Free Win an Alpha, A Gay Romance (Book 1) by Jane Perky

Chapter One
     
    “You understand what I’m saying, don’t you, Rhys?” Alpha werewolf prick Joey Jensen asked.
    To complete the effect of a reluctant heartbreaker, Joey reached over the table for Rhys’ hands. Going for the performance worthy of an Oscar, Rhys noticed with annoyance, but he knew better. Men like Joey only saw weaker Omegas like him as conquests and most of the shifters in town knew Rhys remained a virgin, despite reaching his twenty-second birthday two weeks ago.
    “I get it. I hope you find The One’ for you,” Rhys couldn’t keep the bite out of his voice, but it didn’t matter.
    Cocky bastards like Joey couldn’t tell the difference between sarcasm and genuine sympathy, given Joey thought of himself as God’s gift on earth. What possessed Rhys to go out with him in the first place anyway?
    Wait. Rhys knew exactly why. All his life, someone made decisions for him. He’d grown up in his parents’ pack and everyone expected him to take a mate from the pack. Heck, his parents set him up with blind dates all his life, but all of them only wanted two things from Rhys—his virginity and ability to get pregnant. Never mind Rhys as a person. Oh no, these domineering shifters wanted to be the first in him and breed him. Period.
    Happily-ever-after? Questionable. Sue Rhys, but he was a romantic through and through. Once Joey heard Rhys wouldn’t give up his purity to a stranger without being officially mated, Joey went straight for the exit route—no surprise there.
    “All the best too, bud.”
    Bud? Seriously? That was going to be Joey’s parting line?
    Apparently it was. The lone werewolf rose from his seat, gave Rhys a clumsy kiss on the cheek, before heading out of the café. Rhys wasn’t surprised to see Joey flirting with the first young man he saw. Well, to be fair, Joey wasn’t the worst guy Rhys had been with. Larry, the last Alpha Rhys went out with, broke up with him through a text message.
    Chivalry and manners no longer existed these days, apparently.
    Seeing his phone vibrating and the name flashing on the screen, Rhys sighed. He debated picking the call up, but it was better to have this done and over with. “Hello, mom.”
    “How did it go? Last I remember, Joey and you hit it off from the first date.”
    That was before I learned Joey only wanted to be the first man to plow me in bed.
    Rhys didn’t tell her that though. “It went badly. I doubt we’ll be seeing each other again. He was cheating on me with a werehare.”
    Rhys felt a little bad for lying, but he was sick of being told there was something wrong with him for not wanting to settle.
    “Frisky animals,” his mother muttered. “Forget Joey, Rhys. I found another match. You’ll really like this—”
    “You don’t need to, mom,” Rhys interrupted. “I have another date coming up.”
    “Really? With who?” Suspicion crept into her voice, but Rhys didn’t blame her. He knew his parents only wanted what was best for him—that included grandchildren, pups to fuss over, but they’d have to wait a little longer.
    “You don’t know him. It’s a surprise, but I won’t tell you until I’m sure of him.”
    “Alright then, love you, Rhys.”
    Relieved she cut the call, Rhys sipped his tea—which had now gone cold. Joey liked hearing his damn voice far too much. Not wanting to spoil the rest of his morning, Rhys ordered a fresh pot of tea and grabbed the morning paper from the rack. He scanned through the news, wondering what he’d do next to explain the truth to his parents. Hard to tell them to stop interfering in his life, especially—
    Rhys lost his train of thought when an ad leapt back at him from the page. He squinted at it, thinking it must be some kind of practical joke.
    “All you lonely Omegas out there, are you tired of the constant heart breaks and disappointments in finding The One? Let chance be your guide,” Rhys read the ad out loud, feeling foolish. What the hell was this? Someone’s