Omega Studies Read online

  OMEGA STUDIES

  CHARLIE KNOTTS

  Copyright © 2016 by Charlie Knotts

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This title is intended for adults only. It contains explicit sex acts and adult themes. Please keep out of reach of children. All characters are eighteen years of age or older.

  For Elaine, who inspired me with her stories.

  This is all your fault.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Epilogue

  Thanks For Reading!

  Also by Charlie Knotts

  Tying the Knot

  His Alpha’s Alpha

  Omega On the Line

  His Soul Desire

  Truth By His Hand

  More Than Luck

  Perfect Game

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Matt set down his bag and looked around at the room that was going to be his home for the next year. It was about the size of his walk-in closet back home, but the freedom it represented was nothing less than exhilarating.

  The dorm room was dimly-lit and sparsely-furnished, but he’d toured a few schools before settling on Maxwell Hart University, and he knew that he could’ve done a lot worse. He could have done a lot better, too, if he’d been willing to capitalize on his family’s fortune and influence to get a spot at an Ivy league school, but the lure of anonymity that MHU had offered him proved to be too tempting.

  Maybe here, he could be someone other than Matias Ronaldo Guerrero Videla. He was tired as hell of being his family’s prize omega.

  On one wall hung a whiteboard, and someone had written a cheery greeting: “Welcome, Matias and Jesse!” Matt picked up the eraser, tapping his fingernails on the plastic casing of it with a rapid click-click sound, then nodded to nobody in particular and erased the message. He rewrote it in looping script that matched what had been there to the best of his ability: “Welcome, Matt and Jesse!” Maybe it didn’t mean much in the grand scheme of things, but it helped. He liked the look of it.

  Matt unzipped his bag and took out the couple of outfits he’d packed. The rest of his things were being brought by movers later in the afternoon, but he’d packed a couple of things just in case. He picked the bed on the left and started hanging his clothes in the tiny closet on that side of the room.

  As he hung the last of his clothes, the door to the room swung open and a tall skinny omega with spiked-up hair that added another inch or two to his height poked his head inside. “Room 304?” he asked uncertainly. “Half the numbers are missing, so I don’t know if I’m in the right place.”

  Matt nodded. “You’ve got it. Are you Jesse?”

  The young man visibly relaxed as he stepped into the room. “The one and only! Jesse Ditzmann, at your service. Please don’t call me Ditzmann or Ditz, even though I kind of am one.” Jesse grinned broadly as he shook Matt’s hand.

  Matt gave Jesse an appraising look. “What about J.D.? You look a little like a J.D.”

  “Oh, ew,” Jesse said, his face wrinkling. “My aunt used to call me J.D. when I was a little kid. I’ll never be able to put the moves on a hot alpha guy if he’s calling me something that reminds me of Auntie Karen and potty training.”

  “Jesse it is, then,” Matt said. “At least you’re in the right place to find hot alpha guys to put the moves on.”

  “Oh, I know, honey,” Jesse said with a toothy grin, tossing a backpack and a huge duffel bag on the empty bed. “Why do you think I’m here in the first place? I went to Elodie Hart Omega Academy for a year before they combined with Maxwell; I managed to keep my grades up enough that I could’ve transferred to any omega-only school in the state, but honestly, what’s the point of going to college at all if you can’t meet any alphas doing it?”

  “Learning things?” Jesse only sounded half-serious, but it still irked Matt. He knew, on some level, that a lot of omegas only bothered going to college to find their Mate, but it frustrated him when people assumed that was the only reason he wanted to go. He wanted a hell of a lot more out of his life than whatever awaited him as someone’s omega and Mate.

  “You do you, Matty,” Jesse said with a shrug.

  Matt laughed. “Yeah, that’s not gonna work—speaking of terrible nicknames from our aunts. How am I supposed to project a cool image if I’m thinking about playing choo-choos with Tia Belén?”

  As Jesse started unpacking his duffel, Matt’s phone buzzed in his pocket. It was a message from Lisa: where the hell are the room numbers? He tucked the phone back in his pocket and poked his head out the door.

  Lisa was at the end of the hallway, pushing her dirty-blonde hair out of her face as she scowled at her phone. “Over here,” Matt called out, and her expression brightened when she looked up and saw him. Lisa was the only one of Matt’s friends from high school who had ended up at Maxwell Hart, but unlike him, she hadn’t taken two years off between high school and college. She was at least half the reason Matt had waited around for Louis Maxwell University and Elodie Hart Omega Academy to merge so he could attend there, rather than go to one of the handful of other integrated schools rated highly enough that his parents would pay for it.

  “Seriously,” Lisa said as she jogged up, “I thought Hart Academy was all swanky. They should at least be able to afford room numbers, don’t you think?”

  “I don’t think this was one of the Hart Academy buildings,” Matt said, flopping down on his bed.

  “Sure wasn’t,” Jesse said. “The dorms at Hart were way different. Nicer buildings, but they had us crammed in like sardines. Eight omegas to a suite, so you could stick together in solidarity or something. This place might be dingy, but I’m only going to have to deal with one asshole’s dirty socks on the floor here, and I count that as a win.”

  “I thought omegas were all prim and proper and tidy,” Lisa said teasingly. She was a beta, and had always delighted in giving Matt shit over his designation. He’d have felt insulted, but she did it to everyone, alpha and omega alike. She’d always complained that the world would be so much simpler if everyone was a beta. “You’re going to ruin my illusions of domestic omega bliss with all this talk of dirty socks.”

  Matt snorted. “Lisa, if I haven’t ruined those illusions for you by now, I don’t think there’s any hope for you. Reality is a harsh mistress.”

  “It’s all true,” Jesse said, nodding with mock solemnity. “We also burp and shit, in case nobody had told you.”

  Matt let out a belch for emphasis; it was a talent he’d perfected as a kid, much to the horror of his classically-educated omega mother. Jesse roared with laughter, stabbing a finger in the air in Matt’s direction. “You and me, we’re gonna get along just
great.”

  “Classy,” Lisa said with a grin. “I’m so glad you guys are here this year to ‘enrich my educational environment’ with your presence.”

  Matt scoffed. Lisa had shown him the brochures that alpha and beta students from Maxwell had received to help prepare them for the Omega Integration Program. They were full of weaselly-sounding marketing jargon like that, and extremely light on any helpful information, such as why integration was a good thing, or how alphas ought to treat their omega classmates.

  “Hmm, I’m looking forward to having my educational environment enriched,” Jesse said with a lascivious grin. “Did you hear they’re sending us all alphas to show us the ropes?”

  Lisa’s eyes widened. “That sounds like a terrible idea. Why on earth would they do that?”

  “Beats me,” Jesse replied with a shrug, “but I’m not going to look a gift horse in the mouth. If they send ‘em right to me, it saves me the effort of having to go out and impress ‘em myself.”

  “It’s to ‘help us acclimate and orient to college life,’” Matt recited, derision dripping from his voice. “Translation: they think the poor little omegas can’t handle life in the big scary world, and we need a big strong alpha to do things like show us to our classes so we don’t have to confuse our feeble omega brains by reading a map.”

  “Gosh, why don’t you tell us how you really feel?” Jesse said. “I don’t know if I can handle the way you bottle up your emotions.”

  Lisa laughed. “That’s Matias for you. He gets passionate about omega equality—you get used to it after a while.”

  “Call me Matt.”

  “Oh, we’re trying that one out again? I couldn’t get used to it in middle school; I don’t know if I’ll be able to do it now.”

  “Anyway,” Matt said, waving a hand dismissively, “things like this are exactly why school integration is so important. Alphas who aren’t exposed to omegas have these ridiculous outdated notions about what omegas are like, what sort of things they want. They need to study with us and work with us so they can see that we’re just people, just like them. Jesse, do you really need an alpha showing you around? Or do you think you’d be perfectly capable of finding your classes on your own?”

  “I can find them on my own,” Jessie said with an understanding nod. “I see what you’re getting at, roomie. But I still want a hot alpha beefcake around, too. Can’t I have both? Liberation and satisfaction?”

  “Sure. Go out and find an alpha on your own, the old-fashioned way. You don’t need the school to send one right to you.”

  “Well, thanks a lot,” Jesse said, rolling his eyes. “I was feeling excited about school, but now I’m just irritated. You’re kind of a buzzkill.”

  Lisa leaned in, and said with a conspiratorial whisper, “You get used to that, too. Eventually.”

  Matt stuck his tongue out at Lisa, and Lisa casually flipped him off. He threw his pillow at her, which she caught deftly as she headed towards the door. “Ooh, free pillow—thanks!”

  “Where are you going with that? Slumber party?”

  Lisa shook her head and tossed the pillow back at him in a lazy arc. “Nah, I gotta go talk to the registrar about one of my classes. You going to be okay with this alpha business? Want me to come by later to fight him off for you?”

  Matt leaned back, tucking the pillow behind his head. It was so thin he had to fold it in half; he was going to have to do some serious shopping to outfit this room. “I’m sure I can handle myself around whatever goody two-shoes alpha they send to give me the freshman orientation. They’re going to be putting their best foot forward, I’m sure.”

  “See you, then,” she said with a wave, and turned to walk out, almost slamming directly into an alpha who’d been waiting in the hallway, hand poised as if to knock on the door. The guy was short but muscular, with Asian features and short, artfully-spiked hair. His eyes widened in surprise behind black-rimmed glasses, but he didn’t give any other physical indication that he was startled, just dropped his hand to his side and gave her a smile and nod. Matt had to admit he was gorgeous, and Lisa seemed to agree, rooted on the spot with her mouth hanging open—even betas sometimes reacted to the raw presence of an alpha, and this guy just radiated restrained power and flawless control. “Oh,” she said quietly, shaking herself and slipping past him to rush down the hall.

  The alpha let out a quiet laugh and scratched the back of his head. “Hi, I’m Paul Santos—is this room 304?”

  “We need to tape up a sign,” Matt sighed. “Yeah, that’s us.”

  “Great!” Paul said with a dazzling smile. “Which of you is Jesse Ditzmann? I’m your mentor from the Omega Integration Program.”

  Jesse flicked his eyes up to the ceiling and whispered, “Thank you!” Matt stifled a giggle. “That would be me, Alpha,” he said, stepping forward and extending a hand, his head bowed modestly. “Nice to meet you.”

  “Likewise,” Paul said. “Do you have time for a campus tour? I could show you both around, if you like.”

  Jesse slipped behind Paul and started making exaggerated no no no gestures at Matt, and Matt did his best not to laugh as he said, “No, I’ll just wait for my alpha to show up. I’ve got more unpacking to do anyway.”

  Paul raised a skeptical eyebrow as he took in the sight of Matt’s spotless side of the room, but said nothing. He and Jesse left, leaving Matt alone to silently stew in his own irritation. At least Jesse was getting what he wanted out of the arrangement, but Matt could think of nothing he wanted less than some alpha showing up at his door to babysit him for the afternoon.

  Chapter Two

  It was Derek’s first full day back on campus, and he was hating every minute of it. Everywhere he went, he could feel the weight of people’s eyes on him. Nobody said a word, but he could almost hear what they were thinking anyway: we know what you did.

  He knew he was being paranoid. There had been a whole lot of turnover in enrollment when Elodie Hart Omega Academy got folded into Louis Maxwell University, so most of the faces he saw as he stalked through campus were unfamiliar. Hardly anyone recognized him. Fewer still knew what happened beyond vague rumors that they may or may not have been able to connect to him.

  But the ones who did recognize him…he could smell it on them when they got close: a cold whiff of fear that rolled off them in waves, whether they were alpha or beta. He’d even smelled it on one omega, and it made him bristle with anger. He wanted to grab the poor guy by the shoulders and demand to know who’d told him, what he’d heard.

  Of course, that would only make things worse. Anyway, Derek knew what the omega had heard. There goes the guy who almost killed another alpha in a fight last year. Stay away—he’s out of control.

  Derek knew he was a little intimidating, even without the rumors flying around him. He’d had a growth spurt after he presented as an alpha, and had gone from a skinny runt to a six-foot-two powerhouse with broad shoulders and muscles to spare. He’d been told he had a handsome face, but he also had what his female friends liked to call “resting bitch face,” his full lips seeming to naturally fall into a scowl any time he wasn’t thinking about it. When he turned on the charm, his blond hair, blue eyes, and wholesome smile could help him get his way, and when he turned it off, his stature and expression did the same.

  Unfortunately, neither charm or “resting bitch face” had done him any good when it came to his punishment. His status as a rising star on the Maxwell wrestling team had done a lot more for him there. He’d been suspended for the last three weeks of the year, and the school had left it entirely up to his professors whether he would be allowed to make up work or take his final exams. As a result, he was retaking Microeconomics this year, because Professor Jameson was kind of an ass and had never liked him much.

  On top of retaking a class, his punishment had involved a whole lot of symbolic and physical gestures of atonement. His advisor, Ralph Harrison, had been solidly on his side through all of it, but it was at Mr. Harriso
n’s insistence that Derek found himself signed up this year as a mentor in the Omega Integration Program. When he’d tried to get out of it, Mr. Harrison had pointed out how very fortunate it was that he hadn’t lost his wrestling scholarship after the unpleasant incident last year, and that it would be extremely beneficial to his future prospects to demonstrate that he was a leader, a team player, and a good face for the Maxwell wrestling team.

  So here he was, at Sanderson Hall—last year a run-down party dorm full of slacker beta underclassmen, this year a slightly less run-down omega dorm with a fresh coat of paint and a new sign—with explicit instructions to find his assigned omega, introduce himself, and give a tour of the campus.

  It took three tries to find the right room because half the doors didn’t have room numbers on them, but he eventually found himself in front of his omega. “Matias Guerrero?” He looked the omega up and down; he wore a faded concert t-shirt from a show he couldn’t be old enough to have gone to, and designer jeans that clung to his hips in a way that left very little to the imagination. His dark brown hair hung down almost to his shoulders and had a slight curl to it; he had one of those haircuts that gave the impression of effortlessly wind-tossed style, stray locks skimming his fine cheekbones as he moved his head, but the faint sheen and spicy scent of expensive styling products was unmistakable. Definitely a rich kid.

  “Matt,” the omega said, extending one long-fingered hand. Derek stepped in to clasp it, and his eye was drawn to the contrast of Matt’s hand in his; his skin was a medium tan that stood out starkly against Derek’s pale tone, and his hand was slender and delicate in Derek’s broad grip. Matt kept his head up and shoulders back as he shook Derek’s hand, and the defiance in his expression irked Derek for reasons he couldn’t quite identify.

  It was like Matt was already bracing for a fight.

  Derek dropped Matt’s hand and took a deep breath to release some tension, but as he sucked in a lungful of air, he was nearly bowled over by Matt’s scent: thick and sweet like any omega’s, a scent that reminded him of honeysuckle on the air in the spring, but with a subtle burnt-sugar and caramel note that threaded through it and sharpened it, tickling his nose and making him want to lean forward to breathe in more. Matt smelled good, and for a brief, absurd moment, Derek wanted to drag him in close and bury his face in Matt’s neck, where the scent would be strongest, and let it wash over him.