Page 24 of The Omega Switch: Part 2

"I hope you like noodles," I said. I noticed the color had returned to her cheeks. She’d been pale after her fathers had stormed in and tried to order her around. Puff whined, scratching at the food and begging. “This isn’t for you,” I warned, and Puff scrambled up and skipped toward Ivy, jumping into her outstretched arms.

Seeing her relax with happiness as she held the little dog felt miraculous. She truly was happy. At least, she would be once her family finally backed off.

“So,” She said, looking much better, “Should we eat?”

She led us through a gate behind the boutique, down the neighborhood and into a secluded courtyard that was shaded beneath several large bushes and ivy vines. A fountain bubbled in one corner while strings of lights hung overhead, turning the little garden into something magical as the sunlight dimmed around us.

"I come out here sometimes when I need a break," she said, sitting down at a little bistro table with several chairs.

"I can see why. It’s magical." I said, and sat down across from her, setting out the food. It wasn’t fancy, just takeout boxes and plastic utensils, but to me, it looked like the best meal in the world.

Once everything was ready, Ivy dug into the noodles. I did the same. It was quiet as we both enjoyed dinner. The silence wasn't uncomfortable - after everything that had happened between us, the absence of pressure was actually a relief. I watched as Ivy straightened back up, the lingering shock from her fathers’ visit finally leaving her body. Eventually, I set my fork aside.

"Ivy, can I ask you something? You don't have to answer." I added. She studied me for a moment before giving a small nod.

"Okay."

"We know now, obviously, that Arabella had stolen your Bond profile," I said, and Ivy watched me as she ate her noodles. “Why didn’t you tell us earlier?” The question lingered in the air, and Ivy looked at me quizzically. “I mean, we were at that party, and you didn't bring it up until the last moment. How did you find out?” Ivy’s eyes got big, and she swallowed her food. I’d always wondered why she didn’t tell us sooner. Instead, she waited until after she was blamed for stealing a necklace, then it all came rushing out toward the end of the party. It was the worst timing.

Ivy opened her mouth to speak, but then paused. “You saw how my fathers were to me earlier?” She asked, and I nodded, my jaw twitching. Just the memory of the way they had yelled at her made me want to tear them apart. “Well, you saw how he tried to alpha bark me, right?” I closed my eyes. That was one of the most egregious things I had witnessed from them yet.

“Yes,” I said, breathing out through my nose to calm myself.

“Well, I found out months before that party. Of course, I was livid. I told my whole family. I told them Arabella needed to come clean or I would tell your pack. So,” Ivy said, her body now hunching slightly at her memories, “My father… he ordered me not to speak about it.” She said, and I sat back in horror. It took a few moments for me to process what happened to her.

“He alpha barked you not to tell?” I asked, my heart sinking. She had known for months. She’d known, and been ordered not to tell anyone. She nodded.

“Yeah. I mean, that’s why I attacked Arabella.” Suddenly the memory of Arabella’s face with the scratch marks came rushing back. No wonder she fought her. The pieces were falling into place, making horrifying sense.

“Wait, you knew back then? But his bark should have worn off after a few days.” I said, my confusion growing. Ivy looked down, her cheeks reddening.

“I know. I… I have a sort of delayed growth when it comes to that.” She said, and I suddenly felt awful for prying. “I learned that when an omega is too reliant on their family, they sometimes don’t learn to outgrow a parent’s command. So yeah, it lasted. Until I powered through, and found my strength.” She said, looking down. I could tell it was difficult for her to talk about this.

But what was more difficult was my ability to stay seated and not lose my mind at this information. Pack Carrington had not only known about the lie for most of the time we’d courted Arabella, they’d forced Ivy to witness it, and taken away her ability to tell us. Ivy had been so reliant on them that they knew how to control her, and I felt a rage fill me up that I’d never felt before. The story kept getting worse.

The pure fury running through my veins demanded justice, but right now I had an omega in front of me who had just borne something personal to me, and I knew it hadn't been easy. The last thing she needed right now was another angry alpha around her, especially after today. I drew one slow breath through my nose, forcing myself to remain calm, before meeting her eyes again.

"Thank you," I said. She looked back up at me, her demeanor shy and uncertain. "For feeling safe enough to tell me. I know that couldn't have been easy."

She stayed quiet for a minute.

"I don't think I realized how strange it was until after I left." Her voice remained quiet. “I mean, I was around them most of the time, so I didn’t have a great frame of reference for what a healthy family looked like. I knew it was wrong, but I… well, now I feel embarrassed.” She said, not meeting my eyes.

I wanted so badly to reach over, grab her hand, and comfort her in any way I could. But I couldn't - not yet.

“Ivy, you should never feel bad about what happened. None of it was your fault.” I said, my voice quiet but resolute. “Your family was manipulating everyone. But no one was hurt more than you. I’m in shock that they would do that to their daughter. Nothing about that is right.” I looked down.

“But that doesn’t excuse me or my pack. We saw things, we knew it didn’t make sense. We always thought it was odd that the profile came back as Arabella and not-” I stopped myself. Maybe admitting this now would hurt too much. But Ivy’s eyes met mine.

“Not what?” She asked, leaning in.

“Come on, Ivy. You know what it was like when we all first met.” I said, swallowing before continuing. “We all liked you. We thought for sure that the results would say it was you. And it was you - I mean, before Arabella switched your profile.” I said, feeling like the world's biggest idiot. We never should have even looked at our bond match. We should have known from the beginning.

Ivy leaned in, a shocked look on her face. “Really? You liked me back then?” She asked, and I looked up at her, surprised.

“Could you not tell? We all came over as a pack to your house any time we could. Only Hunter needed to be there for the business part.” I said, not believing what I was hearing. “You think Elias wanted to see your lab just because he’s a research nerd? I mean, he is, but not to that extent.”

Ivy sat back, sucking on her lip. “You know, Arabella told me that Elias said he used the research excuse to get closer to her.” She said in a low voice. Now I was the one shocked.