Page 30

Ooh, I should surprise him tonight. Keep him on his toes.

Wait. Was this how normal people felt? Disappointed to watch their partner leave for the day, yet eager to see them later? Maybe there really was hope for me to have a life with him, away from thievery. Emerson seemed to believe it.

Maybe I had a chance.

After choking down some suppressants, showering, and throwing on yesterday’s jeans with an old t-shirt, I shuffled to the kitchen in search of Emerson’s apology-pancakes. Bee’s bedroom door was still open, and I assumed they hadn’t come home last night. Or, if they did, theynope’dstraight back outonce they heard the sounds we were making. I probably owed them dinner for that.

As I heated the pancakes, my hand drifted to the bite mark at the base of my neck. My shirt obscured most of it, and it still stung a little when I moved, yet it was oddly comforting to touch. In a few weeks, it would heal into a beautiful silver scar, matching Emerson’s.

A knock at the front door snapped me out of my thoughts, and I turned the heat off my food. My gut churned as the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. Still, I quietly approached the door and glanced through the peephole.

Fucking hell.

“I know you’re there, Trystan!” the one voice I’d wanted to avoid taunted through the door. “Time we talked, don’t you think?”

Shit, my phone was in my bedroom. I didn’t have time to run. All I could do was—

The knocking resumed, louder this time. In a snap decision, I opened the door, forcing the cocky grin my guests were used to seeing.

“Hey, Roman. Leo. You two don’t usually make house calls.”

“You’re right. I don’t.” Roman smirked wickedly, a flash of overly white teeth. “Good to see you know where this is going, then.”

They pushed their way into the flat, and I automatically moved aside, mentally kicking myself for not blocking the door. As Roman made himself comfortable on the sofa, with Leo standing behind him like a menacing shadow, I pulled over Bee’s desk chair and took a seat opposite them.

“Ready to start the yelling, Daddy?” I asked, leaning back in the chair partly to appear relaxed, and also to keep my face a little further out of arm’s reach.

“Have you ever known me to yell, Trystan?” Roman asked, knowing full well the answer wasfuck yes. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m not impressed right now, but this client ain’t exactly my favourite person either. Won’t stop calling me for updates, three times a fucking day minimum.”

Practically on cue, Roman’s phone rang, and he rolled his eyes, pulling the phone out to show me the caller ID—just one letter, H.

“Y’see what I mean?” He scoffed and handed the phone to Leo, who within three long strides was down my hallway, taking the call in a hushed tone. “That fucker won’t stop calling me because of your shitty work. I can’t have that. He says he needs that diary before he ends up like his missus, but I’m half-tempted to put him out of his misery the old-fashioned way to shut him up.” He held his hand to his head like a gun, miming a shot as he cackled at the idea. “Now, Miranda, she was worth the effort. Paid on time, gave me space to make her deliveries. But her man? Clearly not the brains of the operation. Still don’t know how we work.”

Roman shook his head, tutting under his breath before focusing back on me. “So, with all this push from the client, I wanted to check on you.”

“How kind,” I choked out, the words making me want to vomit.

“Yeah, see, I’ve been worried. Your work’s usually so solid, so dependable. But this job…” He waved his hands in the air, searching for the words. “It’s got the better of you, somehow. You wanna tell me why?”

Keeping my face neutral, I shrugged, meeting his cold eyes dead-on. I’d never flinched before this job, and I wasn’t starting now. “Your client underestimated the security of the target. Bad information leads to delays. You know this.”

“Bad information, hm. Yeah.” He nodded, stretching his arms back behind his tattooed head. “And here I thought it was the alpha you’ve been fucking all week.”

My stomach sank to my arsehole as Roman chuckled, pointing his index finger at me. “Surprised? So was I when the client told me. Turns out, not all his information’s bad.”

I gnawed on my lip, desperately trying to think of a way out of this that didn’t put Emerson in danger. “My sex life doesn’t—”

“You one of those omegas?”

I froze, my pulse hammering in my neck, making the claiming bite ache. I hadn’t expected him to just come out and ask like that. He’d know if I lied to him, too.

Apparently, my silence was enough of an answer for him.

“I fucking knew it.” Roman leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he scrubbed a hand down his face. “After all these years, y’know, I didn’t think you’d lie to me about something like this. Guess that’s what I get for putting my faith in you. Instead of a professional, I get a goddamned cum-addicted whore.”

He rose from the sofa, and my adrenaline spiked. I rushed to my feet, making it two swift steps towards the kitchen for some kind of weapon before a thick arm swooped around my neck from behind.

Fuck! I hadn’t even heard Leo come back!