Chapter Three

Kieran didn’t crowd Tiffany when she stepped into his home. He stayed a few feet back, giving her the chance to move around and get her bearings. He didn’t want her afraid.

“So, you train omegas?” She drenched the word in attitude.

So much for being afraid.

“I used to, yes. It’s been a long time since I’ve done such a thing.”

“Why am I the lucky one?” She walked by a globe on a bookshelf, spinning it with a single finger.

“You aren’t. You were in an unfortunate position, and I was able to help. Sam actually called in the favors to get approval, and I have enough name recognition for the judge to agree.” Kieran kicked his shoes off beside the door, then lifted an eyebrow and nodded at her feet.

Tiffany rolled her eyes like a petulant teen and returned, kicking off her dirty sneakers beside his. “What does this whole ‘training’ thing mean? Are you going to get me a collar?”

“Don’t tempt me, girl.” Kieran allowed a growl to enter his voice at the thought of how black leather would look against her light skin. He pushed the image aside and cut off the sound. “No. You are not someone who requires the training I’ve done in the past. Not that a firm hand wouldn’t do you some good, but your inclusion on the registry appears a political move. So, while I can’t make it so you don’t require this year, you will be able to spend it in my care without any real training.”

“Why?” She twisted to nail him with a hard look. “Seems like an alpha with an omega who can’t say no would enjoy the benefits.”

“If you think that, you don’t know me well.” He fought the desire to make her understand. He wanted her to look at him differently, to understand he wasn’t an alpha looking for a forced mate.

But they didn’t need to make this any more complicated, and it was already complicated. How could he live with her, share the same space, smell her all day and all night and not take her? His control had limits, and she’d already undermined all his control. Why she affected him so strongly, he didn’t care to examine.

“We’ll just be roommates?”

“Not exactly. While I can give you a rather large amount of leeway, in the end, you are an omega under my care. You will not risk yourself, and you will keep me apprised of your schedule. I will ensure that you are cared for, that you have all you need, that your finances are in order so that at the end of the year, you have plenty saved up for whatever and wherever you wish to go. However, your day-to-day life will be your own. Make no mistake—I am not looking for a slave or a mate.”

“And the rest?” Her words quivered as she asked, as if her nerves had finally gotten the better of her.

“The rest?”

“Will you give me suppressants for my heats? What about sex?” Ah, the way she tripped over the word ‘sex’ made his cock perk up. As if the bastard’s gone down since I first caught her scent.

He was taken back again to her soft lips and her agile tongue, to the way she’d lapped his cum from his fingers and the sounds she made. Hell, she’d have to take care of herself during that year. Adults couldn’t be expected to forgo basic biological needs. Could he sit in his own bed when her scent drifted through the hallway? When she made those little gasps, quiet as she could, and tried to hide that she was fingering herself in her room?

His lips pulled into a smirk at how the confident omega wilted with the graphic conversation. “I won’t be fucking you, but no, no suppressants. They aren’t good for you long term, and there is no reason for you to be on them now. Dr. Brown has given me sedatives should a heat strike. Without the drugs Randy used on you, we’ll see it coming and be able to prepare the next time. What happened before won’t happen again.”

Her back went straight. She acted like he’d threatened to beat her instead of telling her he wouldn’t treat her like a sex slave.

“Well, I’m sorry you were so inconvenienced.” Her words came out sharp enough to wound.

“You’re twisting my words.”

“I’m not doing anything. Do you want to show me where I’ll be sleeping, or should I find it myself?”

Kieran’s lip lifted at her tone, his alpha side wanting to put her in her place. He wanted to overwhelm her, to cage her in, to offer bites to her throat that would mark for days. He wanted to fuck her until all that attitude drained away.

She breathed in, a long, slow inhalation through her nose. Her cheeks reddened and she took a step forward, as if the scent alone reached out and drew her close.

But he couldn’t. It didn’t matter what his body wanted, he couldn’t fucking do it. Instead, Kieran shook his head and pointed. “Down the hall. Second door on the left, the room with gray walls.”

Again, she stopped and pulled back. She wore hurt well, but only for a heartbeat before anger swallowed it up. Her steps came loud, like gunshots, as she stormed down the hallway.

He was too old to have an angry nineteen-year-old in the house again.

* * * *

Kane lounged on the roof of his apartment building, his gaze on the stars. Fuck, he liked the night sky. In the city he couldn’t see shit, but that didn’t bother him much. He’d pretend he could see each little star, that they shone as bright as they had the few nights he’d gone camping in the middle of nowhere.

No word back from Tiffany. Had she run, already? He’d find her, of course, but he wouldn’t stop her from going. Girl was smart, knew if running was her best shot. Still, the silence got to him.

He’d sent the address she’d asked for, a building owned by a corporation name she’d sent him. She’d needed a place they owned that wouldn’t get much foot traffic, something without any other payments to it. Seemed the omega was searching for something off the books, and something above both their paygrades, if he had to guess. It had taken him more work than he liked to do to find what she needed.

Found it in an old empty apartment building in the northern area of the city. The company, a no-name corporation where no one knew what they did, had bought it up six weeks prior, then not made another move. No permits to renovate, no construction companies to work on it, nothing at all. Seemed whatever they’d bought it for, they didn’t want people knowing shit.

What has that troublemaker gotten herself into?

From what little Kane could dig up, he’d figure drugs. Place would make a nice spot to stash them, and a good base of operations to meet with dealers. Sure, it was higher priced and nicer than most of what he saw, but the security wasn’t good enough for it to be guns and too remote to be whores.

In his experience the options were always drugs, guns or whores.

A buzz from his phone had him pulling it from his pocket.

Speaking of.

How do you pick a lock?

He laughed at Tiffany’s odd question.

You need lockpicks, doll. Use the pick to set the pins, then the tension rod to twist the lock And if you don’t have a lockpick?

That had him stilling.

This just a hypothetical, right?

Let’s say it is. Hypothetically, what would you do if you didn’t have those things and needed to get into this:

A moment later, a picture came through of a lock, and he groaned. So, not hypothetical.

What trouble have you gotten yourself into?

No trouble if you tell me how to open this door.

His growl came out low, angry.

Get your ass back into your car and away from there.

No can do. Help or be quiet. The buzzing of my phone is distracting.

He sat up, unease pulling at him. Girl might have a spark, but she didn’t need to be dealing with whatever was on the other side of a lock like that. A deadbolt of that level said someone was serious about keeping people out, and no one dropped that cash unless what was on the other side was fucking important.

You’re at that address, aren’t you?

No. Never. That would be crazy.

Her smart ass made him want to paddle her. How could she make him laugh at the same time as wanting to throttle her? He’d spent a year keeping her at a distance, making sure to never risk a glimpse because he didn’t know if he could walk away once he did. Now, though? Well, fuck, now it seemed he’d have to go see the troublemaker in person.

And he might fuck her on the spot for being so damned difficult.

Worse? They’d both enjoy it.

* * * *

Tiffany struggled not to kick the door. She’d taken a bobby pin from her hair, bent it and tried to use it. Turned out searching the internet for how to pick locks was less useful than movies had led her to believe. She’d taken fifteen minutes and had no luck.

It seemed the skill was something she’d have to put some time into if she expected to continue her work as a sleuth. Not to mention that trying to do it with a single hand made the entire thing harder. She’d crouched down to use the fingers of her hand in the sling, but nothing worked.

Worse? Kane had been no help. When he’d stopped responding, she’d buried the hurt. Stupidly, she’d thought he’d come through for her.

Guess not.

Like every other man in her life, he’d given up. She was too wild, too headstrong, too everything. The only men who stuck around were ones like Randy. Ones like the alpha who’d made her to run in the first place.

And what did is say when only psychos could put up with her?

Tiffany ignored the point and huffed, kicking the door when her temper slipped.

“That’ll show it.” That voice…

Tiffany didn’t turn, afraid to do so and find it all an illusion, to find he’d slipped away. “Didn’t think you’d show.”

“Well fuck, guess I’m a gentleman. Came all the way across town just to open a door for you.” Kane’s voice came from behind her, his breath blowing strands of her hair. It told her he was tall, much taller than she was.

An inhalation told her something else, too. “You’re an alpha.”

He reached past her, the picks he’d mentioned in his hands. He slipped one into the lock, then the other, his hands moving agilely. “Yeah, I am. That bother you?”

“Why would it?”

“Because omegas get nervous sometimes.” The clicking of his picks punctuated the conversation.

“So, you know what I am?”

“The guy who gave you my number might have given me a heads up.”

“Is that why you never wanted to meet me?” Not turning around was hard, her stomach flipping. His voice was even better in person, rough and deep and full of attitude. She wanted to lean back against his chest, to close her eyes and feel his warmth.

“Part of the reason, yeah. You didn’t answer me. You nervous, doll?”

Her head shake might have been more convincing if she hadn’t released a loud gulp at the end of it.

“What happened to your arm?”

“I fell.”

“You fell?” The words came out deadpanned, slow and sarcastic.

She offered the same attitude back. “Yep. I’m pretty clumsy.”

His laugh was soft and close, but the click of the lock cut their conversation short. He pushed open the door. “So, you want to tell me what this bullshit is about?”

Tiffany went to turn. She wanted to see him. She needed a face to go along with the voice, with the person she’d spoken to for so long.

A hand on her shoulder kept her back to him, but the action caused her to brush against his front. And, yeah, even with her lack of experience, the hardness of his cock said he was interested. His thumb dug into her shoulder in a firm massage, as though it would make the moment less tense. “You don’t want that.”

“Want what?”

“To see me. Don’t got a clue what you were thinking you’d find, but I’m gonna bet it ain’t what I am. Why not keep those eyes forward and let yourself fill in details, huh?”

She twisted but couldn’t shake the grip. “Let me see you or leave me alone. I’m sick of this game.”

“If this is a game, it’s one you ain’t equipped to play, trust me.” Even as he said it, a rough edge to his voice, he released her and took a step backward.

Tiffany turned. No matter what he said, she wasn’t nervous. She couldn’t be, not with Kane. Sure, she’d made some mistakes in judging people, but not him. He’d been a rock for her, helped her when no one else could, and it seemed he stayed away because he thought it best for her. Hard to be worried about someone like that.

When she laid eyes on him, she realized she’d been wrong.

She should be nervous. Not that he’d hurt her, but that she’d have no defense. He stood tall enough she had to tilt her head to see him, and he was younger than she’d expected. He couldn’t have been older than early twenties. His brown hair was shaved on the sides, the top longer and pushed back. Amber eyes caught the light from the street, intense and hard. A black T-shirt stretched over his chest, tight around his thick biceps, and a pair of blue jeans covered his thighs. From beneath the lines of his shirt, colorful tattoos spread out over his arms. Complete sleeves went from arm to hand, and more ran up his throat, a few drifting up above his jaw. She couldn’t tell in the dim light what the tattoos were of, beyond a few details. Some vines with leaves, an arrow, what she was pretty sure was an eagle or other predatory bird. She wondered if they covered his chest, his stomach, his back. Exactly how far down did they go?

“Don’t do that.” His voice had turned guttural, and it went straight to her cunt.

“Do what?”

“Don’t look at me like that.”

She pulled in a breath and turned her head, trying to get a hold of herself. Maybe his reaction was all physical. He wanted her because he had to, and that was why he fought it.

She understood that pull of something she didn’t want. She’d been ready to beg Randy to fuck her when she’d been mid-heat, no matter how frightened she’d been, no matter how she’d hated him.

That dried up the lust, the thought that Kane might feel the same helplessness. “Sorry,” she said, continuing so he didn’t have a beat to break into the conversation. “Thanks for getting the door, but I’m good if you’d got stuff to do.”

“You think I’m going to turn around and let you walk in there by yourself? Especially since you ain’t said shit about why you’re here?”

She tucked the thumb of her good arm into the pocket of her jeans, trying to look casual. “It’s nothing. I’m trying to get back a sweater my ex took.”

“A sweater? You asked me to look up the holdings of a shadowy company, and you try to break into the building at one in the morning, because your ex took a sweater?” He cocked an eyebrow and rested his hands on his hips. The action made his chest impossibly wider so he took up even more space.

“Sounds like as good a story as any other.” Tiffany offered a mocking salute before turning and stepping into the darkness of the building.

A heartbeat later, his voice startled her, coming from behind her. How the hell was he so silent he could sneak up on her so easily? “I’m not letting you out of my sight, doll. Better get fucking used to having me on your ass.”

Sounds good to me.