Page 20 of Scheme
“Maybe a month, maybe longer,” Kit replied vaguely. “I got offered a long-term gig in France, I haven’t decided whether I’m going to take it or not.”
“Where in France?” Sinclair cut in before Coleman could reply, her bright smile unmistakably genuine. “I lived in Caen for a few years—my parents were there for work. It’s beautiful.”
Sinclair was being nothing but polite, but Kit was stiff as a board, retreating back into that anxious place he’d been in at the party yesterday. I gave him a little squeeze with the arm I had wrapped around his shoulders, shooting him what I hoped was an encouraging smile.
“Paris.” Kit cleared his throat.
“You won’t take it, though,” Coleman said confidently. “You don’t like being tied down to one place.”
“That must be stressful for you,” Coleman’s mate—Jocelyn?—said, giving me a look filled with false sympathy. Not that they’d asked a single question about me or what my intentions with their friend were.
Sinclair was nice. The rest of them, I could happily never interact with again.
“No more so than it would be for any other omega, I suppose,” I replied, giving her my blandest smile. She did not return the gesture.
“Where were you before you came home?” Rajeev asked.
“The Sonoran Desert in Arizona on an assignment for a few weeks. Then I spent a few days in New York before I flew here.”
Kit’s voice was so toneless that even his friends looked like they didn’t know how to respond. I didn’t think he was being intentionally rude, but rather that he was uncomfortable. Or maybe he was just being rude and I was projecting good intentions onto him that weren’t there.
“I’ve always wanted to move to New York,” I volunteered, feeling the need to fill the extended silence. “I love thecoolnessof London, but there’s something very exciting about theboldnessof New York, if that makes sense.”
“Not really,” Coleman said flatly. I could have sworn Kit’s arm around my waist tightened a little “Anyway, tell us everything Kit. When are you moving home?”
“I’m really sorry about this,” Kit said again, leaning in close so I could hear him over the thudding bass. I wasn’t even entirely surehowwe’d ended up at this painfully loud club, but since the seven of them had all seemed super familiar with it, I assumed it was a regular haunt of theirs.
“It’s fine, honestly.” I shot him a half smile over the top of my glass of soda, giving the hand I’d been clinging onto a quick squeeze of reassurance. Honestly, I was surprised he hadn’t shaken me off—even with the whole fake courtship factor, I was being a little clingy.
I didn’t like clubs. Too many scents, too many sounds, too many mystery sticky things on the floor. My omega instincts were going feral in this dark, crowded space that reeked of pheromones.
“Do I smell?” I asked, stepping further into Kit’s space as a group of laughing betas headed for the dance floor behind, bumping into my back.
Kit shook his head, allaying my nerves a little, though not much. I drained my glass, setting it down next to Kit’s empty one on the bar leaner.
“Let’s dance,” I said, steeling myself and holding out a hand for Kit to take. “The whole point of me hanging off you tonight was so you could have a good time.”
“Does dancing constitute a good time?” he asked dubiously, resting a hand in mine and pulling me closer. As discreetly as I could, I took a deep whiff of Kit’s scent, using it to centre myself. The closer I stood to him, the easier it was to tune the rest of the club out.
“For some people. Shall we give it a try?”
Kit’s hands found my hips, and mine came to rest on his chest, my fingers playing with the fabric of his shirt as we swayed to the beat. Each swaying movement brought our bodies closer together, and while I was too on edge to sink into the moment and reallyenjoyit, the closeness was kind of lovely.
He wassafe. Kit had no interest in screwing me, and that made it very easy to let myself physically relax in his presence.
Kit leaned down, his lips brushing my ear. “Do you want a glass of wine?”
I hid my grin in his shirt. “Not yet.”
In all honesty, I’d be more than happy to leave, but the whole point of tonight had been for Kit to have a good time and I wasn’t sure we’d succeeded yet.
The others were dancing nearby, occasionally attempting to wave Kit over despite his repeated refusals. Sinclair was animatedly chatting to a cute beta, both of them swaying in time to the beat, and I was glad she hadn’t been pushy at least.
No, the pushiness had come from Kit’s supposed friends.
Like I’d summoned him with my mind, Coleman broke away from the group, making his way over to us. I could have sworn Kit’s grip on my hips grew a little tighter.
“You’re being boring,” Coleman said loudly, clapping Kit on the back. “Come dance with the rest of us.”
