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“Don’t worry so much. My friend’s legit, used to work for the FBI.” I could hear the clacking of computer keys as he got to work. “Just hang in there, okay? Don’t do anything stupid like say ‘I do.’”

“I might not have another choice,” I muttered as I hung up the phone.

Even though he’d told me not to get my hopes up, I couldn’t help it. The spark had caught the tinder, and a small blaze had begun to smolder inside my chest. I felt like I’d dropped a little of the load I was carrying.

In the aftershock of everything that had happened over the past 24 hours, my body was entirely drained, wrung out, until I was little more than a damp rag. Pushing away from my desk, I decided to call it an early night. It was Roland’s night off, which meant I could go home and get some sleep. I had to trust that he was safe for now.

Except when I emerged from my office, I did a double take. “Roland? What are you doing here? Isn’t it your night off?” It took a moment to register that he was wearing a suit and tie, but it wasn’t his work uniform. In fact, it fit him far better, the shirt a tight fit across his chest, his pants also a slimmer fit, hugging in all the right areas to draw the eye—well, my eye, anyway. I refused to think about who else’s eyes were drawn. I was suddenly no longer tired.

He didn’t seem surprised to see me and tilted his chin up defiantly, a strange expression on his face. Was he mad at me? “I’m here on a date,” he said, and I couldn’t stop my wince, as if his words had hit me like a slap across the cheek.

I gulped. “A date? That’s… nice.” I nearly choked on the word. “Where is he?” I was already searching for this supposed date of his. He’d never mentioned a boyfriend before, and part of me wondered if he was faking it, trying to get a rise out of me. I immediately felt guilty for even thinking that. Roland wasn’t the type to play games.

“It’s starting to rain, so he dropped me off out front then went to park the car.”

Sure enough, the front door opened and a tall, good-looking alpha made his way across the lobby, his suitcoat sparkling with raindrops. There was no mistaking that he was here with Roland, and the way his eyes were focused on my omega made me feral. And then the man’s lips began to stretch into a tender smile, and my fists clenched at my sides. Who the fuck was he, thinking he could smile at Roland?!

“Are you going to introduce me to your date?” I asked through gritted teeth.

With zero hesitation, Roland said, “No. I don’t think that’s a good idea, do you?” He looked straight at me as he said it, clearly judging me for my reaction, and I felt a little chagrined by my attitude. Roland turned and joined his date halfway, and together they headed to the restaurant, leaving me to watch them go. Roland didn’t turn to look back at me even once.

The devastation was crushing. Roland could’ve gone anywhere else for dinner! Was he trying to torture me? Punish me in some way? I followed in his wake like a lost puppy, begging for even a scrap of his attention. Fuck. I was trying to let him go. This was a good thing. It was what I wanted… wasn’t it?

When the asshole ushered Roland into the restaurant with a hand on his lower back, I growled under my breath and turned down the hall to the left, slipping into the kitchen instead of the dining room. The din and clamor of pots and pans enveloped me, but I barely noticed it. Cherie was shouting directions at the staff above the sizzling of the stove and clatter of dishes, water running, but it all disappeared into the background as I wound my way through the kitchen to stand in front of the door to the dining room, looking through the small window to find where Roland was being seated across the room, his stupid fucking date pulling out his chair for him.

Cherie sidled up beside me, trying to get a peek at what I was looking at. “Holy shit, is Roland on a date? Good for him.” When I snarled at her, she smirked and bumped me with her shoulder. “You snooze, you lose.” I didn’t even bother trying to deny it. She snickered and headed back to the grill, but I planted myself right there. I wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

I wasn’t snoozing, and I sure as hell refused to lose.

7

Roland

Alan smiled at me. It was a nice smile, showing off his perfectly straight, white teeth. “And the guy actually bit into the peach, can you believe it?” He laughed, and I decided he had a nice laugh too. “He had no clue what was wrong with it, not even when he’d eaten the whole thing! I didn’t have the heart to tell him.” He gestured with his hands as he talked, and yep, he had nice hands, with long, slender fingers, no sign of a single callous since he worked a desk job as an architect.

I laughed along with his story because it seemed to be required of me, and I was struck by a wave of guilt. There was nothing wrong with the guy. In fact, on paper, he was everything right. He was smart, funny, good-looking, respectful, successful, and driven—but all my mind could see was that he wasn’t Emerson.

When Alan’s gaze softened and he bit his lower lip, I felt a prickle of panic. I knew that look. “Did you want dessert, or should we get out of here?” he asked, his voice getting deeper. Shit. After dinner came the part where he drove me home. He would probably want to kiss me, maybe more.

I pushed my chair back from the table. “Uh, you know, actually, dessert sounds great. I’m just gonna… run to the bathroom, and you order for me.”

His eyebrows jumped. “Sure, what did you want?”

My heart was beating too fast. I was sure I was probably flushed, and I didn’t want him to get the wrong impression. This blush wasn’t meant for him. “I dunno. Surprise me.” If I didn’t get away from this table, I was going to have a meltdown right here in the dining room.

He chuckled. “This feels like a test.”

“Oh, it’s absolutely a test,” I teased, while backing away from the table. He laughed lightly, totally oblivious to how I was already mentally checking out of this date.

I burst out of the dining room into the hallway, gasping. “Fuck,” I muttered, rubbing at my temples. This was such a mistake.

I didn’t really need the bathroom, so instead, I decided to wander up to the desk for a few minutes, maybe shoot the shit with Emily. Anything but sitting across from that perfect man who felt all wrong.

Before I had even reached the lobby, I could hear the rumble of thunder from outside. Through the wall of windows, I could see a torrential downpour had started coming down, flooding the streets and spilling over the sidewalks. I stood there and watched for a minute, flinching at the bright flare of lightning that lit up the street like it was daytime. In the resulting boom of thunder, I didn’t hear the door open off to my right. I gasped when something clamped down around my wrist, and I was jerked to the side. I nearly lost my footing, but before I could stumble, strong arms banded around me. I caught sight of blond hair and ice-blue eyes, just before the door was once again closed and darkness descended.

“Mr. Holland? What the hell are you doing? Why are we in the supply closet?” I asked, even as I grabbed a hold of his lapels, clinging to him. Was this a dream? So many of my fantasies started just like this.

I could barely see the sheen of his eyes in the darkness. “Are you sure he’s right for you?” he burst out without answering my question. “This date of yours, whatever his name is?”

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