Page 74 of Rut Bar

I sit in the seat opposite him as all the air goes out of me. “He thinks I’m cute?” The idea is laughable, but Anthony isn’t laughing. His eyes sparkle with mischief as he watches me sit there, stupefied. I can’t get over the idea of the tall, muscled, handsome alpha thinking I’m attractive. He’s everything I used to be back when I was young and my body wasn’t wrecked.

“Yeah,” Anthony says, his lips curling into a smile. “He likes the hot dad vibe.”

Papa bear.That’s what Anthony called me last night during our drinking game before all hell broke loose. I guess he really meant it. “Huh.”

“I can’t stay. I don’t wanna leave them alone too long, you know? So… are you in?”

My fingers clench the towel. “I can’t. I… Not until the audit is?—”

“We need helpnow,” Anthony says. “This is our one shot at it. If we don’t make her ecstatic with happiness, she’ll get all in her head afterward and talk herself out of something amazing. So I didn’t ask if this was a good time or a good idea or if you can put your insecurities aside for a few days… I asked if you were in.

“Tick tock, papa bear. Are you really gonna smell that pussy and walk away? Because I guarantee there won’t be a next time. Hell, I’m still a bit surprised she agreed to it at all. It took a lot of planning to get to this stage of our plan. If you don’t come with me now, you’re gonna regret it for the rest of your life and you know it.”

He’s right. I know he is. I’ve never been so drawn to a scent before. And maybe that wouldn’t be good enough for a pair of betas, but for alphas and omegas, our scents are everything. Scent matches don’t mean the relationship’s going to work out, though. And of course, you can have a good relationship without one.

But it’s the difference between sparklers and fireworks. Vee makes me want those fireworks. She makes me think they’re possible, and I didn’t lose my chance at them over twenty years ago.

“I’m not into receiving anal,” I warn him. When all he does is shrug, I keep going. “I like guys too, but my preference will always lean more toward women.” He hums his acknowledgement. “My knee’s fucked up. I take meds for it when it’s bad. Sometimes when it’s really bad, I use a cane.”

“Cool.” Anthony threads his fingers together over his abdomen. “My uncle uses a cane. Does yours have a sword in it too?”

My brow knits together.What the fuck?“No.”

This is a bad idea, and I’m not the sort of guy who makes risky moves anymore, but can I really say no and walk away? We only met a week ago, and I know it’ll take time to sort everything else out, but that rare spark is there. Every spark needs tending to catch before it can become a flame. And my gut tells me that Vee’s fire is worth burning for.

“I’m in. I can’t promise it’ll work.” Not all alphas will tolerate having another alpha in a pack. “But I’ll try. If Jamie fights me, I’m out.” There’s no way I’d win against him.

Anthony’s grin widens, and the look of happiness—or maybe that’s smug satisfaction—on his face makes me nervous, but in a good way. Anticipation makes my palms sweat.

“Good choice, papa bear,” Anthony says. “But leave your ropes behind for today. We’ll have to talk about that, and she’s skittish enough already.”

His prompting makes me realize that I’ve got planning and packing to do. I nod and get up to go do exactly that. While I’m throwing clothes and toiletries and my medicine into a suitcase, I call work and tell them I’m taking FMLA for a few days.

When I get back to the living room, Anthony is gone. I find him rummaging around in my kitchen, inspecting my food. If he came here right from the nest, he’s probably starving and in desperate need of electrolytes. I remember what heats are like although it’s been a long time since I took part in one.

“Try the pickles,” I tell him as I shoulder my bag. “They’ll perk you up.”

“Thanks.” He pops the jar off the pickles and grabs a spear with his fingers, then crunches it in his teeth and hums while he chews. “You’re right, that’s good. I didn’t know it’d be so…”

“Exhausting?” I supply, and he nods. “It’s not like in the movies or porn,” I explain. “By the end of it you’re gonna wonder how you’re not a dehydrated husk of a person. You’re keeping her healthy, right? She needs more than alpha cum. It’ll help, but it’s not enough.”

“Relax, papa bear.” He finishes his pickle and snags another, then closes the jar. “I got her those fancy vitamin blended protein waters that are in all those TV and magazine ads for omegas. We’re taking care of our girl.”

“Good.” My tight shoulders unbunch.

“Come on.” Anthony slides past me and heads to the door, where he waits for me as I make sure all of my doors are locked before grabbing my keys. He fishes a car key from his pocket and goes to the most memorable vehicle I’ve ever seen in my life. The mint green vintage VW van is the opposite of nondescript. It’s also completely at odds with Anthony’s bad boy aesthetic.

I’m glad we’re not getting on a motorcycle, though, between my knee and my duffel bag. That wouldn’t have been comfortable.

I ignore the way my nosy neighbors watch me climb in after him and settle on the car’s long bench seat with my bag in my lap. The van smells like Jamie’s tropical scent, plus a hint of Anthony’s more subtle cherry and sex. They’ve hooked up in this car. Or fooled around. I look over my shoulder, halfway expecting to see a mattress in the back, but there’s only a second row with a big open space behind it containing nothing but sand and a folded-up blanket.

Anthony backs out of my driveway and heads toward the interstate. “I can’t believe you live all the way out here. It must take you forever to drive to Rut.”

“I don’t mind it. I’m used to driving for work,” I tell him. “I do most of my assignments in the field rather than at the office.”

He adjusts the car’s old radio and settles on a station and we drive the now familiar route toward Rut, but then he keeps going. The sun is well below the horizon and I can’t see much outside the window, but I notice the brine of the ocean when he finally pulls the car into a driveway. We wait for the garage door to roll up and he pulls the big van into the tiny one-car space.

Although I can’t smell or see or hear her yet, some part of my alpha awareness prickles with Vee’s nearness. Her heat is like a satellite dish. It sends her presence out like a broadcast. When the garage door rolls down, adding one more layer of protection between her and the world, I breathe easier.

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