Page 29 of Matched By the Dragon

I worked from six to nine that morning because I wanted to be the one to answer the first call. I wanted to show everyone I wasn’t just the wallet backing Omega Ward, but was part of the community we were trying to build too.

“Omega Ward, this is Brad. What’s going on today?” I answered the first call.

Before opening we’d decided on a neutral greeting because it would be easy to blend into the background if someone was in trouble.

“I… I just wanted to see if the number was real. It’s been all over the place,” a woman’s voice said. “I’m not in trouble. I guess, I’m just tying up the lines, huh?” she sound so embarrassed.

“No, we have more lines,” I said, smiling. “I think double-checking emergency numbers ahead of time is great. I can ask where you’re calling from?”

“The Fox Family Territory,” she said.

“Wow, word has traveled,” I smiled.

“If you’re in trouble you can start talking about the last meal you ate,” I said, using one of the many methods we had came up with to find out if someone was in trouble and couldn’t talk about it directly.

“I’m really okay,” she said. “I’m a social worker. I wanted to verify that you actually opened up and were taking calls.”

“Are you calling on the behalf of someone else?” I asked.

“I probably will in the future.”

“While you’d probably know your resources for your territory better than we would, if we can help, we will.”

“Thanks. I… I hope you guys stay open. A lot of omega focused charities don’t.”

“We’re privately funded, miss,” I said. “We don’t rely on donations. So, we have a better chance than most.”

The lady from the Fox Family Territory down south wasn’t the only omega who called to ‘see if we were open.’ Some callers even asked how we’d ensure alphas didn’t trick us. We told them we had wards in place and nothing more. We did have a ward that would alert us to when a caller was an alpha. While we’d still answer the call, we’d know to be on guard. What if their mate was having a baby and they felt like they couldn’t call anyone else for some reason? What if for some reason an alpha woman was pregnant and in danger? We’d help in both cases. We’d probably send alphas in both cases or dragon omegas, but we did acknowledge we’d have to work intersectionally if we were going to be part of the community.

I came home just in time to kick off my shoes and unbutton my shirt before Clyde showed up for my ultrasound. I stretched out on the sofa while the cubs sat on my legs and feet. Over the weeks, they’d grown fond of watching the scans. Durin leaned his arms on the back of the sofa and smiled down at me. If they were any other people crowding around me like this, I’d have pushed them away, but my little family being so close didn’t make me feel claustrophobic. Their proximity made me feel safe and loved.

I held Durin’s hand and marveled at how big my belly had grown while I was busy getting Omega Ward off the ground. I was well and truly pregnant. I was just over halfway through my pregnancy. I’d have to slow down soon more likely than not, but that was the beauty of Omega Ward. It could run with or without me being there in person and I could always take texts on my phone at home.

“Are you two making bets on the gender?” Clyde teased as he got his portable ultrasound machine set up.

“I just want a baby who comes out easily,” I laughed.

“Eh, don’t say that too loud. It’s the destiny of every child to rebel against their parent,” Clyde chuckled.

“Oh no!” I laughed.

Then the wand was against my belly. We’d checked for anatomy at every scan of course, but my baby was finally far enough along that this should be the one. We all watched the screen as our little baby came into view. The boys didn’t know what they were looking at but they liked this ‘show.’

“You’re going to have a baby brother, boys,” Clyde grinned when the telltale sign was on the screen.

Resin and Oaklan looked at each other confused but then decided it must be a good thing and started wrestling around. Durin scooped them up and put them on the floor to wrestle in their little bear forms while Clyde checked my legs and took my blood pressure. So far the latter had been stable throughout my pregnancy. Still, pre-eclampsia scared me. Just thinking about it scared me. So, I didn’t think about it often, because stress wasn’t good for any of my babies – born or yet to be born.

Clyde pronounced me healthy and double-checked that the grand opening party for Omega Ward had everything it needed. We did, but I thanked him anyway, because more than one alpha had been grouchy about not being invited to the party. No one I knew personally, but I still kept a list of their names in the back of my planner and in my phone’s notepad. I was starting my own watchlist. Especially, if they were over twenty-five. Sure, young alphas being dumb got people hurt, but they still had a tiny chance to realize they were idiots. If they were over twenty-five, I didn’t hold out much hope of that happening.

After Clyde left, we got the kids ready and spent a few minutes snuggling on the sofa while they played. Despite working on Omega Ward, we’d still found plenty of time to spend together because we knew how to take advantage of these small moments.

“Excited?” Durin asked, his hand resting on the zenith of my pregnant belly.

“For the baby? For Omega Ward? For lunch?” I laughed. “Yes to all three.”

“Good,” Durin kissed my temple. “I know you have security, but if anything goes wrong, don’t try to keep it off our link, please. I’m sure the dragons can handle it and if I show up and they’re kicking the s-h-i-t out of the a-s-s-h-o-l-e, I’ll leave them to it, but I’m still going to worry about you. Knowing that you’ll let me know if something is wrong will help.”

“Would you be this worried if I wasn’t pregnant?” I asked him.