmly on his chest.

“I can’t permit you to talk about my students

that way,” Grant said. “Nor can I allow you to
violate school rules and touch them inappropriately

at these events. I’m going to ask you one more time
to go back home for the night and think about how
you can treat these omegas with some respect the
next time you’re here. If you don’t do as I ask right
now, or if I catch you disrespecting one of my
students again, I’ll have to speak to the dean at
Shifter University about whether having you at our
socials is a good idea in the future.”

Bart sulked but said nothing.
Grant released his hold and got to his feet,

dusting off the knees of his pants.

“Boring party anyway,” Bart mumbled. He shot

a furious look at Cait and took off jogging toward
the highway.

Only once he was gone did Cait notice that

everyone else at the party was staring at them in
silence.

“Get back to what you were doing,” Grant said,

looking around at all of them. “I’ll take Miss
Sterling to the nurse.”

His hand came to rest on her shoulder.
She shrugged it off.
“Cait,” he said quietly. “It’s all right.”
“I don’t need to go to the nurse,” she said. “He

didn’t actually do anything to me.”

“We’re not going to the nurse,” he said, his

voice low enough that no one else could hear.
“Take a walk with me.”

She gave in and allowed him to lead her away

from the party and into the woods that surrounded
the school. His hand on her shoulder was warm and
reassuring, soothing her and providing comfort. His
touch was so different from Bart’s.

After walking for about fifteen minutes, they

came to a little tent set up among the trees. It was
just big enough for two.

“Go inside,” Grant said softly.
And for the first time in her life, Cait obeyed an

alpha’s order without question or hesitation.

Chapter Thirteen

RANT

Grant followed her into the tent and sat

down beside her.

“Are you sure you’re not hurt?” he asked her,

aching to touch her, knowing that he needed to
move slowly.

“I’m all right,” she said. She sounded disgusted.

“I can’t believe he did that. In front of everybody.
Like it didn’t even matter.”

“It matters,” Grant said quietly.
“Thank you for sending him away,” she said.

“For intervening when you did.”

Grant shook his head. “You shouldn’t be

thanking me,” he said. “I’m your alpha. It’s my
responsibility to protect you, and yet this creep was
able to do what he did right under my nose. I
should never have let him near you. I should never
have let anything happen to you.”

“Grant, you couldn’t have done anything more

than you did,” Cait protested. “It’s not like you can
hover around me all the time, making sure nobody
approaches me. That would make it too obvious
that there was something going on between us.”

“That’s not an excuse!” he said. “To let

something happen to you because I was protecting
my own self-interests—that makes it even worse,

Cait. It’s practically criminal. It should go against
everything in my nature.”

“Calm down,” she urged him. “It’s all right.

Nothing really happened. He just had his hands on
my ass for a minute. It was embarrassing. That’s all
it was. We’re okay now.”

“I wanted to tear him apart,” Grant said, his

breathing heavy and too fast. “I wanted to kill him.
I’ve never felt anything like that before.”

“Take a breath,” she said. “You need to calm

yourself down or you’re going to shift in the tent
and tear it apart.”

“I’m not going to shift.” Grant hadn’t lost

control of himself and shifted unintentionally in
years. But he took a deep breath and steadied
himself. She was right that they would both be
better served if he got his anger under control.

“He was the one, wasn’t he?” he said. “Your

alpha from your pack at home. That was him?”

“Yes,” Cait confirmed. “That was Bart.”
“Why were you dancing with him in the first

place?”

She blinked. “Are you angry with me?”
“Not angry,” he said. “I’m surprised that you

would choose to be near someone who’s always
treated you so badly.”

“I would never have chosen to dance with

him,” Cait said. “Never in a million years. I only
did it because he threatened me.”

“He threatened you?” Grant’s hands clenched

into fists.

“Not to hurt me,” Cait said hastily. “He

threatened to complain to my father, that’s all. To
have me taken out of school.”

“For not dancing with him?”
“No, a dance was his price for silence. He

complained about other things.”

“What things?”
Cait shrugged. “My attitude, mostly,” she said.

“He’s pissed that I won’t submit to him.”

“Well, that’s not on you,” Grant said.
She looked up at him. “It isn’t?”
“No,” he said. “This guy has an omega handed

to him on a silver platter, practically from birth, and
he can’t win her submission? No, that isn’t your
fault. He’s the alpha. He’s the one who is supposed
to make things happen. If you’re not compliant, it’s
not your fault. It’s his fault.”

“That’s not what you said,” Cait protested.

“You said I was fighting my nature. You said it was
my responsibility to accept my role and become the
best omega I could be.”

“I didn’t know everything when I said that,”

Grant said. “I didn’t know you had been in such
vile hands. If that’s what you grew up with, I don’t
know that you’ve ever had a real alpha.”

“You don’t think he’s really an alpha?”

“I don’t think he’s a quality alpha,” Grant said.

“He has no idea what it means to care for an
omega. He has no idea of the responsibility he has
to his pack and to his family.”

He opened the flap of the tent. “Come outside

with me,” he said.

“Outside? Why?”
“Just come out.”
She did. Already she was learning to take orders

from him, to obey his commands. She still
questioned him, but Grant would break her of that
soon enough. After having met Bart, he could
understand why it was so hard for her to extend
trust.

They stood in a patch of moonlight among the

trees. Grant held out his hand to her. “Dance with
me,” he said quietly.

“There’s no music,” Cait said.
Grant waited, hand extended, eyes locked on

hers.

After a few moments, Cait took his hand.
He pulled her close, wrapped an arm around her

back, and led her into a slow waltz. “This is what
he should have done,” he said quietly. “Do you feel
the difference?”

“It’s not a threat.”
“No. But there’s more than that. We’re not just

dancing because I want to have a dance partner.”
He guided her through a spin and pulled her back

into his arms. “We’re dancing because I want to
give you one.”

She caught her breath. “I never thought of it

that way,” she said.

“I don’t think anyone ever gave you any reason

to,” he pointed out.

“I never felt about him the way I feel about

you,” she said, gazing up into his eyes. “It wasn’t
just because he wasn’t a good alpha. It wasn’t just
because he was a bully. I don’t feel that way for
him. I never could have.”

“Maybe not,” Grant said. “But if you’d never

met me, if you’d never imprinted, and if he had
been strong and kind, the way an alpha should be—
don’t you think you could have learned to respect
him? Maybe even to feel some kind of love?”

“Maybe,” she agreed. “I guess we’ll never

know now.”

“No,” Grant said. “He’ll never know now. He’ll

never know if he could have had more. He’ll never
know what a little kindness might have done for
him.”

They had stopped dancing. By unspoken

agreement, they stood bathed in the moonlight,
absolutely still, gazing into each other’s eyes.

“Take off your clothes,” Grant said quietly.
He expected her to question him, or to put up

some kind of protest, the way she usually did. But
she said nothing. She didn’t even blink. She stepped

away from him, stripped out of her shirt and pants,
and left them pooled on the ground at her feet.
Naked, she moved back into his arms.

“Now take my clothes off,” he said.
He stood very still as she complied. She lifted

his shirt over his head, but instead of allowing it to
drop to the ground, as she had with her own things,
she hung it carefully over a tree branch. She did the
same with his pants, once she had slid them down
and he had stepped out of them.

He pulled her close. “I’m not going to let

anyone do anything like that to you ever again,” he
murmured, running his hands up and down the
length of her back. “I’m not going to let that kid
onto our campus. I’ll report what he did. I’ll make
sure he never comes back.”

“You can’t keep him away from me forever,”

Cait murmured. “He’s a member of my pack. And
he thinks I belong to him. My father told him he
could have me. He’s going to keep coming back.
He’s going to keep trying to claim me.”

“He’ll never have you,” Grant whispered.

“You’re mine. Only mine.”

He lifted her in his arms and kissed her deeply

as she wrapped her legs around his waist. Moving
slowly under their combined weight, he lowered
himself to his knees, then lay back, pulling her
down to lie on top of him.

“I want you to take the lead,” he said, taking

her hands in his and intertwining their fingers. “I
want you to show me how you like it.”

“I don’t know how I like it,” she admitted, her

voice soft and breathless with passion. “I’ve only
ever done this twice before. I don’t know what I
like.”

“Then let’s find out,” he said.
She nodded, lifted her hips, and sank down on

him.

God, she felt good. There was nothing like her

in the world. Grant had been with a few different
women in his time, and it never ceased to amaze
him how the experience was different with each
one. Lovemaking with his wife, before her death,
had been unique and beautiful.

Now, with Cait, it was perfect in a completely

new and different way.

She lay flat across his chest, rocking her hips

slowly, taking him deeper and deeper. He traced his
fingers up and down her back and relished the
softness of her skin. She was so beautiful. So
exquisite. The idea that anyone could try to hurt
her felt sinful.

He noted the pace she set. Slow. Leisurely. He

would remember this, and he would give it to her
often. As her alpha, it was his job to know what
gave her pleasure and to make sure she had it as

much as possible. She had to know that she could
depend on him for that.

“You like it like this?” he breathed into her ear.

“Nice and slow?”

She let out a little moan and ground herself

down onto him.

“Tell me,” he said. “You have to tell me what

you like, Cait. Say it.”

“Yes,” she whimpered. “Yes, I like it, I love it,

fuck—”

“What do you want me to do?”
“I want your hands on me.”
“Where?”
“Everywhere.”
He wrapped his arms around her protectively

and rolled them over so that he was on top, careful
not to disrupt the rhythm she had set for them as he
took over control. Thrusting slowly into her, he
took her breasts gently in his hands and traced his
thumbs across her nipples.

“Like this?” he asked her softly.
“More. Harder.” Her legs were shaking, and her

eyes drifted shut.

Grant squeezed gently, then pinched her nipples

and rolled them slowly between his thumbs and
forefingers. She gasped and arched up into his
touch.

“More,” she begged, her voice raspy with need.

He wanted to make her articulate what she

wanted again, but she was panting now, writhing on
the ground, and he could see that he had pushed
her far enough. She had been through so much
today. She needed to be cared for now.

He lowered his mouth to her breast and licked

her nipple slowly, then sucked it between his lips
and flicked it with his tongue. She cried out and
hitched her hips up into his, and he took the hint
and began to fuck her harder, faster, setting his own
tempo now.

“Oh, God,” she sobbed. “Please, Grant. Please.

I need you so badly. I’ve needed you so badly.
Don’t make me wait anymore.”

He couldn’t suppress a groan. Knowing that he

had this power over her, the power to give her what
she needed and leave her satisfied...it was the
hottest thing he had ever experienced.

He rolled her onto her stomach, moving with

her, lifting her hips so they wouldn’t have to
separate, and flung his body over hers like a
blanket. The wolf within him rose to the surface.
He reached forward and grabbed her wrists, gently
but firmly pulling her arms back, using them to hold
her in place.

In three quick thrusts, he was coming, roaring

with pleasure, and she was sobbing out his name.

He allowed himself a moment to recover. Then

he rolled to the side, got to his feet, and picked her

up carefully.

She was still shaking as he carried her into the

tent and laid her down on the blanket. “Grant,” she
murmured.

“Shh,” he said. “Just relax. I’m going out to get

the clothes. Then I’ll be back.”

He kissed her forehead, then slipped outside

and gathered the clothes she had left on the ground.
He shook out all the dirt and brushed them off
before gathering his own things from the tree
branch where she’d hung them. Then he went back
into the tent.

She was lying on her back, staring at the

vaulted canvas above her head. He pulled her into
an upright position, eased her shirt back over her
head, and laid her back down before helping her
into her pants. He put on his own pants as well but
tossed his shirt to one side.

He lay down beside her, and she rested a hand

on his chest. “That was amazing,” she murmured.

“That’s how an omega ought to be treated,” he

told her. “Like a queen.”

She closed her eyes and exhaled, her breath a

little shuddery.

He pulled her close. “Never believe anyone

who tells you it’s your place to serve alphas,” he
told her. “It’s the job of the alpha to serve you. My
control is only for your wellbeing. It’s only to make
your life better. Can you believe that?”

“Yes,” she said quietly. “From you, I can

believe it.”

“Then believe me when I tell you I’ll never

allow that fucker across the road to put his hands
on you again,” he said. “I don’t care what I have to
do. I’ll keep you safe from him.”

She snuggled into his chest and nodded, clearly

content, for the moment, to take him at his word.

He wrapped his arms more tightly around her,

feeling her breathing become deep and even, and
thought about what he had seen at the social
tonight.

The rage had taken over him so suddenly. So

completely.

He had told Cait that there was no danger of

him shifting inadvertently, but the truth was that he
hadn’t been at all sure, at that moment, that he was
safe. He had taken her away from the group for his
own comfort as much as for hers.

There’s going to be a conflict, he thought. This

isn’t going to be as simple as four years of school
and then she graduates and becomes my mate. At
some point, he was going to have to challenge Bart
for her.

And there was no way to do that without

exposing the fact that he’d imprinted.

The only thing he could hope for was to put it

off for as long as possible. The longer he could

delay his confrontation with Bart, the more school
Cait would be able to complete.

Eventually, she’ll have to leave in order for us

to be together. But that would be all right. He
would get her through as much of her schooling as
he could, and then he would complete her
education on his own. She had said she’d only
come to Omega University to get away from Bart.
She wouldn’t mind.

For now, I’ll contact the Shifter U dean and

tell him to keep that scum off our campus.

He kissed Cait’s forehead gently and closed his

eyes.

Chapter Fourteen

AIT

“Where did you go?” Sarah demanded,

leaping up from her bed as Cait opened the door.

Cait didn’t answer. She crossed the room and

lay down on her bed, resting her hands on her
stomach and staring at the ceiling. Bart had been
right about one thing, at least. She did feel a little
fuller around the midsection than when she’d first
arrived at school.

Well, it doesn’t seem to bother Grant.
It certainly didn’t bother Cait. She had always

been troubled by her own slender frame. At home,
she was served very light meals, as were all the
women—the alphas in her pack tended to like their
women willowy and fragile. Cait suspected that was
because it made them easier to control.

Having a little meat on her bones felt good. It

made her feel more substantial. It would be harder
for Bart to push her around now.

And Grant said he would protect me.
She wondered if that was true. Could she really

count on him for protection? After all this time, was
it possible that the threat Bart posed to her was
going to be removed?

It had been so easy to believe it back in the

tent, lying in his arms. But now that she was on her

own again, the fear started to creep back in.

It'll be all right. He said he would keep Bart

off our campus. He can’t come over here anymore.

But what about the future?
There was still her father to consider. Cait knew

that if he had any idea of what had been going on at
school, he would pull her out immediately and bring
her home. He would never permit her to see Grant
again. He would be horrified at the idea that an
alpha outside their pack had imprinted on her, that
he thought he had any claim to her.

It’s only first year. I have a long time before I

have to start worrying about any of this.

“Excuse me,” Sarah said, stepping into her line

of sight. “Are you just ignoring me now?”

“Sorry,” Cait murmured.
“Sorry,” Sarah repeated. “Do you know how

worried we’ve been?”

“Who’s been?”
“Me. Georgette. She’s been here every half

hour asking whether you’re back yet.”

“I should go tell her,” Cait said, but she didn’t

move to stand.

“I’ll go,” Sarah said. “If I can trust you not to

run off again while I do that?”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Cait promised.
Sarah made an incredulous noise and shook her

head. Then she retreated from the room.

Cait thought of the time she had spent with

Grant. He had seemed so vulnerable out there in
the woods. She had never thought of alphas as
vulnerable people. They were tough. They kept
their emotions buried deep down. The alpha was
the rock of the pack, and like a rock, he was
emotionless.

But that hadn’t been Grant at all. He had been

so angry with Bart. He had seemed as though his
rage was genuinely out of his control.

It had been a little bit frightening.
It had also been kind of hot.
Sarah returned to the room and sat down on her

bed. Cait rolled to the side so that she could look at
her friend. “I’m sorry you were worried,” she said.

“I thought you’d be back at the social,” Sarah

said. “We waited for you.”

“I didn’t really want to come back,” Cait said.

“Not after what happened.”

“What did happen? Nobody really saw,” Sarah

said. “You were dancing with some guy, and then
the next thing we knew, Professor Larson had
tackled him.”

“I don’t know,” Cait hedged. “Some kind of

weird alpha power struggle, I guess. I don’t
understand them. It was really embarrassing to be
at the center of that, though, with everyone staring
at me.”

“And Professor Larson said he was taking you

to the nurse,” Sarah went on. “Why?”

Cait hesitated. She had to protect the truth of

what had happened between Grant and herself, but
she had to come up with some kind of story Sarah
would believe in order to do that. “I think he
thought I’d had a shock,” she said. “Because of the
two of them fighting practically on top of me the
way they did.”

To her relief, Sarah nodded, accepting that

explanation. “That was completely freaky,” she
said. “I was scared, and I was standing on the other
side of the fire from you.”

“I don’t think they were ever going to hurt me,”

Cait said. “I was never in danger.”

“Well, if you ask me, Professor Larson should

be fired for that,” Sarah said.

“No, he shouldn’t,” Cait protested. “He was

doing his job. He was chaperoning the social.”

“He attacked a student,” Sarah said.
“Yeah, but Bart...kind of deserved it. He was

talking back to Professor Larson. Giving him a hard
time.”

“That doesn’t mean he should be attacked,”

Sarah said.

Cait shrugged.
“And what happened to you after you left the

social?” Sarah asked.

“You already know,” Cait said. “I went to the

nurse.”

“But you weren’t there when we came looking

for you,” Sarah said. “When Georgette and I left
the social, we stopped by to see if you were still
there, and you weren’t. So we figured you’d be
back here, but you weren’t here either. Where did
you go?”

Shit.
Cait didn’t know what to say. She could hardly

tell Sarah where she had really been. She hadn’t
even thought about trying to create an alibi for
herself. Grant had told her to come with him, and
she had done so.

She didn’t regret having been with him for these

past few hours. She couldn’t possibly regret that.
But now she was left with the task of explaining
herself, and she had no answers to give.

Sarah shook her head. “I knew it,” she said.
“You knew what?” Cait asked.
“You were with him.”
How had she known that? Cait felt panic

welling up within her.

“He left the social when you did,” Sarah said.

“The two of you met up, didn’t you? Georgette said
someone told her that he’s from your pack back at
home. That’s why you were dancing together.
You’re already promised to each other.”

“Bart?” Cait asked.

“Of course, Bart,” Sarah said, cocking her head

to one side. “Who else would we be talking about?”

Cait couldn’t help herself. She burst out

laughing. “I wasn’t with Bart! I can’t stand him. I
only danced with him to appease my father. I would
never willingly go anywhere with him.”

“All right, but you were with someone,” Sarah

said. “You didn’t just run off on your own. You’re
strange, but you’re not suicidal. Besides, you have
dirt on your clothes.” She pointed. “How do you
explain that?”

Cait sighed. “Do you have to know

everything?”

“Cait,” Sarah said, standing up and crossing to

her bed. “We were worried about you. Do you get
that?” She sat down beside Cait, tucked her knees
up against her chest, and wrapped her arms around
her legs. “We didn’t know what had happened. And
if you’re going to disappear like that...I don’t know.
We’re your friends. You could give us an
explanation. That’s all I’m saying.”

Cait sighed. Sarah had a point. They were

friends. She had never had anyone she could
confide in before. There had never been anyone
she could trust. It was a new feeling, and a good
one.

And she realized that she wanted to tell her

friend everything.

It was a risk. She knew that. But having

someone to share this with might make it a little
easier.

“If I tell you,” she said, “you have to promise

not to tell anybody, ever. It could ruin people’s lives
if you tell. Can you keep a secret?”

Sarah scooted closer, nodding. “Of course I

can,” she said. “I’d never tell someone’s secrets.”

“Okay,” Cait agreed. “The truth is...I was with

someone.”

“I knew it.”
“I was with Professor Larson.”
Sarah frowned. “What?”
“Something happened...” Cait felt her eyes fill

with tears. She felt suddenly emotional. “I’m so
glad I have someone I can talk to about this. I’ve
been trying to deal with it by myself.”

“Cait, what happened? Are you okay?”
“Yes,” she said. “At least, I think I am. When

we were on the excursion, Professor Larson—
Grant—and I were alone in the woods, and he...he
imprinted on me.”

Sarah gasped.
“I didn’t even know imprinting was real,” Cait

said. “Did you know that?”

“Yes,” Sarah said. “My father imprinted on my

mother. But it’s so rare. We don’t know anybody
else who’s experienced it. They always told me,
growing up, that it wasn’t something I should

expect, that it was perfectly fine to submit to an
alpha who hadn’t imprinted.” She hesitated. “Are
you sure that’s what happened?”

“Yes,” Cait said. “I don’t know how to explain

what it feels like, but it’s as if we don’t have a
choice. But not in a bad way. It’s like...I don’t want
a choice. All I want is him. I know how crazy that
sounds.”

“So you were with him tonight?” Sarah asked.
Cait nodded. “He took me out into the woods.

He had a tent set up for us.”

“You mean you...” Sarah seemed to struggle to

say the words, which didn’t surprise Cait. Her
friend was so conservative.

“We had sex,” Cait supplied.
Sarah’s eyes widened. “Doesn’t that scare

you?” she asked.

“Scare me?” Cait shook her head. “Why should

it scare me? He treats me well. I like it.”

“But it’s risky,” Sarah said. “You could get

pregnant. And you said you didn’t want anyone to
know what was going on between the two of you.”

“I’m not going to get pregnant,” Cait said.
“You might,” Sarah said. “You know how fertile

omegas are. Our bodies are made for pregnancy.
That’s why we’re supervised so carefully at the
socials. That’s why we’re not supposed to have sex
until we’re officially mated.”

“Well, I guess I am officially mated,” Cait

pointed out. “He imprinted on me. That’s pretty
binding, right?”

“But if you get pregnant, it’s going to make

trouble,” Sarah said. “You shouldn’t be running
around having sex all the time. It’s really not a good
idea for an omega.”

“I’m not running around having sex all the

time,” Cait said. “We’ve only done it three times.”

“How many times do you think it takes?” Sarah

asked. “You could be pregnant right now.”

“I’m not pregnant.”
“Are you sure?”
Cait opened her mouth to say that of course she

was sure—

And hesitated.
When had her last period been? Suddenly, she

couldn’t remember. It felt like it might have been a
while. Maybe too long.

And hadn’t she just been noticing that her body

felt a little thicker? Maybe the food there could
account for that, but Bart had been wrong about
her needing exercise. She had been exercising more
than ever since she’d been on campus.

“Cait?” Sarah asked, her voice suddenly gentle.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m not sure,” Cait admitted, nerves suddenly

twanging. “I think...I think you might have a point,
actually.”

“Oh,” Sarah said. “Oh, no. I didn’t want to be

right.”

Cait closed her eyes. “I don’t suppose you can

get pregnancy tests at Omega University.”

“I don’t think so,” Sarah said. “You’d have to

go to the nurse for a test, and if it was positive,
you’d probably have to leave school. They don’t
want students getting the idea that it’s okay to
break a rule like that.”

Cait covered her face with her hands.
“How sure are you?” Sarah asked.
“Pretty sure,” Cait admitted. “I wasn’t even

thinking about it. I was too caught up in everything
that was going on with Grant. But now...too many
things are starting to make sense.”

“I’m sorry,” Sarah said, resting a hand on her

shoulder. “I really didn’t mean to be the bearer of
bad news.”

“It’s better that I figured it out,” Cait said.

“Shit. What the hell am I going to do now?”

“You’ve got to tell him,” Sarah said.
“I can’t,” Cait said.
“You have to,” Sarah insisted. “He’s your

alpha, right? He’s going to want to know this. And
he’ll be able to help you. He probably considered
that this might happen, even if you didn’t.”

“I don’t think he did,” Cait said. “It’s so weird.

We’ve hardly talked. We’ve hardly had time.
We’ve only spent a few days together, really.”

“This is his responsibility,” Sarah said. “If

you’re pregnant, then he has to deal with it. That’s
what an alpha is supposed to do.”

Cait thought back over the things Grant had

taught her. It did sound like something he would
say. He had repeated again and again that it was the
job of the alpha to make sure the omega was safe
and cared for. If Cait had gotten herself into a bad
situation, Grant would see it as his job to take care
of her, just as he had done at the social when Bart
had put his hands on her against her will.

God. Could she really be pregnant?
Everything had happened so fast. It felt as if

she had just arrived at Omega University, and
already her entire world had shifted. She was mated
to one of her professors—imprinted upon—and
now, it seemed, she might be pregnant as well.

How could all this have happened so quickly?
She remembered her last conversation with her

father before she had set off for school. “The world
outside our pack is different from what you’ve
always known,” he had told her. “You’re going to
encounter new ideas and new temptations. I expect
you to stick to what you know is right. I expect you
to remember who you are and how you were
raised. If you can’t do that, you’ll be brought back
home, and you’ll wish you had behaved yourself.”

Cait had promised to comply.

She had hardly been listening to him then. Her

mind had already been full of her plan to sneak
away and infiltrate Shifter U. She had already been
intoxicated with the hope of winning freedom from
her family for the first time in her life. And, of
course, she hadn’t known that Bart would be at
school with her. She hadn’t known how short-lived
her freedom would really be.

Now she could see that, although her father had

been controlling and unsympathetic toward her, he
had also had a point.

The world was full of strange temptations.
Cait had been taken in by one of them.
If she were pregnant, would she regret the

course of action that had led to it?

No, she thought. I’ll never regret my mating

with Grant. And he’ll help me. He’ll know what we
need to do now. We’re going to get through this
together.

Chapter Fifteen

RANT

Cait was one of the first to arrive in

Grant’s classroom.

He kept his eyes on his work as the rest of the

class made their way in, but every so often, he
allowed himself to glance up at her. She had
dressed appropriately today, and that was a relief.
She wore long, loose-fitting jeans and a bulky
sweater.

He had to admit, he missed seeing her body.
But it was better this way. She had learned her

lesson. She had gained an understanding of how
important it was that they keep their relationship
secret. That meant there was hope for them.

He couldn’t help wondering whether she was

sick. She seemed pale and withdrawn. She wasn’t
talking to the students who sat around her. She had
a notebook open on her desk, and she was staring
at the pages as if something captivating were
written there.

The last time he had seen her had been in the

tent after the social. She had been fine then.

Could something have happened since?
There was no way Bart could have come back

on campus. Grant had spoken to the dean at Shifter

University, who had promised that he wouldn’t be
back.

It was probably nothing to worry about. Maybe

she was worried about one of her other classes, or
maybe she’d had a fight with a friend. There were
all kinds of things that could be behind her mood.

But Grant couldn’t shake the feeling that

something was wrong. And he was her alpha. He
was attuned to her in a way that no one else was.

I should trust my instincts about this.
So he was both relieved and worried when, as

the rest of the class was leaving at the end of the
lesson, Cait hung back.

He waited at his desk, knowing that she would

come to him, and she did.

“Go close the door,” he said, not looking up

from his papers.

She retreated to the back of the room, and

Grant heard the door shut. Only then, when there
was no chance of anyone passing by and seeing
them, did he get to his feet and take her in his arms.

She melted against him, and for a moment,

Grant was awed by how much trust she clearly had
in him already. She had taken refuge in him. He was
amazed that the rebellious girl he’d met on the first
day of class could have submitted to him so fully.

It was a powerful feeling. It made him want to

protect her even more.

“What’s wrong?” he asked her. “I could tell as

soon as you walked in that something was on your
mind. Tell me.”

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I

had to see you,” she whispered. “I’ve been thinking
about it since last night. Just let me have a moment,
okay?”

He tightened his embrace around her.
“It can’t be like last time,” he cautioned her.

“We can’t do that in the classroom again. That was
extremely careless of us.”

“Yeah, it was,” she agreed, her voice sounding

strange and raw.

“What’s wrong?” he asked her again. “Are you

sick? You seem so different.”

“Do I?” She looked up at him. “How so?”
“You look pale,” he said. “You seem like you’re

not feeling well.” He rested a hand on her cheek,
checking for signs of fever, but her skin was cool.
“Are you feeling all right?”

“I’ve felt better,” she admitted.
“You should go back to your dorm and rest,” he

said. “Take the rest of the day off. I can write you a
note to give to your other professors if that would
be helpful.”

“You can do that?” she asked. “You’re not

worried they’d think you were showing me
favoritism?”

“No,” he said. “It’s not unusual for professors

to do that. Omega students often find themselves
overwhelmed by the pressures placed on them and
need to take a day off.”

“The pressures placed on them?” Cait shook

her head. She looked suddenly irritated. “What
pressures have any of them got to deal with? All
they have to do is show up to class and do as
they’re told.”

He frowned. “Do you have it so much harder?”

he asked.

“You know the answer to that,” she said. “You

know the kinds of things I’ve had to deal with since
coming to school here.”

“Some of those things have been situations

you’ve brought upon yourself,” Grant pointed out.

Cait stepped back out of his arms and stared up

at him. “Are you serious?” she asked. “You’re
blaming me for the things I’ve been through?”

“Not all of them,” Grant said hurriedly. “Of

course, the events with Bart weren’t your fault.”

“Damn right,” she murmured.
“But you have to admit that you could have

worked harder to fit in during your first days here,”
he said. “You alienated yourself very early.”

“You have no idea what you’re talking about,”

Cait snapped. “I have friends here. That isn’t the
problem. I’ve had no trouble finding people to talk
to, people I can relate to.”

“I’ve seen you in class,” he said gently. “You

don’t socialize with the girls around you.”

“Because I’m in class,” she snapped. “Are you

giving me a hard time because I don’t interrupt
your teaching to gossip with the other girls?”

“I’m not giving you a hard time, Cait,” he said,

perplexed. Why was she so reactive? “I’m just
saying that...if you’re lonely during the times we
can’t be together, if that’s one of the things that’s
adding stress to your life, maybe I can help you.”

“You couldn’t help me with something like

that,” Cait said. “What could you do? Order the
other students to spend time with me? You’re being
ridiculous.”

He was beginning to get angry. “Don’t talk to

me that way, Cait.”

“Or you’ll what?” she challenged. “Imprint on

me and make it impossible for me to see you so that
I feel like I’m losing my mind all the time? And
then, when I try to talk to you about how hard it is,
you’ll act like it’s my own fault because I haven’t
gotten the other girls to like me?”

“Cait, come on,” he protested. “None of that is

what I said.”

“I’m friends with lots of people,” she said.

“That girl Georgette, who I sit by in class? She’s
one of my best friends. We eat meals together
every day. Is that supposed to be enough to make

up for the fact that I have a mate I’m barely
allowed to talk to?”

“No,” he said. “Of course, it isn’t. But you

understand why it’s hard for us to spend time
together, don’t you? You understand why I can’t
always make the time to see you.”

“And I have Sarah,” Cait went on. “She gets

what it’s like for me, even if you don’t. She
understands why this is hell.”

“Hang on,” Grant said. He took her firmly by

the shoulders and held her at arm’s length. “Sarah
who?”

“Sarah, my roommate.”
“Your roommate understands what things are

like for you?” Grant swallowed hard, unable to
believe what he was hearing. “Are you saying...you
can’t be saying that you told your roommate?
About us?”

She was silent.
She looked down at the floor.
And he knew.
“Cait,” he said. “How could you do that? How

could you tell? I told you what would happen. I told
you what it would mean for us if anyone were to
find out.”

“I had to tell somebody!” she burst out. “I had

no one, Grant. It’s like you don’t see that. It’s like
you don’t even recognize how fucking alone I’ve
been in all of this.”

“And you think that’s just you?” he asked her.

“You think you’re the only one who’s struggling? I
can’t tell anyone either, Cait. I’ve had to keep the
secret just as much as you have. And meanwhile,
my job is on the line. My entire life is on the line.
I’m the one who stands to lose everything if this
gets out.”

She laughed bitterly. “You really think you’re

the only one who’s taking a risk?” she asked him.
“Do you know what my family would do to me if
they found out?”

“They’d try to take you home. But I’d never let

that happen.”

“Taking me home would only be the

beginning,” she said. “I’d never be allowed out of
the house again. I’d be locked up in a room for Bart
to do whatever he wants with me for the rest of my
life. You’re worried about losing a job? Get a new
job! But don’t act like I’ve got nothing on the line
here.”

He sighed and stepped back. “You’re right,” he

admitted. “I should have remembered that you
were taking a risk too.”

“Yes, you should.”
“But I don’t understand how you could have

told your roommate about us,” he said. “If
anything, knowing what you have on the line
should have made you even more cautious.”

“Well, I needed to talk to somebody,” she said.

“And I couldn’t come to you. You’ve made that
almost impossible. You control where and when we
see each other. There’s almost nothing I can do,
other than waiting for class and trying to hang
around when it’s over to get your attention.”

He shook his head. “I don’t know what to do,”

he said.

“What do you mean?” she asked.
“I thought you understood how important it was

to keep it a secret.”

“I do understand,” she said. “I told you, I just

needed to talk to somebody.”

“It’s only been two days,” Grant said. “It’s

been two days since you and I have seen each
other. You couldn’t even wait two days? You
couldn’t go that long without talking to anyone
about us?”

“Grant, if you had given me any way to contact

you, I would have done that instead!” she
protested. “I don’t have an email address for you. I
don’t have your phone number. What do you want
from me?”

“If this relationship is going to work,” he said,

“you need to understand that I’m your alpha. You
need to understand that I make the rules. What I
say goes. Everything I do is for your own good,
Cait, but if we’re going to make this work, you
have to listen to me.”

She took another step back and stared at him.
“What do you mean, if we’re going to make

this work?” she asked.

“I just mean—”
“You imprinted on me,” she said, continuing to

back away from him. “You told me you did.”

“I know, I—”
“Was that a lie?” Her voice rose in pitch. “Did

you just say that so I would sleep with you?”

He was horrified by the accusation. “Cait. Of

course, I didn’t. I wouldn’t do that.”

“Then how can you act like our being together

is a question?” she demanded. “I thought we were
mates. I thought it was decided. You told me it was
your job to take care of me. I didn’t think that
meant you could break up with me as soon as you
didn’t like the way I acted!”

“I’m not—”
“Just forget it,” she said. “I should have known

better than to come here today. I should have
known better than to believe anything you ever
said to me. You alphas are all the same, aren’t
you?”

“Cait, be quiet,” he said firmly.
She fell silent.
But the way she was looking at him...it was

mutinous.

Their bond was so new. It was still so fragile.

And now Grant could feel it fraying. If he didn’t act

quickly, if he didn’t do something to bring her back
under his control, she would break away from him,
and then he would lose her.

The thought was unbearable.
But his trust in her had been damaged too. She

had told her roommate about their relationship.

He had to say something to her, and quickly—

but he had no idea what to say.

For what felt like a long time, they just stood

there staring at each other.

Then Cait whirled around and ran from the

room. As she did so, Grant heard a sob escape her,
and he knew she had run from him so that he
wouldn’t see her cry.

That thought was excruciating.
She’s mine. I’m supposed to shield her from

any pain. I’m not supposed to be the one who
causes it.

He knew he should go after her, catch her, bring

her back and make this right. But what could he
do? If he was seen running after her while she was
distraught like this, it would only make matters
worse.

Cait was right. They would both be in trouble if

anyone learned what had transpired between them.
And the trouble she faced would be far worse than
the trouble he faced.

I can’t let that happen to her. Protecting her

from that has to be my absolute first priority right

now.

Which meant that even though he knew she

was upset, and even though it killed him to leave
her in that state, the best thing he could do for the
moment was to let her go.

Heart aching, he went back to his desk.
Maybe she had been right about some of the

things she’d said. Maybe it would be best if she had
access to his phone number. They could buy her a
disposable phone, one with a number nobody else
had. Then she would be able to text him, and no
one would be able to connect the messages and
figure out that they were in contact. That might be
safe.

One thing he knew for sure was that something

was going to have to change.

If she feels she has to confide in random girls

in her dorm, we’re not doing this well enough. I
haven’t created a system that makes her feel safe.

He felt like such a failure. It was the pain he felt

every time an omega chose to leave the school, but
because this was Cait, it was magnified by a
thousand. He should have taken care of her. He
should have made everything easy for her. That
was an alpha’s responsibility.

And he hadn’t lived up to it.
But he could do better now that he had seen his

mistake. He could rectify the problem. He would
wait for her to come to him again—he was sure she

would—and then he would apologize for what he
had said to her today. He would ask her what she
needed from him instead of making suggestions,
and he would listen and do as she asked to the best
of his ability.

And then everything would be all right.
At least, he would have to hope that it would

be. Because he didn’t know how he would live
without her.

Chapter Sixteen

AIT

Cait’s eyes blurred with tears as she ran

down the front steps of the building and out onto
the campus lawn.

How could he?
How could Grant have suggested that their

relationship might not be a permanent thing? Could
that really be what he had been thinking this whole
time?

Hadn’t he said that he intended to commit to

her?

She thought over the conversations they’d had

and realized she wasn’t sure.

But he’d certainly suggested it. He’d made

comments about never allowing anyone to hurt her
again. Comments like that made it sound as if he
intended to be around for the long term. She
couldn’t be blamed for interpreting things that way.

And he’d slept with her! Why would he do that

if he didn’t intend for their relationship to last?

Because he’s an alpha, and they can have sex

without consequences. Because alphas have no
risk of getting pregnant.

But he would have known about the risk. He

would have known the chance she was taking to be
with him.

He just must not have cared about that.
That was a horrifying idea. From the moment

their relationship had begun, Cait had taken for
granted the idea that Grant cared about her.
Everything she had done over these last few weeks
had been based on that assumption.

But maybe she had been wrong. Maybe he

didn’t actually give a damn at all.

And she hadn’t even gotten the chance to tell

him about her pregnancy.

Well, fuck him. If that was how he was going to

treat her, maybe he didn’t deserve to know.

She reached the dormitory and raced up the

stairs, hoping against hope that Sarah would be out,
maybe having lunch with their friends or
something. She needed to be alone to sort out her
thoughts. And she knew that if her roommate saw
her crying like this, it would be immediately
obvious what had happened when she had talked to
Grant.

She didn’t want Sarah’s pity, and she definitely

didn’t want her judgment.

She made it up the stairs and flung open the

door to her room—

But the room wasn’t empty.
A figure stood at the window, staring out.
A male figure.
He turned slowly to face her. “It’s about time

you got home,” he said quietly. “Your class ended

fifteen minutes ago.”

She sucked in a breath. “Bart?”
“Where have you been, Cait?”
“What the hell are you doing here?” she asked.

“You’re not supposed to be over here.”

“Oh, I know that,” he said. “You had me barred

from campus, didn’t you? Or rather, your boyfriend
did.”

Cait felt dizzy. He knows.
“I followed you,” he said. “After the social the

other night. I let him think I was going home, but
then I turned and followed the two of you into the
woods. I saw you undress for him, Cait. I saw you
take his clothes off.”

Cait felt frozen with fear. There was no way he

could know these details unless he was telling the
truth. He had been there. He had seen them.

“You were in his class just now,” Bart said.

“You’re not the only one who knows how to break
into a computer system, you know. I checked your
schedule. That’s why you’re late coming home. You
were with him.”

“I...we were talking...”
“Bullshit, Cait; don’t try to lie to me. I saw you.

I know what you’ve been doing.”

Cait felt as if she were drowning. So we got

found out, after all, she thought. But not because I
confided in Sarah. In the end, the fault lay with
both of us.

The only thing she could think to do was to beg.
“Please, Bart,” she said. “You and I...it’s never

been right. It’s never been a match. I know I’ve
never made you happy, and you deserve to be
happy. There are so many other girls here, and they
all want to meet an alpha. You could find someone
great. Someone who appreciates you.”

“You want me to let you go back to him?” Bart

laughed. “You must be joking. Do you know what
that would do to my reputation? I’m not about to be
the alpha who let his omega get stolen out from
under him by some old man.”

“I’m not going back to him,” she said. He

doesn’t want me anymore.

“Damn right, you’re not,” Bart agreed. “You’re

coming home. We’re both going home. School was
a mistake. I’ve already called your father, and he’ll
be here in a few hours to pick us up.”

“You did what?”
“And until he gets here,” Bart added, “you and

I are going to stay right here in this room. I’ve
already sent your roommate away, so no one will be
along to bother us.”

Cait backed up, reaching for the door behind

her.

He stepped toward her. “You aren’t going

anywhere,” he said.

“Bart, please. I’m not right for you. You know

I’m not. You don’t even like me.”

“What does that have to do with anything?

You’re my omega. I don’t have to like you. I have
to mate with you. We have to grow our pack
together. You can’t tell me that’s not important to
you.” He softened his voice. “Cait, you’ll be such a
good mother. It’s in your nature. Don’t you want to
have babies?”

More than anything.
The thought surprised her. She had never had

any particular interest in babies or motherhood
before. In fact, it had always seemed like a chore,
something her father and her pack were trying to
push on her against her will.

But now she was pregnant, and everything felt

different.

It must be because her pregnancy had come

from Grant, who, despite everything, she still loved
desperately. She couldn’t hate this baby that was
half his. Half him.

Bart strode over to her and took her hands in

his. “We don’t have to treat each other this way,
Cait,” he said quietly. “We can be good to each
other. Wouldn’t that be better? You don’t have to
fight me all the time. I know you. I’ve known you
all your life. You’ll be happier if you just relax and
accept the inevitable.”

“You don’t want me to be happy,” Cait said.

“You’ve never wanted me to be happy.”

“Sure I do,” he protested. “A happy omega

means a happy alpha. Everyone knows that. What
good is it to me for you to be unhappy?”

He leaned into her, invading her space.
“I want you to want me,” he said.
She felt sick. His breath stank, and his hands

were sweaty on hers, but she didn’t dare pull away.
She knew he wouldn’t hesitate to hit her. No one
was coming to intervene, and her father wouldn’t
be there for hours.

“Take my clothes off, Cait,” he said. “Like you

did with your professor. This school has made you
slutty. Let me see what you’ve learned.”

She looked away and shook her head.
His face darkened. “You’d better do as you’re

told,” he said. “There’s no big strong boyfriend to
interrupt us this time. It’s just you and me.” He
pulled her hands forward and placed them on his
chest. “Go on,” he said. “We’ll start easy. Take my
shirt off.”

“No,” she whispered.
“No?” he asked. “You sure that’s your

answer?”

Let him hit me. There were worse things he

could do.

She nodded.
“Fine,” he bit out angrily. “I’ll do you then.” He

dropped her hands, grabbed her shirt, and tore it
from her body.

Cait screamed in shock and horror.
Bart chuckled. “Scream all you want,” he said.

“Nobody’s coming to help you.”

Cait fumbled behind her.
Her hands found the doorknob.
Go!
She thrust it open and set off at a dead sprint

down the hallway and to the stairwell. She took the
stairs three at a time, racing down as fast as she
could, praying that she wouldn’t trip.

She could hear Bart right behind her, his

footsteps pounding. “Fucking bitch!” he yelled.
“Get back here, Cait! Your father’s going to hear
about this!”

But that wouldn’t change anything. Whatever

her father might have in store to punish her for her
actions wouldn’t be any worse because she had
refused Bart this one last time. She reached the
ground floor and pushed through the door and back
out onto the campus lawn.

It had begun to rain, and Cait was wearing

nothing but her jeans and a bra. Still, she knew that
as long as she was outside, she was relatively safe.
He wouldn’t attack her. Not where anyone walking
by could see them.

Bart burst through the door, his lip curled away

from his teeth in a menacing snarl, and ran straight
at her, his eyes fixed on her. “You’re going to regret
this for the rest of your life!” he yelled. “You’re

going to regret giving that bastard what should have
been mine! I should have been the first to have
you! I should have been the only one to ever touch
you! You’ll pay for that, I swear on my life!”

Panicked, Cait turned and fled.
She didn’t see the approaching figure, racing

through the rain, until he was almost on top of her,
and when she did, it was as if a fist of horror had
been shoved through her chest.

Grant!
He ran at her, pausing only to push her aside.

His hands weren’t gentle as they had always been
in the past, and he sent her sprawling onto the
grass. She scrambled to her hands and knees and
looked up just in time to see him leap into the air,
directly at Bart, hands first.

No.
Claws first.
He shifted so fast she could hardly keep track

of what she was seeing. By the time he landed, he
was already his wolf self, a snarl ripping from his
body, the full weight of him bearing down on Bart’s
chest.

My God, he’s huge.
She had seen him in wolf form before, of

course, the day they’d tracked the wild wolf pack
through the forest, but this was different. Seeing
him like this while she was her human self, she was

acutely aware of just how big he was, just how
strong his muscles were.

Bart hadn’t even managed to shift in time. He

howled for help, beating at the wolf’s massive body
with his fists, trying to drive it off of him.

But Grant clearly wasn’t going anywhere. He

snapped his teeth threateningly, menacing Bart.

He’s not trying to kill him, Cait realized

suddenly. If Grant had been trying to kill Bart, he
would have done it already. He had every
advantage right now. But he hadn’t.

She remembered what Grant had said in the

tent, the way he had spoken of his anger. How
tempted he had been to do Bart harm at the social.

Cait got to her feet and hurried toward them,

unable to clarify even to herself what she was
thinking. She only knew that she had to get Grant
out of the situation before he did something he
would regret for the rest of his life.

Bart brought his knees up to his chest and

kicked out suddenly, driving Grant off his body. In
a flash, he had shifted himself and had turned to
face his adversary.

“Cait!” Georgette came running across the

grass. She grabbed Cait by the arm and pulled her
away, and Cait realized that a crowd of omegas had
stopped what they were doing to watch the fight.
Georgette shrugged off her jacket and wrapped it

around Cait’s shoulders. “What’s going on?” she
asked.

Cait pulled free and started back toward the

fight. “I have to help,” she said.

“No, you don’t!” Georgette grabbed her and

towed her away. “What the hell are you thinking?
Sarah, help me!”

Sarah took hold of Cait’s other arm. Together,

her two friends were much stronger than she was,
and no amount of struggling could free Cait from
their grasp.

“Why are they fighting?” Georgette asked.

“Who is that guy, anyway?”

“That’s the guy Cait danced with at the social,”

Sarah said. She turned to Cait. “Does he know?”

“Yes,” Cait whispered.
“Know what?” Georgette demanded.
But their conversation was interrupted by a

howl of pain. Bart had managed to sink his teeth
into Grant’s shoulder.

Cait lurched in her friends’ arms.
“What are you doing?” Georgette shrieked.

“You can’t go over there! They’ll kill you!”

They won’t. They don’t want me dead. Neither

of them wants to see me dead.

But they would definitely kill each other.
Grant shook Bart off. Blood flowed freely from

the wound at his shoulder, but he continued to
circle, not even allowing himself to limp.

Bart sprang at him again.
This time, Grant was ready. He ducked to one

side, and Cait watched as Bart sailed past him and
landed sprawled in the dirt.

He shouldn’t have done that. Bart scrambled

up, snarling, obviously humiliated, and ran at Grant
again.

Grant lunged at the same time and locked his

teeth around Bart’s throat.

There was a growl, loud and fearsome.
A whimper of surrender.
And then the two wolves separated and stepped

back from each other.

Grant waited, his body crouched low, clearly

prepared to launch himself at Bart if the situation
called for it.

Bart stood motionless, blood from the wound at

his throat matting his fur.

Then he turned and walked away. Toward the

highway, off campus.

Remembering what he had said about doubling

back to watch her with Grant, Cait yanked herself
free of her friends’ hold and ran toward the road to
watch him go.

Grant stepped in front of her and issued a low

warning growl, clearly signaling her to get back.

“I want to make sure he’s really gone,” she

said. “Last time you told him to leave, he didn’t
leave. He told me.”

The wolf dipped his head, turned, and trotted

toward the highway to watch Bart go. Cait hung
back.

After several minutes, he turned back to her

and nodded.

“You’re hurt,” she said.
He came to her side and pressed his nose into

her hand. Then he jerked his head to the right and
began to walk off in that direction.

Cait understood that he meant for her to follow.
“Wait a minute,” Georgette said, running over.

“Cait—what’s going on? Are you okay? Maybe
you should come back up to the dorm with us.”

Sarah took Georgette’s arm and pulled her

away gently. “She’s okay,” she said. “She knows
what she’s doing. Right, Cait?”

Cait had no idea what she was doing anymore.

The only thing she knew for sure was that she
wanted to be with Grant.

“I’m all right,” she told her friends and

followed him away.

Chapter Seventeen

RANT

Grant waited until they had reached his

cabin before shifting back. He opened the front
door and ushered Cait inside. “Go wait for me in
the kitchen,” he said.

“You’re bleeding,” she protested.
“Go,” he insisted. “I’ll join you in a minute.”
Reluctantly, she obeyed.
Grant went to his bedroom, grabbed a pair of

flannel pants, and pulled them on. He found the
first aid kit he kept in his adjoining bathroom and
grabbed that too. Cait was going to have to clean
him up. He hoped she had a strong stomach.

She was waiting in the kitchen as he’d asked,

sitting at the table. When she saw him, she jumped
to her feet and helped him to a chair. She took the
first aid kit from his hands without being asked and
undid the latch. “Let me look at this,” she said.

Her fingers carefully probed the bite wound on

his shoulder. “It’s not too deep,” she said. “I think
if we wrap it up and disinfect it, you should be all
right.”

She pulled out a bottle of disinfectant, soaked a

rag, and carefully wiped away the blood and dirt.
Grant gritted his teeth against the pain. When she
was finished, she found a roll of bandages and

wrapped them around his shoulder. “That ought to
do it,” she said. “But those will need to be changed
in a few hours.”

He couldn’t help smiling up at her.
“What the hell are you smiling about?” she

demanded. “Has it escaped your notice that
everything’s a disaster right now?”

“I’m proud of you,” he explained. “You’re

coming into your own as an omega, Cait. Caring for
others is a primary omega trait, and you’re doing it
naturally. I didn’t even have to ask you for help.”

“Don’t get all emotional about it,” she said. “I

don’t think I would have done it if it hadn’t been
you.”

“Because I’m your alpha,” he explained. “I’m

your pack. It’s reasonable that I would bring things
out in you that others can’t. You should be at your
most omega self with me. That’s why you submit to
me and you fight against people like him.”

She laughed dryly. “I wouldn’t say I’m the one

who fights him,” she pointed out. “What the hell
was that out there? You’re out of your mind if you
think nobody’s going to have questions about that.”

“He was attacking you,” Grant said. “I couldn’t

allow that. You know I couldn’t. I swore to you that
I would never allow anyone to hurt you again.”

Cait sighed. “Grant...he knew about us. And he

told my father. He says my father’s on his way to
pick me up right now. They’re going to take me

home. And I can only imagine they’ll be
complaining to the school about you. I thought you
should hear it from me. If you want to leave here,
you’d better go now.”

“Cait, I’m not letting them take you,” Grant

said.

“What are you talking about?” she asked. “You

said it wasn’t going to work out between us.”

“I didn’t say that at all!” he burst out. “I said

things would need to change for us to make it work,
that’s all. And you lost your damn mind at me!”

Cait looked ready to argue, but then she

hesitated.

“Is that really what you said?” she asked.
“Yes,” Grant insisted. “I never dreamed of

ending things with you. You've got to know that. It
would kill me to do that. I’ve imprinted on you,
Cait, and that’s not something you can just quit.”

Cait sank into a chair and buried her head in her

hands.

“My emotions have been so out of control,” she

murmured. “It’s hormones. It’s got to be. I feel like
I’m losing my grip.”

“What are you talking about?” Grant asked her.
She looked up at him, her eyes brimming with

tears. “Grant, I’m pregnant.”

He felt as if he’d been hit by a boulder.

“Pregnant?” he whispered.

She nodded. “I meant to tell you today after

class, but...well, I thought you were breaking up
with me.”

“God.” He got to his feet, went to her, and

pulled her out of her chair and into his arms. “Of
course I wasn’t breaking up with you, Cait. Oh,
honey, no wonder you panicked. You thought I was
abandoning you while you were pregnant? I’d
never do that.”

“I don’t want you to stay with me just because

of that,” she said.

“No,” he assured her. “I have a million reasons

for staying with you. You’re my omega, Cait.” He
rested a hand on her belly, where their litter was
growing. “This is our pack. Yours and mine.”

She leaned against his chest. “Do you

promise?” she asked.

“Of course,” he said. “Forever.”
She shuddered, exhaling. “Forever.”
He sat her back down. “Did Bart hurt you?” he

asked.

“No,” she said. “Not for a lack of trying,

though.”

“Tell me what happened.”
“He was waiting in my room when I got back

from class,” she said. “He had seen us together
outside the tent, and he came to make sure I would
never see you again. He tore my shirt off—he
would have done worse. He threatened to.”

Grant heard himself growl as rage surged within

him.

“Don’t shift,” Cait said. “Not indoors.”
He nodded. It was all he could manage. His

teeth were clenched in anger. The thought of Bart
holding Cait in her room—the image of his hands
on her body—

At that moment, Grant wished he had torn

Bart’s throat out when he’d had the chance.

Cait was talking. He forced himself to focus on

her voice. Her hands were on his wrists, thumbs
tracing slow circles. “Cool off,” she said quietly.
“Keep it together. You can’t shift right now. We just
cleaned up your shoulder. You need to stay human
at least until the bleeding stops, so the bandage
doesn’t rip off. Okay?”

“Okay,” he managed.
She slid her hand down to his and gripped

tightly. “What are we going to do?” she asked. “My
father is still coming. He’s still planning on taking
me away.”

“I’m not going to let that happen,” Grant said.
“But you can’t stop him,” Cait said. “Not

without fighting again. And I don’t want you to
fight. It was awful.”

He got to his feet. “Come with me,” he said and

led her to his bedroom.

She lingered in the doorway, obviously

intimidated, but he took her hand and pulled her

over the threshold. “We’re leaving campus,” he
said. “We’re going to pack some bags and go right
now.”

“Leaving!” She looked stunned. “Where are we

going to go?”

“We’ll figure that out later.”
“Are you sure about this?” she asked. “This

doesn’t seem like a very well thought out plan.”

He took her by the shoulders and faced her.

“Am I your alpha, Cait?” he asked. “You have to
decide right now. You have to choose to either
submit to me completely or resist me. You’ve
questioned me up until now, and it’s gotten us into
trouble again and again. If this is going to work—
and I believe it will work—you need to put your
faith in me. Can you do it?”

She hesitated for only a moment.
“Yes,” she said, meeting his eyes. “I can do it.

I’m yours.”

“You’ll follow every order I give without

question?”

“I will.”
“And you’ll trust me to take care of us—and

our babies—even when you think you might know
better?”

“I promise,” she said.
He never would have believed that he would be

able to extract such a promise from Cait Sterling. It
was almost enough to make him want to abandon

the idea of packing, throw her down on the bed,
and take her, right then and there.

But there was no time for such indulgences. He

would have his way with her later. He would take
his time, enjoying every inch of her, luxuriating in
the fact that she was his. And he would make it the
best time she had ever experienced.

For now, he went to his closet and pulled out a

hiking backpack. “Fill that with all the clothes you
can find—anything that will fit you,” he said. “I’m
afraid you’ll have to live in my things until we have
the chance to get you some new clothes of your
own.”

“That’s okay.” She went to his dresser, opened

one of the drawers, and began sifting through his
things. Most of his clothes would be far too big for
her, but he saw her plucking out pairs of athletic
pants and pajamas that tied with a drawstring. She
also added a massive pile of t-shirts to the bag.

Grant filled a second bag with things for

himself. Then he folded up his tent into the smallest
square possible and stuffed it in on top. He fastened
the bag closed and turned to see that Cait was
doing the same.

“Do we go now?” she asked.
“We have to try to get off campus without

being seen,” he said. “There are those who might
try to stop us. Especially if your father or Bart has
told anyone what happened.”

“I’m sure they have,” Cait said.
Grant nodded. “I think it might be easier if we

left separately and tried to meet up somewhere—
but I don’t think I can stand to let you out of my
sight,” he said. “If anyone caught up to you, you
wouldn’t be able to fight them off.”

“But then how are we going to get out of here?”

she asked him. “We’ll be much too conspicuous
carrying these giant backpacks.”

He shook his head. “Follow my lead,” he said.

“I think we can make it if we’re careful. And if I
tell you to run, you run. Understood?”

Cait nodded.
Grant was impressed. So recently, he would

have worried that she would question his authority,
or that she would try to argue. But she was
cooperating fully. He had to admit, he was
impressed.

“Out the back door,” he said. “The

administration building is about thirty yards from
here. We’ll go straight for it. If we can get behind it
without being seen, we should have a straight shot
to the woods.”

“Understood,” Cait said. He thought she looked

a little pale, but she hitched her pack onto her
shoulders and moved toward the door.

“You go in front,” he said. “I want to be able to

see you. Straight to the building and around the
corner.”

He opened the door and peeked out.
“Okay,” he said. “All clear. Walk, don’t run.

Running will draw attention.”

Cait strode out the door and walked briskly

toward the administration building. Grant took one
last look back at his home, knowing he was leaving
it behind forever, and then closed the door without
bothering to lock it and went after her.

The distance to the administration building felt

infinite as they crossed it. Although there was no
one in sight, Grant couldn’t shake the feeling that
they were being watched. It felt as if there were a
sniper somewhere far above them who was about
to pick them off. He itched to break into a run or to
throw his body protectively over Cait’s. But he
couldn’t

What we’re doing now is the smartest strategy,

he reminded himself. It might feel completely
wrong, but it’s actually the best thing we could be
doing.

They reached the administration building,

finally, and rounded the corner. They stood behind
it, backs pressed to the concrete, neither of them
daring to speak.

The woods were perhaps fifty yards farther on.

But they would be safer now. The building stood
between them and the majority of the campus.
They would be difficult to find, difficult to see.

Grant was just starting to allow himself to relax

when the rear door of the building swung open and
someone stepped out.

He froze.
Jim.
Jim stared. He opened his mouth as if to say

something, but Grant held up a hand to stop him.
He glanced at the door, waiting for it to swing shut.
There could be someone right inside, and if Jim
tells them he’s seen us, that’ll be it.

The door closed, painfully slowly, on his

pneumatic hinges.

“Jim,” Grant said. “Listen. Let me explain.”
“That’s the omega who caused all the trouble,”

Jim said. “I recognize her from the picture in her
file. Her father called earlier.” He fixed his gaze on
Grant. “Is it true? What he’s accusing you of?”

“I imprinted on her, Jim,” Grant said.
“On a student.”
“I couldn’t help it,” Grant said. “It’s an

involuntary impulse. You know that. I don’t get to
choose who it happens with.”

“Her father’s about to tear your head off,” Jim

said. “It’s definitely going to be a fight.”

Grant shook his head. “I’m not going to stay

and fight him,” he said. “Cait and I are going now.
Unless you’re going to try to stop us?”

Jim sighed. “Don’t do this to me, Grant.”

“No one has to know you saw us,” Grant said.

“Just go back inside. No one will ever know you
could have stopped us.”

“I really should stop you.”
“You work here because you care about

omegas as much as I do,” Grant said. “If they take
her, they’ll be taking her back to a life of cruelty
and domination. She’ll never be happy. The alpha
her father promised her to has treated her badly all
her life.”

For a moment, he was afraid that Jim was still

going to tell him no, that he was going to open the
door and call for assistance. It would take a
moment to get more of the administrative staff out
there, and then Grant would be badly outnumbered.

Instead, Jim turned to Cait.
“Is he telling the truth?” he asked her. “They

treated you badly at home?”

“Yes,” she said. “I didn’t realize there was

another way until I came to Omega University.
Until I met Grant.”

“And you want to go with him now?”
“I do,” she said, moving closer to him.”
Jim nodded. Then he extended a hand to Grant.
Grant shook it. “Thank you,” he said. “You’ve

been a great friend.”

“Take care of yourself out there, will you?” Jim

said. “I’ll hold them up here as long as I can, but
they’re definitely going to come looking for the two

of you. You’re going to have to keep moving. Don’t
make camp anywhere near here.”

“Understood,” Grant said. “And thank you,

Jim. Sincerely.”

“Go,” Jim said. He opened the door and went

back inside.

Grant turned to Cait and took her hand. “All

right,” he said. “Are you ready for this?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be.”
“Then let’s go.”

Chapter Eighteen

AIT

Months later, when she looked back on

the whole experience, Cait found it hard to believe
that she had adapted as well to life in the wild as
she had.

Grant, on the other hand, didn’t seem surprised

by it at all. “You’re a shifter,” he told her when she
commented on it. “You’re made for this sort of
thing. If we wanted to, we could probably get rid of
the tent altogether and be just fine.”

“Don’t even think about it,” Cait said. Living

wild was one thing, but she was still human enough
to want a warm place to sleep every night.

Their first month away from the school had

been frightening. They had been constantly on the
move. After the first day, they had judged it best to
shift before traveling to move quickly. That meant
carrying their backpacks in their mouths, a task that
made Cait’s jaw ache.

They had spent the first week fearful of sleep,

staying awake in turns to watch for any sign of
pursuit. Finally, after seven days of nothing, Grant
had said that he thought it was safe for the two of
them to sleep at the same time.

They hadn’t established a permanent campsite

until they had been on the run for five weeks, at

which point, Grant had said that they were far
enough north not to be pursued. “If they’re still
after us, odds are good they’ve lost our trail by
now,” he’d said. “We’ll stay alert. But I don’t think
we need to run anymore.”

Now it was five months since they had left the

school, and Cait no longer looked over her
shoulder, no longer jumped at the sound of a twig
snapping. She hadn’t seen another person, apart
from Grant, in all that time.

Finally, she felt safe.
She dangled her feet in the river that ran by

their campsite, allowing the current to drag them
gently to one side. Beside her, her fishing rod—
crudely fashioned from some string and a stick—
stood propped between three rocks. Grant was
skilled at fishing and could do it in wolf form,
dipping his giant head in the water and emerging
with a fish between his teeth. But today, Grant was
hunting for rabbits, and Cait was in charge of fish.
And she had never had any luck hunting as a wolf.

Grant insisted it was a skill she would learn,

given time. She supposed that was probably true.
But lately, they hadn’t spent much time on training.

She leaned back against the tree that stood

behind her and rested her hands on her belly.
Though she was only five months pregnant, she had
grown substantially. She felt full and ripe, beautiful
in a way she never could have anticipated.

It turns out Grant was right, she mused. I

would have missed out if I had never accepted my
role as an omega. I would never have experienced
this.

And if pregnancy was this wonderful, what

would motherhood be like? She could only imagine.

The fishing line jerked beside her, and she

grabbed the stick and tugged back the way Grant
had taught her. She could feel the fish wriggling on
the end of the line, so she hauled it up and out of
the water.

It was a fat trout, eyeing her balefully, and she

felt a surge of pride. Grant wouldn’t really be
expecting her to bring anything back from the river,
she knew. He was always pleased with her for
trying to fish, but he didn’t consider her to be
skilled or experienced enough to actually rely on
for food.

She hauled herself to her feet—she had to use a

tree branch to pull herself upright, thanks to her
ungainly pregnant body—and made her way back
to camp, determined to get the fish cleaned and on
the fire before Grant returned.

Sure enough, when he came into camp with a

rabbit slung over his shoulder, he cried out in
pleased surprise to see her frying up her fish. “A
good dinner tonight, then,” he said, settling down to
skin his rabbit. “And you’ve got the fire nice and

hot, so I’ll be able to cook this up quickly when
you’re finished.”

“I’m getting good at this life,” she said.
“You’re doing very well,” he agreed. “If I’d

known you would take to it this easily, I would
have suggested leaving Omega University sooner.”

“I can’t help wondering what Bart thinks about

it all,” Cait admitted. “He must still be so angry that
we disappeared right under his nose like that.”

“I imagine your father found another mate for

him,” Grant said, carefully dicing up the rabbit
meat and skewering it onto two spits. “Did your
pack have another omega?”

“No,” she said. “I was the only one.”
“Then he’s probably still at Shifter University,”

Grant said. “Probably hoping to meet and mate
with one of the Omega U girls.”

“I hope he treats her well, whoever she is,” Cait

said. She felt a pang of guilt at the thought that she
might have condemned one of her classmates to a
life of brutality with her disappearance.

“It will be easier for a full-grown omega to

resist submitting to him than it was for you, as a
child,” Grant said. “And there will be no father
figure telling any of the girls that they have to
acquiesce to his demands. My guess is that Bart
will learn the lesson all alphas are taught at Shifter
University—that they have to treat omegas well, or

they risk losing them. If anything will drive that
home for him, it’ll be the fact that he lost you.”

Cait removed the pan with the fish in it from

the fire, allowing Grant to hold his two skewers
over the flame. He rotated them slowly, cooking the
meat evenly as Cait divided the fish into two equal
portions.

“You should take more than me,” Grant said,

watching her.

“No, I shouldn’t.” She pushed his share toward

him.

He pushed some of it back. “You’re eating for

God only knows how many,” he said. “I want to
make sure they get the nutrients they need.”

She couldn’t argue with that. She accepted a

little of the fish back. “But I don’t want you going
to bed hungry,” she said.

“Not a chance,” he assured her. “Rabbit and

fish? That’s more than enough to feed everyone.
Don’t worry about it.”

They ate their food in relative silence as the sun

began to sink low on the horizon. Cait had come to
relish this part of the day, when the air was cool
and the animals around them called out to each
other. She had never realized just how human her
life was when she’d lived in a dormitory. Now,
feeling the give of the earth under her feet, smelling
the trees around her, she felt she was truly where
she belonged.

The night was clear, so Cait and Grant dragged

their sleeping rolls out of the tent and into their
little clearing to sleep under the stars. “It’s so
beautiful here,” Cait said, snuggling up beside him
under the blanket they shared, taking warmth from
the heat of his body. “It’s strange to think that this
was always here. Even when I was living with my
father. Even when Bart was tormenting me. These
woods were always here. Waiting for me.”

“Waiting for us.” Grant ran his hand over the

swell of her stomach. “You’re getting big.”

“You don’t have to tell me,” she said, laughing.

“I feel like I’m carrying a fifty-pound beach ball
around with me.”

“Mmm.” He slipped his hands beneath her shirt,

his fingers tracing up the skin of her torso until his
hands came to rest on her breasts. “I like you this
way.”

“Ballooned up?”
“You’re my omega,” he said. “You’re perfect

like this.”

Cait slept in nothing but one of Grant’s

oversized t-shirts these days, a habit she had taken
up happily on his orders. So when he rolled her to
her side and positioned himself behind her, he was
able to enter her easily, with no awkward
repositioning of clothes. It was as natural as
everything else in their lives was now that they
lived in the wild.

Cait sighed with relief and pleasure as he began

to fuck her. Lately, she was hungry for this all the
time, her body craving him the way it craved food.
She managed to mute the craving in her mind most
of the time, but as soon as they lay down together
at night, it was all she could do to keep from
straddling his hips and grinding down on him until
she got the pleasure she longed for.

He dragged two fingers down over her belly,

stopping between her legs, letting her rock into his
hand for friction but not moving, not yet. She didn’t
protest, didn’t beg for more, even though she
wanted it more than anything. This was Grant, her
alpha. He would take care of her. All she had to do
was show a little patience.

Grant loved patience.
Grant loved knowing that he was in control,

that Cait trusted him, that she would wait for him
and let him decide when she got what she needed.

And, Cait had come to realize, she loved it too.
She trusted him so fully. She knew he wouldn’t

leave her wanting. He would ensure that she was
cared for.

He fucked her slowly, just the way she liked it,

humming pleasurably in her ear as he did so.
“You’re going to come so hard,” he said softly.
“You’re going to be out of your mind with it, Cait.
Because you’re so good, and so patient, and it’s
what you deserve.”

She shivered with pleasure, her hips hitching

involuntarily.

Grant applied just a little pressure with his

hand.

It was enough. The hormones surging through

her body did the rest, and she came with a cry,
body arching, limbs trembling, eyes squeezed shut
tight. Nothing in the world felt as good as Grant
did. He knew her body better than she knew it
herself, and he knew exactly what to do to make it
sing with pleasure.

When she had recovered her breathing, he

turned her, lifting her onto her hands and knees,
and began to fuck her hard. This, she knew, was the
way he liked it best, but he would never take care
of his own needs until he knew she had come at
least once.

My alpha.
She wanted to make it good for him, as good as

he had made it for her. She ached to please him.
She dug her hands into the ground and pushed back
against his thrusts, increasing the depth and the
tempo, fucking herself hard on him until he came
with a shout and collapsed against her back, one
arm on the ground bracing him and keeping the
bulk of his weight off of her.

With a low groan, he rolled away onto his back.

Cait lay down and snuggled into his shoulder.

“That was something,” she said quietly as his

arm came to settle around her.

“That was amazing,” he agreed. “But then, it

always is.”

She grinned up at him. “Are you saying it’s

become routine?”

He kissed her forehead. “There’s nothing

routine about this,” he said. “The fact that I’m
lucky enough to have you will never stop surprising
me, Cait, I promise you.”

“I don’t know how we’re going to have time for

this kind of thing once the babies come,” she said.
“How are we ever going to be alone?”

“We’ll have to find a way,” he said. “I’m

excited about having our babies, don’t get me
wrong. But I’ll be damned if I’m going to quit
fucking you. Nothing could get in the way of that.”

She grinned. “We’ll have to hide out in the

woods and do it when no one’s watching, maybe.”

“Good thing we have experience at sneaking

around,” Grant said.

“That’s true,” Cait said and laughed. “I guess I

did get something out of my education.”

“I’d say you got a few things out of it,” Grant

said. “You did bag an alpha professor, after all.
How many girls can say that?”

“Do you ever miss it?” she asked him.
“Miss what? The school?”

“Teaching. I know it meant a lot to you, helping

to guide omegas the way you did. Do you ever wish
you could have had me and still kept your job?”

He hesitated before speaking.
“You know I was married once before,” he said

finally. “And you know my wife died in childbirth. I
lost her, and I lost all our children. My entire pack.
That was before I ever started teaching.”

She nodded, reaching out to stroke his face. He

so rarely spoke of his old life. She knew it pained
him.

“All I ever wanted was to be the alpha of a

pack,” he said. “I wanted an omega to care for. I
wanted children to raise. I became a teacher
because I believed that life was gone. At Omega
University, my students were my pack. I could
teach them all I knew about shifter life. But it was
never anything more than a poor substitute for what
I really wanted.”

“A family,” she said.
“That’s right.” His hand went to her stomach.

“So the answer to your question is no. I don’t regret
having lost my job. I’m happy to be here with you,
and I can’t think of anything else that would make
me happier. What we have here—this is perfect.
This is exactly what I want.”

She reached up to kiss him, and for several long

and luxurious minutes, she lost herself completely
in the taste of his lips, the feeling of his big hands

on her back, the sound he made when she arched
her back and pressed the fullness of her body
against his.

“Cait,” he said hoarsely. “You drive me wild.

Do you know what you do to me?”

She pressed her forehead against his. They were

both breathing too hard now, and she could feel the
heat rising up within her again. “I think I have some
idea,” she said.

“I could fuck you all night long,” he said. “All

night long, and I’d still never get enough. I’m never
going to get enough of you.”

“Do it,” she said. “I don’t have anywhere to

be.”

He grinned and kissed her forehead, and then

he was rolling her away from him, scooting up
behind her and sliding into her once more, and Cait
thought she might die from the pleasure of it.

Chapter Nineteen

RANT

Grant ducked into the tent, clutching the

water bottles he had filled at the river. He had run
the whole way. Leaving her was excruciating.

She looked up as he entered. She was lying on

her side, eyes closed, breathing slow, at least for the
moment, although he knew she would go back to
panting when her next contraction hit. “You’re
back already?”

“Didn’t want to leave you alone.” He scooted

up to sit behind her and pulled her head into his lap.

“Nothing’s going to happen,” she told him. “I’m

doing fine. Everything’s going to be fine.”

Grant knew she was probably right, and yet he

couldn’t help but worry. His anxiety had only
grown throughout the last month of Cait’s
pregnancy, as she’d gradually become too big to
move around on her own. Two weeks ago, he had
ordered her not to even try anymore, to stay in the
tent at all times. He would bring her whatever she
needed. There was no reason to risk her health or
that of the babies.

She hadn’t liked the order. Grant knew her well

enough to know that she hated being told to stay
still.

But she hadn’t questioned, and she hadn’t

protested. She had obeyed.

He was proud of her. Proud of the omega she

had become. She had learned more living in the
wild with him like this than she ever could have
learned in a classroom.

I hope the rest of the students find mates, he

thought. I hope every omega that comes through
Omega University gets an ending like this.

Cait had gone into labor before the sun was up.

Grant had been looking forward to this moment and
dreading it in equal measure. He wanted to meet his
children, of course, to see how many there were,
how big his pack would be. But childbirth had
stolen Marisa from him. If the same thing were to
happen with Cait, he thought he would lose his
mind.

There’s no reason to be afraid. She’s young and

strong and healthy. She was made for this.

But Marisa had been young and strong too.

Sometimes things went wrong.

Cait’s body tensed with another contraction,

and Grant felt his own muscles tense up as if
connected to her. As if he could feel everything
that she felt. He forced himself to breathe, knowing
that the best thing he could do to keep her calm
was to stay calm himself.

He rubbed her back gently. “You’re doing

great,” he said. “This will be over before you know

it.”

She laughed through gritted teeth. “Over before

I know it?”

“Well,” he amended. “It’ll be over in a few

hours. And then we’ll have our babies.”

She nodded, relaxing as the pain passed. “I’m

all right,” she told him. “I can do this. You don’t
need to worry.”

“I’m not worried,” he lied.
She took his hand and intertwined their fingers.

She knew he was lying, of course. She was no fool.
But apparently, she had decided to let him get away
with it because the only thing she said was, “Okay.”

He twisted the cap off a bottle of water. “You

should drink something,” he said.

“I thought I wasn’t allowed to drink during

labor.”

“You can drink water,” he said. “I looked it up.

You know I wouldn’t give you anything that wasn’t
safe for you and the babies.”

She nodded. She knew.
He held the water to her lips, and she took a

few careful sips and nodded when she was finished.
He screwed the cap back on and set it to one side.

“Hang on,” she said. “What do you mean you

looked it up? Where did you look it up? We live in
the woods.”

“I went to the library,” he explained.
“When did you go to the—ow!”

He pressed his lips to her shoulder and waited

as she rode through another wave of pain. “You’re
okay,” he said softly, reassuring himself as much as
Cait. “You’re all right. Hang on. Almost done.”

A moment later, she was panting, limp in his

arms. He grabbed a t-shirt from his bag and used it
to wipe the sweat from her face. “You okay?” he
asked.

“Don’t change the subject,” Cait said. “When

did you go to the library?”

“I’ve been a few times,” he admitted.
“You said we couldn’t go into town,” Cait

protested.

“No,” Grant said. “I said you couldn’t go into

town. If there’s still a search on for anyone, it’ll be
you. Personally, I think your old pack has probably
given up on the idea of getting you back at this
point. But I’m not going to take chances.”

“They could be looking for you too,” Cait

protested. “I’m sure Bart would like revenge
against you.”

“Bart isn’t going to come looking for me in

Moose Jaw,” Grant said.

Cait shook her head. “You can’t have it both

ways,” she said. “Either it’s too dangerous for me
to go into town, or it’s so safe that Bart will never
find you.”

“Are you questioning me?” He wasn’t angry,

just surprised. It had been so long since Cait had

doubted him in anything.

“I’ll obey your orders,” she said. “You know I

will. I’m yours, Grant. You told me not to go to
town, and I’m not going to go. You don’t have to
worry about any disobedience.”

“But you are questioning me.”
“I just think there’s a flaw in your logic,” she

said. “If it’s safe enough for you to go, then it’s safe
enough for me.”

He stroked the smooth planes of her skin. “Do

you want to go into town?” he asked her.

“I wouldn’t mind it,” she said. “I like the life

we have out here. You know I do. But if I could get
clothes that actually fit, if I could pick up a book to
read while I’m down by the river fishing...”

“Human things.” It was an observation, not a

criticism.

Cait nodded. “I’m wolf, but I’m human too,”

she said. “I haven’t forgotten that side of myself,
and I don’t think I ever will. It’s part of who I am.”

“I can understand that,” Grant said, and he

could. After all, hadn’t his instinct been to go to the
library to learn as much as he could about
pregnancy, labor, and delivery. That was a human
impulse if ever there was one. Wild wolves didn’t
try to research their problems. They trusted their
intuition to get them through things.

“Would you ever consider changing your

mind?” Cait asked. “Letting me go?”

“Not by yourself,” Grant said. “At least, not for

a while.”

“But if you came with me—”
“That’s something we could discuss,” he

agreed. “Although it might have to wait until the
babies are a little older. In the meantime, though, I
can always pick things up for you and bring them
back.”

She smiled. “That’s a start

SHE DELIVERED ABOUT four hours later. Grant
was surprised and gratified to find that once the
delivery began, he simply didn’t have time to be
afraid. There was too much work to do. His nerves
quieted, and his alpha instincts kicked into gear.

The babies came easily, with none of the trauma

and terror that had accompanied Marisa’s delivery.
A boy first, then a girl, then two more boys, and
finally one more girl. Five in all. Five children.

My pack.
He cleaned them carefully and laid them on a

blanket, then swaddled them one by one in his t-
shirts. Cait looked over, watching as he did so.
“Are they all right?” she said, her voice faint with
exhaustion.

He scooped up the firstborn, the boy, and

handed him to his mother. “They’re perfect,” he

said.

She struggled to sit up.
“Don’t,” he said. He lifted her upright a little

and arranged her pillows behind her, propping her
up. “There. Is that better.”

“Perfect,” she agreed, beaming up at him. She

was glowing, radiant. She looked down at her son,
his little fists waving in the air. “He’s not even
crying,” she marveled.

“None of them are,” he said. “That’s the wolf

in them. But he’s probably hungry.”

Her eyes widened. “They all need to eat,” she

realized. “I can’t feed them all at once.”

“It’s all right,” he assured her. “We’ll go one at

a time. They’ll all be fed. Nothing to worry about.”

He helped her to arrange the baby at her breast,

then picked up the next in line, the oldest girl, and
prepared her for her turn. When her brother had
had enough, Grant took him back from Cait and
handed the girl to her.

“It’s a good thing they don’t all look alike,”

Cait said. “We’re going to be able to tell them
apart, at least.”

Grant nodded. Already he had begun to identify

the distinguishing features of his children. The
oldest boy had a full head of thick dark hair, for
example, where the younger two had only wispy
brown strands. The last-born girl was smaller than

any of her siblings and would be easily
distinguished.

“They need names,” he said, passing another

baby into Cait’s arms.

She laughed lightly. “Can you believe I’ve been

pregnant for nine months and we never even talked
about names?”

“Well, we did have a few other things on our

minds,” Grant pointed out.

“That’s true,” Cait said.
“Besides,” Grant added, “we didn’t know until

today how many there would be. It’s hard to plan
for that.”

“I want to call the oldest one Grant Jr.,” Cait

said.

“You do?” He was touched. He had never

expected to have a son named for him. He reached
out and touched the boy’s waving fist, and Grant Jr.
grabbed his finger and held on.

“Do you like it?” Cait asked.
“I love it,” he said. He handed her the fourth

baby and took the third one back. “Maybe we
should call this one James,” he suggested. “After
my friend who allowed us to escape from the
university.”

“I like James,” Cait agreed.
“What about the others?” he asked. “Do you

have any ideas?”

“William for the other boy,” she said instantly.

“You’ve been thinking about that.”
“No,” she admitted. “It just came to me, and it

feels right.”

“Okay. Grant Jr., James, and William. What

about the girls?” He picked up the littlest baby, the
last born, and shook her little fist. “Do you have
any ideas for them?”

“Chloe?”
“I like that,” he said. “And what about Mia, for

the little one?” He held her up so that Cait could
look at her.”

“That’s pretty,” Cait said, smiling. “Mia.”
He handed Mia to her, taking William back.

“That was easy,” he said.

“Did you expect an argument?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “I didn’t anticipate that

we would like every suggestion each other made so
quickly.”

“It’s easy for us,” Cait said. “We want the same

things. We’re lucky that way.”

She was right. He held William against his

chest. The baby snuggled into him and let out a soft
sigh, and Grant couldn’t keep the smile from his
face.

When they had all been fed, Cait’s eyelids

began to droop. “You should sleep,” Grant told her.
“You’ve been awake for an awfully long time.”

“But I want to help with the babies,” she

protested.

“You can’t even keep your eyes open, Cait,” he

said, laughing gently. “Go to sleep. They’ll still be
here when you wake up.”

“What about you?”
“I’m not tired right now.” He rested a hand on

her forehead. “Go to sleep, honey. It’s an order.”

She smiled lightly and murmured something that

might have been thanks. She knew, and Grant
knew, that an order given in a situation like this was
a gift. It was permission for her to take care of
herself, to tend to her own needs, without feeling
that she was abdicating her responsibility to her
children.

He sat still until it was clear that she had

dropped off. Then he arranged the babies on his
sleeping roll. Careful not to jostle or disturb them,
he dragged the roll slowly through the tent flap and
out into the open air.

The babies stirred, listening to the sounds of

forest birds, feeling the wind on their faces for the
first time. He could tell they were interested. The
wolf identities within them that had yet to rise to
the surface were stirred, stimulated by the
experience of nature all around them.

“This is where we live,” he told them. “This is

your home. These are our woods. When you get a
little older, I’ll teach you how to fend for
yourselves here. I’ll teach you how to hunt and fish
and build fires, the same way I taught your mother.

The same way I taught dozens of students at
Omega University before I left.”

They blinked up at him. His words meant

nothing to them, of course, but perhaps they
recognized his voice. He had learned in his reading
that that was possible, that babies could hear voices
inside the womb and that they recognized and were
comforted by the familiar sounds of their parents
after they were born.

He touched each child on the head and spoke

his or her name.

“Grant,” he said. “My firstborn. You’ll be an

alpha, like me, no doubt. It’ll be your job to lead
your brothers and sisters, and I’ll teach you how to
do it with compassion.

“Chloe. You’ll set the example for the rest of

the pack by showing them how to follow their
alpha. Grant will depend on you for loyalty and
strength. You’ll be his second in command, his
primary beta.

“James. You’re named for a kind and generous

man, a man who always put the wellbeing of others
before his own interests. None of us would be here
if it weren’t for him. I’m counting on you to carry
on that legacy and to be an example of kindness for
everyone you meet.

“William, as the youngest boy, you might be

tempted to go your own way. It’ll be the most
difficult for you to stay loyal to the pack. You have

a challenge ahead, but you’re my son, so I know
you can do it.

“And Mia.” He lifted her into his arms. “I’d bet

my life you’ll be an omega, just like your mother.
Never turn away from who you are and what
you’re meant to be. You can have a beautiful life if
you embrace it. Look to your mother for an
example. She’ll show you how wonderful the
omega life can be.” He kissed her forehead gently.
“And know that your brothers and I will never
allow an alpha who’s unworthy of you to get
anywhere near you.”

He set her back down and looked down at his

pack as the sun began to set, marveling at his good
fortune. What a remarkable life I’ve found.

Chapter Twenty

AIT

The months turned into years, and Cait’s

family grew and flourished.

By the time they were two years old, Grant Jr.

had firmly established himself as the leader of the
pack. The others rallied around him, following his
orders when they played. Cait watched carefully
for signs of the cruelty she had experienced at
Bart’s hands, but she saw no hint of it. He was his
father’s son, through and through.

Mia, meanwhile, had proven herself to be the

most emotional of the bunch, quick to tears when
any of her siblings got upset, more in need of hugs
from her parents than any of them.

“Those are early signs,” Grant said. “She’s an

omega for sure.” He rested his hands on Cait’s
shoulders. “We’ll take care of her.”

Cait hoped they would be able to do that.

GRANT WAS THE FIRST one to shift, to nobody’s
surprise. It happened when he was three years old.
He was running around the clearing, burning off
some of his excess energy, and suddenly, there was
a little wolf pup.

The shift only lasted a minute. He snapped back

to his human form and tumbled to the ground,
clearly taken aback. “Mama!”

Cait ran to his side and scooped him up,

determined to make sure that this experience would
be a positive one for him. “Look what you did!”
she exclaimed, kissing his forehead. “Good job,
baby!”

“I want to do it,” Chloe said, staring up at her

brother.

“You will,” Cait promised. “You’ll all be able to

do it soon. Just like Daddy and me.”

But it was James who shifted next. Cait’s

middle son was quiet and thoughtful, so it was no
real surprise to her when the shift happened in his
sleep. She went to check on her children before
going to bed one night and saw him lying on his
side, legs twitching, clearly dreaming of running.

“Grant,” she whispered.
He came and stood beside her, wrapping his

arms around her. “Look at that,” he said, smiling.

One by one, each child made the shift. Mia was

last, and she seemed to do it almost deliberately.
She sat by the fire one evening, staring at the
flames, and then she simply stood up and shifted.

By then, Little Grant had mastered shifting at

will, and he got up and ran around with her for a
while. Cait watched them play, knowing that her
alpha son would keep his siblings safe, knowing

that they would never run off or leave the clearing
as long as he was by their side.

This is what an alpha should be. This is the

kind of guidance I should have had when I was
growing up.

She was overwhelmingly grateful that her

children had Grant for a father, that he could teach
them how to look out for each other. They were the
luckiest pack in the entire world.

WHEN THE CHILDREN WERE five, Cait and
Grant took them on their first fishing trip.

Mia had the nimblest fingers, so Cait put her in

charge of tying the lines. Grant and others sat by
the river, poles propped against rocks, waiting for
the fish to bite.

“How long are they going to take?” Chloe

asked. She had emerged as the most impatient
member of the pack. Now she threw herself back as
if she was under extreme torture and stared up at
the clouds. “I’m so bored.”

“You have to wait,” Grant murmured. “And try

to sit quietly, if you can. Making noise will startle
the fish, and then they’ll swim away without
biting.”

“When can we learn how to catch them in our

mouths?” Grant Jr. asked eagerly.

“When you’re bigger,” Cait said. “That

current’s still too strong. It would carry you away,
and you don’t know how to swim yet.”

“I know how to swim,” William said.
For all Cait knew, that might be true. William

was forever going off on his own. The children had
been forbidden from going into the river, but there
was a little pond not far from camp that they were
permitted to go wading in. William might have
taught himself to swim.

Still, swimming in the still waters of the pond

was a very different proposition from swimming in
the current of the rushing river. “You know the
rules,” she told him firmly. “Stay out of the river.”

“Mama!” James cried.
Cait hurried over. His line was twitching

frantically. James’ fingers fluttered over the stick.
He clearly wanted to grab it, and he was just as
clearly frightened, worried that he might lose the
catch if he did something wrong.

“Give it a nice sharp tug,” she told him. “That’ll

make sure the hook catches.”

He picked up the stick and yanked it.
The stick yanked back. “It’s a fish!” James

exclaimed.

Cait helped him pull it up onto the shore. It

wasn’t a very big fish, but it was the first one he
had ever caught on his own. She helped him take it
off the hook and drop it into the pack of water

they’d brought along with them. “Tonight, Dad will
show you how to clean it, and we’ll all have some
for supper,” she said.

Tenderhearted Mia looked up in alarm. “We’re

going to eat him?” she asked, her voice tearful.

Grant wrapped an arm around her. “It’s okay,”

he said. “Fish don’t live a very long time. This one
would probably have died in a few days anyway.”

It wasn’t true, but it did seem to calm Mia

down. She looked trustingly up at her father and
nodded.

He’s lying to her for her own good, Cait

thought. When Mia was older, when she was better
equipped to handle harsh truths, they would be
more honest with her about things like this. But
right now, she would follow Grant’s lead, as she
always did.

I wonder if he ever lies to me?
The thought didn’t trouble her as it would have

once. If Grant had ever lied to her, Cait knew he
had done so for her own benefit, just as he had for
Mia. She had enough trust in him now to know that
he would never deceive her for any other reason.

WHEN THEIR FIRST PACK of children was
seven years old, Cait gave birth to their second
litter. There were six this time, three boys and three

girls, and Grant told her he was confident there
wouldn’t be an alpha or an omega among them.

“It’s rare for any omega to give birth to two

alphas,” he explained. “And I think two omegas is
unheard of. I know I’ve never heard of it.”

“Why is that?” she asked him.
“It helps to avoid competition within the pack,”

he said. “The hormones your body produced when
Grant Jr. and Mia were born are still there, signaling
the fact that you already have an alpha and an
omega child. That signal stops any of your future
children from developing those traits.”

“More information from the library?” she asked

him, grinning.

“There’s nothing in the library on shifter lore,”

he laughed. “The humans might find it, and then
where would we be! But a member of the Shifter
Council has written a book on the subject. I got you
a copy.”

“You did?” She was floored. Since neither one

of them held a job, it was uncommon for Grant to
approve a purchase of any kind. Most of the things
they did buy were for the children.

He handed her the book. “You never got to

finish school,” he said. “I still feel badly about
that.”

“It’s not your fault,” she said. “Besides, you

teach me everything I need to know. I don’t really
need school, now that I have you.”

He smiled. “There are things I don’t know,” he

reminded her. “Shifter lore is rich. There are plenty
of things you can learn by doing research on your
own—and you can teach them to our kids.”

“You want me to help teach them?” she asked.
“There are eleven of them now,” he said. “It’s

definitely going to take both of us to get that job
done.”

WHEN THE OLDEST CHILDREN were ten years
old, Grant decided it was time for the family to
leave the Moose Jaw area.

“Why?” Grant Jr. asked. Of all the children, he

was the only one who ever questioned his father.
Cait thought it was probably the alpha in him. He
still recognized that his father was in charge of the
pack. He still deferred to Grant. But he was
independent enough to want explanations for the
decisions that were made.

And that’s a good thing. If he followed blindly,

he wouldn’t be ready to step into a leadership role
when the time came. The way he’s acting now, I can
see he’ll be prepared when it’s time for him to lead
a pack of his own.

Grant seemed to have the same thing on his

mind. “There are no other shifters here,” he said.
“Not for miles. You kids are getting older now, and

you need to socialize with people outside your own
pack.”

“I don’t want to leave home,” Mia said, tucking

herself beneath Cait’s arm.

“You don’t?” Cait asked her. “Why not?”
“I don’t know what’s out there,” she said. “And

I’ve never met anyone besides our family. What if
something bad happens?”

Grant came over and hugged her. “You know

I’d never let anything bad happen to you or your
brothers and sisters,” he said. “You’re the most
important thing in the world to me. I promise to
take care of you, always.”

“We trust Dad,” Cait said, knowing that the

most important thing she could do at this moment
was to reinforce the trust she had in Grant. “He
always does what’s best for our family, doesn’t
he?”

Mia sniffled and nodded.
“So we know he’s doing the same thing now,

right?” Cait asked. “Even if we’ll be sad to leave
this place behind, we know that Dad is doing what
he has to do to take care of all of us.”

“Yeah,” Mia agreed. She still looked sad, but

Cait could see that she was convinced.

“It’s all right to be sad about it,” Cait told her

daughter. “It’s okay that you’ll miss this place. I’ll
miss it too.”

“You will?”

“Of course. This is where my children were

born,” she said. “This was my first home with your
father. I’ll always be a little sad that we had to
leave it behind. But whatever lies ahead is probably
an exciting new adventure. I can’t wait to see it for
myself.”

They packed up their things in the morning and

left, hiking into unknown territory. After a week,
they crossed the border from Saskatchewan into
Alberta. The little ones kept the pace surprisingly
well. Grant Jr. and a few of the others ran ahead,
scouting for water sources and signs of animals and
running back to tell Cait and Grant what they had
seen. Mia walked with the younger kids,
encouraging them when they began to falter.

Ten days after they’d crossed the border, Grant

called a halt. “Here,” he said. “Do you smell it?”

Cait inhaled. She did smell something there, but

she wasn’t sure what it was.

“Another pack,” Grant explained, seeing her

confusion. “More shifters. And that means a
chance for our family to grow.”

IT WAS CLEAR VERY QUICKLY that the pack
they had found wouldn’t be merging with theirs
directly. It was headed by a strong alpha, every bit

as proud and willful as Grant, with an omega of his
own.

But they also had children.
And that meant potential future mates for Cait’s

children.

That was all a concern for another day, though.

For now, the children could satisfy themselves as
friends to one another. Suddenly, instead of a group
of eleven playing together, there was a group of
twenty-seven.

Cait sat by the fire, nibbling on the meat from a

wild turkey that their neighbor had snared and
shared with them, watching the children play.

Grant came over and sat down beside her,

wrapping an arm around her shoulder. “It’s pretty
great, isn’t it?” he asked.

“It’s better than I ever dreamed it could be.”

She leaned her head against him. “I think back now
to the days when I was so sure I didn’t even want
kids...honestly, it scares me to think what would
have happened to me if I hadn’t met you when I
did.”

“You don’t have to think about that,” he said,

kissing her temple. “Nothing can take this away
from you now.”

“You saved me, you know,” she said. “I don’t

mean just from Bart. I might have found a way out
of that situation. I was always going to keep trying
to run away from him. But you saved me from

myself. The way I was going, I would have
destroyed my own life. I would have ruined my
chances at happiness by pushing everyone away
because I was too afraid to submit.”

“You can’t blame yourself for that,” he said.

“No one had ever been worthy of you.”

“But you are,” she said.
“All I know,” he said, “is that I’ll spend the rest

of my life trying to deserve you, Caitlin Sterling. I’ll
never stop trying to live up to everything you’ve
given me.”

She turned toward him, tilted her chin up, and

closed her eyes as his lips met hers. “I love you,”
she whispered.

“I love you too,” he said, and she felt him

smile. “I always will.”

Next in Series: Her Beta

Triplets

t Omega University, relationships between betas and
omegas are strictly forbidden.

Omega
I’m the golden girl. The perfect omega.
They call me the teacher’s pet.
I’m top of my class at Omega U.
If I’m such a great omega,
How come I can’t resist these betas?
It’s my responsibility to be available to an alpha.
It’s my responsibility to let him claim me.
But now three betas want me.
Three betas protect me.
If I gave myself to them,
I’d be dishonoring my role as an omega.
Triplet Betas
We should have been born alphas,
But our power broke into three.
We crave what alphas have,
especially her, the forbidden omega.
If we can claim her
And win the alpha games,
We can become what we were meant to be.....

More Books by J.L. Wilder

ell’s Wolves MC Box Set:

A six-book box set of hot werewolf bikers

searching for their omega mates!

Book 1: The Omega Games
An omega held against her will.
To protect her, he must win the omega games—or watch her be

bred by another.

Book 2: The Omega Purebred
No one ever taught me what to do if I was kidnapped. What did

they expect?

I am a rare Omega purebred—the last of my line.
Book 3: Omega’s Triplets
Three triplets need to find a rare Omega,
to carry all their babies at once.
Book 4: Omega’s Second Chance
When I realized I was the Omega, I had to runaway.
The alpha would have killed my beta.
The alpha always claims what he wants...
Book 5: Bitten By the Wolf
I was a good girl. I always wanted to make everyone happy.
Until I was bitten by the Wolf.
Book 6: She-Alpha
I am the first She-alpha of my pack.
Ruling over wolves is in my blood.
But some don’t see it that way.
They think my only worth is for breeding.
18+ Only. Download on Amazon FREE with Kindle Unlimited or

99 cents.

About The Author

.L. Wilder likes wild things! Her alpha shifters
are gruff and tough, with a pinch of tenderness.

Curl up with these bad boy book boyfriends, and
they will have you howling at the moon!

When not writing shifter smut, J.L. spends as

much time as possible exploring the outdoors. She
loves getting into trouble with Ace, her Siberian
Husky.

You can grab a free shifter romance and join

her email here:

https://dl.bookfunnel.com/mvci9dryz6

Document Outline

Professor Wolf
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Next in Series: Her Beta Triplets
More Books by J.L. Wilder
About The Author

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