23. Lucy
CHAPTER 23
Lucy
The Valor estate was idyllic and peaceful with all the jacaranda trees getting ready to bloom. The winter to spring shift was cold and rainy but occasionally it was sunny and warm like it was today with just enough of a breeze that I was grateful I’d chosen to wear a turtleneck despite the sun warming my hair.
Liam parked and then got out, coming around the car to open my door for me like a true gentleman. He even offered me his hand with a small smile, like he knew I’d take it even when I hesitated. I stared at his pale skin, noting the calluses on his palm as well as the creases that were unique to him.
Everything about this didn’t feel real.
When I set my hand in his, there was a brief moment of vertigo when I let him gently pull me out of the passenger seat.
Staring up into those garnet eyes only made it all feel even more like a dream or maybe a fantasy. The breeze ruffled his white-blond hair until it fell into his eyes just like it had this morning and the sun made all the reds in them glow brighter than the most precious gems.
He didn’t once look away from me either. Liam didn’t even blink as we stood there, suspended in this moment together like time had stopped just for us. Even the purple jacaranda blossoms swirled around the car like this was a romance drama and I almost looked around for the film crew, but they’d never be allowed into the Valor estate.
I wanted to ask why he was so interested in me – if he was attracted to my pheromones or if he was just doing his duty as an alpha and helping me because I was an omega and nothing more.
Thankfully, I said none of those things and forced myself to release his hand, fixing the curl that had gotten free thanks to the wind.
Even if Liam was interested in me romantically, I wasn’t going to do anything about it. He would never choose an omega who works as a detective out in the field. Even if he did, I would be in the spotlight all the time because of my connection to him, and that was the last thing I wanted.
Let’s say I decided to do something about the tension between us – it would never actually work out. Not long-term. He was a legacy alpha from a wealthy family, and I refused to give up anything to conform to what people like that considered the ideal omega.
If we even got that far.
The moment his mother found out my pheromones were too fucked to give Liam another generation of legacy alphas, she would demand he end things if my tattoos and piercings didn’t manage it first.
No matter how hard we tried, a relationship between us would not end well.
But my emotions couldn’t quite understand that when he looked at me like this – like there was no one else in the world and I was the only one who could complete his soul. No one else.
“You’re breathtakingly beautiful,” Liam murmured, tucking my curl behind my ear when the wind tugged it free again .
An outsider would definitely believe we were a couple. Shit, even my heart wanted to believe when everything he did and said made it flutter. I let him settle my hand on his forearm, remembering all the weird etiquette rules Frankie’s dad, Francisco Lopez, had made me learn as one of the conditions for living with them.
“Am I your first boyfriend?” Liam asked as he directed me toward Melinda’s massive front door.
“Yes.” There was no point in denying it, but I wasn’t going to explain how I didn’t really date anyone. I definitely fucked them though when I was in the mood for more than platonic comfort. “How many girlfriends have you had, Liam?”
I really didn’t care, but knowing might help with the case. No other reason. I most definitely had no personal interest in his answer.
He smirked when he caught me stealing a look at him. “I’m surprised you didn’t ask how many boyfriends.”
“Because I know it’s only one.” I followed him up the stairs, keeping my eyes on the ground to make sure I didn’t trip and make a fool of myself yet again. “Cassius has been by your side for a very long time. He makes sure there’s no room for anyone else.”
We stopped at the door and Liam rang the doorbell, that stupid smirk on his face never once wavering.
“So, does that mean you think I’ve dated other women while dating Cassius?”
Before last night, I wouldn’t have thought so, but the way Liam acted around me was too weird. I’d chalk it up to the fact that I was an omega and it was in an alpha’s nature to need one, but there were plenty of omegas in the world for Liam and Cassius to share, so why me?
“Have you?”
“I had one relationship with a female omega from the Steele pack, but neither of us were really interested in each other. Our parents insisted we meet though.” Liam suddenly tipped my chin up so my gaze was on him, not the ground. “Why do you ask, Lucy?”
“I was simply curious.” Was I leaning into him, or was he bending toward me? It was hard to tell when I felt frozen in place with my heart pounding against my chest like a drum.
Was he going to kiss me?
The door opened and I dropped my eyes back to the ground, wishing I could wipe my sweaty hands on my skirt, but I didn’t want anyone to see how nervous I was.
“Master Liam, it’s good to see you,” the servant murmured. “Please let me escort you to the drawing room and then I’ll fetch the madam.”
So fucking prim and proper, but the servant didn’t demand to know who I was before letting me in.
Amazing what people would let slide when Liam was the one standing at my side.
“How should I address your omega?” the servant asked as he led us through the mansion decorated in cream and white.
I blinked and nearly stopped in my tracks when it occurred to me this man knew I was an omega. How? Had the guard forwarded the information or had he sensed it?
“You may address her as Ms. Lucy.” Liam settled a hand on my lower back to keep me walking. It was so smooth I didn’t stumble or catch my toe on the rug as we made our way to the drawing room drenched in sunshine. “But hopefully, it won’t take very long until you can address her as Mrs. Valor.”
Jesus Christ, was he really going to say something like that now? As far as the rest of the world knows, we’ve just met. We haven’t had a single public date, and yet he wanted to start rumors that he had plans to marry me?
This fucking guy…
I was so irritated I let him pull me in close and brush his lips against my cheek. Then I blinked and saw the low table between two couches in the sunny drawing room was set like we were about to have afternoon tea .
Was all this really necessary? I just wanted to go through the house uninterrupted. I didn’t want to have to pretend I was Liam’s girlfriend or cater to Gideon’s widow with all this rich people nonsense.
Our country was a democracy so why did the wealthy like to pretend they were nobility anyways? It made no sense to me.
“Tell Melinda to take her time,” Liam told the servant. “Lucy is also the detective my mother hired and she wants to take a look around the house first.”
The man in the smart vest and matching pants bowed his head slightly and then disappeared down a hall, leaving us alone without a single protest. I’d have Frankie talk to him, but servants in households like this one were usually loyal.
“Is he the only one who works here?” I took my phone out of my pocket and selected the video option. Pressing the red button started the recording and I slowly spun around the room to get everything before heading toward a door in the opposite direction the servant had gone.
“Melinda has a personal assistant to help her manage her schedule and whatever she needs to get done, but no one else who works for her has access to this house. Her agent meets with her at Valor Enterprises, which is also where her personal trainer works with her three days a week.”
Liam followed behind me as I went into the butler’s pantry, filming the whole thing before going out the other side to see the space open up to very tall, vaulted ceilings with an open floor plan.
A casual dining room, a kitchen that looked like a mix between something homey and rustic and what you might see in a world-famous restaurant. There was a massive living room with a large couch and so much natural light.
But the creams and whites felt a little washed out when compared to the golden glow of the sun.
This minimalist design wasn’t really my thing but it was ridiculously popular with the wealthy. I suppose it made sense when they had someone else to keep it clean, but I could never find something like this welcoming and cozy enough to call home.
I considered the large space, breathing in deep to see what the various smells could tell me, but there was nothing. Not even the smell of food lingered in the kitchen and it didn’t look like anyone had cooked here despite the food I’d seen in the drawing room.
The fridge was well stocked and I breathed in again, getting a light sense of what fruits and vegetables were stored there. Aside from that, all I could smell was cleaner. It was strong too, but not ammonia or bleach.
Maybe the servant who’d greeted us had cleaned up just before we’d arrived. I couldn’t smell his pheromones either, but that didn’t necessarily mean anything. Most rich people insisted their servants wore heavy-duty scent blockers and switch to clean uniforms a few times a day even when they were weaker betas.
But this was more than that.
This house was nothing but a pretty facade hiding the emptiness inside.