Page 9 of Crossing the Top Line

“If this is everyone, then I’ll get the boil laid out before everyone starves to death,” Ashley calls through the open sliding glass door.

“We’ve got a few more coming and—”

As if on cue, the doorbell rings, the first time it’s done that all day. I look up, curious. Anyone who’s been here before knows that there’s an open-door policy in this household. Ashley scurries off to answer it, but between the conversations and music spilling out from the backyard and the distance, I can’t make anything out. But as the trio steps through the archway from the foyer into the dining room, my heart stops, and I nearly drop the bowl of salad in my hands.

Well, there goes my plan for avoiding Spencer Black.

Theroomisdim,barely lit by a few strands of purple string lights on the outside of the hastily constructed blanket fort she assembled when we’d entered together a few hours ago. A temporary nest, warm and close and safe. And right now, absolutely drenched in the scents of magnolias, blackberries, and sex.

“Fuck, yes, yes!” Her voice is raw from screaming her pleasure, but I can’t get enough.

My hips roll in hard, steady thrusts, angled just right to hit her where she needs it every time.

I look down at her face, the stunning features twisted with ecstasy. With a growl, my hand fists in her silky hair and forces her eyes open as she gasps. Even in the low light, her eyes are luminous, the two slightly different shades of blue in her irises nearly swallowed by her pupils.

“I need you, Alpha. Please, please, please,” she begs, the desperate whine making my cock throb in time with my racing heart.

“I know, sugar. I know. I’m here, I’ve got you,” I soothe, purring hard enough to make my teeth chatter as I pick up the pace.

Her back arches, exposing the long column of her throat. God, my jaw aches with the need to bite her, claim her as mine. But the clinic made it clear that was unacceptable, and I’d be removed immediately if I even tried. And the thought of leaving this perfect omega so soon makes my heart clench.

Her nails scrape along my bare back, little kitten scratches as she tries to cling to the only comfort she knows right now. I return the embrace, banding my arms around her shoulders and back until I’m practically holding her just above the soft mattress. My hips surge forward, her scream in my ears as she shatters, the pulsing of her pussy nearly sucking me in. Like a bolt from the blue, my spine sparks with pleasure, and I drive deep, the swell of my knot at the base of my cock slipping perfectly into her waiting warmth, locking us together.

“Spencer,” she sighs, melting in my arms as my cum fills her nearly to bursting.

“I’m here. I’m not going anywhere,” I whisper, kissing every inch of skin I can reach.

I wake from the familiar dream with a jolt, gasping for breath like I’ve just run a marathon. My skin is damp with sweat, and somehow worse, my boxers are sticking to my legs. I groan and rub my face with both hands, trying to get my racing heart under control.

I don’t dream often, but whenever I do, it’s always abouther. The omega from the clinic six years ago. I don’t even dare think her name, or I know I’ll spend the day in bed trapped in my memories and regrets again. And I’ve got places to be today.

Rolling over, I pick up my phone, sighing as I realize I’ve overslept. Oli and Eli are probably almost done with their morning workout, and I might only barely finish mine before we have to leave for Dallas’s party. A not insignificant part of me just wants to roll back over and go back to my dream, but I know it’s a waste of time. She’s gone, and I’m about as likely to see her again as pigs are to sprout wings and fly. Best to focus my energy on things I can control, like my career.

With that heavy weight on my heart, I peel myself out of bed and get cleaned up and ready before heading downstairs and getting lost in my routine.

Eli lets out a low whistle as we pull up to the address Dallas gave us in the group chat yesterday. It’s in a beautiful neighborhood in Metairie, a suburb of the city proper, quiet with lots of similarly massive houses up and down the street. There are half a dozen cars parked in the circle driveway, and I throw my blond roommate a withering look.

Not that it’s entirely his fault we’re probably the last people to arrive. But even if my workout and shower cut us close, it was his indecisiveness in the liquor aisle at the Piggly Wiggly that set us back the most.

After we park and make our way to the front door, I can smell the traces of spices and smoke in the air, and the music drifting from the backyard. We pause for a moment on the stoop, ringing the doorbell and waiting in stilted silence. I know there shouldn’t be any reason for the nerves coiling in my belly, but they persist despite my attempts to explain them away. This is a barbecue, not a tryout. There isn’t anyone here that we have to impress. We can relax and get to know our potential teammates.

The door swings open, and a petite woman with a dirty blonde messy bun and a wide smile stands before us. Dallas has shown off enough pictures of his little family for me to instantly recognize Ashley and return her smile with one of my own.

“Hey, glad you found us! You must be Spencer, Oliver, and Elijah. Dallas has told me so much about you,” she says, her Texas twang nearly as strong as her mate’s.

“Hopefully not everything,” Eli answers smoothly, not missing a beat as we follow behind her into the house.

She laughs, leading us through an open arch from the foyer into the sitting room, and I glance around, admiring the stylish furnishings with the spattering of personal touches that make a house a home. But as my head turns, and I look forward, my heart stops dead in my chest before restarting with a painful kick as I seeher.

Victoria Strauss. Omega. And star of almost every dream I’ve had for the last six years.

But my memories barely did her any justice. She had dark hair back when we first met, but now there are streaks of gold running through it that suit her tanned olive complexion so perfectly. Her hair is longer, but still thick and shiny. I clench my hands into fists as my fingers tingle with memories of running through her soft locks, pulling it just enough to make her gasp and whimper. And her eyes…God, I thought I’d imagined them, because no one could have such distinct eyes. But no. Her eyes are blue, but the left is a slightly lighter shade than the right, complimentary but otherworldly beautiful.

“Boys, this is Tori. She works with the team. Tori, this is…”

Ashley’s bright and bouncy voice pulls me back into the present, and I suck in a sharp breath. When did I stop breathing?

And in the enclosed space of this dining room, I’m slapped in the face with scent. Dallas and Ashley mostly, along with traces of others I recognize as my teammates. But just at the edges of my perception, I pick up the faintest trace of magnolias and sweet iced tea and sunshine. The scent of home, of fond memories sitting on the porch of my childhood after long days and unwinding. It’s only there for an instant, so fleeting that I take an unconscious step forward trying to chase it. I catch myself and swallow, looking back at her.

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