A Rogue For Four Alphas

Chapter Twenty Four

What's the address?" Alpha Erik asks.

As I tell him, he enters the information into a fancy GPS, and a map to the destination appears. After he scans the route, he switches the screen over to the music player, but he turns

the volume down so low that it's nearly inaudible.

"Micahel Jackson?" I ask, reading from the screen.

Alpha Erik pulls out of the driveway and heads toward the main road. "Yeah."

"Turn it up."

One of his eyebrows cocks in surprise as he glances over at me. "You like the classics ?"

I nod. "Yep." A friend in high school turned me on to the genre. I don't listen much, but I really like the sound. Something by Michael Jackson is playing. It's more upbeat than the classics I'm familiar with, but it's good.

He's quiet during the drive, which is no surprise with Alpha Erik. The silence makes me uncomfortable, but I restrain myself from saying something just to fill it.

When we reach the first apartment building, he parks in a spot marked for visitors and makes moves to get out when I open my door.

"You don't have to come with me," I say. "I'll try to be quick."

A flicker of something I can't read crosses his face, but he leans back in his seat. "Take your time."

The buildings at the apartment complex look fairly new, and the grounds seem to be clean and well-maintained. The available unit is just a studio - one room plus a bathroom-but that's all I need, and all I can afford, especially at a nicer property.

There's no one in the office except for a woman sitting behind the desk. Another good sign; maybe I'm the first person to arrive. My wishful thinking is quickly brought to an end.

"I'm sorry. We just rented that unit," she says when I inquire about the studio apartment.

"Are any others available?"

"There's a two-bedroom unit that's about to become available," she says.

"What's the rent?" I cringe internally as I ask, knowing it's going to be too much for me to afford.

She answers and confirms my assumption. It's much too rich for my blood. I'd need two roommates in order to be able to afford it.

I thank the woman and return to the truck, a considerable amount of pep gone from my step.

"No luck," I tell Alpha Erik as I strap on my seatbelt.

I give him the address for the apartment on Four Points and he pulls out of the lot. There's a song on now with a line in it about the night sky, and it reminds me of something I wanted to ask him about.

"I noticed your telescope when I was cleaning the house yesterday," I say, trying hard to forget what I was doing in his room when Ian found me. "Do you use it much?"

Stopped at a light, he gives me a long look before he answers. "Not as much as I'd like."

"I have an app I like to use," I explain. "It shows what constellations are visible on any given night."

I have one like that too," he says.

We talk for a few minutes about our shared interest, and I'm surprised to realize I have things in common with this man.

I want to ask him if I can try out his telescope because I've never used one, but something holds me back. If I can lease this apartment we're headed to, I won't be at their house much longer, anyway.

When we arrive at our destination, I double check the address, because it's not an apartment building. We're at the right place; however, it's a large, old house that's in need of new paint or siding, and probably a new roof too. Alpha Erik seems as surprised as I am, and insists on coming to the door with me.

After nearly a minute, during which I knock twice, an old man answers the door, and when I mention the ad I saw, he tells me the rental unit is in the back.

After getting his sweater from a hook near the door, he comes outside and leads us off the porch and along a path on the side of his house to a small, detached building I hadn't noticed from the road. Its siding and roof aren't in much better shape than the main house.

The man sorts through what must be at least two dozen keys on a keychain he pulls from his baggy pants pocket, and eventually finds the one that unlocks the rental unit. As soon as the door is opened, I'm slapped in the face with a strong, musty smell. Alpha Erik recoils and wrinkles his nose, frowning at me.

"As you can see," the old man is saying, "you'd have complete privacy here. This entire building would be yours. There's a living room, kitchen, bedroom and bathroom."

I follow him inside, while Alpha Erik lags behind on the rickety porch before finally joining us. The odor is even stronger once I'm indoors, and I look around, taking note of how many windows the building has, and wondering how long it might take to air out the smell.

The man starts toward a doorway that leads to the kitchen, but Alpha Erik speaks up, interrupting the information the man was providing about utilities.

"I'm sorry, but we're going to have to pass on this."

"Huh?" I turned to look at him confused