Page 60 of Last Resort

Kimo looked at Nina. “This was your therapist?”

“Mentor. The only training I had was personal experience.” Poppy sipped at her bottle. She paused. “This is water from Wonder.”

Kimo grinned. “Nice catch. It helps with Nerina’s morning sickness, so I have a lot of it on hand.”

Myro asked, “You live out here on Breakridge?”

“Yes.”

Nerina snorted. “He owns them. All the way up.”

Kimo shrugged. “I had funds. They were available, and here we are.”

Nerina laughed. “Yeah, here we are. He rented space to an aquatic research station, and my brother was assigned there. Once I was back on my feet, he was the family I wanted to visit.”

Kimo looked at Poppy again. She sighed, put a hand to the front of her shirt, and shrank down to her beta shape. “Does this make more sense to you?”

He immediately brightened. “She has pictures of you.”

“Probably. She is the queen of the selfie in the right circumstances.” She shrugged and resumed her elf form. She made sure that everything was where it was supposed to be in her sportswear. Shifting forms meant that clothing moved.

Nina asked, “Is that form more comfortable for you?”

“Yeah, it is like everything tight inside has room to move, and other things have unfurled like chrysanthemums in a teapot.”

Nina nodded. “Right. Are you staying in the islands?”

“Uh, I go home in ten days.”

“Damn. I would love it if you could stay.”

Kimo looked alarmed. “Nerina?”

“Well, I just feel so much better when she is here.”

Poppy smiled. “You can just ask me to visit and give me a place to transport to, where I won’t run into anyone. I can come over for a day and go home. I still have a day job until they fire me.”

Myro asked, “Why will they fire you?”

“I told you; Tyr doesn’t like other omegas anywhere near Roane. He’s a spiteful little shit. The only reason that I was given the job was on Roane’s recommendation.”

Nerina said, “Let’s talk.”

Poppy sighed and got up. They walked to the bow and then stood and talked the whole way back to Wonder. They discussed Poppy and her work prospects and how much she missed digitally creating things that made people gasp. Once she had been in the job, she didn’t know how to get out without hurting Roane’s feelings.

Nerina hugged her. “It will sort out.”

“I hope so. At least I get to sleep in tomorrow and just get to lay around and not do anything or jump and climb and swim.” She smiled. “You look happy, though.”

“I am. I get to spend time with my brother, I have Kimo, and he knows how to cook. Oh, and we have chickens.” She grinned.

“Fun.”

“What about your guys?”

“We just met like four days ago. Nothing has locked in if you know what I mean. I want to be the one omega to make it through the competition without being pregnant.”

Nerina grinned. “Interesting challenge.”

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