Reborn as a villain:Claim the omega, Kiss the beta, Kill the dukes-Chapter 141: Mine

Chapter 140

Charlie

You don’t just become palace medical staff.

There are background checks, lineage reviews, psychological evaluations, interviews stacked on interviews—every inch of your life turned inside out and catalogued like a specimen under glass.

Unless, of course, your aunt has been the Queen’s personal attendant for over twenty years.

In that case, all it takes is a quiet word over tea, a gentle recommendation wrapped in loyalty and time, and suddenly you’re standing in white halls that smell faintly of antiseptic and flowers, wearing a badge that feels heavier than it should.

I don’t kid myself. I know exactly how I got here.

But I also know I earned staying.

I’ve always been good at my job.

I think back to the first time I met Jack before he was the prince.My brother had dragged me along to that beach house meeting, whispering the price like it was a sacred number, already bracing himself for the usual rich-alpha arrogance. He often did when dealing with alphas.

I remember preparing myself for it.

The entitlement.

The condescension.

The dismissive glance omegas like me learn to recognize before we’re old enough to name it.

But Jack wasn’t like that.

He smiled. Asked my name. Looked me in the eye.

When he found out I was in nursing school, he didn’t laugh or suggest I’d change my mind once an alpha claimed me. He just nodded and said, "Good. We need more omegas in medicine."

Like it was the most natural thing in the world.

I think that was the moment.

Not when things became physical—though they did, eventually—but when I realized he saw me as a person first. Not a convenience. Not a scent. Not a body shaped for someone else’s wants.

I didn’t need his money. I had my own modest inheritance, my own plans. But he insisted anyway, like it was his way of taking care of people, like giving was as instinctive to him as breathing.

And maybe... maybe I let myself believe that was affection.

When things ended, they didn’t end badly. No screaming. No drama. Just distance.

At first, I told myself it was work. Travel. Duty. Alphas like him were always busy, always pulled in a dozen directions. It was easy to believe when I wanted to.

Easy to accept the quieter messages, the longer gaps, the way nights that used to end with him at my apartment simply... stopped happening.

Eventually, the truth found me anyway.

An omega. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Of course.

It stung more than I expected.

Not because I thought I was special enough to be chosen over fate, but because a small, ugly part of me wondered—just once—what it would have been like if it were me. If I’d been the one to anchor him.

I didn’t want to baby trap, but I sure regret not doing so, seeing as to how that red haired cunning omega did so and succeeded.

He chose responsibility.

And the omega won.

That’s okay. It’s one of the things that make him so attractive.

I straighten my uniform, smooth the fabric over my hips, check my reflection in the polished surface of a cabinet door. I look composed. Professional. Palace medical staff.

I don’t need to be Jack’s only lover.

That was never realistic, not for a man like him. Alphas in power are rarely monogamous, if ever.

Being here gives me proximity. Visibility. Opportunity. Once I have a chance I will snatch a little corner in Jack’s heart for myself.

***

Ciel

"Okay, your body has healed. You can expect your heats to resume," the palace doctor says calmly, sliding a slim case across the desk.

"These are suppressants. The nurse outside will explain dosage and monitoring."

"Thank you," I reply, voice even.

Months, sometimes years after giving birth, an omega’s body quiets itself. A pause. A mercy. I knew it wouldn’t last forever, but hearing it spoken aloud still lands heavier than expected.

I step out of the office, the door clicking shut behind me.

Your heats will be back.

The words echo, persistent. I pause in the corridor and press my palm briefly to my stomach—not from pain, just to ground myself. My body doesn’t feel weak. It feels... awake. Alert in a way I haven’t felt since before Lanny.

That explains the low fever I’ve been brushing off. The restlessness. The way Jack’s scent has been lingering on my skin longer than usual, curling somewhere deep and warm.

Heat.

My chest tightens. I haven’t even slept with Jack yet...not really. Not across that final line. I don’t want our first time tangled up in instinct and loss of control.

I want it clear. Chosen. Mine.

I exhale slowly.

Get it together.

I turn toward the nurse’s station.

And stop.

Blond hair. Pale uniform. A face I did not expect to see.

The omega looks up and smiles.

"Small world, isn’t it?" he says lightly, already packing the suppressants into a tray.

I don’t move. "What are you doing here?"

"What does it look like?" He keeps his tone pleasant, professional. "My job."

Heat flashes under my skin it’s sharp, unwelcome. The urge to drag him by the collar flickers, visceral and ugly. I inhale. Exhale.

I will not embarrass Jack. I will not give anyone a spectacle.

I step closer, silent.

To his credit, he does his job. Explains dosage. Timing. Side effects. He asks about my cycle with clinical detachment.

"Before pregnancy,regular?" he asks, pen poised.

"Regular," I answer. "Except when circumstances interfered."

He nods and writes something down. "These are effective," he continues, "but they’re not permanent. You’ll want to reassess with the doctor if—"

"I understand," I say, curt.

He finishes, slides the tray toward me, and finally meets my eyes. There’s nothing obvious there. No triumph. No malice. That’s what makes me uncomfortable because, the last time we were not so cordial.

"Jack is mine," I say quietly.

"Sure," he replies, unconcerned.

My jaw tightens.

"That doesn’t mean he can’t also be mine," he adds, just as softly.