Page 14 of Lost and Pound

“A man after my own heart.” Shilo fiddled with one of those standard cheap coffeepots, loading it with a store brand of coffee. “It takes a minute. Share a shower? Hot water doesn’t last that long, but we both could use a rinse.”

I couldn’t argue and followed him into his ensuite for what turned out to be a rather platonic shower and some very pleasant exchange of back scrubbing. An omega could get used to treatment like that.

I idly wondered if my father had ever been as sweet with any of his partners. None had been his mate, so I assumed his ministrations were for his own relief and the eventual peopling of his genes.

As we exited the shower, we dressed. The clothes he’d gotten me the day before were enough of a fit to last me, so I casually wandered back into his kitchen. In my wake stood a younger, pale woman, her posture stooped as she stared me down with wide eyes. “Oh. I’m sorry!”

“Megan! Hey, it’s okay. This is my—friend.” Shilo rushed out of the bedroom behind me and ran comforting hands over my shoulders. “Nico, meet Megan. She’s a pack member who cleans for me.”

Ahhh, and there the alpha part comes in.He had pack members tending his home. It made sense, especially with how neat everything was. I had almost wondered if he’d had a female or an omega with how things were.

The scent of fear rose sharply, and she stepped back, her gaze trained not on Shilo but me.

“Nico, go back in my room a second. Please? We’ll talk in a few.” Shilo gently guided me into his bedroom, and I resisted protesting. The attitude didn’t appear like he was hiding a secret, shame, or anything else. He gave me a soft kiss before closing the door and walking away, his soft words muffled on the other side.

The higher-pitched tones of the woman answered, placated by whatever Shilo had to say. Then the back door opened and closed and Shilo returned, his expression grim. “Sorry. Megan is afraid of people and it’s hard for her to leave the house. Several of us pay her to come clean our homes at quiet times so she can get by. It makes her feel useful.”

Every time I think I have him pegged, he surprises me.

“We’ll do a slow introduction when she’s having a good day. She’s a rescue, kept in her wolf form for far too long as a child.” His sweet smile told me all I needed to know. She wasn’t a burden to him, nor was she a duty.

As alpha, he found a place for her, and she served a purpose to him. His only real duty was to ensure she was free to do her work. He was a good alpha, nothing like I’d ever known before.

“I have pack duties to see to today. Feel free to settle in and relax. There’s a phone and I’ll unlock my computer for you so you can do what you need, and feel free to log into my shopping list and buy yourself what you need to last you. A week’s worth of outfits should do. Keep it under a grand, yeah?” He stroked a hand down my arm and warmth nestled in my belly.

“You don’t have to do all this. I’m sure I can—maybe my father will want me back or—” His grip tightened just a bit on my arm, silencing me. When his expression went from hard to hurt in an instant, my heart ached.

“See to it you have your ID, any documents you need, order copies. Do you have any bank accounts or anything we need to get the address changed on? A phone?” His change of subject threw me off. He wanted me to stay at his own expense.

“Okay. I don’t have a bank or anything. No phone. I have a birth certificate and ID but I think it may have been in that van—my father handed it over.” I stumbled over my words as he loosened his fingers, stroking over my skin there apologetically.

“Hmm. Your father really did set you up without a safety net.”

I nodded. He was cautious about his omega sons. When shifters outlawed servitude and nonconsensual matching of omegas to alphas, my omega father left that day, leaving me behind. I was so little.

“I’ll take care of you. You’re mine now, Nico. I protect what’s mine.” Shilo leaned in, scenting me lightly with a groan of delight. I couldn’t have been more attracted to him if I’d tried. I’d submit and join his pack.

“Yes, alpha,” I whispered so softly.

“I’ll let that slide.” A soft growl petered out in his throat as he nuzzled into my neck, teeth grazing my pulse point. Every muscle in me tightened as he threatened my most vulnerable place. A single nip would have me claimed, would have him united to me as well.

A scary thought crossed my mind.

I wished he would.

I’d let him.

Chapter Nine

Shilo

It took me two days to get in touch with the council and Alpha Wolfson. Godfrey seemed to be surprised that Nico was alive, pleasantly so. It was not the sigh of relief a parent should have had, though.

“Well, that’s great,” he said, his voice smooth and low. “And he’s staying there?”

“I hope he will.” I resisted playing my hand and telling him that Nico was my mate. Godfrey didn’t seem like the sentimental sort. “I’ve taken financial responsibility for his needs.”

He made a noncommittal noise and ended our pleasantries with a promise to touch base over things later. He was busy, after all. It turned my stomach how unmoved he’d been. Were Nico my son, I’d have wept tears of joy.

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