Chapter 14

Lake POV

The weight of everything Ramon had bought us today felt heavier than Ollie’s sleeping form in my arms. Clothes, toys, electronics—even a laptop for me and a tablet for Ollie that cost more than I’d made in three months at the restaurant. The shopping bags filled the trunk of Ramon’s expensive car, each one a reminder of how much deeper in debt I was falling.

I didn’t understand what he wanted from me. The shopping trip, the expensive gifts, taking us to the amusement park—none of it made sense if all he planned to do was use me to pay off Samuel’s debt. Alphas didn’t spend thousands of dollars on omegas they intended to discard after a few nights. But they also didn’t usually bite and scent their victims in public either.

My neck still burned where his teeth had grazed the sensitive skin, right there in front of dozens of strangers at the park. I’d gasped at the unexpected contact, my body betraying me with a shiver of response that I’d tried desper