Sugar Coated

35

Andres Ibarra

    The courting was going well. Doll was a treasure every time we saw her and the time sped by. We'd had lunch on the balcony of birch and vine two days ago and Jax had insisted she leave her answer at least one more day before she gave it to us.

    Which Em had believed was a grievous wound seeing as Delaney hadn't given us an answer yesterday while we'd texted throughout work. He was petulant and fuming even as he plastered a saccharine smile on his face with customers.

    We had the whole pack in Sugar Coated today, given the surprise closure after Doll had spent the night and we were packed.

    Nosy tourists gawked through the front glass windows, and we had a crowd of onlookers standing behind the counter, taking up space while they used the excuse of looking at our menu to attempt to hide their true intentions.

    Whatever had the pastries selling, I couldn't complain about it. Jax manned the cash register and I took over ice cream orders, while Em schmoozed.

    A group of betas skirted the countertop on their way out and Trish bee-lined for their table, a rag in hand.

    I glanced at the clock face, it was about time for my shift to end, I almost always took the morning shift, Jax mid and Em night, but we were getting too antsy and our hours were blending together.

    The bond flared with annoyance so thick it could have choked us and I whipped around to look at Em. His face was a poorly concealed snarl, that he tried and failed to reign in. When I turned the direction he was facing, it was obvious what the issue was.

    A tittering gaggle of what could only be omegas had entered the shop. Given the nature of the shop it wasn't uncommon to have omegas drop in, and most of the time Em was cordial friendly even when his heat was battering down his better senses.

    It wasn't until recently that this had become a problem. At best, Em had taken to ignoring the foreign omegas, at worst he'd snarled and chased a few out of the shop when they threatened his personal space.

    One of those very omegas happened to have just walked in as well.

    Jax shuttered the bond tight and his scent turned almost sticky and burnt as she approached the counter with her posse of entitled friends.

    Em was being as good as he could be, staying closer to the door to the back rooms, turning winning smiles on customers as far away from the group as he could get. All in all, he was doing his best to avoid a fight, and we'd definitely have one.

    "We told you not to come back, Katherine," Jax sank as much alpha into his voice as one could in polite company, and even though she hadn't been the one to head the approach to the counter, none of us were delighted by the idea of serving her or any of her friends.

    Her blue eyes widened with manufactured hurt and her lip trembled enough that the blonde spiral curls followed suit. She was as pretty as a doll with perfect porcelain features, the epitome of a high society omega.

    But, she wasn't our Doll.

    "You wouldn't want us to leave like that would you?" Her face was a picture of hurt, the kind that would make for a stunning paparazzi photo, for her. It could damn our shop though. She was the Designation Center's Belle, the most eligible little omega that money could buy. She was number 1 on PackWatch and had come sniffing around Sugar Coated over a year ago.

    It was flattering at first, like spotting a local celebrity, and in Jackson's own words she "brought amazing business". Em had never warmed to her but hadn't been outright cold, more indifferent. That is until she'd started targeting him, making routine appearances at the shop sniffing around to catch hints of Em and to test his patience with glancing touches on Jackson's arm before she'd attempted to accost Em right before his last heat.