Page 75 of Power Shift

“He was busy the last time I saw him.”

“Doing what?” she asks, immediately concerned.

Sadie clears her throat. “It’s my fault?—”

There’s a series of rough knocks on the office door, and I stand. “Hold that thought.”

It’s Duke’s face I see when I pull it open. His expression gives nothing away, so I don’t prod, leaving that for Clover. I havea feeling bringing it up now will only upset Sadie more than necessary.

Opening the door completely, I say, “You’re right on time.”

He passes me, his posture perfect, like he’s got a steel pipe pressed against his spine beneath his black shirt. Sadie turns as much as she can in her seat before she sucks in a sharp breath, eyes crawling up his body.

“I don’t know if the two of you have been properly introduced yet, but Sadie, this is Duke. He’s the lead of the security team we’ll be using and the one in charge of creating the perfect security plan for your birth,” Clover says, waving between them. “Duke, this is Sadie.”

“The omega with a giant watermelon attached to her front,” Sadie adds.

“How do you feel?” he asks, voice gruff and low.

Sadie’s inhale is quick but easy to disguise as a moan of discomfort. Duke lurches forward in response before stopping himself, his dark eyes growing more focused than I’ve ever seen them.

Curiosity has me watching them a bit closer. The de-scenter in the air won’t allow them to get a good whiff of one another, but the interest between them is obvious. At least it is until Sadie seems to realize the same thing and visibly retreats.

“I’m fine. Very pregnant,” she says before turning back around to stare at Clover. “You were talking about a safety plan?”

My best friend buys the sudden change as little as I do. Her eyes find mine for just long enough for me to read the meaning behind them.

Are they for real right now?

I roll my lips to hide a smile and let it go.

“Yes, I was. Shut the door a bit, please, Duke,” Clover says.

He does as she says before leaning against it, arms crossed.

Clover opens the binder and starts to go through the well-labelled list of precautions Duke’s made, as well as a few of the names of the men he’d like to have on call for when Sadie goes into labour.

It’s a simple protection detail with two guards outside the front and one at the back, just in case. Dramatic as it may seem to plan this detailed of an assignment, it’s a necessity in these situations. Alphas kept away from their babies, especially when they can’t be near their omega for comfort, can be incredibly volatile. Combine that with Thorne’s natural aggression, and there could be the potential that he goes haywire and attempts to come get them regardless of the restraining order.

Duke and his team will ensure that doesn’t happen. And once Sadie and the baby are ready to leave, we can only hope that Thorne will have calmed enough to remember his legal obligations. As much as it may bother me, once she’s gone, we can’t do much to help her.

Maybe that’s why Clover has made it her mission to befriend her. Even after Sadie’s gone, we’ll still be in her life and therefore still able to provide some sort of protection.

My phone buzzes repeatedly in my pocket, so I slip out of the office, grateful that I was there to hear most of the important parts.

Jasper’s name being the first thing I see on the screen is like an electric paddle to my chest. I answer the call with a cheek-splitting smile.

“Hi, Jasper.”

“Hello, love. I hope I didn’t interrupt you at work. We’re just leaving practice, and I wanted to sneak a few words in before we hit the media room.”

“You didn’t,” I lie.

“Great. How has your morning been? Did you get a hold of your landlord?”

“Not yet. I tried calling when I was getting coffee, but he didn’t pick up. I’ll try again when I’m off work. How was practice?”

My landlord’s been dragging his feet when it comes to cutting off the de-scenter from my ventilation system. On the one hand, I understand that it’s safer to have it blowing everywhere all at once, but on the other, it’s really started bothering me.

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