“I would have taken you back upstairs if you were tired,” Tobias said, and even with the dismay at finding her cocooned on the sofa wrinkling his brow, the warmth of his gaze as it traveled over her promised what would have happened if she had.
“I’m starving, not tired,” Quinn said on a low hum before groaning her way into a leisurely stretch. She should be in the nest, tucked away in her burrow, surrounded by the heavy scent of them both, but Tobias only allowed her in the sunroom when he had to use the office. She was starved for the sight of something more than four walls and a bed, no matter the view from his room.
In the weeks that had passed since that confusing night and even more unsettling day, the Alpha remained with her. Petting and purring, he gave her more attention than Quinn knew what to do with. He was the one that insisted that she sleep wrapped around him, and he lay with her even when she slept through most of the day. Every meal was shared with him, even after Quinn no longer needed his purrs. The only time he wasn’t within arm’s reach was in those rare moments when business needed his personal attention.
She still didn’t even know what that was. Trying to broach the subject of just who he was, what he did, was met with an immediate change of topic. At first, she had been wary of returning to their uneasy silence, but when she pressed further Tobias fucked her senseless. It was difficult to remember much of anything after he spent hours playing her body.
Clothing for her had arrived in the large closet at some point. She hated what he’d chosen for her, but at least she no longer had to do everything naked as a jaybird. It was all silks and satins, fine wools and other expensive fabrics. Quinn would have given a small, unimportant body part for a pair of yoga pants and a t-shirt. Even a pair of sweats would have been met with gratitude.
During all this, he’d begun taking her down to the sitting room. Whatever people he had working in his home, they had been cleared out beforehand for every trek downstairs. Not a single hint of anyone other than Curtis had disturbed her time in the expansive space. Windows lined an entire wall looking out onto a little garden that had begun colored in brilliant shades, and now sported a shaggy carpet of dull beige and washed out reds where leaves had fallen. Books filled shelves and comfortable sofas and chairs were arranged just so.
Even Curtis seemed to think that was a bit much, his face kept bland as he served them anything Quinn might want while down there. It wasn’t often, but it was a nice change when it did happen.
They had fallen into a comfortable routine and Quinn often found herself looking at the large male as something other than the evil prick who had ruined everything. It was just too hard to remain angry and self-righteous when he kept her so well fucked and fed that she was in a constant state of lassitude. The constant attention, the way he held, caressed, and purred for her were also persuasive.
“And what shall we eat, sweetness,” Tobias asked as he came towards her in a lazy prowl.
“Mm, French fries and a bacon cheeseburger—no! A double bacon cheeseburger, with a side of coleslaw and lots of mayo,” Quinn said as she squirmed upright to give him space to sit. As soon as he settled against the sofa’s arm, she tucked herself in against his chest and hummed when his arm came down around her. Hand overlaying hers, they cradled the faint swell of her stomach.
“Absolutely not.”
“I can’t control what it wants.”
“You’re telling me that a fetus is craving greasy takeout?”
“Yes.”
Snorting his amusement, his free hand tangled in her hair and wound the unruly curls around his fingers. Pulled in even closer, Quinn set her cheek to his chest, listening to the deep bass of his heart pounding a steady rhythm. It didn’t take long for her to drift back into that hazy calm just before sleep, her eyelids growing heavy as she basked in the comforting embrace and scent of him.
“It’s a girl.”
He had pitched his voice so quiet, a breath above a whisper, Quinn almost wondered if she had imagined it. If not for the rise and fall of his chest, the unmistakable rumble of his speech against her ear, she would have ignored it.
“You don’t know that.”
“It’s subtle still,” he said, still not raising his voice as he carded his fingers through her hair to scrub at her scalp. The careful pressure kept her against him as if he expected an outburst and was already trying to soothe her. “It is a girl though.”
Contrary to whatever he might believe, she was more concerned that he wasn’t happy with the outcome. Had he wanted a boy? A heat could be induced within a matter of weeks if he took the baby away, allowing him to try again. Both of her hands slipped under his, acting as a frail barrier between his touch and her child.
Jerking her head away from his hand, ignoring the prickles of pain as strands were ripped free, she struggled to sit up. Swathed in too many blankets and his heavy arms, it was an effort to feel even the smallest measure of stability. She scoffed, an uncertain sneer painted on her lips as she watched him sidelong. “Are you such an expert? Have you been sniffing so many pregnant females you know the difference?”
His dark green gaze intensified, narrowed at her in speculation and the incredibly familiar flare of irritation. The arm she was pushing away from her stomach grew heavier still, rigid under her hand as he hauled her back into position. Hand in her hair, tipping her head back to meet his glare, he showed the edge of his teeth in a silent snarl. “Have a care, little bird, or I’ll begin to think these little forays away from our nest do you no good.”
Whatever Quinn might have said was cut off by a feminine shriek of alarm. The baritone rumble of a male flowed over it, drowning the woman’s babbling as the door to the rest of the house flew wide. A man, an Alpha by the bulk and heft of him, stood in the doorway with a distraught, mousy haired woman trailing behind him before she ran back into the depths of the house.
Eyes wide, Quinn sat dumbstruck. With a speed and dexterity that boggled her mind, Tobias had somehow disentangled from her, pushed her upright and to the other side of the couch. Now standing tall and massive, he blocked the other male’s view of her.
“What is the meaning of—”
“We found that thing you sent us looking for.” The strange Alpha was too arrogant by far, setting Quinn’s teeth on edge as he took a casual stance leaning against the wall. He was slimy in a way Quinn knew all too well, blond hair slicked back and cruel brown eyes. Clothed in worn denim and leather, he looked just respectable enough to pass in polite society. Those eyes and the twist of his smile told a story far different. “You should have told me what it was. It’s been, ah, real interesting.”
“You were supposed to contact me when you found it,” Tobias said through clenched teeth, rage radiating off him in waves that made Quinn feel ill. Making a smaller target with her arms wrapped around her middle and her shoulders hunched, she tried to ignore the heavy pulse of dread in her chest.
“Well, here we are, contacting you.” The Beta female surprised Quinn as she came through the door, but Tobias seemed to have known she was there all along. Unsure if that was comforting or irritating, Quinn struggled with the urge to rush upstairs, lock the door and hide in her nest. This was not safe, whatever was going on. The woman wasn’t much different from the man, only the tightness of the skin around her eyes belying their ruse as equals. Whatever games they played together, she wasn’t often the victor. Quinn had seen faces like that too often in Alton’s warehouse, hard and angry and looking to hurt others just as much as they were hurting.
“Do you have it?” Tobias took a step forward, every line of the body she knew so well tensed. What could be so important he’d send people like these to look for it?
“Yeah, we do.”
