Not that it did any good.
The alpha closed the distance between them. Mia stumbled back, wincing in pain.
Up close, she could see that his eyes were unusual, dark but somehow still luminous in the moonlight.
"Did someone do this to you?" he demanded. "Who were you with tonight? Tell me his name."
Mia didn't know what he was talking about. She didn't know any Nicky, and she sure as hell wasn't going to tell him about Dustin and Josh.
"Please," she tried again. But even as the word tumbled out of her mouth, she knew it wouldn't do any good.
Begging and pleading had never gotten Mia anywhere. Not with Dustin. Not with her father. Not with anyone. No one ever listened.
The only thing she could do was run.
She spun on her heel and ignored the searing pain that shot up her leg with every step. Her knee was swollen and tight, but it wasn't broken. Even though it hurt like hell, she forced herself to move.
But she didn't make it far.
The alpha closed in on her almost instantly. That's when she realized she never had a chance.
It wouldn't have mattered if Mia had been in perfect condition. She could have been an Olympic sprinter, and it still wouldn't have done any good. The alpha was too damn fast.
Mia didn't even have time to scream as massive arms snaked around her waist and lifted her off the ground. Her spine pressed against his hard chest, and she felt...warm.
So warm.
Mia's pulse slowed as she drew in the first steady breath of the night. Then another. Without thinking, her head lolled back, resting against his huge, hard shoulder. She took in a deep breath, filling her lungs with the scent of him.
Sawdust and wood smoke and whiskey.
Without thinking, Mia lifted her hands and ran her fingertips down the exposed skin of his muscular forearms. It was almost as if she could feel the power and vitality running through his body, drawing her touch.
Why had she been running, again? Why in the world would she want to get away from this man…this alpha…when it was obvious that she was meant to be with him?
Mia's eyes flew open wide at the shocking thought, and she tried to wrench herself free.
Slowly, he let her down and turned her around in his arms. Strong features stood out in relief in the pale light, his dark eyes filled with a powerful emotion she couldn't name.
"Who…are…you?" he demanded, biting off each syllable. "You're not a whore, are you?"
"What? No!"
Why would he think that? Sure, Mia had worn a tight-fitting dress to the festival today, but it wasn't that revealing.
His words came back to her. Was that what he'd meant by 'Nicky and her girls '? Prostitutes?
"You're an omega," he said, almost to himself, releasing her abruptly.
For a split second, Mia felt a crushing sense of loss as his touch fell away, but it didn't last long.
Only until the last word sunk in. Omega.
No.
No. No. No.
That was impossible. She wasn't. She couldn't be.
She was a beta, just like everyone else she knew. There was no way that she could be an omega...and not just because she didn't want to believe it.
Omegas were incredibly rare. Even more rare than alphas, or so she had been taught. But she also knew that no woman could know her true nature until she was in the presence of an alpha.
Until she touched one. Felt his skin, his hot gaze. Until his pheromones found their way into her bloodstream and set off the reaction that had been lying in wait her entire life.
Oh God, no.
Mia started running again, her heart pounding wildly, dragging her injured leg. She wasn't only running from the alpha now—she was running from something even worse: her own true nature.
The alpha caught her just as easily as he had before, taking only two strides for her dozen. Picking her up with one hand, he spun her around and pressed her chest against his. Intense dark eyes stared into hers.
"Yes, you are." His voice was deep and strong, vibrating through her.
The warmth Mia had felt when he first touched her ignited into raging flames. Her heart started to hammer, but this time it had nothing to do with fear. An entirely different emotion kindled in her now, a different kind of fire.
Her hand moved independently of her mind, and Mia found herself reaching up and running her fingers through the alpha's thick, dark brown hair. She couldn't stop herself.
Oh God, why couldn't she stop herself?
She didn't want to lace her fingers around his massive neck. She didn't want to pull his lips down to hers. But she had to.
His mouth crashed against hers. Mia swept her tongue hungrily over his lower lip, over the ridge of his teeth, wanting to taste him, drink him in.
But just a taste wasn't enough. She wanted more. She needed more.
Cradled tight in his arms, Mia drew her legs up and wrapped them around his waist. Unfamiliar wetness dampened the inside of her thighs. The night air chilled the skin, making her shiver in delicious contrast to the heat where their bodies met.
The alpha growled his approval into her mouth before pulling back.
"You are an omega," he roared. "My omega!"
The last shred of rational thought that Mia still possessed rebelled at his words. This couldn't be real. It had to be a nightmare. She would rather be dead than an omega. At least then, her torture would be over.
Now it was just beginning.
* * *
She felt like fire in his hands. Her mouth tasted like honey.
A thick haze of lust and need filled Ty's head as he carried the omega up the stairs and around the side of Evander's Bar. It didn't matter that he'd already spent a few hours and a good bit of cash with Nicky tonight. Shit, it wouldn't have mattered if he'd screwed his way through her whole crew. This wasn't anywhere near as simple as just fucking.
This woman was an
