Page 24 of Omega’s Fever (Prime Match #2)

Milo

I try to ignore how Kellen’s eyes track my every movement as I button my shirt. Court’s in recess for two days, which means I need to catch up at the office. I need to pretend everything’s normal when nothing about my life resembles normal anymore.

I haven’t been fired. Yet. But that doesn’t mean I can slack off. I am a damn good lawyer. They hired me for a reason. It might be time to remind them of that.

“I’ll be back by six,” I tell him, reaching for my tie. My fingers fumble with the silk. Everything feels too sensitive lately, like my skin’s been stripped raw. “There’s food in the fridge, and—”

“I’m coming with you.”

The tie slips through my fingers. “What?”

“You’re not going anywhere alone.” Kellen pushes off the doorframe of my bedroom, all six-foot-four of tattooed muscle moving with that predator’s grace that makes my pulse skip. “Not after the park.”

“You can’t just sit in my office all day.” I retrieve my tie, avoiding his gaze. The scent of him—indefinably alpha—fills the bedroom. Makes it hard to think. “Anne would have a coronary.”

“Then I’ll wait in the lobby.” He crosses his arms, biceps straining against his t-shirt. “Where I can see everyone coming and going.”

“Kellen—”

“This isn’t negotiable, Milo.”

The way he says my name sends heat pooling low in my belly. I’m starting to love how my body responds to him. Every cell seems magnetized to his presence. I can feel the absence of the suppressants already. I’m feeling better, if slightly queasy. But that’ll be the baby. Our baby.

I press a hand to my still-flat stomach, then drop it when I catch him watching. “Fine. But you’re staying in the car.”

He grins, making my heart beat faster. “We’ll see.”

Of course, he doesn’t stay in the car. By the time we reach the gleaming lobby, he’s already out and scanning the space like he’s mapping exits and calculating threats. The security guard takes one look at him, gaze darting to Kellen’s ankle monitor and reaches for his radio.

“He’s with me,” I say quickly, flashing my ID. “Just... visiting.”

The guard’s expression suggests what he thinks of someone like Kellen visiting prestigious law firms, but Kellen hasn’t been convicted of anything. Yet. The thought twists something uncomfortable in my chest.

“I’ll be right here,” Kellen says, settling into one of the leather chairs near the entrance. He frowns, picks up the Cosmo he’d already read and then drops it, selecting another. “Take your time.”

I make it three steps toward the elevator before Anne’s voice cuts through the lobby like a blade.

“Warren. My office. Now.”

She doesn’t wait for a response, just turns on her designer heels and marches back toward the executive elevator. I follow, catching Kellen’s eye as I pass. He gives me a small nod, scrutinizing every person who enters the building.

When we get to Anne’s office, she doesn’t bother sitting, just turns to face me with arms crossed.

“We’ve discussed this. I can’t have an ex-con in the building.”

The words land like a slap. “To be an ex-con, you have to be convicted first.”

Her perfectly shaped eyebrow arches. “Semantics won’t save your career, Milo. Do you have any idea what people are saying? What clients are thinking when they see him lurking in our lobby like some kind of—”

“Bodyguard?” I interrupt, surprising myself with the steel in my voice.

Something’s shifted inside me these past weeks.

Maybe it’s the pregnancy hormones. Maybe it’s just exhaustion with playing by everyone else’s rules.

“Because that’s what he’s doing. Protecting me from very real threats that this firm seems happy to ignore. ”

“Protecting you.” Her laugh is razor-sharp. “Is that what we’re calling it now?”

Heat floods my face, but I don’t back down. I’ve already accepted I’m going to lose this job. Funny how freeing that realization is. “He insisted on coming. He’s not taking no for an answer.”

“Then make him.”

“You’re welcome to try.” I meet her gaze steadily. “Maybe you’ll have more luck than I have.”

Something flickers across her face—surprise, maybe, at quiet, eager-to-please Milo Warren finally showing spine. She studies me for a long moment, and I wonder if she can smell it on me. The changes. The claim that hovers just under my skin, waiting.

“Fine,” she says finally. “But if he’s going to be here, hide him. Find a free conference room. You can work in there.”

It’s a dismissal and a reprieve wrapped in one. I nod, already turning to leave when she adds, “And Milo? Whatever’s happening between you two, handle it. Quietly. The merger is too important for... distractions.”

The elevator ride back down feels endless. I catch a glimpse of myself in the elevator mirror. There’s color in my cheeks for the first time in weeks. I should have flushed the pills weeks ago.

Kellen is exactly where I left him. A group of junior associates gives him a wide berth, whispering behind their hands. He doesn’t seem to notice or care, his attention locked on the entrance.

“You’re allowed upstairs,” I tell him. “You’re officially hiding.”

His mouth quirks. “Better than the lobby?”

“Marginally.”

Kao’s already in the conference room when we arrive, surrounded by boxes of merger documents. His face lights up when he sees me, then does something complicated when he spots Kellen. He frowns, then grins and offers his hand.

“I didn’t thank you for charging across the park like some kind of action hero.” Kao settles back into his chair, grinning. “My brothers are still talking about it. They’ve insisted on escorting me to and from work now. Apparently, I need protection from scary men who might be lurking.”

“Not a bad idea,” Kellen says, claiming the chair nearest the door.

Kao catches my eye, and we share a moment of amused understanding about overprotective alphas. Even as warmth spreads through my chest at the thought of Kellen wanting to keep me safe.

“Can I borrow your laptop?” Kellen asks as we settle in to work. “Need to check on some things.”

I slide my personal laptop across to him without thinking. It’s almost peaceful, working like this. Kao and I trading notes on the merger while Kellen types quietly in the corner. Like we’re just three normal people doing normal jobs.

The illusion lasts until lunch, when Kao stretches and announces he’s going to grab sandwiches from the deli across the street.

“Want anything?” he asks, already pulling on his coat.

“Turkey on rye,” I say automatically. “Extra pickles.”

Kellen looks up from the laptop. “I’ll come with you.”

“Nothing is going to happen in broad daylight,” Kao says, waving him off.

Kellen looks like he is going to argue, but I lay a hand on his massive bicep and he relents.

After he leaves, the conference room feels smaller. More intimate. I can feel Kellen watching me as I work, the weight of his gaze like a physical touch.

“Find anything interesting?” I ask, not looking up from the contract I’m reviewing.

“Maybe.” His voice is thoughtful. “I think I’ve found Penelope.” He turns the laptop so I can see the screen. “According to this, she just started working at a nursing home uptown.”

I study the Facebook profile he’s pulled up. I have no idea how he knows its her. The name is Penny, no surname and her profile picture is a dog sitting on a bright orange sofa.

“You sure that’s her.”

“Yeah. She showed me enough pictures of that dog for me to recognize it anywhere.”

“You think she might testify?”

“Depends on how scared she is.” He turns the laptop back around. “But she knew the truth about what Cobb was doing. Saw things.”

Hope flutters in my chest. Until we found out about the baby, he point blank refused to get anyone else involved. “We could—”

“I’ll handle it,” he says firmly. “I need to keep her safe so I’m going to need to be careful about approaching her. I—”

He breaks off as the door opens: Kao returning with our food.

The rest of the day passes quickly. We work in companionable silence until the sun starts slanting low through the windows.

I stay finishing up a few things after Kao leaves.

Kellen seems content to wait for me. He has a quiet stillness to him that doesn’t match what he looks like.

It’s almost possible to forget he is there sometimes, but then I catch him watching me with those dark eyes and then I don’t think he is still at all.

He’s a man who watches, thinks and when he looks at me like that, I realize that Cobb doesn’t stand a chance.

A small smile plays at the corner of his mouth as he catches me watching and I look away.

“Ready to go?” I ask, starting to pack up files.

“Yeah.” He closes the laptop, stretching muscles that have been still too long. “Good to be heading home.”

Home. The word settles warm in my chest. When did my apartment become home to him?

The drive back is quiet, both of us lost in thought. I’m already planning dinner—something simple, maybe pasta. We could open a bottle of wine and pretend we’re just a normal couple having a normal evening.

“Pizza,” Kellen says suddenly.

“Let’s order pizza. Watch something mindless on TV.” He glances at me, something soft in his expression. “Take a break from thinking about the case for one night.”

I burst out laughing. “That’s exactly what I was thinking.”

He reaches over and squeezes my hand. A warm flush of happiness floods me and I squeeze back.

Back at the apartment, I change into soft clothes while Kellen orders from the place down the street. When I emerge from the bedroom in worn sweatpants and an old law school t-shirt, he’s already claimed his spot on the couch, arm stretched along the back in clear invitation.

I hesitate for a heartbeat before settling against his side. His arm comes around me, careful and gentle, and I let myself melt into his warmth.