Free UNTOUCHED (Midwest Alphas) (Book 1) by Tabatha Kiss Page B

follow slowly behind him. “Going out?” I ask. “It’s a little early in the day for you, isn’t it?”
    “I have an errand to run,” he mutters as he throws a leg over the seat and sits down.
    I smile and put a bad southern drawl on my voice. “Where you going? Down to the sock hop with Sally May?”
    He chuckles. “Your knowledge of small town life is really outdated.”
    “Enlighten me then.”
    “Well, for starters,” he says, “we don’t do sock hops during the summer.”
    “Uh-huh,” I nod.
    “And Sally May is kind of a bitch.”
    I laugh. “I stand corrected.” I bite my lip. “Where else do you run off to at night?”
    “What do you mean?” he asks.
    “Well, you’re gone like every night. Fights only happen once a week. You have a girlfriend or something?”
    His lips curl and he leans in closer to speak at a whisper. “You know, I actually do work at the automobile factory across town.”
    “No shit?”
    “A few nights a week,” he nods. “It’s called having a cover.”
    “You really do take this whole secret identity thing seriously, don’t you?” I joke.
    He stares back at me and offers a quick smile. It’s strange to see him in broad daylight like this. He appears brighter and warmer, almost like an entirely different person. “Here,” he says as he reaches into his jacket pocket. He pulls out a silver device with a pair of small ear-bud headphones wrapped around it.
    “What’s this?” I ask as he hands it to me.
    “My old music player,” he says. “Found it stashed away in a drawer. I thought you might get some use out of it.”
    I inspect the device, noticing the small scratches on its face. “ Old being the key word,” I joke. “What is this, a generation 2?”
    “Hey, if you don’t want it—”
    “No, no,” I say, clutching it tight against my breast. “It’s fine.”
    “It’s better than silence,” he says.
    “What’s on it?”
    “None of that rap or princess pop you city kids are used to,” he smiles, “but put it on shuffle and you should find something you like.”
    “Tobias…” I twist my voice back into my awful southern impression. “Did you make me a mix tape?”
    “I have to run,” he says, rolling his eyes. He shoves the key in and starts the motorbike. “Don’t let my dad see that.”
    “Oh, Tobias! You’re so keen!” He revs the engine loudly to cover my voice. I drop the accent. “Tobias!” The engine falls back down to a dull rumble and he glances back at me. “Thank you,” I tell him.
    “You’re welcome, Claire.” He slides the helmet over his head.
    I take a step back and let him ride away. Gravel kicks up behind him, creating a white cloud of dust that follows him all the way down to the highway. I glance back at the house, suddenly feeling like I’m holding a nuclear bomb in my hands. I stuff the player in my jeans pocket as I quickly scan the house to make sure Charlie isn’t watching.
     
    ***
     
    “Claire—”
    I look up from my book. “What?” I ask.
    Charlie stands in the kitchen doorway with the telephone against his ear. “It’s for you,” he says as he points it at me.
    I set my book down on the table and stand up from my seat. “I get phone calls now?” I ask as I step closer.
    “It’s your mother.”
    “Oh.” I pause my stride. “Can you take a message? Tell her I’m out or something.”
    Charlie furrows his brow and shoves the phone in my direction. “You don’t go out.”
    I hold out my hand and reluctantly take the phone from him. As badly as I’d like to get out of this place, talking to my mother isn’t something I’ve longed to do since she abandoned me here. The long cable bounces around as I bring the old phone to my ear. “Hello?” I mutter.
    “Claire, honey…” My mother speaks with a low voice, just above a whisper, almost as if she’s hiding in a closet. “How are you?”
    “I’m alive,” I say, offering nothing more.
    “Well…” she chuckles slightly. “I