I carefully folded my napkin and set it on my plate, then stood.
"What are you doing?" my dad asked.
"I'm leaving. Please enjoy the rest of your meal. I'll call you when I have something to say to you."
I knew it wasn't the smartest move, but it was better than getting in a screaming match with my father and risking him pulling my funding immediately.
6
Chris
I usually hated second shift. It sucked up your entire day. But today I was filled with relief from being able to both sleep in and be near an available toilet in the morning. I knew the refrigerator hadn’t been running as well as it should, and had even attempted to report it to my slumlord, but I had no idea it was bad enough that I’d end up with food poisoning. The chicken hadn’t even been in there that long, but that knowledge didn’t make it any better as it came back up.
I spent the latter half of the morning scrubbing the fridge and throwing away the contents. There was no way I wanted a repeat of this morning. Thankfully it was near my grocery shopping day and there was little to discard. I still had a day or two before I’d be able to go to the store but that was fine. Ramen didn’t spoil and always felt good going down. It probably wasn’t actually food but I wasn’t picky right now. I was just glad that I was no longer hurling every fifteen minutes.
Grabbing my apron, I scurried out my door after my glance at the clock told me I needed to run if I were to catch the bus, locking the door behind me. There was a yellow piece of paper taped to it. I grabbed it and stuffed it in my pocket. As I hurried down the stairs, I wondered if I would see Aiden today.
Aiden, sexy hot Aiden. Why couldn’t I get him out of my mind? There was no way he was going to ask me out for real. He knew I was seeing someone when I agreed to the pretend date. It wasn’t like I could say, “Welcome to Café Om. I just broke up with my kind of boyfriend, would you like to try a newly single omega today?” Besides being super awkward, it would be beyond inappropriate, especially now that I was a shift leader.
Barely making the bus, I took out my phone, my fingers hovering over the keys. Should I or shouldn’t I? played in my head. It wasn’t like it had been a real date. Did that mean I could text him? Friends text, right? The struggle continued until I at last came to my stop and slipped the phone in my pocket. Maybe I would text after my shift if he didn’t stop by. I hated to think it, but Marcus might have some advice on the matter. His life was a hot mess of alpha hunting, but that didn’t mean he didn’t have some good advice from time to time.
It was insanely busy when I walked in the door, and I barely had time to clock in before helping customers. I had a ton of office work to do, but that needed to wait. Customers always came first. They also helped a shift fly by. It was four hours later before I was able to break away and get my paperwork for the week done. I grabbed a bagel and tea, the thought of coffee not helping my recovering stomach, and wandered to the back.
I loved my leadership role at Café Om. It was one of the few places that gave preference to young omegas looking for a chance to learn leadership skills and move up the managerial ladder. That didn’t make paperwork anymore palatable. It felt like the world’s biggest jigsaw puzzle as I tried to get next week’s schedule done. I only had to do it once a month, thankfully, or I would’ve pulled out my hair already.
I was onto the balance sheets, something I actually did enjoy, when a knock on the door interrupted me. Glancing up, I was glad to see it was my boss Abrar, not Marcus wanting to get off early, his new pain in the neck habit.
“Come in,” I called out, quickly marking where I was so as to not have to start over when Abrar left.
“Hey, got a minute?” His brow was tense. Something wasn’t right. As far as I knew, things had been running fairly normally, with no big disasters. Marcus wasn’t one to keep any juicy gossip to himself, so I felt pretty in-the-know after working the line with him, even if we were busy.
“Sure. Just finishing up the balance sheets.” I put them down, indicating he had my full attention. I was still pretty new to the gig and had my eyes set on assistant store manager within a year. An omega has to have goals.
“Mind if I shut the door?” That wasn’t good. He tried to leave the door open whenever possible so that we didn’t feel pressured under the influence of his alpha scent. We never would, because he wasn’t that kind of alpha, but it was nice to know he cared enough to make us all as comfortable as possible.
“Go for it.” I tried to pull off nonchalant, but I feared I was going to have to fire someone before the night was over and that was something I was not ever going to be comfortable with.
“So this is a delicate situation, but I need you to keep an…” His eyes unfocused in thought, then bugged. “Holy crap!” he said, before schooling his face. I looked behind me unable to see what had caught his eye, but thankfully did not see the ginormous spider such a reaction would indicate.
“You need me to keep a holy crap?” I leaned back, waiting for him to pull himself together. This was not the Abrar I knew, but he was also closed into a predominantly omega office. It could be his mate was nearing their heat and the omega scents were just too much for him, being away from home. I didn’t pretend to understand all the protective instincts of an alpha, but I had seen Abrar with his mate more than once and knew his instincts were on steroids.
“Umm no, I need you to keep an eye on the new girl, Lily. Her drawer keeps being off odd amounts and that might mean she has sticky fingers. I hope not, but it looks that way.”
Huh, not at all what I thought he was going to say. Taking a quick look at the week’s balance sheets, I saw what he meant. It could be simple errors, but it looked more like someone was using the old school penny method for knowing how much over their drawer was so they could pocket the money at the end of the night. Not good. I would kick myself later for not noticing it myself.
“I just finished the schedule. Let me make sure I am on some of her shifts before I post it. Is this all recent?” It would be easy enough to make sure I worked when she did, since she was a college student and had minimal hours to begin with.
“Yeah, the past few days. I hope I’m wrong.” He slid back in his seat. I hoped so too. Not only because I didn’t want theft in my workplace, but also I wanted to believe her a better person than that.
“Me too. She seems like a nice enough girl.”
Abrar just sat there and stared at me, scratching his chin a few times as if unsure if he should continue. That was so not him.
“Umm…is there something else we need to talk about?”
“You tell me,” he countered, no anger in his voice. Weird.
“What do you mean?”
“When were you going to let me know you were pregnant?”
I laughed, but my laughter faded when Abrar didn’t join me. Pregnant. No way could I be pregnant. I was abstinent during my heat and always used a condom. Always. But…I had been queasy lately and had spent the morning puking. Fuck. Was I pregnant?
“Shit, you didn’t know did you?”
No, I did not. Fuck.
“I’m just going to, uh, go back to my office for a while.” Abrar seemed to be holding my breath. My damn pheromones must be out of control, filling up the tiny room. “Call me if you need me?”
I nodded, burying my face in my hands. This was not happening. I leaned back, brushing my hands down my pants to dry the sweat suddenly slicking them, and something crinkled. I pulled out a piece of yellow paper from my pocket and remembered pulling it from the door earlier. I opened it up.
Notice of Condemnation.
Well, this day just kept getting better and better.
7
Aiden
I wandered around downtown after leaving my dads before calling a taxi. I debated going home, but I was too keyed up. I needed something to do. I headed back to the lab and tried to get back in the headspace I had been in before my dads arrived, and finally gave up after a few hours of
losing track of the ingredients I was combining and tossing attempt after attempt.
I couldn’t call Ethan. He wasn’t the romantic type. If he could satisfy my dads by arranging a mating for him, he’d do it in a heartbeat, without a single concern beyond logistics. I mean, he’d dated before, even had long-term girlfriends and boyfriends, which is more than I could say for myself. But, and we’d talked about it at length, his relationships were built on physical attraction almost exclusively, but not the deep, abiding passion I considered a must.
With most of our friends either firmly entrenched in the nine-to-five workforce and clueless about entrepreneurship or moved on from the city after graduation, I really didn’t have anyone else. But…I considered shooting Chris a message, then remembered he was at work. I rarely went to Café Om in the evenings, but it wasn’t unheard of. And I knew he was working tonight because, stalker me, he had been talking to Marcus about schedule changes when I was in last week and I’d stored the information away for future use. Like now.
I called another taxi, deciding to skip swinging home to pick up my car because it would add another forty minutes or so before I got to the café. I knew Chris was working tonight, but I didn’t know what time he got off and I didn’t want to miss him.
Chris looked tired when I walked in, but he smiled at me anyway and a little of the tension I’d been holding all afternoon faded. Another customer came in behind me, so I didn’t distract Chris with chit chat, just ordered my coffee and sat in a quiet corner. The café was fairly empty, the guy behind me just getting a to-go, and Chris soon joined me with his own cup, but not coffee. Something with ginger. He sat without asking this time.
“Long day?” I asked. “You look worn out.” I wanted to shove my foot in my mouth as the words escaped. That was a great way to ingratiate myself. Tell a guy he looks like shit. Good job.
“I could say the same about you,” Chris replied. “This stressful look you’re sporting lately isn’t quite working for you.” I smiled. He could take it and dish it. “Pretend I’m your bartender instead of your barista. Tell me your woes.”
Talk about my possible future mating with my crush? Sure, why the hell not. I cut to the chase. "If I don't find an omega and get mated soon, I'm going to lose my business."
Chris looked taken aback. "What kind of investor requires you to be mated?"
I twisted my lips. "My dads." At Chris's continued incredulous look, I said, "I know, boohoo, my family is rich and I'm worried about my allowance being cut when there are people starving in Africa. I could try to defend myself that I hope that my business will be able to do a lot of good in the world, but still, it's a total first world problem."
Chris laughed a little. "I don't know about first world...more like rich world."
I chuckled with him.
"That sucks your dads would do that. They seemed pretty decent. Well, if it helps, we can play 'whose life is worse right now.' I'm pretty sure I would win."
"They are pretty decent, they just have different ideas about what I need to do to live a fulfilling life. But please, tell me about what’s wrong in your life. I love to take pleasure in others' pain," I teased.
"Well, my ex-boyfriend is a jackhole, I’m knocked up, and my apartment building was just condemned, so I have a week to find a new place that is either close to work or has decent access to public transportation and doesn't cost an arm and a leg."
I sat forward, suddenly even more attentive. How had I not noticed Chris was pregnant? We’d spent so much time in the car driving to and from my dad’s house last week. I scented the air...there it was. It had to have happened recently, or surely I would have noticed. The pheromones weren't strong yet. I was such an asshole. I’d been so wrapped up in my own problems, I hadn't even noticed. "No shit," I said. "Won't he mate you since he got you pregnant?"
Chris drew himself up indignantly. "I don't want to be tied to him just because he got me pregnant."
"Sorry, I didn't mean, I just assumed—"
"That every omega is looking to get mated as soon as possible?"
I buried my face in my hands. "If I let you kick my ass, will that get me out of the dog house?"
"Hmm." Chris's tone relaxed. "Sorry, I'm a little touchy about the subject."
I lifted my face. "So let me start over. Damn, that sucks. What do you want to do about it all?"
Chris sighed. "I don't know. I broke up with Will before I found out I was pregnant. I don't really want to get back together with him, but I don't think it's right of me to deny him access to his child either."
"So you're dealing with that as well as trying to find a place to live."
"What do you say? Do I win the trophy for biggest problem?"
"I'll say." I tapped the side of my coffee mug. "Okay...this is going to sound crazy..."
Chris rolled his eyes. "You would not believe the crazy I hear from people who come through here on a daily basis. Hit me with it."
"What would you say to being my mate?"
8
Chris
This wasn’t happening. There was no way the sexy alpha I had been admiring and, frankly, crushing on just asked me to be his mate. Not seconds after I had confessed that I was knocked up and basically used goods. I had more baggage than Alpha Airlines. The last thing an alpha, especially a rich and intelligent one, would want was me.
“Ex…cuse me?” I stammered like a fool.
When I had offered to sit with him, I had expected a few moments of idle chit chat and possibly some light flirting. Fine, I was hoping for a whole lot of flirting. We were at our dead time of day, after lunch but before everyone got off work, and were overstaffed, so why not? Heck, he had been my crush since the very first time he walked in and, embarrassingly, before I was available. And I was drawn to him for more than his grabbable behind. There was something about him that was just… kind. I was drawn to that.
Looking at Will, the jackhole, you never would’ve guessed I liked the nice guys. He was anything but. He paid attention to me, though, and in a time when I was feeling not so good about myself. I would never make that mistake again. Settling = bad. It was my new mantra and one I had to remind myself over and over again as my omega instincts kicked in with this pregnancy and beckoned me to bond with the alpha who gave me my baby.
“What did you just ask?” Maybe I had misunderstood, I rationalized. After all, my hormones were all over the place, with me growing a human and all.
“Be my mate.” It was far from the romantic vision I’d had of any kind of proposal.
Was he messing with me? His eyes looked dead serious, but why would he want me as a mate? I knew that arranged bondings were still fairly common in some circles, so me being a stranger seemed less odd than the fact that it was me: a single male omega already carrying someone else’s young. Alphas wanted their own young. Period. The second I became pregnant, I became used goods. Why wasn’t he looking at me as such?
“I don’t even know your last name.” I was careful not to say no. Which really made no sense. I should politely decline and get back to work, yet there I sat, tapping my leg in nervousness and letting Marcus handle the occasional customer wanting coffee. Some role model I was as shift leader.
“Let me rephrase.” He rubbed his hand over the side of his face and took a moment to gather his words. “Would you be my mate?” He finger quoted the word “mate.”
Oh… I finally got it. “To keep your dads off your back.” His nod told me I nailed it in one. He didn’t actually want me to be his mate. He wanted me to act like it to keep his money flowing.
“It would help you too,” he quickly added. Did he notice the disappointment I was unable to keep from my face? Which was crazy unto itself. Who gets disappointed someone they don’t even really know doesn’t want them as a mate? “I’ve a great place to live and money for your medical bills. And no one will question why we haven’t completed our bonding, what with you being pregnant. And by the time the baby comes, I should
be out of the woods financially and we can stage an amiable breakup. Of course, you can leave anytime.” He spoke quickly and I tried to take it all in.
“I—I don’t know.” What I wanted to say was “heck to the yes,” but who does that? I had to think for two now. “That sounds kind of crazy.” Crazy perfect.
“That’s what people said when I told them I was developing the ultimate meal replacement, but I’m only six months away from launching.” So his business was some kind of fitness thing? I was curious, but really, right now it didn’t matter. His passion for it spoke volumes.
I reached down and pinched my thigh. Was he really offering to help me until the baby came? So far, the entirety of my plan was possibly sleeping on Marcus’s couch and, as much as I enjoyed listening to his alpha chasing antics at work, I didn’t want to see them first hand.
“That sounds more beneficial for us than for you.” My hand instinctively went to my belly. It was still flat, but I looked forward to watching it grow as he or she did. I watched his eyes follow my hands down to my apron, a small smile crossing his lips. His yummy, kissable, can I bite them now lips. But there would be none of that. This was pretend.
“But it will get me through my launch, which is the big thing.” As his shoulders shrugged, I couldn’t help but notice his shirt tightening around his chest, his muscles defined to the point I could see them from this angle. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. “So win-win, I say.”
His Pretend Omega: M/M Non-Shifter Alpha/Omega MPREG (Cafe Om Book 2) Page 3
