Page 12 of Knot So Sweet
While we wait, Meredith bustles around gathering keys and supplies, keeping up a steady stream of chatter probably meant to be soothing. The alphas clean up their card game, trying to look casual and failing miserably.
I stand near the door, ready to leave if this turns out to be some kind of elaborate trap.
But when Garrick emerges with a bowl of soup smelling like heaven and a basket of bread still warm, I find myself sinking into the nearest chair before I can think about it.
The first spoonful strikes my empty stomach like a blessing. Rich and savory and perfect, and I have to bite back a moan of appreciation. I eat with the single-minded focus of someone who hasn't had a real meal in too long, dimly aware the others are watching but too hungry to care about dignity.
When I finally surface from the bowl, some color has returned to my cheeks and the shaking in my hands has stopped.
"Better?" Meredith asks.
I nod, not trusting my voice. The baker's standing in the kitchen doorway, and for a second his expression is almost... gentle. Then his usual scowl slides back into place.
"Thank you," I manage. "It was really good."
He grunts and disappears back into the kitchen.
Charming.
Meredith leads me up a narrow staircase tucked behind the bakery counter. The steps creak under our feet, and I can hear the murmur of voices below. The alphas probably discussing what to do with their unexpected houseguest.
"Here we are," Meredith says, unlocking a door at the top of the stairs. "Home sweet home."
The apartment is compact and clean, with hardwood floors and windows looking out over the main street. There's a tiny kitchen, a living area with a couch and a TV, and a bedroom with an actual bed looking as though it could fit a normal-sized human.
It's more room than I've had to myself in years.
"I tutored a student who stayed here a few years back," Meredith explains, opening closets and pointing out amenities. "Jenny Patterson. Lovely girl, went on to teach kindergarten in Denver. Left some things behind. Towels, basic supplies. You should have everything you need."
She's moving through the apartment with the efficiency of someone who's done this before, checking the heating works, making sure there are clean sheets on the bed.
"The bathroom's through here," she continues, opening a door to reveal a tiny but functional space. "Hot water works fine. There are towels in the cabinet."
A real shower with hot water and privacy.
"Thank you once again." I keep repeating. I just don't know what else to say.
"No need, dear. We take care of each other here." She pauses at the door. "Does the baker live here?"
She shakes her head.
I breathe out a sigh of relief.
"But, all three of them have a key to the bakery downstairs, but only Garrick has an extra key, to the apartment, because he’s the landlord.”
Three alphas. With keys. One of them has a key to the apartment I'm sleeping in.
My stomach drops to somewhere around my ankles. Three alphas. With keys. To the apartment I'm sleeping in. While I'm off suppressants and probably broadcasting my omega status like a neon sign.
She waits for a reaction, but there is none. At least not one I'm letting show on my face. Inside, every instinct is screaming at me to grab my duffel bag and run. Find a bus station, a train, hell, I'll hitchhike if I have to.
But Meredith wouldn't put me in danger. Would she? The woman who just strong-armed a grumpy baker into housing me and made sure I had food and safety wouldn't hand me over to three unmated alphas like some kind of offering.
Right?
It'll be fine. It has to be. Meredith knows what she's doing. These are decent men. Good men. The kind who make sure strays get fed and sheltered.
Not the kind who take advantage of vulnerable omegas.
