Page 21 of Chosen Beta

“Are you doing something right now?”

“What?” I ask, as I find out Shadow and Pete turned off their location while they were still right here in the house. “No, I’m just trying to think about who might want a job at Goldcrest.”

The damn tracking app has been useless since I installed it.

Shadow enjoys evading me too much, and Pete does whatever our Omega asks.

I lean back, trying to think about where they might have gone.

“I think you should come out here.”

“What was that?” I ask, certain he didn’t just say what he just said.

He clears his throat. “I said I think you should come out here.”

So, hedidask me to come out to the city I said I’d never set foot in ever again.

“Was that an order, or a request?”

“It’s a complex situation here, Owen. It would be better if you could come and do the risk assessment and make some recommendations about the current set up.”

Using the be a professional argument to twist my arm?

Dirty trick, Ezra. I didn’t think you were underhanded.

“That doesn’t mean I need to come out there. Pete can do risk assessments.”

He sighs and I try to dial down my irritation.

“You said no Alphas,” I remind him.

“I meant for their permanent staff. You know that.”

I do know that was what he meant. I’m being a dick because he’s trying to get me to do something I don’t want to do.

I really shouldn’t push my luck.

He might actually order me to come out to the city.

“Give me a couple hours, okay? I’ll see who might be interested in the work and I’ll call you back.”

And here’s hoping you don’t mention getting me to take charge of the damn job again.

“This is important.”

“I said I’d call you back, and I will.”

“You’re sure there’s nothing wrong?”

The Alpha intuition is strong with this one. Which only makes it more maddening that he ignored his instincts to go rushing off to “one more emergency”. He knows what Shadow’s like. He knows we were already sick of saying goodbyes and trying to arrange weekend visits.

If he’d been here like he should have been, I wouldn’t have to go out looking for our runaway Omega and his partner in crime.

I switch off my laptop and get to my feet.

“Stop worrying over nothing,” I tell him. “I’ll call you back.”

“As soon as you can,” he adds, piling on the pressure.

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