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I ignore his awful dad joke and the looks I get as I make a beeline for my kids. “What the heck are you doing here?”
The alpha—Reid, I think—looks up and smiles at me. I’m struck. He’s even more devastating up close and in daylight. He’s got deep chestnut hair, a thick, trimmed beard that frames a cut jaw, and hazel eyes that look ten different shades. He’s rugged and handsome, filling out his blue KPFD T-shirt in ways that make my body very aware that it’s been more than a year since I’ve had sex.
The sight of him looking as delicious as a bad habitnext to my kidspisses me off even more. I cross my arms and lean in. “Well?”
If it’s possible, his smile grows wider. “I’m glad I ran into you, Cammie. I wanted to check on you guys after last night.”
Him saying my name in that rock-bottom voice makes me want to rub myself against him like a cat. I grit my teeth. The night I met Trent, I acted reckless and stupid. But even then, I didn’t have this heart-stopping reaction. It’s unnerving. And I’m annoyed that the reformed part of my alpha-chasing days seems to be in question in the presence of this man. “As kind as that is, you see we’re fine. I told Officer Cliff it won’t happen again.”
His eyes soften. “I know you can take care of yourself, and Cliff was a total jerk.”
“Not a good guy,” Em adds unhelpfully. She beams at me and points at the alpha. “He’s a superhero.”
The alpha’s neck turns red, but he grins at Em.
Ben rolls his eyes. “He’s a firefighter, not a superhero.”
“Well, we don’t need rescue, and I don’t want you around my kids without me, so…” I raise my hand, trying to hurry him along.
His smile dims, but he scoots from the booth and steps into my space. He’s a towering wall of heat and hard lines. I take a breath and it’s a mistake, his heady scent turning my muscles to jelly. He smells like he did last night, though I thought maybe I had blown it out of proportion, chalking it up to the intensity of the situation. It’s the scent of home. It’s porch swings and warm summer nights wrapped in cedarwood, orange blossom, and clove.
I should be furious instead of melting into a puddle at this man’s nearness. He talked to my kids without asking me. He’s here to check up on me like some parole officer. And I don’t need any more alpha problems. One is more than enough. I’m gearing up to take control of the situation, go Crawley on his ass, and embarrass us enough that he doesn’t come sniffing around again. But then his big palm curls around my hip.
He pulls me closer, murmuring in my ear, “Sweetheart, I don’t know who hurt you, but I’m not them. And after last night, I’m counting you as my own. I’m gonna look out for the kids and you. Get used to me being neighborly.”
The hairs on my neck raise as his lips barely brush over the skin. He squeezes my hip and turns back to Ben while my mind freezes on a loop. “Good man. You look out for these two.” He nods at my son and says goodbye to Em and all her stuffed animals.
I stare dumbfounded as he walks to the counter and grabs a massive take-out order from Cutter, who chats the alpha up as if they’re best friends.
“Looks like the universe sent you a gift after all.” Margaret bumps my hip, a tray in hand. “Are you planning to work, or are you just going to stare at that handsome firefighter all night?”
“Stare,” my regular Henry calls from his booth, overly amused.
All my neighbors are nosy.
Chapter 4
Finton
The line at the Knotty Pines downtown city office snakes around the room. I grab a number and wait. It was a long-ass weekend, and the morning is shaping up to be more of the same. With Reid committed to volunteering to help the forestry service with a scheduled burn in the state park for the last few days, I’ve had all the time in the world to worry, freak out, and cyber-stalk our possible mate.
Who doesn’t have socials? It’s as if she’s a ghost Reid saw in the night. I’m in purgatory, knowing she’s so close, yet not ours.
As an omega, waiting and pining are not my strongest skills. I’m made for yeses, big gestures, and give me more. Cherry-top that with the fact that I’m the baby of my family pack and I was the only omega besides my father in a house full of female alphas, and I have a habit of getting exactly what I want.
That’s usually not a problem. I don’t want for much, and Reid dotes on me. Except our newest mate isn’t something he can give. And I know that Cammie Cooper, the woman he met last week, is definitely Reid’s mate.
I felt his alpha wake up in our bond and stake his claim. And I think, or maybe it’s that I hope, she’s my mate too. I didn’t get enough of her scent the night Reid met her to know for sure, but I’m betting everything on it. My plan has been to sunshine the shit out of this situation and hope for the best.
There is no way fate sent her to him alone. Right? And there is no way that fate put her in our path when she’s already mated. Or married. I mean, that would be rude. But the waiting to know is pure torture.
My mind is like a carnival ride, whirling scenarios around until I’m dizzy. I try to shake off my obsessive thoughts and focus on the moment. The man in front of me finally moves to a teller. Living in a small town has its perks, but the archaic way residents of the downtown district still have to pay our utilities in person is enough to make me think about packing it in.
Yeah. I’m not made for waiting.
That means I’m taking matters into my own hands, because I have a beta to stage a meet-cute with. But how do I orchestrate a meet-cute? The dog-walking plan was a bust. Reid already went to her work, so that’s out. I rack my brain, trying to think of something that could work. Something that will wow her.
At the far end, a teller waves at me. Impatiently, I jog to the window.
