Alpha Geek

by Milly Taiden

  He glanced at her again. Fuck, that look of pure ownership was going straight to her dreams that night. “I’ll stay here. If she stays, too.”

  She glanced at Nick. He raised a brow. Right. Okay. Hell yes, she wanted to stay, but she didn’t want to be a burden. “I’ll stay, Nick. I can guard him.”

  “I’ll need full access to him the entire time,” Zeke said excitedly. “This is the biggest breakthrough I’ve had since I started messing around with shifter genome.”

  “Are you all right to stay here?” Nick asked her. She saw the way he stared at her. He was worried about her safety. He shouldn’t be. If only she had explained to Nick how much she’d been fighting her attraction to Knox. Maybe then he’d understand why it nearly killed her to see him bleeding to death.

  “I’m fine,” she declared. “There’s still the threat of the men who came earlier to the party. We have no idea what they wanted or why they were here.”

  “You’re right.” Nick turned to the other guards. “I want you and the others to circulate and keep an eye on the area. I’m not sure what’s going on, but this doesn’t feel right to me.”

  It didn’t feel right to her, either.

  “I just need a few minutes with Knox. I have some questions to ask him,” Zeke said, rushing over to his briefcase and pulling out a pad and pen.

  She motioned for Nick to follow her outside. They walked down the hallway, a few levels down to the ground floor, and to the farthest side of the house, away from extra ears.

  “What do you think?” she asked him. She wanted to believe Knox was going to be okay, but she’d scented the same thing Nick had. He didn’t smell like a regular shifter. That meant they had no idea what they were dealing with.

  “I don’t know. At first, I thought Zeke could help him heal, keep him alive.” He turned to face her. “Did you see what I saw up there?” Those chains were high-capacity and bolted. Not just that, his physique. He’s clearly bigger and strong. Really fucking strong.”

  She nodded. She shouldn’t feel so excited about all the stuff Nick was saying, but she was. This was Knox. For so damn long, she’d worried about him breaking and now he was probably the strongest shifter she’d ever seen.

  “The glow of his animal was off, too.”

  She frowned. “What do you mean?”

  “His eyes. Did you see them?”

  Dammit. She missed something? She’d been so involved with how domineering his look was, she hadn’t paid attention to his animal’s glow. “No. What did you see?”

  “A wolf’s glow is usually yellow. His glow was blue.”

  That was unusual, seeing as his eyes were brown to begin with. “I don’t understand.”

  “A blue glow isn’t common in land shifters. They’re air shifters.”

  She bit her lip. “But remember how Zeke said he used all kinds of shifters? What if this is the one trait he picked up from an air shifter?”

  Nick rubbed his jaw. “It’s possible.”

  She opened the fridge and pulled out two bottles of water, handed one to Nick and opened the other. After a few gulps, she sat on one of the bar stools by the kitchen counter.

  “Nick, what else is worrying you?”

  “Tonight’s event was guarded because he had so many influential people here. In order to get in, everyone had to have an invitation.”

  Shit. “So you mean to tell me those guys were possibly with someone?”

  “Yes. The fact they used hunter’s block tells me they knew other shifters would be here.” Nick gulped down the water in his bottle and set the empty plastic on the counter. “There’s something we aren’t seeing or don’t know.”

  “We’ll need to question him. Find out what he remembers.” She cleared her throat. “I can do that. I can talk to him. Perhaps if I ask casually, he’ll give me more information.”

  Nick sighed. “I know you’re a grown woman and used to being in dangerous situations,” he said, “but I don’t think you should get involved with him.”

  “Nick—” she growled.

  “I mean for right now, Scarlett. I wasn’t telling you what to do. I just want to know what we’re dealing with here. If he goes berserk and tries to kill one of us, I won’t have him near you. Do you understand?”

  What he said made sense, but in her heart, she knew Knox would never hurt her. Her lioness would put her life in his hands. “I’m an adult with special ops training.”

  “Give it a few days. Don’t do anything drastic,” Nick told her. “Keep it in your pants. Wait until all the drugs work themselves out of his system and we see if there are any side effects to him being turned into an alpha versus being a naturally born one.”

  She gave a sharp nod. “Fine. But only because I want what’s best for him.”

  Nick pulled her into a hug. “I know you do. If this works out, maybe you’ll stop denying what you feel.”

  She reeled back and blinked at him. “How did you know?”

  Nick grinned. “I’m your brother. Besides, the only reason I asked him to get you a job with him was because the first time you were in the same room when he came to dinner, you made it damn uncomfortable to sit there while you were thinking whatever it was you were thinking.”

  She laughed and slapped him on the arm. “Nick! You’re not supposed to notice that stuff.”

  “Too fucking bad. I barely touched my food that night.”

  She shook her head and pulled away from him. “I’ll try to keep my hormones under control.”

  He gave a soft sigh. “Please do.”

  ELEVEN

  Scarlett carried a plate of food to Knox’s room. She figured with all the crazy shifter stuff happening to his body, he was probably starving. The moment she walked in, he jumped up and marched toward her. He took the tray out of her hands and curled a hand around her neck, pulled her to him, and kissed her until she couldn’t remember her name.

  The kiss was hot, hungry, and possessive. He growled as he took her lips, pressed his body into hers and squished her between the dresser and his hardness. At first, she’d been stunned, but her lioness reveled in the touch and she quickly pushed back, thrusting her tongue into his mouth and rubbing with his.

  Her pussy slickened. She wanted so much more than they could have at that moment. Nick’s words came crashing back to her like a bucket of cold water.

  She pulled away from the kiss, gasping for air and met his gaze. She saw the blue glow in his eyes now. The rumble in his chest made her belly quiver and her legs shake. Fucking hell, he was sex on a stick. If he’d been hot as fuck as a geeky human, as an alpha shifter, he was making her pussy catch fire, and he hadn’t even touched it yet.

  “No, but I will.”

  She blinked. “Will what?”

  “Touch it. Soon. Very fucking soon, sweetheart.”

  Holy crap. He’d read her mind. Shifters didn’t do that until they were mated. How was that possible? He only grinned and pressed another kiss on her lips before stepping back.

  “Are you hungry?”

  He turned and slid a hot glance down her body. “Starved.”

  She would never survive the night if this kept up. “I meant for food.”

  Zeke was writing furiously on a desk and table. She ignored him and took the tray to the bedside table. “Eat.”

  “You and Nick shouldn’t worry,” Knox said. “I’m fine.”

  She pressed her lips together. “I’m sure you are, but Nick is concerned for your health.”

  He cut up the steak she’d made him and ate faster than anyone she knew. “I’d never hurt you. He should know that. You know that.”

  “What?” She frowned. “Why would you say that?”

  “Nick told you he worried I’d hurt you. I’d never touch you in any way other than to make you come.”

  Ah, fuck. This man was going to need a muzzle. How was she going to keep her girl parts dry if he continued to remind her about making her wet?

  “You heard us?”
<
br />   He nodded, ate the last of his food and drank the water bottle. “Every word.”

  She gasped. “But we were on the other side of the house. On the first level. Nobody, shifter or human, could hear that.”

  He winked at her. “I’m no ordinary shifter, sweetheart.”

  Something else to consider. “What will we do about your work?”

  “I have an office here we can work from. I can access all my files and keep clients informed via email.”

  She moved the tray back to the dresser. “Zeke?”

  Zeke turned to her as if he’d just noticed her there. “What?”

  “Do you still need him?”

  Zeke shot to his feet. “No. I’m going back to the lab. Gotta check out his blood and make notes on his file.” He packed up his stuff and walked to the bedroom door. “Let me know the moment anything changes.”

  She nodded.

  “I’ll be back tomorrow for more blood and more questions,” he said and walked out, shutting the door behind him.

  She turned to face Knox and gasped when she realized he was a foot in front of her. “How the hell did you move so quickly and quietly?”

  He gave her a wicked grin. “Stealth.”

  Dick. “All right, you need to get some rest.”

  He raised a hand to her face. “I know what you’re trying to do.”

  She laughed. “Oh, yeah? What’s that? Because I don’t have a fucking clue.”

  His lips lifted. “You don’t want to want me, but you do.”

  If only that were her only problem. “You’ve been through some serious shit, Knox. We have to make sure you’re okay.”

  “When I prove I’m fine, you won’t stop yourself any longer and will follow your animal,” he demanded.

  She cocked her head. “You got real bossy all of a sudden.”

  He pulled her into his arms. She probably could have pushed away easily, but she needed this. Needed him. She wanted badly to hold him, just hold him. And tell herself everything was going to be fine. “I’m more than bossy, love.”

  She knew that. He displayed alpha traits left and right. She ran her nails into his hair. It’d gotten longer since his change. Gone was the impeccable haircut he usually kept. In fact, all his features had changed. The soft, smooth face had transformed into something harder, rougher. “I’m going to get some sleep.”

  He stroked his fingers over her cheek as if feeling it for the first time. “Your skin’s so smooth. I love it.”

  “Thank you, Knox. You need rest.”

  He sighed. “Maybe. The wolf has gone quiet.”

  “Knox―”

  He kissed her. This time slowly, savoring. Their lips brushed repeatedly. Then he slid his tongue over her lips, pushing into her mouth and curling over hers. The kiss was more exploratory than demanding. He searched for her weak spots and once he found them, he used them to his advantage. Every moan and whimper was followed by a second and a third. It was as if he were learning Scarlett.

  Her legs were ready to buckle when he finally broke their kiss. She imagined dragging him to the bed and begging him to make her his next meal.

  “If you don’t want us to go any further, you have to go,” he said. “Your scent is killing me. It’s making it damn hard to control myself,” he snarled. “All I can think about is fucking outside, in nature, naked. I want you slick and wet, under me, when I make you mine.” He inhaled her scent and his glowing gaze made her press her legs together. “I’m going to have you. Outside. Naked. Screaming my name.”

  She gulped and hurried to the door. “Call me if you need me. I’ll be in the room two doors down.”

  She didn’t bother waiting for him to reply. Instead, she shut the door behind her and ran for her room. Nick had been right. They had to keep their hands away from each other until they knew if anything else was going on with Knox. As it was, she knew nobody who could read minds or hear conversations at the distance he had.

  Hopefully, they’d be able to focus on his work while Nick tried to find out more about the people who attacked him. Knowing those assholes were out there and could do that to anyone made her want to rip someone’s face off.

  Nick would find them. That’s what he did best. She went into her room and stripped, rushing in to take a quick shower. After her shower, she changed into a pair of shorts and a tank top from the clothes she’d tossed into her overnight bag when she got the call from Nick.

  Sleep was harder to come by. Her lioness kept reminding her that Knox was hers. And that none of her previous arguments were valid any longer. He was now a shifter. The last thing she had to worry about was breaking him in bed. Oh, good god. Why did she go there?

  This new version of Knox in bed with her was so not what she needed to think about. She could already imagine him ripping her clothes off and fucking her into the headboard. It might be the highlight of her entire adult life.

  TWELVE

  Early the next morning, Knox leaned against Scarlett’s open bedroom door, watching her sleep. He wanted to crawl into bed with her, let her body curl around him and maybe then he’d be able to quiet the animal. His mind was running a million miles an hour. Already the thirst to run outside and let the wind hit his face, let the animal loose and hunt, were driving him insane.

  He couldn’t stop the building need to have her. A driving lust that demanded she be his. He burned for her. There was a growing possessiveness that she be his mate and then all would be right in the world. The feelings didn’t worry him. He’d wanted Scarlett since the moment he saw her. Now if only they’d hurry up and let him have her. He knew he wouldn’t be able to last much longer.

  There was something else. Something he didn’t know how to explain. A new pull inside him. He went back to his room. Everything looked so differently now. He didn’t even need his glasses anymore. It was like high definition twenty-four seven.

  Zeke and Nick were in his guestroom, waiting for him. It was funny that they had not taken him to his own bedroom only a few doors down. In a way, he was glad. He didn’t need Scarlett seeing that side of him. The comic books in pristine plastics. The DC comics movie collection. Hell, his cheeks flamed at the thought of her seeing his action figure collection. He’d have to man up.

  “What’s going on?” he asked Nick, noticing his friend’s tense stance.

  “My lab partner,” Zeke shouted. “He stole everything. The serums, your blood and my research.”

  Nick turned to face Knox. “If this gets out, you will be targeted. The government will want to cut you up in pieces and see how they can put you back together.”

  Zeke’s face paled. “He didn’t know what I was working on. Our lab is so big, but I think he overheard my call and must have gotten curious.”

  “Don’t you keep that kind of stuff under lock and key?”

  Zeke winced. “Yes, but I guess with all the years we’ve worked together, he figured out my passwords.”

  Fucking hell. Knox met Nick’s gaze. “There’s only one thing to do. Find him.”

  Nick nodded. “I’ve got my men on it.”

  “I want to help,” Knox stated. “I know I can be useful.”

  “Are you crazy?” Zeke argued. “We can’t let you out in the general population without knowing what else is going on with you.”

  Knox growled and took a step towards Zeke. Zeke blanched and moved to use Nick for cover. “Tell him, Nick.”

  Nick stared at Knox for a tense second before shaking his head. “We need all hands on this.”

  “You’re making a mistake,” Zeke warned.

  “Then it’s my mistake to make,” Nick threw back. “Now tell us everything else we need to know about this guy.”

  “He lives in a tiny ass apartment down the street from the lab.” Zeke paced the room. “I went there but it was empty. Like he’d hightailed it out of town in a rush.”

  Nick snorted. “No kidding.”

  “He’s got family,” Zeke glanced at Nick. “I already told
you about them.”

  “My men are checking them out, Knox,” Nick told him.

  “What else? Goals? Dreams? Perfect places to vacation?” Knox frowned. “Banking information?”

  “What?” Zeke cried. “I don’t fucking know, dude. I have been up to my eyeballs in serums and haven’t had human interaction with anyone in months until you guys.”

  Knox rolled his eyes at Zeke’s rambled excuses. He’d been the same way at one point, though. Not really socializing much. Which was surprising when his biggest client made it a point to tell him his daughter liked Knox. Soon after, he’d started dating Lisa and when they decided to become a couple, Scarlett came into his life. He’d never been able to have sex with Lisa, not once.

  His every waking thought had been consumed by Scarlett. He was glad he’d broken things off with Lisa. There was really nothing left for them.

  “I’m going to my office. I need to see if I can look into your guy’s banking history,” he told Zeke and Nick. “Send Scarlett my way.”

  “Wait,” Nick yelled as he headed out of the room. “Are you sure about this?”

  “What else is there?” He met Nick’s gaze with his own frustrated one. “If I can find out his money or other things, I can figure out where he could be. Or what his plans are.”

  “You can do that?” he heard Scarlett ask behind him.

  “I’ll give you a call the moment I find something. If you need me, you know where my office is,” he said and turned to her. “Let’s go.”

  THIRTEEN

  Scarlett didn’t get a chance to ask what they were talking about. She was dragged off by Knox down the hall. They ran down two flights of stairs and through another hall before they reached a massive library. He opened doors at the back of the room that led into a large private office.

  The place smelled of Knox. Clearly, this was where he spent his time when he was home. He shut the door and pushed her against it, reminding her vividly of their time in the guest room.

  “Good morning, beautiful,” he murmured and kissed her lips, softly at first and then with more possessiveness. There was no holding back. She kissed him with the same amount of desire and need she sensed from him.