One six-and-a-half-foot wall of Alpha who’s flipped my Omega instincts upside down and turned my brain completely to mush.
I look over to see the head vet point first at me, then at my radio. When I glance down, I realize it somehow got switched off. I shoot him a thumbs-up and flick it back on—only to hear my name being called.
“James, do you copy? We need you here. Five minutes ago.”
Part of my apprenticeship is observational hours. Today I’m supposed to be shadowing King, the chute boss.
“Copy. Heading that way.” I squash down the unease at being unprofessional. I know how to do my job, and the last thing I want is to look like I don’t.
I run down the alley and pass Felton, giving him a wide berth. But not before I catch the particularly unsavory look he’s givingme. I can practically feel his eyes as they roam up my body. The urge to retch comes unbidden.
I make my way right up the chute alley. And just my luck, the rider is Beau. It’s like now that I’ve met him, I can’t get rid of him.
I don’t stop to entertain the giddy excitement that blooms in my chest at seeing him, or the surge of desire that rushes through me when he meets my gaze and a confident, sexy-as-hell smile graces his all-too-handsome face.
“Willa,” he says with a slight dip to his head. Somehow, he laced enough heat into that one look and the way he said my name that my traitorous body tingles. And I know that if I were to check, my underwear would be wet with slick.
Fuck, my Omega likes him. Thank God for suppressants, or my perfume would be everywhere. As it is, I’m sure I’m scenting enough for the men in my immediate vicinity to notice, and I feel a deep blush as I catch Beau inhale, almost imperceptibly.
“Hey.” I go for cool indifference. And I'm instantly sure I don’t pull it off. “Sorry I’m late.”
“Don’t worry about it,” King says affably. “Just glad you got here in time. McCrae is about to ride, and this is as good a time as any to get you marked off on this. Plus, it’s the last ride of the night, and I’m sure it’s going to be good.” He says the last as he shoots Beau a cocky grin. “Right, Saint? You ready?”
Beau lets another one of those looks slide over me, and fuck, I can almost feel it. I swallow the sudden lump in my throat, my heart beating way, way too fast. What is happening to me? It takes actual effort to calm myself back down.
A wave of panic tightens across my chest as I watch him settle onto the bull—rope set, long legs braced, one deep breath drawn in. Then he gives the nod. And then the chute flies open.
I’ll never get over this moment. There isn’t a word or phrase that can touch on the surge of power that fills the air when the chute opens. My Omega instincts are going crazy.
First, the panic because I just don’t like seeing him in danger, and then the excitement because I know he’s good. The sense of pride that engulfs me is as strange as it is overwhelming.
He’s not mine, but fuck do I want a taste. I’m still feeling the electricity from where his skin met mine this morning, and the pull he had in his eyes. I would have climbed him and kissed him until I forgot where we were if Pearl hadn’t piped up.
The buzzer sounds, and the crowd surges with cheers and exaltation. He’s done it again. As he slides from the bull and runs to the rails, almost directly in front of where I’m standing, time slows.
The inhale and exhale of his breath. The bob of his Adam’s apple. The deep baritone of his voice when he says, “Hey, darling,” before turning to pump his fist at the crowd.
His proximity makes me want to lean forward and press every inch of my body against every hard, firm plane of his.
Oh God. I need to get a grip.
But just as fast as his eyes heat, they cool and are filled with danger as he glances over my shoulder.
Turning to see what has him looking like that, I spot Mark Felton talking to the chute boss. I’m about to make my exit, still sticking to my “anywhere Mark is, I’m not” rule, when the chute boss glances over at me. King lifts his hand and motions for me to join them.
With a fleeting look at Beau, I head that way. At least I’m not alone with him.
The look in Beau’s eyes is lethal. I can tell if he had the power to jump the fence right now, he’d do it. The realization is confusing.
“James, Felton here needs to talk about tomorrow’s placement. I can’t be here, so you’ll have to shadow someone else for takedown.”
King makes his exit, and somehow what felt public with him here now feels not so safe when it’s just me and Felton.
I got this. Professional. He can’t hurt me. He has nothing over me.
“Felton, so what’s the plan? Where am I tomorrow?”
“Straight down to business. We haven’t caught up in ages.”
