The afternoon is a bit slow, so I walk three offices down to the new guy’s room. I don’t hear anything coming from inside, so I take a chance and tap lightly on the door. After waiting a few moments, I realize I may be interrupting him and a client, so I start to back away. Just because I didn’t see an appointment listed on the books for him, doesn’t mean he didn’t get a last-minute walk-in.

I’m almost past his shuttered window when Brenden’s door opens. “Hey, Andre. What’s up?”

“Hey, Brenden.” Brenden’s flaxen hair seems to gleam in the sunlight and his gorgeously bright smile is perfect. “Um, I’m not interrupting you, am I?”

“Nah. I’m not booked until later. Do you want to come in?”

Giving him my best smile, I tilt my head toward the shopping center across the street. “I was hoping maybe you’d like some Starbucks.”

“Yes! I’d kill for a Venti Peppermint White Chocolate right now.”

I can’t help but chuckle at his overly dramatic flair, but I’ve grown to love it over the past several weeks. “Perfect!”

“Well, come on.” He pulls the door shut behind him and offers me his elbow. With our arms linked together, we walk across the parking lot to the crosswalk. The sun is warm and feels good on my skin. I’ve been indoors so much lately that I could use a little extra Vitamin D.

The shopping center isn’t crowded, but a few people are milling about with packages in their hands as they rush in and out of stores. Once we’re inside, a wave of delicious aromas hits me, sending my need for caffeine soaring.

By the time our drinks are placed on the counter, we’ve already discussed the merits of each of the breakfast sandwiches on the menu and most of the pastries. A table in the corner of the room frees up, so we snag it quickly and finally sit down.

“So, how are you enjoying the work?” I blow on my drink before taking a careful sip of the hot latte in front of me.

“It’s good. Better than I could have hoped. At least so far.” He takes a nervous glance around the room to make sure no one is eavesdropping on our salacious conversation. “I know I shouldn’t be surprised by how many alphas like to take it up the ass, but I totally am. But who am I to judge?”

I laugh, trying desperately not to spit out the gulp in my mouth. “You’re bad.”

“What? If they want to pay me for something they can’t get otherwise, I’m happy to take their money.”

“Sounds like you’re having more fun than you should.” I eye him suspiciously.

“Probably.” He chuckles before taking a sip from his drink. Over the rim of his cup, he studies me carefully. “Why do you do this?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, why did you decide to be a relationship counselor?”

“I could ask the same thing about you…”

Brenden bats his eyes theatrically then waves his hand in front of his face. “That’s easy. I like having sex, so why not get paid for it?”

“That’s a reason… I guess.” I smile, pretending to be offended by his crass response. In truth, that’s one of my favorite characteristics of Brenden’s. He’s real. No pretenses or games. Just him, whether you like him or not. “But you could have sex with practically any guy you want. So, what gives?”

He sighs, the first inkling of a frown I’ve seen on him tugging the corners of his mouth. “It’s a long story. But the short version is that I got caught up in some bad stuff, and it’s made it difficult for me to find a job lately.”

“That sucks, and I’m sorry.” Taking another sip from my cup, I wait for him to continue.

“When I heard about this opportunity from a friend, I checked in with Mark to see if he could use someone like me.”

“Someone like you?”

“Yeah. An omega with a panache for topping alphas.” He laughs as if announcing something I don’t already know about him. “You’d be surprised how many places still don’t want to employ strictly top men in the sex industry. But the market is there… I can assure you.”

“Mark’s a good guy. He’s never been one to discriminate.”

“And he knows how to make a dollar when there’s one to be made.” Brenden gives me a wink.

“That’s the truth.”

He picks at his scone, keeping his eyes trained on me. “What about you?”

I sigh and lean back in the chair. “I never finished school. Times got rough, and I had to quit so I could work fulltime. I just started dancing at one of Mark’s clubs less than a year ago, but occasionally I did a little extra on the side for his best customers, and the money made me forget all about the disgrace I was supposed to feel about fucking strangers.”

“I see. Quite the little tempter, aren’t you?” Brenden’s eyes sparkle with mischief. “I knew we would get along famously.”

“You have to meet my friend, Emily. She’ll absolutely love you.”

He flashes that radiant smile once again. “I’d like that. Maybe we can all get together one night.”

“Definitely. You can bring your boyfriend. Or mate…or husband.” I give him an apologetic look as I ramble on, not knowing if he’s with someone or not.

“I’m single right now. I kinda like it that way. Besides, it keeps me from having to explain my job to a potential love interest.”

“That’s the toughest part about this line of work.” And the biggest reason why I need to stay single for the foreseeable future. “No one wants to take home a whore, and I need to be a whore for at least a year if I’m going to accomplish everything I’ve set out to.”

“Does your friend know?” Brenden whispers as if she might be standing right behind him.

“Emily?” I smile at the memory of how encouraging she’d been from day one. “Yeah. She’s been completely supportive with all this. I’m sure she wishes I were in a different line of work, but she knows there isn’t anything else I can do to make this kind of money.” I sigh, hoping I haven’t completely killed the fun mood we were both in just a minute ago. “We can’t all have billionaire fiancés who would give us the world if we asked for it.”

“I’m already jealous of her.” Brenden pops a bite of his scone in his mouth.

“I try not to be, but…ya know.” I shrug. “And Syrus is so good to her. I’m really glad she’s found him.”

“And what about you? Anyone special?” Brenden rubs his hands together as if anticipating some juicy gossip.

Sadly, he won’t get any from me. “Only if you count an eight-year-old…”

“Your kid?”

“Nephew,” I respond, wiping some crumbs from my cookie off the table. “My sister’s kid, Henry. He didn’t have the best start, and my sister is trying to straighten up. But, until that happens, he’s staying with me.”

“Sounds like a lucky kid to have you taking care of him.”

The sincerity in Brenden’s voice makes me feel good. Like validation that I’m doing something right. “Henry’s sweet. And he really deserves better than what he’s been given.”

“Sounds like he’s got exactly what he needs at home now. Love is the best thing a kid can get, trust me.” Something about the way Brenden says those last words makes me realize there’s a deeper story behind those hazel eyes.

Right now doesn’t feel like the time to pry, but I hope we’ll come to a point in our friendship where he feels safe enough to share his story with me.

“And on the boyfriend front?” he prods, moving back into what he seems to think is a safer topic.

A coy smile spreads across my face. “No…”

“Uh-uh… Spill.”

I can feel the heat rising from my neck as I try to control the smile on my face so I can tell Brenden there’s nothing to tell. But by the excitement on his face and the way he’s wiggling in his chair, I think that ship has sailed. “There’s this one client…but obviously, it’ll never be anything. I don’t think we’d be good for each other, and he really doesn’t seem interested in anything serious...”

“But…”

“No, but. He’s an extremely rich and powerful alpha. He might not ever settle down, but if he does, it won’t be with someone he used to pay by the hour. So, no, there’s nothing there. He’s just fun to be with.”

“And you like him…”

I feel stupid admitting this, but I know Brenden isn’t going to judge me. If anything, he’ll be way more encouraging of this crazy scenario than I need. “He’s pretty hot.”

“And…”

I shrug. “And…nothing.”

“Come on… You can’t fool me. How’s the sex?”

An involuntary moan escapes my lips before I can control myself. “Amazing.”

“I knew it.” Brenden has a smile on his lips, but his eyes are sad because he realizes how impossible this situation is. “What does he think about Henry?”

The question catches me off guard because I’m not really sure what Garrett thinks about Henry. He met him at the charity gala, and he kinda knew about him from the whale video I made on the yacht. But he’s never asked me questions or anything like that. “I guess he’s okay with Henry. We’ve never really talked about him.”

“Well, if this guy hasn’t run for the hills after finding out you have a kid at home, he must not be too put off by the idea.”

What Brenden is saying makes sense, but it still doesn’t change anything.

Before I can think too much more about it, Brenden’s eyes shift to something behind me and he mumbles, “Are we expecting company?”

Not sure what he’s talking about, I turn in my chair to see a blond man who must be nine months pregnant walking toward our table. He looks pissed as he glares between Brenden and me. I’m not sure which of us has been sleeping with his mate, but I have to assume one of us is.

The man stops in front of our table and glares at me. Fuck. I guess I’m the lucky winner.

“Can I help you?” I ask, trying not to sound as irritated as I feel that I’m being confronted publicly, in a Starbucks no less.

“Actually, you can start by staying away from my man.” He leans close to my face, which really pisses me off. This bastard better be glad he’s pregnant because I might not like to start fights, but I’ll definitely finish them.

I stand up in front of him, forcing him to take a step back. He’s my height so I can’t stand over him, but I give him an evil glare. “Listen. I don’t know who your man is or why you feel the need to talk to me, but I’m not going to deal with you or your drama.”

Brenden stands as I motion for him to follow me, but as he steps away from the table, a broad-shouldered man comes into view. His large frame blocks both of us from leaving our corner area.

The pregnant man pokes his finger at me, lightly touching my collarbone. “Garrett has a baby coming any day now. We don’t need you messing things up for us. I can forgive him for what he’s done, but you need to stay the fuck away from him.”

“Garrett…” Shock takes over when he says that name. I knew it had to be about someone from work, but never in a million years would I have thought it was Garrett.

The man moves his hands to his belly, cradling it in his arms. “I know you probably didn’t mean to come between a man and his family…” His words have softened, but then the evil tone is back with full force. “But now that you know, you won’t get a second warning. I swear to god, if you don’t…”

Brenden surprises me by stepping forward and chest bumping the large man blocking us. “Get the fuck out of our way.” The man almost looks like he’s going to haul off and punch Brenden, but when Brenden doesn’t flinch, he must think better of it. Brenden may not be as thick as this guy, but he’s muscular and could definitely hold his own.

The pregnant man holds up his hand then glares between me and Brenden. “Just stay away from Garrett and leave my family alone. Go screw with someone else’s life, but let my baby have the chance for a secure future.”

He turns around and the bodyguard looks us both over again before following Garrett’s mate out. All eyes in the coffee shop are on us, adding to the humiliation I already feel at not knowing Garrett had a mate and soon-to-be-born child at home.

But why would I know that? I’m just his afternoon delight. A quick fuck to get his knot off.

Brenden grabs my arm and carefully guides me toward the exit. “Come on, sweetie. Let’s get you out of here.”

I allow him to lead me out, not really paying attention to where we’re headed. Despite the fact that I knew Garrett and I would probably never be more than client and whore, it still feels like I’ve been lied to in some way. Which is ironic because I’m sure that man feels a thousand times worse about it than I do. And Garrett obviously made promises to him, so he actually has a right to be pissed.

I don’t.

But that doesn’t mean I’m not.

I might be many things, but I can’t knowingly come between a family. It’s one thing to be ignorant when a man books time with me. But now that I know Garrett is expecting a child, my stomach is roiling.

I thought he was a better man than that.

But obviously, I was wrong.