Page 45 of Knot For A Moment

I didn’t take any pleasure in being right about Craig coming back here. Twice now he’d been able to get into the building despite not having a key to the outer door. Which meant he waited and followed someone inside, he somehow had a key, or he was buzzing randomly until someone let him up.

The key thing seemed less likely. From what Sloane said, they’d barely had any real time together, and if he’d been able to copy her external key, there was no chance hewouldn’thave copied her apartment key as well.

I shoved down a rising growl. This morning would have gone very differently if Craig had suddenly been standing over the two of us in bed.

Something about the Alpha made my skin crawl. I didn’t trust him, and it wasn’t only because Sloane wasmine. She knew that as well as I did, and I’d already seen how little she wanted him around. It was his treatment of her and this behavior that set my teeth on edge.

Tucking the note into my own bag, I set it aside for later. Sloane didn’t need to worry about an asshole like Craig when she was already in the middle of this nightmare rehearsal scenario. As far as I was concerned she was staying at our house untilGisellewas over, so she wouldn’t have to worry about running into him, and when she could have more than a few hours sleep, we’d talk about him.

Her apartment was quiet.

In spite of my joke about rifling through her things, I wasn’t going to. I didn’t have any desire to snoop through Sloane’s possessions. What would I be looking for? Proof she had a life while we were apart?

Nothing either of us could do about that.

I found a bag in her closet a bit bigger than her dance bag, but still soft enough that I could take it on my bike. I grabbed what I thought she’d need. Rehearsal clothes and some comfortable lounge clothes for after. When she was relaxing with us.

At home.

She would laugh at me if she saw my smile.

Toothbrush, toothpaste, and suppressants all went into the bag. Her dance bag was already with us. I took careful stock of the bedroom, thinking about anything else I could grab. In the end, I took some soft and fluffy socks from her drawer.

What was that?

I spied a toy hidden next to the socks. The kind that latched onto the clit and sucked like its life depended on it. It looked like some other toys were hidden further back, but I didn’t explore.

So my Omega liked toys. I could work with that. And it made my comment about teamwork this morning even funnier.

Sloane’s bedroom—her whole apartment, really—was lovely. The pale purple walls in here reminded me of the sketches she’d used to make. But everything washer. Softness and femininity with the quirky touch that made her who she was.

I wanted that special touch all over our home and her space there. It still felt too good to be true. She was my Omega. I never imagined I’d get so lucky.

That was all I needed from here. If she needed anything else I’d come back or we would buy it.

Locking the door behind me, I heard a voice behind me. “You know Sloane?” An older woman looked out from the door across the hall.

“I do,” I said, holding out my hand to her. “I’m Asher, one of Sloane’s Alphas.”

A gasp. “She bonded?” She shook my hand. “Noreen.”

“Not yet. We found out we were scent-sympathetic a few days ago.” The complexity of that discovery wasn’t a casual hallway discussion. “She’s at my pack’s home. I’m just grabbing a few things for her.”

“Oh. That’s good. I thought you might be the other man.”

I frowned. “Did he leave a note?”

“Yes. Pounded on the door for a while. Second time today.”

“I witnessed the first time,” I forced a smile. “If he comes here again, would you mind telling me or Sloane?”

Noreen nodded. “Of course. He hasn’t exactly made a good impression.”

“I appreciate it. Sloane won’t be home for a few days because of rehearsals. Do you have Sloane’s number?”

“I do.”

“Thank you, Noreen. Have a good night.”

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