Page 10 of Reeling for His Omega

He was an omega. I found myself blurting out the question before thinking. “Are you dating anyone? You have a partner? A mate?”

A heated pause passed between us. “No. None of that. Why do you ask?”

I choked on the answer, stumbling and stammering over an answer that was nothing close to what I really wanted to say to him. Then more gibberish about needing to go and having an appointment.

Goddess, I never got flustered. Ever. I was an attorney for crying out loud. I could finesse a jury and a judge like no one else, no matter how much I hated doing it, but this omega stole my confidence and my senses.

That had to mean something. Didn’t it?

“You have to go?” he asked, and his tone stopped me in my nerve-wrecked tracks.

“Yes. I…I have business in the city. Things I have to finish up at the firm. I wanted to get out of there as soon as possible, but—”

“That’s okay.” Joaquin put his hand on my forearm and my entire body lit up. Places that had been dormant for so long. Places that might’ve never been alive in the first place. “I’ll see you…”

“I don’t know when. A few days. Maybe more. I’m sorry.”

He smiled at me, and everything misplaced and disjointed from the years of denying who I truly was shifted themselves back into place. The holes and dips were sealed shut. “That’s okay. I’ll be here when you get back.”

“Good. That’s good.”

Chapter Ten

Joaquin

Eryx left me in charge. After learning that I’d worked on other types of construction, he asked that I keep track of the other trades. Not telling them what to do but letting him know that everything went smoothly. He called a couple of times a day and asked if the plumber showed up or if the electrician was getting things done.

He’d hoped to come back quickly, but he said he wasn’t sure how long it would be to take care of “things.” I waited, quietly, but he didn’t say more about what was going on. He had told me that he had some loose ends to tie up, but no more detail than that, and although we spoke many times, it was never about what those loose ends were. Attorneys probably had to be cautious of their clients’ privacy, so I didn’t push.

What a change it must be from being a big-shot lawyer to remodeling a theater that had been abandoned for decades in a small town. I understood passion projects, but in choosing mine, I hadn’t had to give up something that could keep me in luxury.

“Excuse me, Joaquin, I’m going to have to turn off all the water to the building for a couple of hours if that’s convenient?” The plumber was wet up to his knees, and he had a streak of mud on his cheek.

“Well, no, it’s not convenient.” When was it convenient to have no source of water in a building? “But I’m sure you won’t have it off any longer than necessary.”

“Absolutely.”

Unfortunately, the plumber underestimated how bad some of the pipes concealed in the wall were. “They’re crumbling,” he growled when I asked how much longer. “If I turn it on, the walls will be soaked through in five minutes.”

So great.

The phone rang just then, and I didn’t have to look at my screen to guess who was calling. “Hi, boss.”

The plumber shook his head. “Don’t say anything,” he hissed.

I hit mute. “I have to tell him. He could come back anytime, and if I lie, he’ll be mad at both of us, and rightfully so.”

He held up his hands and stepped back.

“Sorry,” I mouthed. “Everything is okay, here.”

Eryx grunted. “Well, glad it is somewhere. I hoped to be back tomorrow, but that’s not happening.”

“I’m sorry to hear it.”

“Now, you want to tell me why you sound funny? Is the electrical worse than we thought?”

“No, the electrical seems to be going smoothly.” I could say that in all honestly. As I told the plumber, I couldn’t lie. But if he didn’t ask…did I need to tell him? If he wasn’t returning the next day, it should be fine, right?