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The last thing I expected was a young man, golden and tanned like a surfer god.

Lloyd reclined on a navy checked bedspread propped up by a pile of fluffy cushions and pillows. His tousled golden curls and chiseled features sparked an ember of heat in my stomach. Lloyd scrubbed at his stubbled jaw as his cheeks flushed pink through the golden tan. There was warm curiosity in his blue-green gaze.

“Hello? T-Tahlia?” He leaned forward and rumpled his beige suit. The crisp white shirt and navy tie added to the effortless sophistication. He belonged on a yacht, maybe like the one my former best friend, Seph, owned. But the way he bunched his shoulders and played with the matching pocket square, it seemed like the clothes wore him rather than the other way around.

For a brief second, I wished I could hear him say my real name, not the fake one I used for my profile. It sounded wrong on his shapely lips.

“Hi Lloyd.” I winced, regretting I didn’t put on a more feminine tone or practice a flirty line.

I knew he couldn’t see my face, and I was glad of it as heat flooded my cheeks.

Three hundred dollars. One step closer to my freedom.

It didn’t matter what he thought about the person I was, my body was the real reason he was calling. That was the stark reality of this situation.

I arched my back, making sure he got a good view of my full breasts. They were perky as fuck, thanks to the magic of push-up bras.

“You’re so beautiful,” he blurted out.

I laughed at the slack, shocked expression he wore. Did he think I’d been faking as well? His reaction warmed a secret part of me that the boot of a lesser man crushed. My hand fidgeted with my bedspread, cheaper than his.

His breathing intensified.

Now what?

“I wasn’t sure if you wanted me in something else? Something less?” I teased, expecting him to ask me to undress now that I’d blown past pleasantries. Lloyd shook his head, golden curls falling over his forehead. He swept them back with a shuddered sigh.

Was it really me who was making him feel this way? A throbbing power uncurled in my stomach. The shame that came from this work sounded like a combination of people from my past who found me lacking. But I enjoyed many parts of it.

“No, please. Are you comfortable? I just wanted to have an actual conversation. My pack had meetings all day today, and all I could think about was talking to you.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Wear whatever you like. I don’t care.”

“What about my old bathrobe?” I pursed my lips together to smother another laugh, unconvinced.

Only Omegas was simple. We omegas shared our bodies and others paid to see them.

My personality, or my motives, didn’t have any sway, just my cleavage and whatever sexy lingerie I had dressed in that day. It was refreshing to understand the rules of the game for once. Not like real life, where I floundered each time.

“Anything you like,” he insisted, the twist of his lips boyish. “I-I want to get to know you more.”

“To make sure I wasn’t catfishing you?”

His soft gaze roved over me, narrowing in on where I drew little circles on the bedcover. The giddy sensation in my stomach intensified. I had to get a hold of myself. Reading into Lloyd’smicroexpressions? It was more delusional than past Tully, and that was saying a lot.

Remember what happened last time you thought an alpha was interested in you?

“I can’t lie. My packmate warned me you were just some guy in his basement. You’re much more appealing.” He bit his lip, the comment equally cute and vulnerable.

I failed to stifle the hitch in my breath, and his forehead furrowed.

“Is he there?” My spine snapped straight.

Of course, this was too good to be true. He was making me a show for his friends. My stomach sank, dismay heavy like a stone. Lloyd panned the camera around his empty room, but not before I caught the horror etched in his open mouth.

“No, of course not.”

The room had white walls crammed with frames, baseball caps and basketballs, even a signed jersey on the wall. Lloyd reappeared, eyes wide. “I promise, it’s just us.”

I pulled the corner of my sheet and draped it over myself. My stomach simmered. Let’s see how sweet and nice he remained when I hid my body from him.