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“Deal.”

Tohr flipped open his cell and punched a few buttons. “I’m text-messaging the human’s number to you.”

“And her friend’s.”

“You’re going to do her, too?”

“Just give it to me, Tohr.”

Bella was getting into bed for the day when the phone rang. She picked it up, hoping it wasn’t her brother. She hated when he checked to make sure she was at home when night receded. Like she might be out screwing males or something.

“Hello?” she said.

“You will call Mary and you will tell her to meet me tonight for dinner.”

Bella bolted upright. The blond warrior.

“Did you hear what I said?”

“Yes…but what do you want with her?” As if she didn’t already know.

“Call her now. Tell her that I am a friend of yours and she’ll enjoy herself. It will be better that way.”

“Better than what?”

“My breaking into her house to get to her. Which is what I’ll do, if I have to.”

Bella closed her eyes and saw Mary against that wall, the male looming over her as he held her in place. He was coming after her for one and only one reason: to release all that sex in his body. Release it into her.

“Oh, God…please don’t hurt her. She’s not one of us. And she’s ill.”

“I know. I’m not going to harm her.”

Bella put her head in her hand, wondering just how a hard male like him would know what hurt and what didn’t.

“Warrior…she doesn’t know about our race. She’s—I beg you, don’t—”

“She won’t remember me after it’s done.”

Like that was supposed to make her feel less awful? As it was, she felt like she was serving Mary up on a platter.

“You can’t stop me, female. But you can make it easier on your friend. Think about it. She’ll feel safer if she meets me in a public place. She won’t know what I am. It will be as normal as it can be for her.”

Bella hated being pushed around, hated the sense that she was betraying Mary’s friendship.

“I wish I’d never brought her along,” she muttered.

“I don’t.” There was a pause. “She has an…unusual way about her.”

“What if she denies you?”

“She won’t.”

“But if she does?”

“That’s her choice. She won’t be forced. I swear to you.”

Bella let her hand drop to her throat, tangling a finger in the Diamonds by the Yard chain she always wore.

“Where?” she said with dejection. “Where should she meet you?”

“Where do humans meet for normal dates?”

How the hell would she know? Except then she remembered Mary saying something about a colleague of hers meeting a man…. What was the name of the place?

“TGI Friday’s,” she said. “There’s one in Lucas Square.”

“Fine. Tell her eight o’clock tonight.”

“What name do I give her?”

“Tell her it’s…Hal. Hal E. Wood.”

“Warrior?”

“Yeah?”

“Please…”

His voice actually softened. “Don’t worry, Bella. I’ll treat her well.”

The phone went dead.

In Mr. X’s cabin deep in the woods, O slowly sat up on the bed, easing himself to the vertical. He brushed his hands across his wet cheeks.

The Omega had left only an hour ago, and O’s body was still leaking out of several places, wounds and otherwise. He wasn’t sure he was up to moving, but he had to get the hell away from this bedroom.

When he tried to stand his vision spun wildly, so he sat down. Through the little window across the room, he saw dawn breaking, the warm glow splintered by the boughs of pine trees. He hadn’t expected the punishment to last a whole day. And had been sure at many points that he wouldn’t make it through.

The Omega had taken him to places inside of himself that he’d been shocked to find he had. Places of fear and self-loathing. Of utter humiliation and degradation. And now, in the aftermath, he felt as if he had no skin, as if he were totally open and exposed, a raw laceration that just happened to be breathing.

The door opened. Mr. X’s shoulders filled the frame. “How are we doing?”

O covered himself with a blanket and then opened his mouth. Nothing came out. He coughed a few times. “I…made it.”

“I was hoping you would.”

For O, it was difficult to see the man dressed in regular clothes, holding a clipboard, looking as if he were ready to