Chapter One
Two hundred and eighty-four days. That was how long Noah had been stuck out in the fringes, on a little patch of empty land belonging to his pack. Land bordered on either side by busy highways. Even inside, even in his sleep, Noah could hear the roar of engines.
Gregory, their alpha, insisted on keeping a presence there. Even though the land was of little use, he didn’t want to lose face by letting it fall into someone else’s hands. And, because Noah was arguably the most useless member of their pack, leaving him there to babysit the boarding house made a sad kind of sense.
Noah’s life was filled with dullness; constant cleaning thanks to the dust the nearby roads created, and constant waiting for something, anything, to happen. His only way out of the hand he’d been dealt in life was a mate, an alpha. All he had to do was find one. Easy, right?
The first problem was, no one ever came to the fringes. He’d been there almost ten months and, in that time, the only people he’d seen were members of his pack dropping off supplies. Owing to an old agreement between their pack and the neighboring packs, they maintained a boarding house there, a place that offered shelter to anyone from any pack who needed it. It was an expense their pack couldn’t really afford but Gregory didn’t want to lose face among their neighbors so money that should have gone to other things went to this. Having the house in the fringes made sense because, being in the middle of nowhere, it was no threat to the pack itself. Of course, it was also so far away from everything as to make it useless, which was why no one ever came. Until today.
When Noah heard the car, he guessed it was someone from his pack. Except they’d dropped off supplies a week before, so there was no reason they’d be back so soon. Unless his exile was over, unless Gregory had chosen someone to replace him. Or, better yet, Gregory had found him an alpha. But the car that rolled to a stop outside wasn’t one he recognized. He peered cautiously out the window, watching and waiting. The fringes of packs weren’t without their risks. With no one around, he wasn’t exactly safe. Isolation had been the only thing protecting him. But now someone was here.
The door to the car opened, and a man climbed out. Noah knew immediately that he was a shifter and, at a guess, something in the cat family. There was something about how he moved, a fluidity, a strength, and flexibility. He was also an alpha. Had to be, to be that tall. Not to mention gorgeous. And his hair…
The alpha’s eyes met his through the window, and Noah jerked back, half-ashamed to have been caught spying and half-afraid. What was he doing here? No one ever came here.
Reluctantly, he padded to the door to greet his guest. He was, after all, a representative of his pack. He had to at least try to act the part of gracious host.
The alpha was right outside when he pulled open the door, leaning against the porch, his hands in his pockets, looking like he hadn’t a care in the world. Noah was struck again by how handsome he was. Blond hair that fell in short waves down to his ears, eyes blue like the early morning sky. And a smile that threatened to take his breath away.
“H…hi. Welcome to Sandstone Boarding house. Please, come inside.”
He stepped back and held the door open. The alpha stepped forward and paused, making a show of looking Noah up and down. He flushed under the intense gaze.
“Well, hello there. Are you here all by your lonesome?”
Noah managed a nod, keeping his gaze on the floor. “Yes, Alpha. This is the Greystone Pack boarding house. All are welcome.”
“I was expecting some grumpy beta and a tin of cold beans. You are a surprise.”
The alpha’s hand cupped his cheek and drew his gaze upward before he leaned in and scented Noah carefully.
“Alpha, I…” Noah tried to pull back as he stumbled over his words.
“Don’t worry, beautiful, I’m just saying hello.”
The alpha rubbed his cheek against Noah’s. Definitely a cat-shifter. Noah caught his scent too, and his eyes went wide. It couldn’t be. He scented again, trying not to be too obvious about it.
“You smell like just my kind of pie, Noah,” the alpha purred, his voice curling around him like the tail of a cat. “Do I smell good to you?”
“Yes,” Noah managed to whisper. “Like nothing I’ve ever scented before.”
“Well, isn’t that lucky? My name is Preston.”
The alpha pulled away, giving Noah enough space to get some oxygen, which he did gratefully, sucking in air like it was going out of fashion.
“Are you hungry? I can make you something?” he offered once he’d caught his breath.
“Thank you, that would be great.”
Preston trailed after him toward the kitchen. Noah felt like he was floating on air, his feet barely touching the ground. His first visitor; an alpha. A compatible alpha. How had he been so lucky?
“When do the others get back?” Preston asked while Noah cooked for him. The alpha had asked to use the bathroom then returned and positioned himself just beside the kitchen door, watching Noah work.
“There’s just me here,” Noah explained. “The only visits I get are supply runs from the pack. The last one was only recently so there won’t be anyone by for a while.”
“Seems cruel to leave someone like you all by yourself.”
“I like the quiet,” Noah said, painfully aware how untruthful that was.
“Unusual trait for an omega. Most like to be the center of attention. You’re different; I like it.”
“What about you? What brings you out this way?”
Noah kept his voice as neutral as he could. He wasn’t supposed to pry into other packs’ business.
“I was running a few errands,” Preston said, “and ran into some unfriendly faces. I remembered this boarding house and thought it seemed like as good a place as any to take a breather.”
“Unfriendly faces?”
“Some lowlifes looking for trouble, I expect. I lost them a while back, but I want to be sure. Keeping a low profile here for a few days might be just the ticket.”
“Of course. You’re very welcome.”
Anything for a break from the tedium. Plus, what were the chances of anyone else landing on his doorstep?
“Speaking of laying low, is there somewhere out of the way I could put my car? Wouldn’t want it attracting attention.”
“There’s a garage out back. It’s empty. The keys are here.”
They were hanging on a hook by the back door, and he went to grab them only to find a hand covering his. He turned slowly to look at Preston.
“You are certainly not what I was expecting to find. A nice surprise.”
Preston slipped the keys from his hand and pushed closer, pressing Noah against the wall. He was so close that his scent was almost overwhelming. All Noah wanted to do was fall into it, give himself over to it, and let it take him. But reason beat a path to his doorway and woke him up.
“Preston. Alpha. I… there’s something you should know.”
The alpha in question took a step backward, giving him a puzzled stare.
“I’m sorry. I’m being too forward. It’s just hard to keep my hands to myself with you smelling like that and looking the way you do.”
“It’s okay, I feel it too. But you should know I…”
He’d never had to do this before. Everyone in his pack knew what he was, what had happened. And they were quick to inform any visitor, to Noah’s perpetual shame.
Unable to speak the words, he showed the alpha instead, putting his back to him, crossing his arms, and hugging his shoulders as he bent his head forward.
He heard a sharp intake of breath and knew the alpha had seen.
“What?” Preston asked, his voice a familiar mix of horror and disgust.
“It happened when I was a kid,” Noah found himself explaining, unable to go further.
There was a long silence behind him, and he stayed frozen, unable to move or speak as he waited for the rejection he knew would come.
“I’m so sorry that happened to you, Noah. Why would anyone hurt a defenseless child like that?”
Noah shrugged and turned back around, keeping his gaze averted.
“I’m sorry, I don’t like to talk about it.” Or think about it, and what it meant.
“I wish I’d been there to protect you. I’m sure any alpha who set their eyes on you would feel the same.”
Noah shrugged. “Most alphas who set their eyes on me look away as soon as they can. Who wants an omega who can’t fulfill their basic needs?”
“You can’t take a mating bond?”
Preston didn’t sound disgusted, more curious.
“Too much scar tissue,” Noah replied, the words heavy on his tongue. He hated his scars, with a fiery passion.
“It would take a strong alpha to see past that, what with the world we live in,” Preston said. His words surprised Noah and he glanced up, meeting Preston’s light blue eyes.
“An alpha like you?” he whispered, hardly believing his own ears.
“I’m so happy fate brought me here,” Preston said, smiling at him. He tossed the keys into the air and caught them neatly. “I should take care of this. Then, maybe we can eat and get to know one another.”
He disappeared out the door, and Noah went to rescue the food and catch his breath, hardly able to believe what was happening. He pinched himself once, then again, disbelieving what his own body was telling him. But there was nothing imaginary about the sound of the car’s engine as Preston parked in the garage.
From looking at him, Noah guessed Preston was from an upper-class pack. Nice clothes, nice manners. He didn’t have the rough and ready look that shifters from packs like Noah’s had. An alpha like that paying attention to an omega like him? It was something he’d dreamed of, wished for even.
Could this really be happening? Or was it all too good to be true?