Odessa POV

The Daciana Wildcats had a massive game this weekend. Despite the ache in my body and the fog in my brain, I had to come to work if I wanted to keep my job. I went around the stadium picking up trash and leaves blown here by the wind.

The football team hadn’t arrived yet. How could they when they partied until three in the morning!

The cheerleaders were on the field practising their latest routine.

Sienna might be a territorial witch, but I had to confess she was great at her job. There was a reason everyone loved her. She directed her teammates in the new stances and cautioned them about timing.

I watched as Sienna and Rune, the other head cheerleader, took their positions to start their high-flying routine.

“Hey, are you done?!” Someone yelled, and I snapped out of it.

“I… uh…” I said, frantically looking around for something to pick up.

“Get out of here, you freak!”

“Ugh, I swear I can’t escape this girl,” Sienna complained.

I picked up my garbage bag and moved to the next session. That was when the football players started to arrive for their morning training session.

They marched past me as if I were part of the furniture. They didn’t look like they’d drunk a liquor store’s monthly supply. I waited for him to show up. My heart wanted another glance. I didn’t know what for, if only just to hurt myself more.

The rejection hurt my wolf. It was like she chose not to wake up today.

Captain Maverick approached next. He had his gaze straight ahead and his head raised. I didn’t think he’d notice me, but his attention turned. His pace slowed, and his eyes burrowed in concern. Our eyes locked for a moment, and I thought he would stop.

I tore my gaze away from him. I held the trash bag to my chest and turned around. I didn’t want to be accused of stinking up the place.

After dumping the trash, my phone rang in my back pocket.

“Hey Evyn, I’m about to get off work—”

“Get out of there now!” She yelled.

“Why?”

“Haven’t you seen the pictures? You’re dead!”

“What is going on? What pictures?”

“Just get out of there, Odessa. There are pictures of you and Gage going around. It’s only a matter of time before Sienna sees them.”

“Shit!”

“Meet me at Daisy Den. I want all the juicy details!”

I’m so screwed! Where did these pictures come from? That didn’t matter because I had to get out of here. I couldn’t go home because that’s where the danger lives.

I quickly clocked out and took a bus so I could meet Evyn. Daisy Den was a large park where I came to run and sometimes hide. It was my favourite place in the Pack. This place had so many labyrinths to get lost in.

“Evyn’s not even here,” I said, kicking a rock.

I ventured deeper into the park because I didn’t want to run into anyone. I found a little rock and settled down. I had to see these pictures for myself. Evyn was right, the pictures were everywhere. I saw them the second I logged into social media.

“Oh my gosh,” I mumbled.

These were taken outside my old apartment building. They showed us going in together and coming out hours later. The crunch of gravel made me stand instantly. My breath caught in my throat when I realised Maverick was standing in front of me.

What’s he doing here?

Maverick cracked his knuckles and stepped forward.

“Mate,” he growled.

My initial shock of seeing him out here vanished and was replaced by rage.

“Is this a joke?” I blasted. “It isn’t funny.”

“Funny? This isn’t fucking funny.”

“You found out Gage rejected me and came to make fun of me? Grow up!”

“What?” he barked.

Maybe he didn’t know about Gage after all.

“Never mind. What do you want?”

Why did he call me that? He took another step forward, and his wolf flashed in his eyes. A shiver ran down my spine.

“Why didn’t you feel it when I saw you at the stadium?” he growled.

“Are you serious?” I whispered.

“I should be with my team training for one of the biggest games of the season, but I’m here with you, Odessa. Of course, I’m serious!”

We were deep in Daisy Den. No one was around. It was so quiet you couldn’t hear a bird chirp or the children playing. It was just the two of us, and Maverick had just dropped a major bombshell on me.

“It’s not possible! I don’t feel anything.”

“I get that. The question is why.”

Things couldn’t get any worse. He was the Alpha in waiting. The Pack’s beloved Captain. Maverick had the world at his feet. He hated me, too. Why would the moon goddess do this to me when his best friend had just rejected me?

Maverick raked a hand through and exhaled. “We’ll figure it out later. I have to get back before coach busts my balls.”

“No,” I said firmly.

I know how this ends. No one wants me for a mate, especially not Alpha Maverick, the Wildcats' Captain extraordinaire.

“Reject me and get this over with. No one ever has to know this happened.”

Maverick took me in and smirked.

“Little Odessa,” he chuckled. “I’m not rejecting you.”

“What?”

“If the moon goddess says you’re my fated mate, then you’re mine.”

“No, I’m not your toy. You’re only going to make my life hell.”

He grabbed my cheeks and dragged me forward. “I won’t if you’re a good little omega. Get it through your head, Odessa. You’re mine.”

Maverick POV

Odessa Sloane. Why her of all the women in this Pack? I won’t deny it, she’s gorgeous. The day she waltzed back into my life, her scent drove me insane. There was nothing my wolf wanted more than to be between her legs.

For a second before she disappeared into the kitchen, I thought she might be the one. My fated mate. My wolf didn’t say anything, though.

I found her alone, isolated from the party. I thought if the two of us were alone, I’d sense her as my mate, but that didn’t happen. She didn’t feel anything by the looks of things, and my wolf didn’t feel the presence of the mate bond.

I still thought her scent was incredible, and I wanted to dive right into her. I couldn’t be so reckless, though. It was the right thing for me to remain without a mate. She would become my weak spot, and a target would form on her head.

Storm threw the ball, aiming for my head. I caught it before it made contact.

“Where’s your head at?” Storm asked.

“Hangover Cap?” Slider asked. His real name was Charles, but he was a slippery bugger and he was really fast on the field.

“No, I’m good. I think we’ve trained enough,” I mumbled.

“The Daciana Devils don’t think they’ve trained enough. The local derby’s in two weeks, Maverick. I’m surprised at you,” Coach Manson said.

I raked a hand through my hair. “You’re right. I’m not thinking straight.”

“Take the day off if you have to. Get your head straight.”

“No, no. I’m good.”

Coach wasn’t convinced. I never took a day off. I could drink the whole night, but still show up for training and turn up for the next game. I loved football. It was my life. Football was my escape. After the snake incident in my locker, it was no longer my safe place.

The snake was venomous, but it wasn’t a danger to my life. It was a warning from someone who didn’t want me to be Alpha.

If it didn’t mean giving up my Father’s legacy, I would have given up my title and let my little brother take over.

“Alright, boys, we have a new member to our little family,” Coach Manson said.

“Did you buy another player, coach? Now?” Gage questioned.

Coach always comes to me before he buys new players. Besides, it was too late in the season.

“Of course not. Come on out, Sloane,” Coach called.

Oh shit. Was he serious?

Odessa walked out with a soft smile on her face, dressed in the deep mahogany Daciana Medical staff uniform. The shirt emphasised her breasts, and the pants held on to her curves.

Was I being punished or something?

“Hi,” she said.

“This is just great,” Gage said sarcastically.

“Sure is,” Slider said, a little too eager for me and eager for me and my wolf.

“I expect you all to treat Odessa Sloane with as much respect as you would give our other medical staff members. Odessa will have more responsibility than our usual interns because Ginger’s out for four months on maternity leave.”

“Yes, Coach,” everyone mumbled.

She stared at the ground. She was avoiding my gaze. Every time I went to her house this week, she wasn’t home.

“Good because if Odessa as much as sneezes in a way that indicates one of you knuckleheads upset her, you will be benched! Am I clear?”

“YES, COACH!”

“Good, now get back to your drills.”

“Uh, coach, I think I tweaked my arm. I need Odessa to check me out.”

Before Coach could throw a thousand questions my way, I ushered Odessa into the physio's room. I locked the door.

“I applied for the internship three times! I’m not trying to annoy you or anything,” she blasted.

I tilted my head. There was a safe distance between us, but I wanted to close it and trace my fingers along her skin. That uniform did a good job at concealing her skin, but it teased my imagination by the way it held her perfectly.

“I’m glad you took the job, now I don’t think you’re avoiding me.”

“It’s not you I’m avoiding,” she mumbled as she walked around the physio room.

This one was smaller and was reserved for longer sessions. Most of us on the team were shifters, so we spent minimal time with the physio therapists. Our injuries were cured within a week. The usual muscle fatigue was the only thing that brought us here.

I was convinced that would change with Odessa here.

“Is that so?” I asked nonchalantly.

She avoided my gaze.

I knew all about the pictures that sparked a mini uproar in town. The pictures of Gage and Odessa weren’t a smoking gun. It just showed them going into a building and coming out late. It was suspicious, and it was enough to spark cheating rumours.

Gage hadn’t addressed them, and neither had Storm. Something like this could come between us, which was why I got to Storm first and convinced him not to kill his best friend.

“If you’re not mad, I’m here, then what’s this about?” she asked.

I cleared my throat. “I’m not mad, I’m surprised. It’s going to be tricky having my mate around.”

She paused. She stared at me as if I had said something wrong.

“I-I…”

I closed the distance between us, but left enough space for her to flee if she wanted to.

“Don’t tell me you still can’t feel our bond, Odessa. I’m not lying about this.”

She looked away. I lifted her chin and willed her to look at me.

“I can feel it. I couldn’t feel it that day. My mind was all over the place. I just can’t believe it,” her voice cracked.

“Why?”

“Because you’re Maverick Campbell! The Alpha, the Captain of the Daciana Wildcats—”

“Yeah, and?”

“You seem to have this conspiracy theory about me trying to ruin your team.”

If things with Gage and Storm didn’t simmer down quickly, then my theory would be correct.

“That doesn’t mean anything. You’re my fated mate. As much as this is the worst time, that doesn’t change the importance of the mate bond. Besides, maybe I want this, Little Wolf.” I couldn’t hide my smirk.

Why didn’t she believe me? Did Odessa Sloane live under a rock? It didn’t matter that she was an omega. She was a damn beautiful and fiery omega. I wanted to see where this went.

“I’d like to keep things quiet for now, though.”

She laughed mockingly.

“Hey, just for the meantime.”

“No, actually, I think it’s a good idea. I don’t want all the attention.”

Eventually, we had to talk about the pictures, among other things.

“I’ve got to go. There’s a party tonight—”

“Is that all you football players do? Should you guys even be allowed to drink?” She planted her hands on her hips.

I clenched my teeth. “If you let me finish, I was going to say meet me there so we can leave together.”

“Oh-oh okay,” she said, tucking a strand of dark red hair behind her ear.

“Bring Evyn,” I offered.

If she had her best friend, it would make her comfortable, then I was all for it.

Odessa nodded. “Fine. We’ll be there. Where do you want to go?”

I smirked. “Is that what you’re concerned about? Aren’t you worried about what we’ll do?”

She shut her eyes and inhaled deeply in a way that if she didn’t, she would explode.

“Goodbye, Maverick,” she said.

“Don’t be like that, Little Wolf.”

“Don’t make me change my mind about tomorrow.”

I grinned as she walked out of the room. I was looking forward to tomorrow night. I didn’t care where we went. I had more than a few ideas of what we would do.