“Apollo. He gave us this address,” I whisper. The tug of his teeth against my skin breaks through the fog, stealing what little breath I had left in my lungs for a beat too long.
“Oh, Beau…” It's my turn to tug his head back now. “No biting,” I tell him softly.
“Biting?”Apollo growls, and I flinch.Shit.I hear a thump against the pantry door and wonder if that’s the sound of Hawthorne preparing to rip it open.“Get out of there, Dream,”the Alpha warns, and I gasp as I pull away from Beau, leaning my head back. I cup his face in my hands and giggle breathlessly.
“Slow down, we’ve got time.” I choose my words carefully, before leaning in slowly and pressing a kiss to his jaw. “If you bite, we’re in big trouble.”
All hell will break loose.
Yet, a tiny voice in the back of my head, fueled by hormones and needy Omega instincts, pouts.What about just a tiny nibble?
“I’m losing control,” Beau admits, shaking his head lightly, and I drop my hands to his shoulders. “We have to leave.”
“The pantry or your house?”
“House. I’ll explain once we’re safe. Whatever you do, keep your words guarded.” Beau grabs the handle, shoving the door open, smacking Thor with it in the process. Instead of apologizing like I would expect from the Omega. Beau smirks at the Alpha, cocky and confident in a blink. “Watch yourself.” He looks Thor up and down before adding, “Security, huh? Dream doesn’t need security when she’s with me.”
“I work for her father. Can’t trust her to make good choices on her own, clearly,” Hawthorne says as he steps out of the way, checking me over from head to toe as I follow Beau out of the pantry.
“Whatever. We’re hungry.” Beau stumbles slightly, moving through the kitchen on unsteady legs, almost like he’s drunk. One glance around the room reveals several empty bottles, but Beau was sober in that pantry. Not even a hint of alcohol on his breath.
Well, he does have a reputation for being wild, unruly, and a bit of a bad boy. He’s been the opposite since I met him, so this must be an act. A carefully chosen mask donned for the man watching the cameras all over this house.
Going along with it, I giggle, prancing up next to him and ducking under his arm as I wrap mine around his waist. We stumble down the hall together.
“He’s driving, obviously,” Beau snorts, keeping up the act all the way until Thor shuts the back door of the car after us.
“Where to?” Thor asks as he gets in the driver's seat, still all business.
“You’re good,”Apollo grunts at us, and I let out a heavy sigh as we pull out from the driveway.
“Thank you for coming to find me.” Beau sounds so sincere. “We have maybe two hours before my father starts calling incessantly. Three before he sends someone to come look for me. He’s pissed about the other night. I ditched my tracker.” He drops his head. “Sorry I was such a dick back there, Trev.”
“His name is Hawthorne,” I correct him automatically, realizing my mistake almost instantly. “Shit, my bad.”
“No, this is good. The name Trev is linked to Haze Instinct. Call me Thor,” the Alpha says as he looks into the rearview and meets my eyes.
“Thor. Got it.” Beau nods.
“We can’t go to Haze, as I’m sure you already know,” I say, looking away from the Alpha so I can focus on Beau. “So where do we go? We have safe houses planned, but without you, we couldn’t plan much.”
“I don’t know, I mean, other than bars and clubs…hotels? I use them a lot to get away. I’ve got another tracker.” He lifts his hand, showing off the bracelet. “At least it’s not a‘guard,’ which is his code for a spy who watches my every move and reports back to him. I can’t expect to be alone for long before he shows up with another one, though.”
“Okay, hotel it is. Apollo, can you find a safe one? We’ll make it work.”
We find a hotel,book the rooms online, and check in.
Apollo, being paranoid or cautious, I’m not sure, insists Thor scan the room for bugs or cameras before we go in.
After Thor sweeps the room three times, he escorts Beau and me inside. We catch a few sideways looks, but no one recognizes Beau when a whole-ass mountain of an Alpha is the one to check us in.
There’s something deeply unnerving about the thought of Scott knowing exactly where we are at all times because of the tracker he forces his son to keep on him. Even worse is the idea that someone might be joining us soon. A stranger sent by Scott to watch Beau’s every move and make sure he isn’t plotting against him.
It’s fucking creepy. And insane, honestly. Though, my very presence proves Scott is right to worry about who Beau is with and what he’s plotting. Too bad for Scott, I’m a smart bitch, and I brought backup. I’ll need to get as much information as I can before then, though. I need all the pieces if I’m going to solve this puzzle.
“I’ll sweep again, but I told you before they came in here, it’s clear,” Thor growls at Apollo through the earpiece.
The hotel room door beeps as it opens inward, startling all of us. Thor draws a fucking gun I didn’t even see him carrying, aiming it at whoever the fuck just walked in.
