Omega On Contract

Chapter Four - Pheromones

It was well past 7 p.m. when my n*****s began to hurt. Phoenix usually had dinner by 7 p.m. and most days, I worked till late in the night to avoid running into him after work. It was better to arrive just when he was about to go to bed, maybe catch him finishing up his evening dramas. But that night I couldn’t risk going home when I could barely control my pheromones. My goal was to wait till 10 p.m. when I was sure he would have retired for the night. The pain began as a dull ache around the sides of my breasts three hours earlier but steadily crescendoed into sharp tugs around my n*****s that would not let me focus on anything else.

I hadn’t paid much attention to the aches, in the past, whenever I missed him too much they came and went briefly, especially on days when the workload tripled out of nowhere and the stress was heavy. I didn’t think much of it, like always I popped a few painkillers into my mouth and went back to work, but soon enough, the throbbing ache between my legs morphed into a sharp tug that loosened my knot almost instantly, startling me.

My knot loosening was a sign my body was either going into a rut or beginning to. I reached for my calendar, re-checking my cycle, and I was still six weeks away from a rut. None of it made any sense. The frustration agigated, because going into a rut meant being away from my matrimonial home, which I loathed. Yes, Nix and I were distant, but it was comforting to know we were under the same roof, to know he was close, safe, and protected. Rut circles forced me to live in a hotel for two weeks and I loathed every second of it.

I took off my jacket and slumped onto the sofa, crossing my leg on the center table as I threw my head back, shutting my eyes to give my body a few minutes of calm. Breathing exercises always helped, but just as I was starting to relax into it, a heavy sweet scent wafted through my nose and my eyes flashed wide.

That scent? After all this time? Was she unsuppressed?

I sprang from my seat and stormed out of my office and all heads swung in my direction, making me freeze. It was 8: 45pm and I had forgotten to force them to leave.

I sighed, stepping closer to my secretary’s booth as I slid my hands into my pockets. I made a habit of leaving once the clock struck 5 pm and hiding in the bathroom until I was sure everyone had left. My employees felt pressured to work longer hours whenever they saw me working late. Time had completely slipped from me. Between the work and the aches, it was difficult to keep track.

I leaned against Elise’s, my secretary’s cubicle, and asked, “Can you smell that?”

“What ma’am?”

“Pheromones.”

Elise blinked, taken aback by my sudden question. “Y-yours, Ma’am?”

“It belongs to an omega.”

“An omega?” She smiled, exhaling with relief. “Ma’am, not only is it illegal for omegas to come unsuppressed to public spaces, but it’s also against our company policy.”

“I know that.”

“No one would violate those rules and come to work while in their circle.”

“I know that, too. Yet I can smell it.”

“Ma’am, if I may…” Elise hesitated.

“Yes?”

“Perhaps you should call it a day and go home and rest. Maybe take the rest of the week off and relax. It could be stress.”

I smiled at her. Elise was a rather meticulous secretary, kept to herself but always got the work done.

“Do you know of a Wonderful?”

“Wonderful?”

“She must be working on this floor.”

“No ma’am. Never heard of her. But I can ask.”

“Never mind. Go home,” I replied. Then in a louder voice repeated to everyone, “Go home! All of you! Now!”

I turned around and strode back to my office, slamming the door shut to feign annoyance. I waited to hear their chairs moving, their legs hurrying to leave, but it was all still silent. Only when I lifted the blinds and flashed an annoyed face did everyone spring to their feet and begin packing up.

I wasn’t sure why they were so scared of me. Not like I went around scolding people, for the most part, I kept to myself and avoided getting into employee spaces. I knew I should’ve been trying harder to get to know my employees, all the hardworking good people who were putting in the hours to help me shape the new structure for the company, but social settings always overwhelmed me.

Another sharp pain tugged at my n****e and I groaned, glancing down. My breasts had swollen, making me tight and full in my bra. I walked away from the window, back to my seat, gently cupping them and giving a gentle squeeze. It was hardening.

The omegas pheromones wafted across my nose again and I couldn’t resist the urge to inhale deeply and trap it in my lungs. Cold sweat broke across my forehead and back as I squeezed the armrest, holding myself together. I had been fighting hard to stay sane throughout the day and not let my body slip into a space it could not come back from, now it seemed almost impossible to hold back and with every second, I was finding out how much I did not want to hold back. The possessive greed every alpha felt during their rut circle was starting to swell within.

I waited patiently for the office floor to empty in hopes that whoever it was had departed, too. And for a few moments, her pheromones eased up and so did the pain in my n*****s, my knot tightening back up. I exhaled with relief and went right back to work, by the time I looked up again, it was half past ten. I glanced at my phone, remembering the days when Phoenix would lose his mind if I stayed at work past 6 p.m. without calling him. Now I knew even if I was gone for another month, no messages would come.

Parched, I strolled to the office kitchen and poured myself a glass of water, taking it all in one gulp before refilling the cup to carry it with me back to the office. As I turned to leave the kitchen, the scent returned, thicker than before and I gagged from the pain, my breasts hardening, my knot loosening again until I was completely hard between my legs.

I wobbled in my stand and gathered my breasts in one hand, the other fighting to hold the cup in place as I dragged myself over to the counter to put it down, before dashing into the common office space in search of where the thick pheromones were coming from.

I searched every cubicle, the bathrooms, the storage closets, three different board rooms and several private offices, and yet there was no omega in sight. Running around in four inch heels drained me of all the strength I had.

In defeat, I headed back to my office and gathered my things, calling it a day. Perhaps it was the exhaustion after all. I wouldn’t be the first alpha with a disregulated hormonal system from stress and it was making me smell things that was not there.

I checked for any messages as I turned off the light and started toward the elevator, typing away on my screen. As strolled past the kitchen, the pheromones hit me again and I halted, averting my gaze to the kitchen.

I stared long and hard into the kitchen space, realizing I hadn’t checked the pantry. It didn’t make sense why anyone would be there, but it was the only place on the floor I hadn’t checked. If it was all in my head, then there was no harm in one last look.

I entered the kitchen, put my things down on the counter and started toward the pantry, the pheromones growing thicker and thicker. I placed a palm on the small door and gave a gentle push. The second it creaked open, thick pheromones filled my lungs and I choked, coughing slightly to relieve the tightness around my throat and chest.

I pushed the door further apart, covering my nose with my elbow and continued in. My eyes watered as I squinted through the dimness, it took more than a few blinks before I could make out the small figure curled up on the in a fetal position on the floor and my brows shot up.

I searched for the switch and turned on the light and it was clear the young woman on the floor was an omega in heat, shivering to her death.