threat to his safety that seemed ever-present these days. Every time he came and went from the hostel, it felt like he was running the gauntlet. One of these days, he was going to run out of luck. Or maybe that had been this morning, getting smacked around by an arrogant alpha who felt entitled to Riley for no other reason than he was an omega.
“Here we are,” Brendan announced, parking next to the sidewalk in front of a large red brick house.
Riley peered out the window, up and up. Just how many floors did this house have?
“This is the place?” he asked doubtfully, getting out of the car when Brendan did.
“This is it. I know it looks old, but there’s plenty of charm. Mrs. O’Brien is very house-proud.”
Meaning Riley should watch what he said about the decor. No problem, he was good at keeping his mouth shut.
Brendan let himself in with a key, gesturing Riley through the door ahead of him. There was a place to hang their coats and a shoe rack. Brendan didn’t bother with the latter so Riley didn’t either. They followed the smell of cooking through the house, Riley’s stomach rumbling despite how much he’d managed to eat at lunchtime. He still had half a sandwich stowed away in his bag for later. If this turned out to be a bust, he’d still eat well tonight.
“Mrs. O’Brien, I’ve brought a guest,” Brendan called, leading Riley into a dining room with a long table. The door at the other end of the room was open, and Riley could see a kitchen beyond. A woman appeared in the doorway, an apron around her waist.
“Brendan. Causing trouble as usual, I see.”
Brendan didn’t seem surprised by the accusation. He held up his hands. “Mea culpa. You know me.” He turned to Riley. “Mrs. O’Brien, this is my new assistant, Riley. Riley, Mrs. O’Brien, the finest cook in the city.”
The woman rolled her eyes as she ambled forward, reaching out with both hands. Riley froze, not sure what was incoming until the woman was holding his hands in hers, warm and steady.
“Hello, dear. Lovely to meet you.”
Her eyes lingered on Riley’s face, frowning at the bruising, which Riley could only imagine looked worse than it had that morning.
She rounded on Brendan. “What’s this? He looks like he’s been through the wars.”
Riley rushed to defend the alpha. “It wasn’t him. It was…” He trailed off, unsure how much he should tell her.
Mrs. O’Brien merely patted his hands. “I know that, dear. Brendan is all bark and no bite.”
Still, she turned back and aimed a pointed look Brendan’s way. The alpha sighed. “He’s been staying at the omega hostel down on the corner of Queen Street.”
“I see,” Mrs. O’Brien replied darkly. When she looked at Riley, her eyes softened. “Dinner’s still a while away, so why don’t I show you the room? You’re lucky, Tony only moved out on Friday. I usually have the room filled within a week.”
She finally let go of his hands and bustled away through the door. Brendan grabbed a seat at an armchair near the fire. When Riley gave him a pleading look, he merely waved the omega onward.
Grumbling, Riley chased after the beta, finding her waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs. “Down here, we have the kitchen, dining, and living rooms. Brendan lives on the floor below. It has its own door out into the street. Alphas like their independence.” They climbed up to the next floor.
“The betas are on this floor. Four of them, and two bathrooms between them. They’re all working, and most of them are studying as well, so you might not see much of them except at mealtimes and weekends. They like to go out to nightclubs on a Saturday, but what they see in those noisy places I’ll never know.”
They went up more stairs. “This is my floor. No one is allowed up here except whoever is staying up in the attic, since they can’t get up there without passing through.” All but one door was closed. Riley barely glanced at it, wanting to respect the landlady’s privacy. Right at the other end of the corridor was another set of stairs. He followed her up. When they reached the top, he was surprised to find the place was nicer than he’d imagined. Far from being a poky room with a mattress stuffed in one corner, it was spacious and bright, thanks to two skylights.
“There’s an ensuite bathroom through