24. Cas

Lucy was suddenly guardedand I tried not to take it personally.

"What is it you need to tell me?"

I pressed my forehead against hers and stared into those pretty, grey eyes. "The night Gideon died…I was the first one to find him."

Her hands settled on my shoulders and she leaned back, searching my eyes like she didn't want to believe me.

"I didn't tell you until now because you already considered me a suspect without any evidence, someone who might have the motive and means to kill Gideon," I confessed as I reached up to slide my thumb across her bottom lip, marveling at just how full it was.

Instead of slipping it into her mouth like I had during her heat, I wrapped my hand around her delicate throat and pulled her closer – breathing her in like I might actually be able to smell that decadent scent of hers even through the scent blockers.

"I wasn't sure if telling you would even matter," I admitted, rubbing my thumb back and forth over the tendon in her neck to soothe myself. "And by the time I realized I wanted to anyway…things had gotten complicated."

Despite what I was telling her, she wasn't trying to get away from me. Her legs were still wrapped tightly around my waist as she stared at me in disbelief. Her body wanted to stay next to mine, but her mind was churning.

She dug her nails into my shoulders until I winced and even this felt like a gift.

Lucy may not be the typical omega, but every fucking thing she did soothed the harsh edges of my alpha instincts. It was so much easier to think with her right here, close enough to do whatever it was I wanted with her.

"Did you contaminate the crime scene?" Lucy didn't stop me from tracing her eyebrow, or the curve of her cheek. She even leaned into my touch despite how irritated she sounded.

"No, I opened the door from the inside of the private staircase, but didn't step into the room," I murmured, letting my lips brush against her cheek. "The only reason I was even up there was because Liam had gone down to the lobby to grab the food from the delivery guy, and I was going to ask if Gideon wanted some."

Lucy pushed my face away from hers, but her touch lingered. "Then what happened?"

"I caught the same scent you did – that pheromone neutralizing detergent. Unfortunately, it wasn't strong enough to figure out which direction they'd gone in or where they'd come from."

Leaning forward, I brushed my lips against hers, lingering when I shouldn't have.

I needed to taste more of her, touch all of her. I couldn't get close enough and even the way she was squirming against me to try to put some space between us was ridiculously erotic, and endearing.

"Before I could do anything other than stand there like an idiot, security called to tell me the police were down in the lobby to arrest Liam," I told her, giving her bottom lip a little lick.

Lucy kept squirming, trying to push my face away again but it was half-hearted. I pressed into her, silently warning her to be still or she'd end up getting fucked against the door before we could finish this conversation.

"I was going to ask what the hell they had on Liam to justify arresting him on sight without the evidence to back it up, but even I can't run down seventy flights of stairs fast enough to get there before they carted him off." I tried to focus on telling her before I forgot what I was saying, but there was a hint of black currants in the air even now, and it was making me a little crazy.

She pushed my hand away and this time I let her, smiling at the way she tried to glare at me and mean it. "Is that everything?"

"No. It's not." I turned around to set her down, but she wouldn't let go of me. "Sweetheart, I don't want to fuck this up. I need to put you down or I'm not going to be able to think of anything other than your heat against my dick."

Lucy let out a sigh and reluctantly loosened her grip, sliding down my body so slowly I was sure she was doing it just to torture me until I saw the way she was pouting.

I took hold of her chin before she could walk away and angled her face upward, admiring just how disappointed she looked about having to let go of me.

Never in my life did I think I'd have an omega looking like this because she couldn't stand putting any distance between us. I wanted to say fuck it and remind her just how much I needed her, but the way she looked right now…pretty sure I've never seen anything quite this pleasing.

I wanted to savor it.

When I pulled her a little closer, she complied without hesitation – so trusting even with the weight of an unknown truth looming over her. "You're so perfect I can't fucking stand it."

The spell broke when embarrassment washed over her. Lucy tried to push my hand off her, almost as if she couldn't believe I'd say something like that out loud and mean it.

I jerked her closer and she gasped, hands coming up to rest on my chest, but she didn't push me away this time. No, Lucy looked up at me with anticipation, waiting for me to decide what to do with her.

"You're fucking perfect," I repeated, needing her to understand. "No omega has ever looked at me the way you do and you have no idea what that does to me."

I brushed my lips against hers, keeping it short and sweet.

Then I slowly released her, making sure she could stand on her own. "You're the first to ever see me, Lucy. And you're the only one who's ever been glad to find me watching you."

"Who else are you watching?"

God, she was so fucking adorable.

I reached out and squeezed both of her buns before she could stop me and headed to the living room with a shit-eating grin on my face. She looked so fucking cute when she was mad, like a kitten with all its fur standing on end.

But I needed to put some physical distance between us or I was going to lose myself in her again. We couldn't keep putting this shit off. Not when it felt like I would fall apart if I ever had to leave her side again.

Sitting down on the dark lavender couch, I pretended to study the brick walls and then the floor-to-ceiling windows to my left. The view of the park was nice and the other apartment buildings had the same brick exteriors that gave off an urban vibe but it felt different than the one we had in Chinatown.

Lucy stomped into the living room and planted her hands on her hips. "Cas, who the fuck are you watching other than me?"

I studied her from head to toe, not bothering to hide how fucking delicious I thought she looked. "You're just as crazy as me, aren't you?"

"Excuse me?" Lucy came at me like she was planning to gouge out my eyes with her fingernails.

I grabbed her wrist and yanked her down onto the couch, pinning her underneath me. "Who the fuck would I be watching other than you and Liam?"

Her pretty eyes widened in surprise and I felt her relax ever so slightly.

"What's with that look, hm?" Lucy held her breath when I leaned in closer, watching me warily. "Did you forget about him?"

"There's no way I could ever forget about him." She cleared her throat and looked away from me. "You said omega."

Was she really getting defensive and territorial about some imaginary omega?

I kissed the tip of her nose and moved so I was sitting on the other end of the couch, arm resting along the top so I could prop my chin up on my fist and watch her. "I swore off omegas after I almost killed one during my first rut."

I watched her like a man possessed. She settled into the corner of the couch on the other side, eyes wide as she absorbed that, but she didn't seem horrified so I pushed forward, deciding to get it all out now.

"I was young and had no clue how bad my rut was going to be so when she overdosed on my pheromones, I wasn't in any state of mind to notice until Liam pulled me off of her. Then he let me fuck him to pieces instead."

Lucy inhaled sharply. It was subtle – unnoticeable to a normal person, but I was watching her too closely to miss it. Our omega desperately wanted to see us fuck.

And what kind of alpha would I be if I didn't give her what she wanted?

"You're the only omega who's ever been interested in me," I admitted, my eyes dropping to her bare thighs when she pulled up her legs and wrapped her arms around them. "I didn't think there was a single omega out there who could handle me, let alone both of us, but you proved me wrong, didn't you?"

Her eyes flashed and I smiled at the pride I could see in them. Lucy had this need to be acknowledged as an omega even if she'd never admit it. Not that I'd ever make her. It wasn't hard to give her what she wanted when this was the reaction I got.

"Is your rut like that every time?"

My smile suddenly felt forced and yet she still didn't look afraid. "Every single time."

Resting her chin on her knees, Lucy considered the empty space between us. Neither of us said anything and I couldn't help but notice how comfortable she looked despite having me in her apartment.

My presence wasn't making her anxious or self-conscious. She was even looking to me for answers, trusting that I wouldn't lie to her.

I had to tell her everything.

"Liam wanted to tell you this himself, but I'm not willing to risk you finding out before he can."

She raised an eyebrow at that. "I thought you said you can't tell me about his game."

"I can't and I won't. This isn't about that." I sighed and studied my motorcycle boots, trying to organize my thoughts. "The security company that Valor hired a little over a year ago? It's one of Liam's private companies. Legally, I own that company, but he holds the majority of the shares – it's not owned by the Valor pack, or Valor Enterprises. I also wrote the program he uses to monitor the footage for potential problems."

"Of course you did." Lucy released her legs with a grimace and stared out the window. "Why does everything keep coming back to you, Cas? It's fucking suspicious and I know I'm not the only one who's going to think that."

We were right back to square one and I tried really hard not to freak the fuck out.

"I know it looks bad Lucy, but I promise you I didn't know jackshit about the missing data until you asked me about it."

She pressed the pads of her thumbs to her eyebrows and I resisted the urge to help ease some of the stress I knew this information was giving her.

"You and I are currently the only people I know of who could do something like erasing data from a corporate server and getting away with it," she reminded me. "That doesn't mean there aren't others, it just means it has to be someone with the right skills and connections to the security company or the Valor IT department. Maybe even both. Which would make sense. How else would they get away with killing such a public figure? In his office. On the top floor of a skyscraper."

Lucy let out a frustrated sigh and leaned back, crossing her arms over her chest to glare at nothing.

I didn't know what to say or do because she was right. Whoever was fucking with our shit probably had something to do with Gideon and there weren't many people in the city of Acheron who were anywhere near my level. Probably not even in the state.

Other than Lucy.

"There are cameras in the server room at Valor Enterprises and all over the Aegis building. You can check the timestamps and footage if you think I might have something to do with this," I tried to reassure her. "Yeah, I could erase it all without anyone noticing, but I'm not invisible. You can follow me across the city like you did Gideon, or check my phone records. I never turn it off just in case Liam needs something."

Lucy glared at me and the relief I felt that she was finally looking at me again was making me dizzy.

"It's not that I don't believe you, Cas It's that there is always the possibility without proof." She turned back to the window and I had to take a deep breath when I felt a surge of irrational rage that she wasn't giving me her attention even though I was sitting right here.

"They have to have connections to someone with the keys to the kingdom or they'd never be able to sneak into a building as heavily guarded as Valor Enterprises," she muttered as she chewed on her thumbnail.

"They would need more than just connections." I reached out slowly and wrapped my hand around her ankle, pulling her closer until she was sitting in between my legs. Instantly I felt like I could think straight again. "You have to scan a badge to get past the gate in the lobby. Every employee and visitor is logged electronically and stored in the Aegis servers, not Valor's. It's the same with the gate to the estate."

"And the alpha of Valor approved off-site logs?" Lucy raised her eyebrow at me. "I have a hard time believing that."

"Nicolette knows Liam owns Aegis and that he put it in my name for his own reasons." Sliding my hand up her calf, I savored the silky sensation of her skin against my palm.

Goosebumps rose under my touch and she shivered, watching the path of my hand just as closely as I was. "Why would Liam do that? I just don't get it."

I rubbed my thumb against the curve of her knee and leaned down to kiss the top of it. "Two years ago, his mother denied my application to the Valor pack. I only applied because Liam wanted me to, but when she rejected my application he got a little…nasty."

That was one way to put it. His mother had called it a temper tantrum, but what he'd done in retaliation was far too calculated to be considered childish or immature.

"Liam didn't fight her on the decision, but he did start a new company she had no control over." I skimmed my hand over her thigh and the way her breath caught was like music to my ears. "When Nicolette offered to accept my application if he put the security company under his name, Liam refused. Asked her how it felt to be told no."

Looking up from what I was doing, I smiled slightly when I saw just how focused she was on the way I was absently rubbing little circles into her skin. Did she have any idea how much I'd fucking missed her?

"You were right, you know."

"About what?" Lucy still couldn't tear her gaze away from what I was doing.

"Nicolette doesn't want us to have a public relationship because I'm an alpha – one who was stronger than Gideon even if he'd never admit it. Liam trusts me more than the alpha of his own pack and his mother knows it."

She grabbed my wrist to stop me when I reached the hem of her tiny little shorts and I let go, propping my elbow on the back of the couch instead of ripping them off like I wanted.

"Liam threatened to leave the Valor pack if she tried to force me out of his life again, so his mother hired Aegis to manage their security as a last-ditch effort to placate him," I explained. "Which means that Nicolette wouldn't dare risk something like that again when he makes it public he's chosen his omega. Even if she doesn't like you, it won't matter. Liam has too much power and they all know it."

I leaned forward and rested my elbows on my thighs, watching her face to make sure I didn't miss a single shift in her expression.

"My relationship with Liam is complicated. We help each other through our ruts, and we agreed to be each other's life partner. It's not all that romantic, but we are…loyal. Does that make sense?"

Lucy looked down at her hands and nodded, picking at her nails.

"Can you please look at me?"

She didn't move, but she slid her gaze back to my face and her eyes were such a luminescent silver they really did look like the moon – Liam's opposite in every way and yet, they were still somehow reflections of each other.

Liam was the most confident person I've ever met. He was the epitome of what I thought it meant to be a legacy alpha, but there were times he got all fucked in the head – worrying that I'd up and leave one day just because we didn't share the same name.

He could be wildly insecure for the weirdest reasons and it turned him into a fucking nutcase. Lucy was the same and the only thing that seemed to ease that insecurity was showing him what I refused to show anyone else.

I showed that same vulnerability to Lucy now, letting her see just how nervous I was—how fucking worried I was about my weird relationship with Liam and how much I fucking needed it. I let her see just how scared I was that this might be some kind of deal breaker now that her head was clear of the way her heat had made her feel.

Showing her that I wasn't sure there'd be a place for me with them was the hardest thing I've ever done, but she had to know or she'd always wonder if I actually needed her.

"I love that asshole, Lucy. He protects me from the legacy alphas, and gives me a safe outlet for all my crazy – gives it a purpose, but it has never been enough, and will never be enough to replace you."

Liam needed her just as much as I did, if not more, and it was my job to make sure whatever Liam wanted, he got, but if Lucy demanded I choose…

"I can't lose either of you, do you understand?"

Lucy stopped picking at her fingers and the way she looked at me felt like she was trying to decide if I was worthy or not.

When she lifted her chin, my chest constricted and I couldn't remember how to breathe.

"Are you afraid I'll make you choose between us?"

All I could do was nod as I stared into those grey eyes that no longer looked like the moon, but a raging storm.

"And what if I did?" She lifted her chin even higher, outright challenging me. "You really don't want me to choose you, Cas? Only you?"

I smiled slightly, sensing the trap.

Liam better be ready, because Lucy wasn't the kind of omega who would let him off easy.

No, my omega was vicious.

I pulled her into my lap and slid my thumb over the thick, black band around her neck. "Just say the word Lucy and I'll make him disappear."