by Jena Wade
He sighed. “I’ll sleep in.”
I stepped in close. “He said Josiah offered to cover you.” I was quoting a guy whose name I didn’t know about a guy I had no knowledge of. The oddness was not lost on me.
“I take it back.” He huffed, but I could see his resolve weakening. “He is a double snitch.”
“Come on.” I took him by the hand. Based on the conversation I’d had outside, it wasn’t like the entire place didn’t know we were at least getting-naked friends. “Let me take you home.”
“I’m too tired, and you think sex is the answer?”
It wasn’t a no. And it also didn’t sound as if he fully believed that was my goal. More like he was clarifying what he felt to be true.
“You’re too tired, and I think you need a hot meal, a bath, and possibly a nice foot massage.” Not that morning sex was off the table.
“So, I’m not getting any. What makes you think I’d be into that?” His head fell to my shoulder, and I let out a chuckle. “What?”
I just shook my head.
“Fine. I will go with you or at least follow you, but only because margarita happy hour tips suck monkey balls, and my feet could use some loving.”
I took it as a victory. He thanked Josiah for his offer to stay late and finish his shift and then followed me home. I wanted him with me, in my car, but his decision made sense.
Darn practicalities.
He held my hand during the ride up to my place, leaning against me the entire time. I wanted to believe it had everything to do with him being affectionate and nothing to do with him needing me to help him stay standing. Seeing him like this was hard. Every Alpha instinct inside me was pounding at me—demanding I protect him.
“Hey, why don’t you sit on the couch while I grab you something to eat and run you a bath.”
“I ate at work, but sitting down does sound great.” He plopped down. “I hope you didn’t think I was being coy about the sex stuff. I really am exhausted.”
“I can see that on your face, Carter. Let me go run you a bath.”
“Bubbles?” His innocent question sounded anything but.
“I am not that kind of daddy,” I teased as I left the room. Flirting should not be part of this night. Carter needed to be taken care of.
How long since someone selflessly gave to this man instead of expecting something from him?
I ran the water, filling the Greek soaking tub that worked beautifully for a nice long bath but was not comfortable to more than one person. Most nights that would matter and I’d be in the master bathroom filling up my other tub, the one designed for two, lived. He needed to know this was all about him. I wasn’t even sure why that mattered so much, but it really did.
Being cheeky, I added bubbles and wished momentarily I had a boat. Not because I was into that kind of daddy play, even if former partners had referred to me as Daddy on occasion, but because I had a feeling it would put a smile on his face.
By the time I walked out to fetch Carter, the tub was filled and the room had enough steam to be relaxing without being too much.
“Tub’s ready.” I walked in to find Carter rolled up on the couch in a little ball, sound asleep. I tiptoed out and into the guest bedroom, turned down the sheets, and went back to get him. I removed his shoes one by one and scooped him into my arms. The man didn’t even flinch the entire time I carried him into the bedroom and covered him up.
“Night, sweet Omega.” I brushed a kiss on his forehead then switched off the light on the nightstand.
“Night, Alpha,” he mumbled, not even close to fully awake.
I pretended it was me he was talking to and not some figment of dreamland.
Maybe one day he would call me that while we were awake. Maybe one day he would open up to me. Maybe one day we could be more than what we were now.
Tonight was not that night.
Chapter Three
Carter
I walked into work wearing my best jeans and hottest tank top, ready to start my night bartending. After spending the entire weekend with Jamison, I’d had begun to worry, not for the first time, where exactly this relationship was going. Our hookups were completely casual to him, and I played it off like they were to me as well. I didn’t want to look like the pauper who fell in love with the prince. The time I spent with him led me deeper and deeper in love with him. I thought about him when he wasn’t around, hoping he’d come by and see me, wishing maybe one day it’d be more than just a scratch to an inch.
“Hey, Timothy,” I said.
“Hey. Didn’t see you all weekend.”
“No, I stayed with Jamison.”
Timothy whistled through his teeth. “Things getting pretty serious, then.”
“Nope,” I said. Not for him, anyway.
“There was a guy here Saturday night looking for you.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah. Kind of lanky dude with a buzz cut.”
Dread filled my stomach. “Sounds like my ex.” What the hell was he doing around? Last I’d known, he had skipped town after leaving me a note telling me we were through and the rent hadn’t been paid in three months. That was why I’d been stuck living in my car when I’d met Jamison.
I’d stupidly trusted my boyfriend to pay the rent. I’d written him a check each month, never bothering to ask for a receipt. Damn my trusting self.
“Well, if he comes around again, tell him I’m not here. You know the rules: don’t give out personal details about the help.”
“Yes, I know,” Timothy said. “This isn’t my first rodeo.”
Hours later, we were just coming off the evening rush when a man slapped a twenty on the counter. “Give me your best whiskey.”
I lifted my gaze to find my ex, Bryan, standing there and looked around for the hotel security that stayed in the vicinity of the bar. Thankfully, the guy on shift was standing by the door watching.
“You can’t be here,” I said to him. Bryan had never been violent to me, at least not when he was sober, but I wasn’t taking chances.
“I’m a paying customer. I can be anywhere I want.”
“You can be a paying customer someplace else.” I slid the twenty back to him.
Anger filled his face. He’d always been quick to lose his temper. Obviously, the past year hadn’t changed that. I was not in the mood to deal with him, though.
“I don’t have anything to say to you.”
“I have something to say to you, Omega,” he said.
I rolled my eyes. As if he needed to remind me he was the Alpha and I was the Omega. He’d always been type to cling to the stereotypical rules roles. He acted as if he could boss any Omega around at any time, simply because he was an Alpha.
“I’m not doing this,” I said. “I don’t have anything to say to you. I’m not interested in anything you have to offer. I think it would be best if you go. Unless you are staying at this hotel, you don’t have a reason to be here.”
He reached across the bar and snatched my elbow, his fingertips digging into my flesh. He twisted his grip, and I yelped in pain. “Let go of me!”
The security guard came to the counter. “Is there a problem here?”
Bryan let me go. He shrugged his shoulders back. “No. There’s no problem. I’ll catch you later, Carter.”
“Please don’t,” I said.
Bryan left.
I took a deep breath, hoping no one else had paid any attention to the altercation. There were only a few people staring, thankfully. I rubbed my arm where he had held me. He didn’t break the skin, but I imagined he’d left a mark.
“You all right, Carter?” the security guard asked.
“I’m fine. Thanks for being here.”
“No problem. I snapped his picture before I came over. I’ll show the front desk so they don’t let him back in.”
“Thanks.”
“No problem.”
I pushed Bryan out of my mind. He was probably just in the area and felt lik
e harassing me. He hadn’t made contact in the past year, I doubted he wanted to get back together or make amends, and I most certainly wasn’t about to do either of those things. Hopefully he got the hint and left me alone.
The rest of the night flew by without any issues. I thought briefly about going to the police and filing a restraining order against Bryan. But on what grounds? Just because I didn’t want to see him didn’t mean I could take legal action. Besides, restraining orders weren’t a guarantee he’d leave me alone. The police were stretched thin with actual crimes to take care of.
At two in the morning, I clocked out, grabbed my jacket, and left. Timothy’s shift had been over hours prior, so he would already be at the apartment we shared a few blocks from the hotel, so I walked when it was nice out.
I tried to put the thought of Bryan out of my mind as I walked home. Instead, I thought about Jamison. I smiled to myself. It had only been twenty-four hours since I’d last seen him, and already I was thinking about spending time with him again. I should put a stop to these thoughts, but every once in a while living in a fantasy land wasn’t so bad.
A hand grabbed my arm and whipped me around. Then a fist slammed into my face.
I fell to the ground as pain exploded behind my eyes and blood poured from my nose.
“Time to teach you a lesson, Omega. I should have kept you in line better when we were together.”
“Fuck, Bryan, get away from me.”
I kicked out with my feet, still blinded from the pain of being sucker-punched in the face. He grabbed me by the arm, and hauled me back up then threw me against a wall. I tried to scream for help, but his hand went over my mouth. I kicked as much as I could, trying to buck him off me, but he gripped my arm tighter, and I felt the exact moment it broke.
With one flick of his wrist, pain shot through my forearm, and I yelped. It was muffled by his hand covering my mouth. Oh god, he’s going to kill me. I’d known he had a temper, but I’d never seen this side of it before.
His eyes were enlarged with rage and darkness.
“You don’t get to disrespect Alphas,” he said. “Know your place, Omega.”
In one last ditch effort, I brought my knee up and slammed it into his groin. Cheap shot, if there ever was one, but I was desperate.
His knees buckled, and he let go of me. I took off. My vision was clouded from the pain, and blood covered my face, but I knew the neighborhood. I thanked my lucky stars I could run faster than him. At least I assumed I could under the circumstances.
I made it a few blocks before I felt comfortable stopping.
“Hey, man, are you okay?”
I swiped the blood from my eyes to see a woman standing in front of me. She was an older Hispanic lady, dressed in thick wool coat. Could I trust her?
“I’m okay.”
“You need to get that face looked at.” She reached out and touched my shoulder. “C’mon. I’ll get you to the hospital.”
Her touch was warm and friendly, so I followed her to the hospital a few blocks away. Despite my concern about the cost, I had to get my arm looked at. It throbbed under my sleeve. I’d heard a pop when Bryan twisted it.
***
At the hospital, I was ushered into a curtained-off section of the emergency room. My nose had stopped bleeding, though it swelled, and my arm ached something terrible. Thankfully, the ice pack one of the nurses gave me seemed to be helping.
Lola, my guardian angel who’d walked with me to the hospital had gone home. She’d given me her number, though, in case I needed anything. I didn’t think I would, but I appreciated her kindness.
Now that I’d calmed down, the adrenaline had slowed, and I could take in the fact I’d been assaulted by my ex-boyfriend. I’d become a statistic like so many other Omegas. The thought sickened me.
The police arrived and asked me questions. I gave them all the information I had about him, which wasn’t much. We’d only dated for a short while, and it had ended nearly a year ago.
The officer looked up from his notepad. “Bryan Clark was his name?”
“Yeah.”
He looked at me curiously. “How long did you live with them?”
I shrugged. “A couple of months. We had been dating for a few weeks when I moved in, mostly to help out with his rent. He apparently wasn’t using my money to pay it, though, since we were evicted.”
“We have reason to believe a man by that name has been robbing apartment complexes throughout the south side area for the past two years.”
“What?” I shook my head. The thought was unbelievable. “He’s not smart enough for that.”
“We don’t think he’s working alone.”
The nurse came in then. “We need to get you ready for X-ray. Can you tell me if you’re pregnant by any chance?”
I shook my head. “No, I’m not.”
“Are you absolutely certain?”
“I’m sexually active, if that’s what you mean, so it’s not a 100 percent guarantee.”
The nurse nodded and smiled. “We’ll take a test, just to be sure. It doesn’t take very long.”
I gave them the sample they needed for the test, and the police officer returned.
“I’m going to file this report. We may have more questions for you. This is the first lead we’ve had on this group. Can you tell us about his friends or anything else?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know a whole lot. I mean, we were dating, but it wasn’t the forever kind of thing. It was more convenience than anything else.”
“Well,” he said, “the last of these robberies ended in the death of an individual in the apartment.”
I stilled. “You think Bryan killed someone?”
“We don’t know for sure. You say he knows where you work?”
I nodded.
“Does he know where you live?”
“No, I don’t think so.” Timothy, my current roommate, hadn’t worked at the bar when I’d been with Bryan, so he wouldn’t know about him.
“Keep it that way,” he said. “And if you see him again, call me.” He handed me his card.
“Thanks,” I said numbly. I’d known Bryan was a sleazeball, but a murderer?
“We’ll let you know if we catch him. In the meantime, you might want to think about filing a restraining order.”
“I will,” I said. “Thank you.”
The officer left just as the nurse returned. “Good thing we did that.”
“Why’s that?” I asked.
“It’s positive. You’re pregnant.”
“What?” As if I hadn’t had enough curveballs thrown my way today. I blinked at her. She must be in the wrong room. I’d only been with Jamison in the last few months. “No. I can’t be.”
“Yes,” she said, “You are. Now, let’s get those X-rays. I can guarantee that arm is broken. Your ex sure did a number on you. Ain’t none of my business, but if this baby is his, I’d recommend you get as far away from him as you can.”
“It’s not his,” I said slowly. But I did still want to get as far away from him as I could. Bryan was trouble. I had no way of getting ahold of Jamison. I couldn’t wait around at the bar until he decided to come back and hook up again. And what was I supposed to say? Surprise. I’m having a kid. It’s yours. What if Bryan found me in the meantime?
I could go to his apartment. And do what? Camp out in the parking garage until he arrived? I didn’t have a key or the code to get up to the top floor.
I needed to get away fast.
I touched my nose and flinched as the pain flared up. If the blow I’d received had been lower, like in my abdomen, what then?
My heart clenched at the thought. The baby was an accident for sure, but that didn’t mean I wanted to get rid of it. No, I had to get out of here. Get away from where Bryan could find me. I’d go someplace safe, someplace he didn’t know about.
Millerstown.
Alex was there, enjoying his happily ever after with his mayor. They had a brand new
baby, and as much as I didn’t want to intrude, I did have to keep myself and my child safe.
Millerstown could give me the safety I needed while I figured out what the hell I was going to do.
Chapter Four
Jamison
Two weeks. He had officially become an addiction if only two weeks had passed since I last saw Carter’s smile, enjoyed being enveloped by his scent, was able to take care of him in the way he needed, and I was this anxious to see him. There was just something about Carter.
And if I were honest with myself, the reason I lasted so long had to do more with the insane hours I’d been keeping at work than willpower.
After leaving work early, I arrived at the bar in the late afternoon, hoping to catch him at the start of his shift so we could chat. There was so much I wanted to say to him. This stopping by randomly wasn’t working for me. I wanted more, and it was time to Alpha up and make that known.
A few times that glorious weekend he spent at my place I hinted around like a chicken, worried I’d scare him off. As strong and tough as Carter appeared on the outside, he had wounds just below the surface. He never spoke the words telling me what they were or who caused them, but he gave me glimpses from time to time when he let his guard down.
Those were my favorite times with him. Not when I was balls deep inside of him—not when I held him in my arms as he allowed himself to relax enough to slumber—not when he flirted with me, letting his needs be known. No, my favorite times were when he let me in, even if only for a nano second.
I walked up to the bar and took the seat in the corner, watching for Carter to come in, wondering if he would greet me with that smile of his, the one that lit up a room, the one he didn’t share often. His normal smile, the one he wore at the bar, tended to be for show. It got him great tips but never reached his eyes the way the smile I loved so much did.
“What can I get you?” Timothy, one of the bartenders I’d seen most of my visits to the bar asked. If I recalled correctly, he was also Carter’s roommate. Damn, there was so much I didn’t know about the Omega I wanted to call mine.
“I was actually hoping Carter could wait on me.” Because nothing says weirdo stalker type better than that.