In the bathroom, I touched the fluffiest towels in the world before stripping off, and running a bath. It was a deep, freestanding tub with gold taps. I poured in half a bottle of something that smelled like jasmine and climbed in.
I soaked until my skin was pruned, and afterward I used some of every bottle of lotion and potion on the counter, saving the rest for Maeve. She was going to love it.
At eight pm, dinner arrived on a silver trolley. The woman in the navy dress wheeled it in without a word, lifted the cloche, and revealed a plate of food I couldn't even name. She told me it was lemon sole with some kind of seafoam on top. There were also vegetables carved into tiny, identical cubes.
I stared at it.
"Is there... is there any ketchup?" I asked.
She blinked. "I can request some from the kitchen."
"Never mind," I rushed out. "I’m sure it will be lovely. Thank you."
She left, and I ate what I could identify. The fish was good, even if I had no idea what the seafoam was supposed to taste of. I saved the bread roll, wrapping it in a napkin and tucking it into my bag for later.
Old habits.
I stared at the enormous bed. Touching the fabric and imagining it was mine.
“It’s not a nest, Presley. It’s a hotel bed.”
I crawled over the sheets and rested my head on the pillows as I imagined inviting alphas into a nest like this…
“Stop it!”
5
Presley
The next morning, nauseahit me the moment the elevator doors opened on the thirty-fifth floor.
I was gripping my backpack so hard my knuckles were white.
Inside it, nestled next to my meager belongings, was the turkey baster. I spent ten minutes this morning wrapping a pink silk ribbon around the handle and even tied a bow.
Professionalism, Presley. Presentation is everything.
Three men stood and watched me stroll into the space. Each was gorgeous in his own way. But it wasn’t the way they looked that made the air feel electric, it was a scent.
It was thick and intoxicating. They all smelled of rain, that electric charge before a storm breaks. One of them had the scent of leather, another something earthy.
None of them had a sweet fragrance, which meant they weren’t my scent match.
That would make this easier.
But did I want to drop my knickers?
Therewasa strange rumbling in my stomach. I pressed my hand there, wishing I never had the second portion of scrambled eggs for breakfast.
I glanced around the office, trying to look nonchalant rather than desperate.
The office was pure wealth. There was expensive wood, not the thin plywood that lined my caravan, the real stuff that came from the tallest trees.
The furniture was of the softest leather, and there were books upon books on the far wall. Even the art looked expensive, though it could have come from a street vendor. I doubt it, but how would I know?
The office was so fancy. Even the glass was tinted.
“Welcome Miss Prince. Take a seat,” a deep voice said.
