Page 27 of Deceitful Oath

My alarm, intent on ruining my life, blares from the bedside table. I grab my phone, stabbing it blindly with my finger to turn off the heinous sound.

Dominic stretches behind me, yawning. I flop back down on the bed, and he instantly rolls on top of me, pinning me down.

“Morning, Luxy.”

Luxy? Cute. Only my favorite people ever called me that.

“Morning, Wolfie.”

We smile stupidly at each other until he leans in for a sweet, soft kiss. My alarm interrupts us, screaming at me again, and I force myself to get up. We dress quietly, both of us seemingly lost in thought.

I don’t know what he’s thinking, but all that’s running through my brain is last night. I lean against the doorframe, watching him pull on a pair of pants. He grins down at me, sending heat waves over my body.

“I’ll walk you to your car,” he says, leaning down to kiss the tip of my nose.

Such an intimate gesture. That means he likes me, right?I scold myself, feeling like a high schooler with a crush. But that does make me think—what are we doing here?

It’s obviously not a one-night stand like I originally thought. He seems really into me. I shake my head, banishing these thoughts away. It’s too early to talk about any of that stuff.

“Will I see you tomorrow?”

His eyes are playful, his face relaxed. He seems like he’s not struggling with thewhat are we questionat all. I smile, willing myself to chill out.

“Sure, lunch or dinner?”

“Both,” he says thoughtfully. “If you can swing it.”

I wink at him, placing a quick kiss on his cheek, and climb into my car. The drive home flies by and I’m in my apartment in record time.

With half an hour until I have to check in at the warehouse, I actually have time for a quick shower. I throw on clean clothes and head out the door.

My car’s junky engine starts on the first try, there’s no traffic on the bridge, and I even have time to stop for an iced latte.

Life is good.

The foreman scans my ID as I walk into the warehouse, directing me to a pallet on his right. One of the employees grabsa cart and stacks it up high.Looks like I have a lot of stops to make today.

I skip back to my car, not a care in the world, and hum a random tune as he loads it with packages. My car is practically bursting with boxes and mailers. I climb inside, invigorated by sex and coffee.

The morning goes by quickly and I only get lost once—a win for me. By the time my mid-morning coffee craving hits me, I figure I’m in good shape to finish by lunchtime. I slowly drive down the streets, searching for a cafe.

I’m in a neighborhood I haven’t really explored before. The bars on all the windows are a little off-putting, as is the trash that litters the sidewalks, but I brush it off. I don’t exactly live in the nicest neighborhood, either.

I finally spot a striped awning with a sign that promises “the best coffee in town” and pull the car over. A foreboding feeling washes over me for a minute, making me second-guess myself.Relax, it’s fine.

Grabbing some change from the console, I climb out of my car. As soon as the sunshine hits my face, a rogue pigeon swoops down, nearly colliding with my head.

“Shit!” I scream, ducking down. “Damn bird.”

I shake my head and make my way into the coffee shop.I refuse to involve myself with any more pigeons and their medical bills.

The barista looks surprised to see me, as if I’m the first customer who’s ever walked through those doors. Glancing around, I take in the deserted cafe and shrug. I order an iced latte, and she gets to work, moving at a snail’s pace.

“Do you have a customer bathroom I can use?”

She nods, pointing to a stairwell leading down into darkness. That same weird feeling of foreboding makes my skin prickle just for a second. I watch her make my coffee while I hesitate.

The staircase isn’t worse than the lobby of my building—it’s just as dark and creepy. And the barista will be up here in case anything happens.

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