Heath ended the call, closing his eyes. He couldn’t help breathing deep, though. He couldn’t have enough of the amaranth scent in the room.
Last night had been amazing. Daniel had looked at Heath with those pleading, desperate eyes, and Heath... he’d almost broken his promise to himself.
He’d been on the verge of offering Daniel his protection.
And if he never contacted Daniel after today, Daniel would probably never forgive him.
3
Daniel
It was the day of his presentation, and Daniel felt sick.
The lights were too bright. The background conversation in the office was too loud, and the bodily odors of everyone—they made him want to retch.
He gulped, staring at the too-big conference room, the red circular logo of Alpha Foods on the projector screen behind him. For a whole month, he’d been talking himself into this moment. Get the presentation on competitor data right, and maybe the big boss of Alpha Foods might allow him to stay.
Daniel picked at the cushioned armrest of his chair, trying to make small talk with the beta next to him. He couldn’t remember which department she came from, or even her name.
Mostly, his nerves made him feel like puking.
Don’t throw up. Don’t throw up on anyone. The door’s fifteen steps away. That’s your emergency exit.
Daniel gulped. He smiled at the beta, hiding his hands in his pockets so no one would see them shaking.
I’m not going to get fired. I’m not.
He couldn’t help the fear, though. Three months ago... he’d been in a similar presentation. Tim had been leading the discussion following Daniel’s briefing, and Sally had interjected. She’d understood the presentation differently; the discussion had gone off-topic.
Instead of defending Daniel, Tim had agreed with Sally, and criticized Daniel in front of the entire room.
Tim was the boss. And he had also, in secret, been Daniel’s alpha. Not that any of his other employees had known, when Tim had taken every precaution to remove his scent from Daniel.
So Daniel had blurted in front of everyone else, You know what this presentation is about. I’ve spoken to you about it.
And Tim had shot back, That was a private conversation. You’ve gone off-topic here.
Feeling betrayed, Daniel had retorted, You could’ve told me during all the other times we were together.
And the room had gone deathly silent. Tim’s face had gone blank, like he tended to before he flew into a rage. Then he’d said, You’re fired, and Daniel had stared.
Daniel had said, But we’re meeting for dinner tonight.
Tim had answered, Not anymore.
And he’d pointed at the door, telling Daniel to get out. Like Daniel was a disposable asset.
His nerves too tight, Daniel shoved the memory away, blinking himself back to the conference room. This was a different company. He didn’t have an alpha who would betray him. Hell, he didn’t even know who the Alpha Foods boss was.
So no, things were going to be okay. No more bad memories. He’d do his best, and it would be good enough.
“Don’t worry,” the beta next to Daniel said, patting his arm. She smiled. “Things will go fine.”
Someone cleared their throat. The conversation in the room quieted, and Daniel glanced at the empty chair on the other end of the long table. The big boss wasn’t here yet.
He stood uncertainly. “I should wait, shouldn’t I?”
The door opened then. Someone strode in, tall and broad-shouldered, with dark hair combed back. Strong jaw, mahogany eyes.
Except instead of a leather vest and tight pants, there was a suit, a paper folder, and gleaming leather shoes.
Daniel stopped breathing. Heath Sanderson was the boss?
His stomach clenched. His thoughts went entirely blank, and he felt like puking, even more than before.
He’s going to fire me now.
Heath froze, his eyes locking onto Daniel. He opened his mouth, as though he was going to say something. But he glanced at the rest of the conference room, and reconsidered.
“Go ahead and begin the presentation,” Heath said, his voice floating somewhere above Daniel’s head. “Don’t mind me.”
But Daniel couldn’t ignore him. Heath knew what he looked like under his clothes. Heath had seen him beg.
Heath was going to sit through this, and then he’d tell Daniel to get out.
Daniel’s stomach heaved. “Excuse me,” he blurted, and fled through the closing door.
The conference room lay on a different floor than he usually worked on. Daniel pressed his hand over his mouth, desperately swallowing, trying to find the restroom so he could empty his stomach.
Except the pressure built, and his nerves pulled tight.
The door burst open behind him. His heart flying to his throat, Daniel jumped, whirling around.
Heath was there, just inches away, his gaze locked on Daniel. “Are you okay?”
Daniel shook his head. Then he threw up all over Heath’s clean suit, his stomach heaving hard.
Somewhere in his subconsciousness, alarms went off. Daniel rode the wave of his nausea, frozen, his mind blank. If Heath wasn’t going to fire him, he definitely was now.
Heath stared at Daniel in shock, his mouth falling open.
The moment he had a moment to breathe, Daniel turned away, desperately searching for a tissue, a napkin, something to wipe the mottled colors off Heath’s shirt. “I’m sorry,” he mumbled, turning back to use his hands to scrape off the vomit. “I’m sorry, I really am. Please don’t fire me. Please—”
“Daniel.” Heath caught Daniel’s hands, squeezing them. “Daniel, look at me.”
Daniel didn’t dare look. He yanked at his hands, his instincts screaming at him to flee. “Can’t. I need to—I need—”
“Daniel.” Heath yanked him close, vomit and all, and held Daniel against his chest. “Breathe. Calm down. Close your eyes and breathe.”
He couldn’t. He struggled. He thrashed. But Daniel held him tight, his warmth soaking through Daniel’s clothes. When Heath didn’t let go, Daniel slowed in his struggling. He let himself think a little. Maybe this was okay. Maybe Heath didn’t mind the vomit.
He gulped down a deep breath, then another. His heart thumped against his ribs like it needed to escape.
“I’m breathing,” Daniel wheezed.
“Breathe more,” Heath said. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Daniel didn’t understand. But when Heath continued to hold him for long moments, and when he never once let go, Daniel relaxed a little more. Heath might not fire him right now.
He took a shaky breath, then another. Ever so slowly, his heartbeat returned to normal.
“I’m not gonna hurt you, okay?” Heath rumbled in his hair. He stroked Daniel’s back, and kissed the top of his head.
Daniel avoided his gaze. He didn’t know why Heath was doing this at all.
“Look, I’m gonna call off the presentation, and we’ll talk in my office,” Heath said. “That better?”
Daniel’s stomach clenched. “You’re going to fire me in private?”
“No.”
Daniel stared. It didn’t seem believable.
Heath brushed his lips against Daniel’s forehead. Then he released Daniel. “Stay here. I’ll be out in ten seconds.”
The air in the hallway chilled Daniel to the bone. He hugged himself, wondering what Heath was telling the roomful of people. He tried not to smell the puke on the floor. Then he imagined all those people stepping out and smelling his vomit, and panicked again.
Daniel yanked his shirt off, crouching to scrub his puke off the carpet. It didn’t work so well, but it soaked up some of the acrid moisture.
Heath is my boss. I can’t believe I slept with my boss. Again.
When the door opened, Daniel froze, looking up. Heath stared oddly at him. Then he pulled the door shut, and hauled Daniel to his feet.
“C’mon,
you’re not standing here shirtless in front of everyone,” Heath growled.
He led Daniel into an elevator and hit the button for the top floor. Then the bell chimed, and the doors opened.
Daniel followed Heath weakly. He glimpsed marbled floors and more leather couches, before Heath brought him into a private bathroom.
“Clean up,” Heath said. “I’ll be waiting at my desk.”
Then he shut the door, leaving Daniel alone.
Daniel sank against the black marble wall, staring unseeingly at everything. How had he gone from a new beginning, to messing everything up, all over again?
There had been signs, he realized a while later. Heath’s expensive car. The Alpha Foods folders in his foyer, that Daniel had ignored. Gods, why didn’t I see it sooner?
In a daze, he washed up. Rinsed out his mouth, drank some water, tried to wash his stinking shirt. It ended up drenched in large swathes. Daniel tugged it back onto himself, then stepped out of the bathroom, feeling incredibly out-of-place.
Heath was at his desk in a clean suit, his lips pressed into a thin line. The moment he saw Daniel, he stood, striding over. Daniel’s stomach squeezed.
“Feel better?” Heath asked.
Daniel nodded, twisting his fingers together. It was one thing to talk to an alpha you’d slept with. A completely different thing to say hi to your boss, when you’d unknowingly slept with him. “I’m sorry about your suit. I can get it dry-cleaned—”
“Don’t worry about it.” Heath handed him a folded shirt. “This is the only other spare I have. Sorry about the size.”
Daniel stared at the shirt. And squirmed against his own drenched clothing. His shirt stuck uncomfortably to his skin. “You want me to wear this now?”
“Yes.”
Far too aware of Heath’s gaze on him, Daniel shrugged out of his shirt, pulling on the one from Heath. It hung loosely around his shoulders, clean and dry, probably three sizes too big. It smelled like soap and clean laundry.
Then he realized it was Heath’s shirt he was wearing, and, well. That was intimate, too. Blushing, Daniel pulled it snug around his chest.
Heath’s eyes darkened. “Why’d you freak out when I stepped into the conference room?”
Daniel flinched. “Do we have to talk about it?”
“Yes. If we’re to maintain any sort of relationship beyond this, professional or otherwise, I need to know.” Heath seemed serious, but not threatening. Not like Tim.
Despite how impossible this situation was, and how much he wanted to flee, Daniel gave in. “I have bad memories. Of... Of my ex-boss.”
Heath narrowed his eyes. “Why?”
Daniel’s face burned. “He—He was my alpha. And he fired me. In front of a whole conference room of people.”
Heath swore. “What kind of alpha is that?”
Daniel shrugged. “Not a good one.”
Heath clenched his fists. He seemed to hesitate, and then he touched the small of Daniel’s back, leading him over to one of the leather couches. Daniel blushed at the memory of another couch, the one in Heath’s living room.
Heath huffed. “No, we’re not doing that today.”
“Thank heavens,” Daniel said.
“Why? Was it bad?” Heath’s eyes locked onto him.
“No! No. I just... It’s awkward.” Daniel blushed. “I thought you were just a singer. Not the owner of Alpha Foods. Or my boss. In hindsight, I should’ve figured it out.”
Heath’s lips twitched into a tiny smile. “Well, good. I’d rather you didn’t know who I am. For all I know, you could’ve been someone a competitor sent to seduce me.”
Daniel stared in horror, his stomach flipping again.
“No, I’m not firing you.” Heath reached over, setting his hand over Daniel’s. “Stop worrying about that.”
“You barely even know me.”
“I’ve known you for three months.”
“We haven’t even spoken before this,” Daniel said. “You were just... singing at me.” About taking my pants off.
Heath grinned. “Singing with the Phantom Growls is something I do for enjoyment.”
“Is that why you’re always at that dumpy bar?” Daniel asked, wincing at the way the words came out.
Heath laughed, and Daniel’s heart skipped. This alpha was handsome. He could have any omega he wanted.
“The other Phantom Growls guys have day jobs, too. We aren’t going anywhere,” Heath said. “Singing in dumpy bars is definitely our thing. Although, in my opinion, it isn’t a dumpy bar. It just has character.”
Daniel snorted, unable to help his amusement.
“Were you thinking of attending a gig again?” Heath raised his eyebrows. It almost seemed like an invitation, and despite him being Daniel’s boss... maybe it was okay to have slept with him. Maybe Daniel really wouldn’t be fired today.
“Do you want me there?” he blurted.
“That depends,” Heath said, his eyes gleaming. “Are you still gonna be watching me?”
Daniel’s cheeks grew hot. “I would.”
“Then you’re very welcome at the bar.” Heath’s smile grew.
Daniel couldn’t meet his eyes. “I just... it’s a crush. That’s all.”
And Heath sighed. “There’s something else I need to speak with you about. The other night.”
Daniel swallowed. From Heath’s grave expression, it wasn’t anything sexy. “What about it?”
“The condom broke.” Heath looked him straight in the eye. “I only found it when I woke up. Did you notice it?”
“What?” No, Daniel hadn’t noticed. He’d climbed out of bed, but Heath was no longer inside him at that point. “It... It broke?”
Heath winced. “I didn’t grab a picture of it. Threw it away. I’ve been trying to look you up in the phone directories, but there’s a million Daniels. You weren’t answering your phone. I’d just about given up trying to contact you, short of putting Wanted ads on the streets.”
“Oh.” Daniel checked his phone, glancing at the list of missed calls. “I ignore unfamiliar numbers.”
Heath sighed. “So yeah, that was what I needed to tell you. You might be—” He leaned in, sniffing deeply at Daniel. Mahogany eyes sharpened. “You smell sweet.”
Daniel had interacted with pregnant folk, and he’d had pregnant friends.
But to think of himself as pregnant—he’d never anticipated this. He wasn’t even sure what he’d do with a child. Be a single dad? He was living from paycheck to paycheck right now. He hadn’t even passed his probation period.
“I just... I thought I was feeling unwell today,” he said, his mind spinning. “I can’t be pregnant.”
All of this—Heath as his boss, him puking on Heath, him carrying Heath’s baby... It was too much to digest.
“I’m too old to be pregnant,” Daniel said, tendrils of panic whispering up his spine. “What do I do?”
“I don’t know.” Heath squeezed Daniel’s hand. “But you’re the one carrying the child. If you choose to keep it, or if you choose not to... I’ll be responsible for the costs.”
That didn’t sound right. “It was my fault, too,” Daniel said, his heart thumping. There’s a baby inside me.
Heath slid his arm around Daniel’s back, pulling him close. At a loss, Daniel pressed his face into Heath’s shoulder, and just breathed. It felt like everything was moving too fast for him to keep up.
“It’ll be okay,” Heath murmured. “You don’t have to do this alone.”
“I shouldn’t be dragging you into this, too.”
“I seduced you,” Heath whispered in Daniel’s ear. “It’s my fault.”
How many other omegas had Heath seduced in the past? And how many more would he go on to seduce?
It shouldn’t matter, anyway, Daniel told himself, his heart sinking. That hookup was all lust. I don’t want him to fire me in front of everyone, too.
“I’ll think about it,” he said. “Is that okay?”
“Sure.” Heath leaned back, warm eyes raking over Daniel’s face. “But in the meantime... do you want my marking on you?”
Daniel’s heart thumped with longing. Tim had never wanted to mark him. “No,” he said. Too risky. I’m not falling in love again. “I can manage.”
“All right.”
Heath looked torn—kind of relieved, kind of unhappy. Daniel didn’t want to think too much about why that was. He eased away from Heath, standing. “I should get a new shirt on,” he said. “So your other employees won’t start talking. I’ll return this to you tomorrow?”
“Sure.” Heath’s gaze coasted down Daniel’s body, appreciative. Daniel shivered.
This wasn’t going to lead anywhere, with Daniel so much older than Heath. He nodded his goodbye, then turned and hurried to the elevator, ducking inside when the doors finally opened.
Heath’s gaze stayed on him the whole time.
4
Heath
In the days after, Heath paid close attention to Daniel.
He hadn’t expected that omega to be working for him. He hadn’t expected the pregnancy, either. But the more he thought about that baby, and the more he thought about Daniel bearing something of Heath’s in his own body, the more the idea grew on him.
Daniel never once smelled like another alpha. Sometimes, Heath slipped down to the marketing department, just passing by Daniel’s cubicle, surreptitiously sniffing at him.
All Heath smelled was amaranth and honey.
And he began to wonder what kind of person Daniel was, not going to another alpha for sex or anything.
Daniel certainly wasn’t like Cody, who always had a cocktail of scents all over him—floral, woodsy, perfumes—so much so that Heath couldn’t tell what he’d been doing with whom. When Heath had asked about the woodsy scents, Cody had lied. All the way until Heath had caught Cody with another alpha right in Heath’s own mansion, tangled together, Cody’s moans ringing down the bedroom hallway.
It still made Heath’s mouth sour, thinking about it.
But with Daniel... It was just the same scents every day.
In the mornings, Daniel smelled like tuna sandwich and a hint of tea. In the afternoons, some roast chicken, or maybe fries. And in the evening, he smelled like old sweat and more amaranth.
Subordi-Mate Page 3
