Chapter One
When Griffin turned up at Parker’s place to offer Max a job, the alpha hadn’t known what to expect. But after months of steadily growing boredom, with Parker increasingly concerned that Max was going to walk headfirst into trouble, he jumped at the chance to take on a real challenge.
It hadn’t been easy. He couldn’t just rock up to a pack like that as an unknown and expect things to fall into place. Instead, he had to get a job somewhere the right people would notice him. And notice him they had. Three months later, and he was walking into the one place Griffin needed him to be. The house of Julian Ingles, the alpha leader of Knight’s Pack, and his beta mate, Claude.
The head of security for the pack showed him around.
“You’re based on the main floor. You don’t go upstairs to the office or the bedrooms unless you’re asked or you have a damn good reason. The last guard who wandered up there to have a nosey around never worked again.”
“Understood.”
Max was a man of few words. The type of people he worked for appreciated that. While there was no denying his physical presence, his quiet nature often made him seem unobtrusive and the model of discretion.
“So, you cover the front door, reception rooms, living rooms, kitchen area, dining room, kids’ rooms, omega’s room, utilities. All the way to the back door. Outside is the purview of the guards watching the perimeter, though you may be needed out there sometimes.”
The alpha turned to him.
“Any questions?”
Max shook his head.
“Good. As jobs go, this one’s a cake walk if you get it right. You get it wrong and you’ll wind up in a shallow grave.”
The guard smiled at his own joke but underneath the humor, Max got the sense he was serious. Some jobs were jobs you didn’t walk away from. This was one of those.
“You’re to report to the guard on duty at the start and end of every shift but in terms of your day to day duties, you take instruction from the Ingles. The alpha, of course, has ultimate authority but you also take orders from his mate, Claude.”
The guard made a face at that, like the idea of taking orders from a beta grated on him.
“You don’t want to piss Claude off, he has the alpha’s heart and his ear. He’ll get you fired quicker than you can click your fingers.”
The guard went to move on but paused. “Oh, and one more thing. The nanny, the omega. Keep your hands off him. The alpha might turn a blind eye but Claude doesn’t like it. And the beta has the final say where he’s concerned. You have a problem with the nanny, you raise it with Claude.”
“Got it, sir.”
The guard looked him up and down one last time.
“I sure hope this works out. I’m getting tired of training new ones in.”
Max was perplexed by that. “What’s the problem?”
The guard glanced around before leaning forward and lowering his voice.
“If you ask me, it’s an unfulfilled beta not getting enough attention from his alpha mate and jealous of the omega living right in his own home.”
“Why not get rid of the omega?”
“Alpha wants more kids. Beta likes the idea of parenting but not the reality of it. Hence, they need a nanny, and who would you trust more with your kids than an omega who’d do anything to protect them?”
Put like that, Max got it.
“Word to the wise, the beta likes to use the guards to keep the omega in line. Just do what you’re told, don’t argue.”
“Will do.”
That didn’t sound good. But at least it confirmed what he’d suspected. Michael was alive. Michael was here.
They waited for the beta, Claude, to arrive. The guard was growing more impatient by the moment, and Claude arrived twenty minutes late, breezing in like there wasn’t a houseful of people waiting for him.
“This is the new one?” Claude asked dismissively, looking Max up and down.
“This is Max, Mr. Ingles. Your new in-house guard.”
“I hope he’s more reliable than the last one.”
“He comes highly recommended.”
“We’ll see.” The beta walked away, pausing after a moment. “Are you coming or do I have to issue a written invitation?”
The guard gestured for Max to move, and the alpha fell into step behind the beta.
“What pack?” Claude asked.
“No pack.”
“Mate?”
“No mate.”
“The nanny has work to do. If I find you two cavorting, he gets punished and you get fired.”
“He’s no business of mine unless you make him my business.”
The beta glanced at him over his shoulder. “Good. Keep it that way.”
They stepped through a door into a room that was lit by sunlight. At a low table, a little boy sat, coloring with crayons. Nearby was a baby in a rocker, an omega crouched on the ground next to him. He straightened as they came in, wary eyes flicking from Claude to Max and back.
Claude stepped up to the table, pressing a hand to the shoulder of the little boy.
“Max, this is my eldest son, Ryan.”
“Hello Ryan,” Max said, holding out a hand which the little boy shook with a shy grin.
Claude moved to the rocker, and the omega stepped back out of the way. The beta lifted the baby into his arms, the little boy giving an unhappy cry.
“And this is our youngest, Eliot.”
“How old?” Max asked, keeping half an eye on the omega.
“Four months.”
The little boy was an alpha but the baby… he hadn’t presented yet, most likely.
“They’re beautiful. You and Mr. Ingles must be very proud.”
“We are,” Claude said with an indulgent smile before handing the baby dismissively to the omega.
“Our nanny’s name is Michael.”
From the way the beta introduced him, Max could tell he wasn’t supposed to acknowledge the omega’s presence so he simply nodded.
The beta went to walk out but paused, his eyes on a little pile of toys in the corner that Ryan had obviously been playing with. He turned on the omega.
“Get that cleared up,” he demanded. “You’re not here to sit around.”
The omega’s shoulders hunched, and he ducked his head, staring at the floor. “Yes, sir.”
The beta glared at him for another moment, as if considering what he’d do next, before stalking to the door. Max followed, glancing back to see Michael put the baby back in the rocker and rush to the corner to pick up the toys.
“No matter how many times I tell him, the simplest things seem to escape his grasp. He’s like a child.”
Max didn’t respond to the beta’s complaints, following Claude as he showed him the rest of the floor. He made it clear Max’s duties were what he said they were, but it sounded like it would largely be a lot of standing around.
The beta went upstairs, leaving Max alone on the first floor. He scouted the area, familiarizing himself with the layout, each of the exits, windows, storerooms. It was essential he knew as much about the building as possible if he was going to get Michael out of there. Of course, there were complications. Not just the heavily fortified security but also the potential emotional ties of the omega to his kids. And he had no doubt those kids were Michael’s.
Max met the other staff as he patrolled. Aside from Michael, who he wasn’t sure could strictly be considered staff, there was a woman who seemed to be a cook and a man who tended the gardens and indoor plants.
It quickly became clear that Michael’s responsibilities went beyond childcare. Throughout the day, Max watched him fold laundry, do dishes, and wash floors, all while caring for one active child and one fussy baby.
Dinner time came and went. The cook prepared a meal for Max and he ate at the breakfast counter. Claude ate by himself in the dining room, a place set for his absent alpha mate. There was no sign of Julian until just after Ryan went to bed. Max had gone to the kitchen for a glass of water, using it as an excuse to check on Michael, who was scrubbing pots and pans under the cook’s watchful gaze.
The alpha breezed in, the cook scrambling to heat a plate of food for him. Julian ignored Michael who had gone totally still at the sink, holding a dish in his hands, the water dripping off of it.
“Max, I’ve heard good things.”
The alpha held out a hand, and Max shook it.
“Thank you for giving me this opportunity.”
“You’ve been filled in on your responsibilities?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good. Work keeps me fairly busy these days. Claude handles any issues here at home. Do you have any problems taking orders from a beta?”
“No, sir.”
What would Julian think if he learned Max worked for an omega? The idea would probably blow their narrow minds.
Michael didn’t move again until the alpha left the room, glancing over his shoulder and meeting Max’s eyes for one brief moment. He turned back to the sink and the collar he wore glinted in the lights of the kitchen. Max guessed at its function; to prevent anyone bonding with the omega. If Claude and Julian wanted more kids, Michael was their way to achieve that. Him being bonded to anyone would be a costly mistake.
The cook wandered back into the room, sighing when she saw Michael still at the sink.
“Leave them on the draining board to dry, I’ll put them away in the morning.”
She spoke to him with a casual indifference that Max guessed she’d picked up from Claude. The omega set the last pot on the sideboard before grabbing a dishcloth and drying his hands. When he turned to leave and found Max blocking his path, his gaze went immediately wary, and he hesitated. Max moved, slowly and deliberately, out of the omega’s way. There was a pause and then Michael scurried past.
Max knew he had his work cut out for him. On the plus side, Michael was alive and safe, for now. But if Griffin was right that there were other people searching for the omega, it was only a matter of time before they tracked him down. He and Michael needed to be long gone before that happened. But how, exactly, was he going to get the omega to trust him enough to leave with him when Michael wouldn’t even meet his eyes? He put that worry out of his head, focusing instead on the progress made so far. They were under the same roof, sharing the same space. Sure, the rules were restrictive, but he’d find some way to work around them and get Michael home to his family.