Omega’s Gamble by Claire Cullen
Chapter Seven
Their father satat the head of the table, looking pleased as he surveyed his subjects. Darien sat to his left with his new husband beside him. Opposite them were Thorne and Rex, who were exchanging looks and the occasional murmured comment that Darien couldn’t quite catch. The rest of the table was filled with uncles, aunts, and cousins. There were a few omegas dotted about, and Raine was getting plenty of looks, some curious, some hostile. The omega was quiet for most of the meal, watchful eyes taking in everything. To Raine’s left was Darien’s cousin Etta, who took it upon herself to give the omega a rundown of everyone at the table, though her descriptions were heavily colored by her own opinions, of which she had many.
A few of her comments had Darien stifling laughter, and one particularly memorable barb about their uncle Jon almost had him choking on a mouthful of wine. His reactions didn’t go unnoticed by his husband, but Darien couldn’t tell—and didn’t care—whether he was bemused or unimpressed.
Someone started a debate about winter preparations, stealing Etta’s attention away. Was Darien mistaken or did Raine give a small sigh of relief?
He suddenly found the omega’s interest aimed his way.
“Tell me something.”
Darien waited for him to elaborate.
“Anything will do,” Raine continued, “though something about you might be useful.”
Darien was aware of his father watching them closely and vowed to be polite.
“What did you want to know?”
“Do you have any interests? Hobbies? Talents?”
“Fighting,” Darien said shortly, taking a long swallow of wine from his glass.
“What sort?”
Darien didn’t roll his eyes, but it was a close thing.
“The kind where I protect my kingdom from pirates.”
A look of genuine surprise crossed his new husband’s face, though he kept his voice low as he spoke with disbelief.
“Pirates?”
Darien just raised an eyebrow.
“I thought they went out with the new maritime laws,” Raine said.
The new maritime laws had come in twenty years earlier. They were supposed to rid the seas of pirates once and for all.
“It seems the pirates didn’t get that missive.”
That only seemed to pique the omega prince’s curiosity.
“What do they want?”
“Anything that’s not nailed down,” Darien said sharply, wanting that to be the end of it. If the omega was as innocent of the pirate attacks as he pretended to be, then the less he knew, the better.
“Seems like a lot of trouble to go to for petty theft. Your coastline doesn’t exactly appear that hospitable.”
“Try telling the pirates that,” Darien said shortly. “They don’t seem deterred, no matter how inhospitable we try to be.”
“They must be very desperate,” Raine commented. Opposite him, Rex almost choked with laughter.
His new husband flushed, seeming to realize how his words had been taken up.
“Not that I know anything about the mind of a pirate,” he added, grabbing for his glass of wine.
Darien was happy for the excuse to change the subject.
“And your interests?” He should at least pretend to care, shouldn’t he?
“Oh, the usual suspects,” the omega said dryly. “Embroidery, literature, watercolors.”
None of that sounded the least bit practical.
“Can you cook?”
“A few select recipes.”
“Fight?”
The omega laughed. “I can dance. That’s about as close as any omega of the royal family of Ludinia is going to get to fighting.”
Rex seized on that before Darien could head him off. “There’ll be music after dinner. You and our brother can show off your talents.”
He grinned over at them, pleased with himself.
“I don’t dance,” Darien said shortly, glaring at his brother.
“It’s your wedding day,” the king interjected. “I’m sure you’ll make an exception.”
“I promise to go easy on you,” his new husband added. “We can skip the celestial waltz.” The traditional first dance at a royal wedding.
Darien didn’t like being made fun of.
“I don’t dance,” he said through gritted teeth.
“One dance won’t kill you,” his father said firmly.
Darien opened his mouth to argue but changed his mind when he saw the look on the king’s face. This was grin-and-bear-it time. He needed to shut up and make nice until dinner was over.
Dessert arrived just in time to force a lull in the conversation. The omega prince barely ate more than a few spoonfuls, not that he’d eaten much of the rest of the dinner. Darien knew how he felt; he didn’t have much of an appetite either. Before too long, his father signaled to the staff and everyone stood, moving to the sides of the room so the tables could be cleared and moved off the floor.
“First dance for the new couple,” his father said, glancing meaningfully from Darien to Raine.
The omega seemed at ease, obligingly placing his hand in Darien’s. With reluctance, Darien led the omega to the middle of the floor.
“Do you know the Eden Tide?” Raine asked softly.
“…Yes?”
“It has a similar rhythm to the waltz. It’s three steps for you. Forward, to the side, and then back while I turn. You lead, I’ll follow.”
The music started playing, and they were out of time. Darien dredged up the lessons from his teenage years and stepped closer to Raine, placing one hand on his waist and taking the omega’s hand in the other. He wasn’t particularly attuned to rhythm, unsure when to start, but the prince sensed his hesitation.
“On three,” he murmured. “One, two, three.”
Darien stepped forward on his right, and Raine moved with him. Despite how awkward he felt, the omega made it seem as if they’d done this a hundred times. They moved seamlessly, Raine completing an expert turn as Darien stepped back, and the omega came to rest in his arms once more. They waited a beat and moved again, completing another circuit, and another. Darien was so distracted by the way the prince moved, by how he felt under his hands, that he didn’t notice when the others joined them on the dance floor. Suddenly they were in the center of a busy floor filled with couples.
“You’re doing fine,” Raine murmured. “But we should dance one more. The Red Rose?”
Darien shook his head. He didn’t know that one. “I’ve always liked the Lighthouse Reel.”
Raine struggled to smother a smile. “Why am I not surprised? You’ll need to tell the musicians. The tempo’s quite particular.”
Darien glanced around until he caught Lord Alton’s eye. Alton hurried over, and he made his request, watching as the lord bowed and strode away.
They danced the next dance, Darien getting into the swing of things. He’d never been one for slow and cumbersome sets, preferring fast and free. He almost felt like he was flying. Raine seemed happy to let himself be led, moving through the steps effortlessly even though Darien was certain this wasn’t that common a dance where the omega came from. As they swung around again, he caught sight of Lord Alton standing next to the king, looking as pleased as punch.
“At least someone’s happy,” he muttered.
Raine followed his gaze before glancing back at him. “Some people are easily pleased.”
Darien met his gaze head-on, a question on his lips.
“I guess we’re not ‘some people,’” the omega finished, smiling politely and taking a step back as the song wound to a close.
That step felt like a chasm opening between them, the warmth of the dancing fading away and leaving Darien cold. This was all for show, after all. Raine was his husband in name only, a means to some end he hadn’t worked out just yet. There would be no growing fond, no attachment. He couldn’t give his heart to the son of the king who might well be the instigator of the destruction of their kingdom.
“Thank you for the dance,” Raine offered stiffly, the formality falling back into place like a mask.
He turned and walked away, and Darien watched him go before making his way to his father’s side. It was going to be a long evening.
* * *
The hour grew late,the celebrations wound to a close, and gradually people began to file out of the hall. It wasn’t customary for the ‘happy couple’ to be the last to leave, so Darien sought out Raine. The omega sat alone, sipping a glass of wine.
Darien held out a hand, ready to escort him from the hall. Raine took it readily, walking next to him and smiling demurely at those who wished them a good night as they took their leave.
Once they were outside, away from the watchful eyes of his family, Darien let go of the prince’s hand.
“I’ll escort you back to your rooms.”
It was the least he could do since the prince might not know his way, especially given the late hour and the wine.
The omega acquiesced with a nod, growing quieter and tenser the closer they got to their destination. And then they were standing at the entrance to the north wing, avoiding each other’s eyes. By rights, they should share a bed and consummate their marriage. But no one would take them to task if they didn’t, no one was around to see what they did, and Darien didn’t want to play into this farce any more than he’d already been forced to that day.
“Goodnight,” he said shortly, turning to leave.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Prince Raine start and reach for him. But no hand touched his arm, no attempt was made to stop him, and the omega’s voice followed him into the night.
“Goodnight, Prince Darien.”
* * *
Darien didwhat any sane alpha would do on their wedding night—he got drunk. Rex and Thorne helped, despite their many jokes at his expense about an omega waiting in his bed. With any luck, Prince Raine was as far away from Darien’s bed as he could be while still within the castle.
“Married life not all it’s cracked up to be, huh?” Rex asked when Darien refused to rise to their baiting.
“We all know what this marriage is about, and it wasn’t to find an omega to warm my bed.”
“Would it be so terrible?” Thorne asked. “He’s not exactly unpleasant to look at.”
“Then you should have married him,” Darien grumbled.
“You’re the oldest. It’s your job to take one for the team.”
Darien took another long swallow of ale, aware that Rex was staring at him.
“You like him.”
“I don’t even know him.”
“But you find him attractive.”
“He’s not unattractive.”
“So why are you here on your wedding night, getting drunk with us?”
His next swallow of ale burned as it slid down his throat.
“Because it wouldn’t be real.”