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My phone pinged before the other man replied.
“Not without digging a little more. How much do you want?”
“Go ahead and send me whatever you can find. I may need leverage.”
I already had her brother’s situation to use to convince her, but it wouldn’t hurt to know everything. Some people could be stubborn when it came to morally grey issues.
“You’ll having it in two hours.”
Smiling to myself, I headed off to my club as I waited to find out more about Cadence Green.
Chapter Three
Cadence
“Holy shit! He’s here again!”
I looked up at Sharon’s words, following her gaze to the front door. An alpha wearing a charcoal grey suit too nice for this place was standing in the entry, his dark hair styled to look casually tousled. A vague sense of familiarity hit me, but I couldn’t figure out why.
“What do you mean?”
He was handsome, in that cocky, self-assured way alphas often were, and the cut of his suit screamed money, which meant he’d be even worse than most. The smirk pulling up the corner of his lips told the world he knew everyone was staring at him, and he thought he could have anything he laid his eyes on.
Including the people.
“He came in last night. Sat at the corner table for a few hours, but never ordered anything besides coffee. It was like he was waiting for someone who never showed, but who would standhimup?”
Sharon was an omega as well, and she was free with her affections, finding a new alpha what seemed like every week. Unlike me, she’d gone through her first heat while still in high school, and she was lucky no one had decided to force a bond on her with the kind of alphas I’d seen her bring in.
I ducked my head and focused on my task again as the alpha’s gaze turned toward us, making a noncommittal sound to Sharon as I filled another glass and sat it on my tray. Sharon was still staring at the alpha, and not being subtle about it, but I was too distracted to pay attention to a stranger, no matter how good looking he was.
My mind was still stuck on how to save my brother, because there was no way I could find twenty-two thousand dollars in less than two weeks.
When I went home after the meeting, I’d gone straight to my room, telling Momma and Michael I had a headache. I hadn’t even come out for dinner, because there was no way I would have been able to look my brother in the eyes and hold it together.
I wasn’t sure if I would have burst into tears, or ripped his head off, but something drastic would have happened.
Michael had tried to catch me this morning before I left for the office, but I brushed him off saying I was working on it, and walked out the door. He had been busy with Momma when I went home to change out of my office outfit, and I hoped he would be asleep by the time I got home after my shift. I wouldn’t be able to keep the information from him forever, but I wanted to have an idea of what to do before he found out how much shit we were in.
Heading to the table waiting for their drinks, I shoved my thoughts aside and plastered on a smile. I couldn’t afford to lose tips because of the flashing billboard in my brain telling me I had no chance in hell of fixing this one. I needed every penny I could come up with, and every drop of luck I could find.
After taking their order, I turned to head back to the kitchen and noticed the alpha Sharon had been ogling seated at one of my tables. His eyes were locked on me, sending a shiver down my spine as every instinct inside me stirred. My brows drew together for a second since I shouldn’t have been next on the list for a table, but I shook off the confusion and flashed him a quick smile.
“I’ll be right back to take your order.”
He nodded, still not looking away as I went to drop off the other table’s requests to the cook.
The feeling of familiarity was still nagging me when I turned to face him, but no matter how hard I tried to remember how I would know him, I couldn’t come up with a name or how we could have met. It was enough to pull me from the worry that had eaten at my stomach since the weight of my brother’s life had been placed on my shoulders the day before.
I walked back to the alpha’s table, ignoring the way his lingering gaze raised goosebumps along my skin. I didn’t think he’d stopped staring at me since he’d walked in, and I wasn’t sure if I should be flattered, or worried.
Alphas could be dangerous, and there was something dark lurking in his emerald eyes when I met them.
“So, what can I get started for you?”
His gaze traveled down my body, setting my instincts on edge even as his scent curled around me. It was a combination of whiskey and coffee, with a hint of vanilla that made my mouth water for a taste of the concoction. He made no effort to hide his appraisal, and my smile turned brittle as I waited for what I expected to come next. I didn’t have time to waste on alphas and their crap on a usual day, and things were anything but usual at the moment.
“I didn’t come for the food.”
