He hung up before Anubis could say anything. Anubis narrowed his eyes at the phone in his hand, feeling something wasn't right. Osiris did not ease Anubis’s worry, leaving him in an even more frustrated and uncertain state in regard to Star.
“Irritating old man!
Putting the call with his father aside, Anubis looked at his watch, noting that Star had left fifteen minutes ago; there was no way to catch him, since there were always cabs waiting out front for customers. And showing up at the guy's apartment unannounced when they weren't even in a relationship was creepy, but damn, it was a tempting thought.
“Fuck, I'm too aroused to sleep and too annoyed to go out.” He sighed, looking at his five fingers, realizing they would have to be the cure for his ailment tonight. Heading to his bedroom, Anubis made a vow. He was going to let Star run from him for now. But once he caught him, he would never let him go.
* * *
Star satby the window in his apartment in deep thought as he waited for his guest to arrive. On the way home, he noticed Dent had called him earlier during the day while he was out of it or working. And although he wanted to see his old friend again, there was someone else he wanted to talk to more. Star got up when there was a soft knock on his front door and smiled when he opened it, seeing Chase standing on the other side.
“Hey, come on in, and thanks for coming,” Star said.
“It's no problem.” Chase entered his apartment, and it was funny that he was actually the first guest that Star had had over since he moved in.
“Can I get you something to drink?”
“What do you have?
“Beer is the strongest thing I have right now.”
“It’ll do,” Chase responded.
“All right, grab a seat, and I'll get you a long neck.”
“This is pretty nice,” Chase commented, looking around while Star went to get two beers and popped off the caps.
Star's apartment wasn't fancy in the least, but it was roomy—a two-bedroom, one-bathroom, with an open kitchen, dining, and living room.
“It's good enough for a place to rest my head.” Star handed Chase a beer, and they clicked their drinks together before taking a sip.
He shouldn't be drinking when he hadn't eaten all day, but honestly, he was nervous about what he had to speak with Chase about. On the way home, a few things kept playing in his mind. One was his newfound powers; two, when whoever Anubis was talking to while Star was pretending to sleep left, he didn't recall hearing a door opening or closing. And most importantly, he hadn't stopped wondering how Chase knew about his past.
“So you were with Lo...Master Anubis?”
Star choked on his beer and started coughing, hearing Chase's question.
How the fuck does he know? Did Anubis lie to me, and now it's known all over Valleywood?
Chase, for good measure, patted him on the back. “Hey, breathe. That's it. Take slow breaths.”
Star took a deep breath, calming down. “How did you know?” he asked, glaring at Chase.
“He has his scent all over you. If I didn't know better, I’d swear he was telling other alphas you're taken.”
“His scent?” Star had taken a shower when he got home, so he knew he was clean, but he couldn't help giving himself a quick sniff test, but he smelled nothing out of the ordinary. “What does he smell like?”
“You won't be able to tell.” Chase snickered.
“Why?”
Chase shrugged. “That's the mystery of pheromones. It's the same for omegas. I bet your scent is all over him right now, and any omega who wants to approach him will think that he's taken.”
“What the hell does all of that mean? Alpha, omega. We're not fucking animals!”
“Says the cat shifter,” Chase drawled.
Chase's cool demeanor deflated against Star's rising anger. “This is all so fucking confusing. How did I end up in this world?”
