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Because when I went into books, side characters and off-page characters would give me some degree of interaction, but main characters on page wouldn’t. So…if the sex scene was on the main page…I could watch.

I wandered the building, finding the insides lacking detail, all the rooms empty save for one or two with the bare shadow of another person or an unkempt bed. The stink of stale instant noodles permeated everything.

Up another floor, down a hall, and bingo! The only one with a door with a sock on the knob. I rubbed my hands together and slipped in.

And yep, hockey players had nice asses. And the MC wasn’t that bad, either.

So, this is what Lex likes… Nice.

Chapter Thirteen

Lex

I woke at the screech of my phone’s alarm, dragging myself from bed to get ready and go to work.

For the fuck of it, I grabbed a book off my shelf to bring in and searched for my keys… No keys.

“Ah, shit.” I heaved a sigh as I checked the time and wondered if there was enough time to walk. Nice to know I couldn’t count on Zeke to—the hum of a motor purred in my driveway and I peeped out. “Nevermind.”

Zeke waved at me from the driver’s seat of my car and slipped out before circling to the passenger seat. “Kept the seat warm for you.”

“You’re a real peach.” I smiled and locked the lower lock on the door, checked my key was still around my neck, and sidled into the passenger seat. I’d never even thought to question the key situation, but knowing what I knew after the day before… Yeah, it made sense.

I drove us to work, the side roads relatively quick, two stop signs, a cracked road, and into the parking lot we went.

I tried to keep my mind off things, but knowing what the noises in the library were didn’t make me feel any better. Every rustle made me flinch. Every whisper made me want to swear and throw something at the books. Little shit-talking posthumous trees.

“Big words for a tattooed taxidermized plant!” I stared up at the shelves as I took in their whispers and reshelved a copy of Robin Hood that may or may not have a chapter about Ponzi schemes. I didn’t read it.

When I ran out of books to read, I glanced about for Zeke and approached the door at the back where I’d seen him go a few times. I raised my hand to knock and thought better of it. My shift was almost over, and I decided maybe sitting about and trying that reading thing might be nice.

I’d read the book a few times already, my mind envisioning a bigger, wonderful world that I dearly wanted to see for real.

I sat down at the desk, flipped open the cover, and leaned my elbows over as I perused the first chapter, trying to draw my mind into it like Zeke had shown me.

And it started wonderfully, the library fading as I flowed into the book.

The scent of pastries surrounded me, and I jumped when I glanced down and saw my clothing had changed. “What the…”

A flour-dusted apron hung limply down my chest, and I glanced around as the stalwart beta who owned the shop glared at me. “I told you not to come in today, and here you are.”

“I—” I couldn’t get another word out before the beta lectured me about my presence, attracting alphas this close to my heat.

I vaguely recalled the conversation in the book: the beta fussing at another employee while the MC tended the ovens. I glanced around and there he was, sweating away as the piles of pans stacked up. What was it I was supposed to be doing? If I were the character…

“It’s just the ovens making me sweat, sir! I’ll get right back to packing these up.” I dodged his further fussing and went to the table covered in freshly baked pastries and packed croissants, buns, and more in sets of six at a time in pretty, pink boxes.

And from there, he left me alone while I enjoyed my day in the bakery, sugar and butter surrounding me one step at a time. It was nice, especially as I watched the shy alpha sneak his way in to buy a few Danishes, his favorite treat as the omega gave him fluttery lashes.

The awkward exchange passed, and I flipped the chapter, following the main character home as I recalled that the random other omega I was portraying lived below the main character in a run-down apartment building sanctioned for single omegas. And since we couldn’t drive in this world, I walked wherever I needed.

I watered my plants, getting into the role of the character and my sparse apartment, opening a nearly barren fridge as I nipped up a few bites of stale leftover croissants for dinner. A calendar on the front of it told me that I, too, would be in heat soon.

I didn’t feel any different, and I idly imagined what it would be like to be an omega, to be given the luxurious gift of heat. And the more I thought about it, the more excited I got both mentally and physically, my cock growing harder and harder until I gave in and stripped. I thought about taking a shower and tested the water, as the MC had mentioned the lack of hot water in that section of the city for omegas. As plumbers tended to be alphas, their entrance into singles housing was limited. So, no hot water for me.

I kinda got the feeling the books were a lot more abusive and fucked up than I enjoyed in person, but when I relented to flop onto my bed and fondle myself, I sighed with pleasure, casually stroking myself. Idly, I wondered if there were any toys about but recalled that this was one of those worlds where toys were banned as alphas didn’t like them.

As I relished my lust, a pounding interrupted my session, and I glared at the door. No peephole… I dressed in a hurry and cracked the door, the chain taut as someone pushed back against me, a man I didn’t recognize.