Page 13 of Ruined Omega

Not far, as it turns out, is something of an understatement.

The cramped, third-story apartment is literally directly across the street from my loft.

All this time I thought this building was abandoned. Technically it is, except for this tiny little apartment.

The main room is less than two hundred square feet. In the middle of the ceiling is an empty socket for a lightbulb, its little ball-chain dangling uselessly. The only light is what filters in through the street-side window, and it takes my eyes a few seconds to adjust.

Ancient wallpaper is peeling away from the walls, revealing plaster and lath like exposed ribs. There’s a door that opens onto a small bathroom, and another leading to a dark, shadowy room in the back. The furniture is sparse—a couple of metal folding chairs, a small card table, a mini-fridge plugged into a humming promethium battery pack the size of a brick.

But one item in particular catches my attention.

By the small window, mounted on a tripod, is a large, black telescope. It’s pointed directly at my place across the street.

I’m not going to lie. That’s pretty darn creepy.

Behind me, there is a heavy tread of boots and a rustle of leather as Tal squeezes into the apartment. His bulk fills the doorway, and he has to twist his body to get through it.

There is a series of clicks as he snaps the half-dozen deadbolts on the door. Now I’m locked in here with the Alpha. I should be wary—and I am a little bit. But mostly I’m fascinated. Already the air in this enclosed space is thick with his hypermasculine scent. I try to ignore the strange clenching sensation deep in my core.

Inappropriate, Hines.

Totally inappropriate.

Tal finishes locking the sturdy door, and I quickly turn away so that he won’t see me checking him out. My attention drifts back to that telescope, and I wonder exactly how much time this guy has spent watching me.

I wonder what he has seen.

Tal must notice me eyeing the scope because he says, “It’s not what it looks like.”

“Oh really?” I say, in a trembling voice. “’Cause it sure looks like a telescope.”

I bend and look into the eyepiece, and sure enough, it’s focused precisely on the window of my apartment. In my rush to get out the door for my date with Martin, I forgot to pull the blinds, and pretty much my entire living space is on full view: the couch, the desk with my computer, my pair of sneakers that I really wish I had right now.

And there is the door to my bathroom. Where I shower. Have I always been careful to cover myself before getting out?

How much of me has this guy seen?

A cold, hard place tightens inside my abdomen. But at the same time, there’s another feeling underneath. A feeling like someone is tickling the inside of my tummy with a feather.

“You know what I mean,” Tal grunts.

I tense up as his heavy hand falls on my shoulder and firmly pulls me away from the telescope.

He looks out the window, casting his eyes left and right down the street below, before carefully scanning the roof line on the other side.

“Its dark in here, so nobody should be able to see in from the street,” he says quietly. “Nevertheless, it’s best if you keep away from the window, Hines. Just to be safe.”

“Fine,” I say quietly.

I sit my butt down on the cold metal chair by the wall and place my bag on my lap. I rub my arms and look around, but there’s not much to look at, and once more my gaze falls on that telescope.

“So…how long have you been living here?” I whisper.

“Six months,” Tal replies, still keeping his eyes on the street.

Six months. Wow. That’s about how long I’ve been living in the place across the street. I don’t understand exactly what is going on here, but I know I don’t like it. I take a deep breath of Alpha-scented air and summon the courage to say what I’m thinking.

“So you’ve been spying on me all that time.”