Chapter Eighteen
Alison thought the second time they played this damn game, she’d have been more comfortable. Instead, she felt as unprepared as the first time.
Which was insane.
They had backup who could reach the house quickly and weapons hidden near at hand. They’d already done one such meeting, and yet Alison couldn’t shake the unease.
It was the audience, she suspected. Kneeling for Kyle, Daniel’s fingers tight in her hair, or Trent’s hand feeding her were things she enjoyed, but they felt private. She didn’t want them occurring in front of an audience—and worse, in front of someone she couldn’t trust.
It meant she had to submit to the alphas in front of someone who would be doing the most horrible things to her if they could, and she had to put her faith in the alphas to keep her safe.
A hand set on her lower back, and she reacted without thought. She spun, elbow raised, to nail the person in the face.
Instead, a hand closed around her elbow, catching her before she made contact with anything.
“Well, aren’t you in a mood?” Daniel twisted her until she faced him, though he didn’t appear all that annoyed.
“You aren’t supposed to sneak up on me.”
“I like it rough.”
“Because you’re a pervert.”
“Fair.” He released her then stepped back, his gaze moving over her body from her feet up.
She had no shoes on—they again reminded her that slaves didn’t need shoes.
The bite had healed, so they didn’t need to hide it.
It meant she was wearing something even more skimpy, though it covered all the important parts, a short ruffled black skirt with matching black panties beneath it.
She paired that with a black bra that pushed her breasts up to create cleavage enough to distract anyone.
He let out a low growl, telling her he hadn’t found the outfit lacking at all.
A chill ran up her back, and it had nothing to do with her state of undress. Rather, it had everything to do with the intensity of his gaze.
“You know, I could be quick.” His voice dropped low, coaxing, as he came close enough to run his fingers along the waistband of her skirt.
She wanted to give in so badly. Just a few minutes with him would take away her worries. She’d forget about the meeting, about Anne, about the pregnancy test. None of that could stand against the touch of his lips or the grip of his strong hands.
She shook her head and took a step back. “I can’t.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “Why? Because of the bleeding? Sweet, if you think that bothers me, you clearly don’t know me well.”
“It bothers me.”
He let out a loud sigh. “Fine. But, in case you didn’t know, orgasms help with cramps, so when you’re done being stubborn, you know where I am.”
After that, Alison took a deep breath, glad he’d accepted the rejection so quickly. As she’d proven time and time again, she didn’t have a lot of willpower when it came to turning down the alphas, especially when she needed what they offered so much.
Her cuffs felt extra heavy on her wrists as she waited for whoever was to arrive.
The alphas reviewed the details, because as much as they might seem relaxed, it was clear they still knew what needed to happen.
Trent checked her cuffs, Kyle the weapons and Daniel the alarms to signal a problem to the backup who had parked a block down, far enough to not scare anyone off.
Her stomach was worse, though she’d hidden it from them. Sipping water all day and nibbling on small amounts of food had held the nausea at bay, though nothing had helped her headache.
Can’t even take ibuprofen anymore. Even a single day into finding out she was pregnant, she’d realized that of all the bullshit being a female came with, this had to be the worst. It seemed like a personal attack, after everything else, that she had to suffer this badly.
Alphas should have to carry the babies to make up for everything she’d already dealt with.
The ringing of the doorbell made her freeze. There could only be one person there.
“Come on, pet.” Trent’s voice got her moving, spurring her back to action.
They had to get through this, then the real work was over. Once they’d fooled the head of the slavery group, they only had to stay there for another week until the auction date, when they’d received the address and the authorities could swoop in.
Anne would be safe. The bad guys would be gone. Alison could disappear and figure out what she planned to do away from the alphas, without them hovering and clouding her judgment.
Trent didn’t hook her cuffs together as he helped her to her knees on the pillow placed again at the center of the seating. She took a deep breath and placed her hands on her thighs, eyes down.
“It’ll be okay,” he told her, as if he knew she needed the reassurance.
Too bad it didn’t help, because of all the things on her list of ‘not at all okay’, the meeting was only the smallest part.
He leaned in and pressed his lips to her shoulder, to the mark there. “I promise, pet. We’re almost done. Nothing will happen.” He ran his fingers through her hair, then pressed a hand to her back to straighten her stance before taking a seat beside her.
She strained to hear everything from the other room. The opening of the door, the exchange of words. Most of it was too soft for her to understand, and yet she tried.
The flooring echoed the steps as people came into the living room.
“Not chained?” The voice made her heart speed.
It sounds familiar…
“No. We only need to chain our merchandise at the start,” Daniel said. “If she needed to still be bound to behave, we wouldn’t be ready to go to auction.”
“Admirable,” the man said, his voice deep and aged. “We’ve had a lot of interest since adding her to the registry for the night. I don’t usually come out myself, but I admit, I couldn’t resist.”
“Thirsty?” Kyle asked.
“Yes, actually. I don’t drink alcohol, so water is fine.”
A snap of fingers drew Alison to her feet without even thinking. This was why they’d done their training. She knew what the sound meant, didn’t need to consider it, didn’t need them to spell it out.
She couldn’t see the new man because she kept her eyes on the floor as she hurried into the kitchen. She took a water bottle from the fridge and wiped the condensation from it before returning. She left it closed, knowing people who didn’t trust one another wouldn’t drink from something open.
No one wanted to risk poison.
She bowed low and held the bottle out to the newcomer.
“Thank you,” he said as he took it, drawing her gaze up for a quick glance.
That face… The dark brown eyes, the black hair, the one she hadn’t seen in so long…
She swallowed hard as her heart pounded and her head swam.
Fuck.
Trent hadn’t expected Alison to freeze. He’d seen that same blank expression on her face a time or two before, when something hit her that she couldn’t process.
However, she’d managed the last meeting without it happening, and this seemed far less stressful than when she’d been forced to breathe in the drug last time.
Still, understanding wasn’t needed for him to react.
He snapped his fingers. The sharp sound seemed to rouse her to focus.
She blinked slowly as she rose and took a few steps backward.
Even as she moved, steps careful, she fell into the familiar.
She knelt, not on the pillow but just before Trent, and once against allowed herself to stare at the floor.
The new man, Geoffrey, the leader of the group, sat across from her.
He wore an expensive tailored suit—black with pinstripes.
He had the build of an alpha, so even in his sixties, he appeared fit.
Lines in his face betrayed his age, but still he spoke with the confidence of a man who had long ago grown used to people listening.
He’d brought two others—large, armed men who stood on the edges of the room.
While Trent didn’t love that, there hadn’t been a way to get around it, either.
No one as important as this man would ever consider coming to a private residence without protection.
“You impressed my associate, Galen,” he said.
“He didn’t seem very impressed. If anything, he seemed to feel we were idiots,” Kyle said.
The man didn’t even chuckle. He hadn’t displayed the least bit of emotion since he’d arrived.
“He is loyal and has been in this business a long time, but he’s also set in his ways.
Most of the scouts in the area handle things in a very different way from you, choosing more of the ‘spare the rod, spoil the child,’ philosophy.
Rarely do I see omegas in such good condition so close to the auction. ”
Kyle snorted. “Who would pay for damaged goods?”
The man nodded. “I rather agree. Personally, I dislike seeing women bruised. Not only do they make a woman look unladylike, but striking a female is like someone declaring themselves king. Anyone who needs to say it isn’t really. Hitting a female to prove you’re in charge only proves the opposite.”
Trent frowned, the words…familiar. He couldn’t place them, though.
“We’ve had another series of tests done, to prove she’s still free of any diseases or defects. When Galen forced that drug on her, she did end up in heat, but the records also prove she didn’t conceive. She is currently bleeding, but that should be over by the time of the auction.”
Geoffrey took the files Kyle had, though he didn’t look at them. Instead, he held them out without looking, one of the bodyguards coming forward to take them.
“Not even going to check?” Daniel asked.
“No need to. We will go over them fully after we leave here, but they’ll tell me what you’ve already said here. I’m more curious about things that won’t be included in there. I understand you offer additional training when needed?”
Daniel sat back, one ankle resting on his other knee. “When they need it. Transitions can be hard, and we’re fans of things going smoothly.”
“She froze a bit,” Geoffrey pointed out.