“Seven works for me. Just don’t take it personally if I start drowsing off on you afterward.”
I watch the pregnant omega smile, proud of Clover for reaching out. “We’ll be right there with you. I’ll send you a text with Clover’s address once we’re finished here.”
“Thank you,” Sadie says.
Clover grips her knees, straightening her spine. “Alright, first, we need to get on with the actual appointment before we get too distracted. If you can get up on the bed, we’ll take a listen to baby’s heartbeat.”
Sadie’s expression explodes with interest and excitement. My heart warms at the sight while I stand and make my way to the door. The waddle Sadie has makes me stifle a giggle behind my fist while stepping out of the room.
I’m not needed in here for this part of the appointment, and now that I know we have plans for tonight, I have a one-track mind set on ordering dessert from my favourite bakery.
Baked goods are the key to solidifying any new friendship, and something tells me that Clover won’t stop until we’ve done just that with Sadie.
There’s a verydistinctive feeling that comes when someone’s watching you. Whether it’s from afar or only a few feet away, that prickle on your skin and drop of a pebble in your stomach is unmistakable.
As I remove my key from the doors of Harbour of Hope, I know there’s someone somewhere nearby with their eyes on me. Breathing in, I slowly adjust my hold on the key to rest between my fingers and slip my hands into my jacket pockets.
Clover left half an hour ago to grab the order I made at our favourite bakery while I offered to stay behind to lock up. Wegot lucky with not having any emergency deliveries tonight, and I let her go early with genuine excitement. I’ve never minded staying behind to lock up, and tonight, the lead of the security team we’ve “rented,” as Clover would say, is still here, adding to my ease.
Duke’s standing beside me now, his back to the doors and eyes on the street. His rigid posture isn’t that alarming . . . right? We’ve worked with him and his company since we started the clinic, and he’s always a bit stoic.
“Everything okay, Duke?” I ask softly.
The mammoth of an alpha with shoulder-length red hair and gnarly scar from his left ear to the corner of his mouth grunts in response to my question. “I’ll walk with you to your car.”
“Just to be a gentleman, right?”
“Yes.”
“You’re not selling it very well.”
He drops his eyes to me, expression flat. “Let’s go.”
I nod, sucking in a calming breath. It’s probably just a homeless person who’s gotten lost. We’re only a few blocks from the closest shelter, so it’s not that far-fetched.
Scanning the street, I don’t see anyone. Not even a stray animal.
“Did you get a chance to look at the restraining order Sadie sent over today? Clover said she forwarded it to you.”
Duke hovers a hand over my back without touching as we head for the parking lot. His respectful nature is one the entire team shares.
He picked every member by hand when he first started his company, and they all follow very firm safety precautions considering the work they do around omegas. Duke is the only alpha on the team and is on a constant prescription of rut suppressants. I’ve seen him go as far as to use nose plugs ina situation where he couldn’t replace himself with one of his highly trained betas.
Safety is a priority for us here, and it’s a relief to be able to put complete faith in the team of outsiders we’ve involved in what we do.
Duke keeps his eyes trained forward. “I have.”
“And?”
“And I’m starting to draft a safety plan.”
“Have you dealt with this before? Two alphas stalking their runaway omega while a restraining order is in place. Should we be worried?”
“We’ll take care of it, Briar. You and Clover don’t need to worry about a thing.”
I huff, releasing the key digging between my fingers. “You know that’s not possible, right? We’re going to worry no matter what.”
“I’ll protect Sadie,” he says, or swears, rather. The certainty in his tone is steely, confident to the max.