Page 5 of Not Ready

“Well, you’re alive,” Kate says as I walk into our apartment. “I waited up just to be sure.” She laughs, but she looks as exhausted as I feel. “I’ve got to be up at the ass crack of dawn for class.”

“Thank you,” I tell her sincerely as she shoves herself off the sofa.

“No problem.” She nods to the edge of the couch. “I had the bat ready to go if that dickwad tried anything.”

I laugh but give her a quick hug as she passes. She’s a damn good roommate, and it sucks that I’ve brought trouble to her door. “Get some rest and thanks again.”

“Ahh, don’t get all sentimental pregnant lady on me. It’s too late for that.” She gives me a kiss on the cheek and heads toward her bedroom.

I aim for mine, ripping off my shoulder bag and tossing it on my dresser. I grab a quick shower to rinse away the smell of The Kitty Cat Lounge and boot up my computer. Talking to Bishop is my favorite part of any night, but the little light next to his name isn’t illuminated.

Just got home from work if you have a minute. If not, I’ll talk to you tomorrow. I’m dead on my feet.

After sending the message, I wait for a while. He doesn’t immediately join, which is okay. The man has a life and job of his own.

I grab my bag and count out my tips to pass a little time, but it doesn’t seem like he’s going to join the feed. Shoving my cash into the small safe I keep in my desk drawer, I finally decide to call it a night.

Giving the chat window one more glance, I mentally will the light next to his name to light up, but it doesn’t. I leave it open just in case he pops in before I completely fall asleep. If he does, it’ll give a dinging sound to let me know he’s watching my camera feed.

I climb into bed with a huff.

Life is lonely lately. It’s hard to imagine how much lonelier it’s going to get with a newborn and no partner.

Luckily, exhaustion takes over. I fall asleep before I can spend too long lamenting all my mistakes.

“Wake up,” Kate says, shaking my arm. My roommate must want to die. I get very little sleep as it is, meaning no one should wake me up, under any circumstances, when I actually manage to fall asleep. “Vale, seriously, it’s important.”

I grunt, swipe long hair out of my face, and struggle to sit up. “Is everything okay?”

“I don’t think it is.” Kate sits on the edge of my mattress. “That guy, the weird one, was just in our apartment.”

“What?” I sputter out, still half asleep. “Andrew?”

“Yeah.” She frowns, shaking her head. “I didn’t let him in. Unless shit radically changed in the last six hours, I’m guessing you didn’t, either.”

“No, fuck no,” I assure her.

“Yeah, well, he told me the two of you are dating. He said to let you sleep and left like it was normal for him to be inside our place. It really freaked me out! I’m supposed to be at class in ten minutes, but I’m a little afraid to leave you alone.”

Ice slides through my veins. There’s no universe in which I would date Andrew. He’s creepy.

I glance around the room as my mind files through the necessities that I absolutely can’t leave without. Being an omega means my first instinct always leans toward bolting from any situation. “He was inside our apartment?”

“Yes, wake up. This is serious. I’m going to call a locksmith and have the locks changed. I’ve got to go, but I wanted to let you know.”

“Do you think I should call the police?” I ask, running my hand over my face.

Holy crap.

I was asleep two minutes ago, and my brain is barely working.

“You didn’t see anything. They would need to talk to me. I know it’s shitty, but I can’t miss my chem class. Can we talk about it more when I get home?” She shoves herself off my bed.

“Yeah, definitely. God, I’m so sorry. That must have been terrifying.” My eyes fly to my computer. As soon as she leaves, I’m reaching out to Bishop. He’s the only other person I have to talk to.

“I’m good. He’s skinny. I could probably take him if I had to, but since you’re pregnant and alone…”

“Yeah, I really appreciate it.” I’m still baffled. This feels like one of those situations when missing class might be acceptable, but she’s up and heading out before I can say that.

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