Shared by the Alphas

by Jayce Carter

  Was that the problem? Most betas didn’t want omegas. They considered them too much trouble, too prone to running off with an alpha. It meant few settled down together.

  Did he not want to risk his heart if she decided she’d rather end up with an alpha? Like omegas were driven by nothing but the need for a knot? She bristled at the idea.

  As soon as it happened, the anger melted away. The reason didn’t matter. She’d miss him.

  There wasn’t a choice, though. She’d seen her legal name on the file. If they had that, they’d have seen the warrant and the orders to register her.

  And she couldn’t let that happen. She wasn’t going to be given away like a prize to some alpha she’d never met. The alphas willing to take on delinquent omegas tended to be shitty people. What sort of man was fine with taking an unwilling omega as a mate?

  She grasped the needle of the IV. How much time did she have? How long before the police showed up? Before someone came to tell her what happened next?

  Before the thoughts could drag her under, before she risked pulling out the IV, a soft knock on the door caught her attention.

  “Yeah?” Her voice cracked from the nerves.

  The door opened, and a man she didn’t recognize came in. One sniff told her. Alpha.

  Before she could worry, Kieran came in on his heels. He met her gaze, eyes hard, looking so much like he had in that room.

  He was tall and impossibly large. Silver hair at his temples showed he was more than a couple of years older than her, but that didn’t scare her off. In fact, all the signs of his age, the knowledge in his dark eyes, the lines between his eyebrows that implied he frowned a lot—she liked it all. His hands caught her attention, and they brought back all the ways he’d used them on her the night before.

  It forced her gaze down to hide her reaction.

  “Hello, Tiffany. My name is Detective Sam Franklin. How are you feeling?” The new man spoke with a kind voice, the sort that made her want to let down her guard.

  “Tired of that question.”

  Snark was always a risk. She never knew how an alpha would react. Would he find her smart-ass comments adorable? Would he see them as a challenge?

  Sam responded by letting out a hard bark of laughter. “I’ll take that as you feeling pretty well, then. You look better, and the doctor says you’ll be fine.”

  “So why are you here?”

  Kieran said nothing as he leaned against the wall beside the door. He stuck his hands into his pockets, his gaze moving between Sam and Tiffany, but remained silent.

  Sam, however, seemed more than willing to do the talking. “Well, as I’m sure you guessed, we’ve run your name. It seems you’ve had some issues with the law in Ohio.”

  She swallowed before trying to play dumb. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. Must be a paperwork error.”

  Sam reached into his bag and pulled out a folded piece of paper. Her picture showed on the front, her name above it. “This isn’t a mistake. You are Tiffany Hansen, and they are looking for you.”

  “Please, don’t turn me over. Walk out of the room, go get some coffee. I’ll take the IV out and be gone before you get back. Say I snuck off again. Say anything you want, but let me go.” Her words started to ramble, to spin faster and faster.

  Kieran spoke, voice hard and so familiar despite the short time they’d known each other. “Easy there, girl. Listen to your options before you pass out.”

  She pulled in a shaky breath, not realizing how shallow her breathing had turned. “I have options? That’s new.”

  “To be fair, it’s only one.” Sam came over and rested his hip against the bed. “I’ve got an option for you, Tiffany. It’s not great, but it’s better than being registered.”

  “What’s the option?”

  “Go through a training program with a registered alpha. I’ve gotten a judge to sign off on it. Complete this program, and your history is wiped clean. You’ll be free to start over, to live any life you want.”

  “I’ve never heard of that before.”

  “It’s not done much anymore. Basically, if there’s an omega they feel could do fine on her own after a little training, they’ll place her with an approved alpha. He’ll teach her, get her set up, and she gets a second chance after completing the program.”

  “How long?”

  “Program takes a year. You’d have to give up that time to it.”

  Her jaw ached from the way she pressed her teeth together. “So, you’re telling me that the cost of my freedom is to give up my freedom to some strange alpha for a full year?”

  “It’s not perfect, I know, but it’s all I’ve got. And, besides, it’s a year versus your whole future, so it’s the lesser of two evils.”

  The idea of agreeing chafed. Still, what had she wanted since she’d run a year ago? She’d wanted her life. She wanted to go home and see her parents. She wanted to be able to use her real name, to buy property, to go to school. An entire year beneath the thumb of some registered, approved alpha wasn’t ideal, but it was only a year. She’d been on the run for longer than that.

  She could sacrifice a year if it meant her freedom. “Okay.”

  “Don’t you even want to know who the alpha would be?”

  “Doesn’t matter. I can get my life back this way, so whoever it is? I can handle them.”

  Sam chuckled, then stood. “Glad that’s how you feel right now. Not sure you’ll feel that way when you find out who it is.”

  Her eyebrows inched toward one another. “Why not? Who is it?”

  Kieran spoke from his spot against the wall, so still she’d nearly forgotten about him. “You just agreed to be mine for the next year, girl.”

  Well, shit.

  Chapter Three

  Kieran didn’t crowd Tiffany when she stepped into his home. He stayed a few feet back, giving her the chance to move around and get her bearings. He didn’t want her afraid.

  “So, you train omegas?” She drenched the word in attitude.

  So much for being afraid.

  “I used to, yes. It’s been a long time since I’ve done such a thing.”

  “Why am I the lucky one?” She walked by a globe on a bookshelf, spinning it with a single finger.

  “You aren’t. You were in an unfortunate position, and I was able to help. Sam actually called in the favors to get approval, and I have enough name recognition for the judge to agree.” Kieran kicked his shoes off beside the door, then lifted an eyebrow and nodded at her feet.

  Tiffany rolled her eyes like a petulant teen and returned, kicking off her dirty sneakers beside his. “What does this whole ‘training’ thing mean? Are you going to get me a collar?”

  “Don’t tempt me, girl.” Kieran allowed a growl to enter his voice at the thought of how black leather would look against her light skin. He pushed the image aside and cut off the sound. “No. You are not someone who requires the training I’ve done in the past. Not that a firm hand wouldn’t do you some good, but your inclusion on the registry appears a political move. So, while I can’t make it so you don’t require this year, you will be able to spend it in my care without any real training.”

  “Why?” She twisted to nail him with a hard look. “Seems like an alpha with an omega who can’t say no would enjoy the benefits.”

  “If you think that, you don’t know me well.” He fought the desire to make her understand. He wanted her to look at him differently, to understand he wasn’t an alpha looking for a forced mate.

  But they didn’t need to make this any more complicated, and it was already complicated. How could he live with her, share the same space, smell her all day and all night and not take her? His control had limits, and she’d already undermined all his control. Why she affected him so strongly, he didn’t care to examine.

  “We’ll just be roommates?”

  “Not exactly. While I can give you a rather large amount of leeway, in the end, you are an omega under my care. You will not
risk yourself, and you will keep me apprised of your schedule. I will ensure that you are cared for, that you have all you need, that your finances are in order so that at the end of the year, you have plenty saved up for whatever and wherever you wish to go. However, your day-to-day life will be your own. Make no mistake—I am not looking for a slave or a mate.”

  “And the rest?” Her words quivered as she asked, as if her nerves had finally gotten the better of her.

  “The rest?”

  “Will you give me suppressants for my heats? What about sex?” Ah, the way she tripped over the word ‘sex’ made his cock perk up. As if the bastard’s gone down since I first caught her scent.

  He was taken back again to her soft lips and her agile tongue, to the way she’d lapped his cum from his fingers and the sounds she made. Hell, she’d have to take care of herself during that year. Adults couldn’t be expected to forgo basic biological needs. Could he sit in his own bed when her scent drifted through the hallway? When she made those little gasps, quiet as she could, and tried to hide that she was fingering herself in her room?

  His lips pulled into a smirk at how the confident omega wilted with the graphic conversation. “I won’t be fucking you, but no, no suppressants. They aren’t good for you long term, and there is no reason for you to be on them now. Dr. Brown has given me sedatives should a heat strike. Without the drugs Randy used on you, we’ll see it coming and be able to prepare the next time. What happened before won’t happen again.”

  Her back went straight. She acted like he’d threatened to beat her instead of telling her he wouldn’t treat her like a sex slave.

  “Well, I’m sorry you were so inconvenienced.” Her words came out sharp enough to wound.

  “You’re twisting my words.”

  “I’m not doing anything. Do you want to show me where I’ll be sleeping, or should I find it myself?”

  Kieran’s lip lifted at her tone, his alpha side wanting to put her in her place. He wanted to overwhelm her, to cage her in, to offer bites to her throat that would mark for days. He wanted to fuck her until all that attitude drained away.

  She breathed in, a long, slow inhalation through her nose. Her cheeks reddened and she took a step forward, as if the scent alone reached out and drew her close.

  But he couldn’t. It didn’t matter what his body wanted, he couldn’t fucking do it. Instead, Kieran shook his head and pointed. “Down the hall. Second door on the left, the room with gray walls.”

  Again, she stopped and pulled back. She wore hurt well, but only for a heartbeat before anger swallowed it up. Her steps came loud, like gunshots, as she stormed down the hallway.

  He was too old to have an angry nineteen-year-old in the house again.

  * * * *

  Kane lounged on the roof of his apartment building, his gaze on the stars. Fuck, he liked the night sky. In the city he couldn’t see shit, but that didn’t bother him much. He’d pretend he could see each little star, that they shone as bright as they had the few nights he’d gone camping in the middle of nowhere.

  No word back from Tiffany. Had she run, already? He’d find her, of course, but he wouldn’t stop her from going. Girl was smart, knew if running was her best shot. Still, the silence got to him.

  He’d sent the address she’d asked for, a building owned by a corporation name she’d sent him. She’d needed a place they owned that wouldn’t get much foot traffic, something without any other payments to it. Seemed the omega was searching for something off the books, and something above both their paygrades, if he had to guess. It had taken him more work than he liked to do to find what she needed.

  Found it in an old empty apartment building in the northern area of the city. The company, a no-name corporation where no one knew what they did, had bought it up six weeks prior, then not made another move. No permits to renovate, no construction companies to work on it, nothing at all. Seemed whatever they’d bought it for, they didn’t want people knowing shit.

  What has that troublemaker gotten herself into?

  From what little Kane could dig up, he’d figure drugs. Place would make a nice spot to stash them, and a good base of operations to meet with dealers. Sure, it was higher priced and nicer than most of what he saw, but the security wasn’t good enough for it to be guns and too remote to be whores.

  In his experience the options were always drugs, guns or whores.

  A buzz from his phone had him pulling it from his pocket.

  Speaking of.

  How do you pick a lock?

  He laughed at Tiffany’s odd question.

  You need lockpicks, doll. Use the pick to set the pins, then the tension rod to twist the lock

  And if you don’t have a lockpick?

  That had him stilling.

  This just a hypothetical, right?

  Let’s say it is. Hypothetically, what would you do if you didn’t have those things and needed to get into this:

  A moment later, a picture came through of a lock, and he groaned. So, not hypothetical.

  What trouble have you gotten yourself into?

  No trouble if you tell me how to open this door.

  His growl came out low, angry.

  Get your ass back into your car and away from there.

  No can do. Help or be quiet. The buzzing of my phone is distracting.

  He sat up, unease pulling at him. Girl might have a spark, but she didn’t need to be dealing with whatever was on the other side of a lock like that. A deadbolt of that level said someone was serious about keeping people out, and no one dropped that cash unless what was on the other side was fucking important.

  You’re at that address, aren’t you?

  No. Never. That would be crazy.

  Her smart ass made him want to paddle her. How could she make him laugh at the same time as wanting to throttle her? He’d spent a year keeping her at a distance, making sure to never risk a glimpse because he didn’t know if he could walk away once he did. Now, though? Well, fuck, now it seemed he’d have to go see the troublemaker in person.

  And he might fuck her on the spot for being so damned difficult.

  Worse? They’d both enjoy it.

  * * * *

  Tiffany struggled not to kick the door. She’d taken a bobby pin from her hair, bent it and tried to use it. Turned out searching the internet for how to pick locks was less useful than movies had led her to believe. She’d taken fifteen minutes and had no luck.

  It seemed the skill was something she’d have to put some time into if she expected to continue her work as a sleuth. Not to mention that trying to do it with a single hand made the entire thing harder. She’d crouched down to use the fingers of her hand in the sling, but nothing worked.

  Worse? Kane had been no help. When he’d stopped responding, she’d buried the hurt. Stupidly, she’d thought he’d come through for her.

  Guess not.

  Like every other man in her life, he’d given up. She was too wild, too headstrong, too everything. The only men who stuck around were ones like Randy. Ones like the alpha who’d made her to run in the first place.

  And what did is say when only psychos could put up with her?

  Tiffany ignored the point and huffed, kicking the door when her temper slipped.

  “That’ll show it.” That voice…

  Tiffany didn’t turn, afraid to do so and find it all an illusion, to find he’d slipped away. “Didn’t think you’d show.”

  “Well fuck, guess I’m a gentleman. Came all the way across town just to open a door for you.” Kane’s voice came from behind her, his breath blowing strands of her hair. It told her he was tall, much taller than she was.

  An inhalation told her something else, too. “You’re an alpha.”

  He reached past her, the picks he’d mentioned in his hands. He slipped one into the lock, then the other, his hands moving agilely. “Yeah, I am. That bother you?”

  “Why would it?”

  “Because omegas get nervous so
metimes.” The clicking of his picks punctuated the conversation.

  “So, you know what I am?”

  “The guy who gave you my number might have given me a heads up.”

  “Is that why you never wanted to meet me?” Not turning around was hard, her stomach flipping. His voice was even better in person, rough and deep and full of attitude. She wanted to lean back against his chest, to close her eyes and feel his warmth.

  “Part of the reason, yeah. You didn’t answer me. You nervous, doll?”

  Her head shake might have been more convincing if she hadn’t released a loud gulp at the end of it.

  “What happened to your arm?”

  “I fell.”

  “You fell?” The words came out deadpanned, slow and sarcastic.

  She offered the same attitude back. “Yep. I’m pretty clumsy.”

  His laugh was soft and close, but the click of the lock cut their conversation short. He pushed open the door. “So, you want to tell me what this bullshit is about?”

  Tiffany went to turn. She wanted to see him. She needed a face to go along with the voice, with the person she’d spoken to for so long.

  A hand on her shoulder kept her back to him, but the action caused her to brush against his front. And, yeah, even with her lack of experience, the hardness of his cock said he was interested. His thumb dug into her shoulder in a firm massage, as though it would make the moment less tense. “You don’t want that.”

  “Want what?”

  “To see me. Don’t got a clue what you were thinking you’d find, but I’m gonna bet it ain’t what I am. Why not keep those eyes forward and let yourself fill in details, huh?”

  She twisted but couldn’t shake the grip. “Let me see you or leave me alone. I’m sick of this game.”

  “If this is a game, it’s one you ain’t equipped to play, trust me.” Even as he said it, a rough edge to his voice, he released her and took a step backward.