If only he had any semblance of a clue what the hell he was doing. That was the one downside to following primal instincts. Sometimes they led you down roads with no clear paths in sight.
“What’s the plan here, Oberon?” Levi said, drawing his attention back to the matter at hand. “A heat contract has now turned into an impromptu mating.”
“Well, he’s no longer property of the Wardrobe, that’s for sure.”
“You expect me to help you now that you’ve gone over my head?” He grunted. “Why should I?”
“If you stopped being so butthurt, you’d realize I’ve done us both a favor.” Oberon settled a shoulder against the wall, watching the waves swell and disperse down the beach. “Don’t you think you’ve been moping long enough? It’s been over half a year. To be blunt, Dominus, get over it. Or, at the very least, stop taking out your melancholy mood on the rest of us.”
“Pardon?”
“Yeah, I said it. What are you going to do about it?” Oberon laughed. “You don’t even know—”
“Should I send Baal to the cottage to retrieve you?” he interrupted. “Or would you like to rethink your stance on mymelancholy mood?”
Admittedly, he was impressed.
“I own over fifty properties. How did you manage to guess the right one?” O hadn’t had much time to think once coming out of his rut, but that didn’t mean he’d been lacking options. “It’s only temporary. According to his file, he’s been with the Wardrobe for over a decade. He’ll need time to…adjust.”
“Does that mean you’ve discovered he’s loyal to them after all?” It was clear Levi thought he was an even bigger fool for making this choice if that were the case.
“That still needs to be decided.” Oberon couldn’t tell if the animosity in Fenrir’s voice whenever he spoke of Michelle was real. Considering how the omega seemed to struggle with his own feelings, O got the sense that mystery wouldn’t be easy to solve. “I have Claudio doing a more thorough background check.”
“You should have stayed at your mansion,” Levi stated. “There’s far more security there than at some secluded beach cottage on the outskirts of the city.”
“How hard can handling one omega be?” He didn’t buy those words any more than it seemed the Dominus did.
“Fenrir Snow wasn’t always omega, and we don’t know how much training he received at the Wardrobe. Just because he’s been positioned as product doesn’t mean that’s true. Michelle has been plotting for months. This could be her making the first move,” Levi reiterated.
“Whether or not that’s the case, he’s out of her hands now. She can’t have him back.” Oberon would annihilate her and every damn member of the Wardrobe before allowing that to happen. “You’re always complaining I don’t take the lifestyle seriously enough, well, how about now?”
“Meaning?”
“Meaning if you’re going to go toe to toe with the Wardrobe, you can count me in. Actually, you just sit back and relax. Leave this to me.”
“What’s so special about this omega?” Levi wondered. “Surely it’s not his pretty face.”
“It is pretty though, isn’t it?”
“O.”
“What does it matter?”
Levi sighed. “That’s your way of saying you don’t know either.”
“Why do I have to?” He shrugged even though the Dominus couldn’t see the motion. “My instincts chose him. That’s good enough for me. Fenrir Snow is mine. Anyone who challenges that claim will be punished.”
“Even if it’s Fenrir? My guess is you didn’t ask him for his opinion on the matter before gifting him the bite. There’d be no reason to whisk him off if you had.”
“Are you looking down your nose at me, Leviathan?”
“Hardly.” He grunted. “If I ever find someone worthy of becoming my mate, I won’t hesitate either.”
No, he wouldn’t. There was a reason Levi was the Dominus and not anyone else. He was cold and calculating, but also brutal in his quest for control. While the White Frost respected and willingly followed him, it would be a lie to say there wasn’t also fear driving them to stay by his side.
Levi would shoot his best friend in the face without a moment's hesitation if it came down to his life or theirs. In many ways, that was what was needed from a Dominus.
But it didn’t make him unshakable.