38. Nicholas Convinces Adrian

Nicholas stared at the omega in front of him. He couldn’t believe it. They kissed. She asked him to kiss her. He blinked his eyes several times, making sure that Alyssa was actually in front of him and not his dream.





“I am real” She whispered as if she heard his inner thoughts, even as her hands stroked the sharp blades of his shoulders, causing his muscles to bunch. Not willing to risk that, Nicholas rolled away, wrapping an arm around her waist to steady her as he stared. He was trying to ignore the obvious bulge in his trousers.




The omega giggled, eyeing him suspiciously as he went pink.



They stood there for a while, breathing heavy and eyes clashing together. The Alpha had so much to say, but he still didn’t know what to say. She was standing so close to him that he could feel her toes touching his, her breathing warm against his jaw.




“So...” He cleared his throat after a beat, his heart beating like crazy.




Alyssa tilted her head up sharply. There was a healthy flush on her cheeks, trailing till her neck and disappearing in the curve of her chest. He held his breath as she licked her lips.




“I tried to think that it’s all in my head...But the truth is I can’t deny it anymore. I like you too” She whispered, tears pooling in her eyes.




The Alpha felt his heartache at that, those sweet words making him giddy with excitement. He couldn’t believe it for starters. Then it dawned on him that she’s already dating Adrian. What about him?




“But-” He started, only to have her cut him off.



“I know. I like Adrian too. Don’t make me pick between you two.” She swallowed. “I can’t do that.”



With that, she walked out of his office.
***
The rest of the day Nicholas spent locked in his office. Finally, he decided to talk to Adrian. He needed to know. Taking a deep breath, he walked into his business partners room.




He just stared at Adrian, smoking in his chair with his head tilted back. The Alpha only smoked when he’s stressed about something. What was he thinking? Nicholas sighed and moved to pull out the chair opposite of him.




Adrian had a tight look on his face. “Why are you here, Nicholas? What do you want to to talk about?”




“I want to talk about Alyssa.” He said it so quickly, and so easily, before plopping on the chair. The Alpha in front of him offered a cigarette which he politely refused.




Adrian rubbed his face. “I should have known you would be here sooner than later.”





“Oh. Alyssa told you? Right. Makes sense,” Nicholas said, noticing Adrian lift the joint back to his mouth. He hoped that his friend would hear him out.




“Um. Yeah,” Adrian said, “So, it’s true, then? That you like her?”



The Alpha was quiet for a minute, breathing in the sweet, earthy smoke and then back out again. There was no point in lying. Not after all this, and not now, face to face with his best friend. They had a deeper bond that his friend can tell when he’s lying.




“Yeah,” Nicholas admitted, breathing out hard.



Adrian bobbed his head carefully, up and down, the curls on his forehead bouncing. His hair was longer than before. He didn’t usually leave his hair to grow out this much. Nicholas was still staring at the curls on his forehead when his friend’s head stopped moving, and he fixed him with a steady gaze.  



“For how long?” Adrian asked quietly.



Nicholas couldn’t pick up any hostility in his voice. Maybe he was genuinely curious to know.



“As long as I’ve known her,” He said.



The Alpha in front of him hummed and then leaned back in his chair, tapping his fingers on the table as he gazed at him. What was he thinking? Nicholas had to get his point across.



“Listen, I know this may sound weird, and I know I shouldn’t want her, but I do.”



His friend closed his eyes, and it only made him ramble on a bit more. 



“I don’t want you two not to be together. I want…I just want to be part of it,” He said lamely.




“Adrian, I know that you love her. I am not cruel to give her a choice” Nicholas licked his lips. “I want to love her too.”



“Why do you think you love her, hmm?” His friend asked, raising his brow. “I’m just trying to understand. You knew that I have feelings for her almost as long as you. And I can’t understand how.”




Nicholas looked at his business partner and wished he had a real answer for him. Something that would make sense. But he didn’t. He had just fallen for Alyssa immediately and had never gotten back up, despite trying to surround himself with others. He tried ignoring her, which didn’t go well. He couldn’t do it again.



So he opened his mouth once more and tried to explain it as best he could.



“You remember when we learned about soul bonds, don’t you?” Nicholas asked, and Adrian flicked his eyes up and lifted his brows.



“Soul bonds aren’t real,” His friend said immediately, “There are just physical bonds. The marks on omegas neck which Alphas make.”





The Alpha felt his jaw twitch, and he cringed a bit, gripping the desk in front of him. How can he say that? Sure multiple Alpha mates were not common, but the society had started accepting soul bonds. It merely meant that the omegas are destined for two or three Alphas from birth. When they enter adulthood, they meet and mate.




He took a long breath and shook his head.




“You know that’s not true,” Nicholas snapped.




Adrian let out an exasperated sigh and shook his head. “I don’t want to argue with you about soulbonds now.”




He swallowed drily and nodded.



Of course. His feelings were on the table now, and there was nothing left to hide. But Adrian was still her boyfriend. He had every right to make a decision. The silence stretched between both of them, staring at the desk instead of each other.




Finally, Adrian looked up. “You can court her.”




He leaned back on his seat but not before smashing the cigarette in the ashtray on the desk before tossing it in.



Nicholas opened and closed his mouth. He couldn’t believe it.



“You know,” He said, and then worried his lip with his teeth, “You know, I respect you, and if you changed your mind – “



“Oh, I will not change my mind,” Adrian cleared his throat. That was it.
***

After he got back to his penthouse, Nicholas let out a breath. Leaving a trail of his shoes, briefcase, and work clothes from his front door to his bathroom, he headed to the shower. He washed his hair and his body and then stood under the water for a while. As he stepped out of the shower, he thought about what he could do to entertain himself now that he was alone again.




Usually, he would go to the bar with his friend Oliver for drinks and pick up an omega, but for now, he was perfectly content with courting Alyssa.



He was in the middle of drying his hair when his house phone started ringing. He groaned at the noise and dropped his towel on the floor, deeming himself just dry enough to jog over to the wall and grabbed the phone just before the last ring.




“Hello,” The Alpha said absently, wincing as the water dripped down his shoulder.




“Nicholas,” Adrians voice echoed from the other side. “Are you free tonight?”



“Yes. Why?”



“Great! Come to my house in ten minutes.”



With that, he hung up. What just happened? Nicholas stared at the phone and walked back to his room.
***

As soon as Nicholas entered his friend's house, he caught a whiff of the sharp, followed by shouting and cursing from the kitchen.



“One second,” Adrian said, rushing to the kitchen.




Nicholas followed him, choosing to maintain some distance from the kitchen.




“Sweetheart? Are you okay?”



“I burnt the popcorn, I’m sorry” He heard the sweet familiar voice and then Adrian's voice, shushing and calming her.



“It’s fine, Alyssa. I’ll make a new pot. Just go sit out with Nicholas, okay? I’ll take care of it.”



“He’s here?” The sudden lift to her tone made Nicholas's lips curl. She wanted to see him.



There was more murmuring from the kitchen, and finally, he heard the sound of bare feet approaching him. Alyssa emerged out of the kitchen, dressed in satin pyjama pants, which still pooled around her feet as she shuffled. She lifted her head and smiled at him before slowly sitting down on the couch, tucking her legs under.



“Hi,” She said softly, and Nicholas felt his mouth go dry.



“Hey.”



“Thank you for coming. I thought we could talk” The omega mumbled.
***

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