Page 5 of Ember

“That is what you’re here for?” I raised an eyebrow. “Unless we got really turned around and you thought you were headed for the beach?”

Rian smirked, and Stella popped into the room.

“Hello, I’m Stella.” She paused and then looked at the three of us. “Oops, sorry, Ember. Thought they were my two o’clocks.”

“Not anymore.” Ben patted the couch next to him. “We’d like Ember to be our coordinator, please.”

Stella handed me the files, looking unbearably pleased with herself. “Of course.”

I rolled my eyes and took a seat in the armchair next to the couch. Where it was safer. Rian was still giving me the side eye, but part of me enjoyed the challenge.

It wasn’t a “no, not this omega” feeling. I tried to ignore it.

I already had West, my male omega life partner, waiting for me at home. The thought of another male omega on top of an alpha should have sent me running. And I didn’t date clients, no matter how good they smelled.

Judging by Rian’s closed-off body language, he wasn’t sold on the idea of another omega in his pack.

I ignored the urge to rub my scent on both of them, and dove into their files. The smart thing was to enjoy the giddy feeling their scent gave me but remain professional.

Chapter 3

Ben

Our first session at Cosmic Bonds had gone like nothing we thought.

I loved it.

The omega who came into the room smelled like lemon pound cake with a dollop of whipped cream. If I’d had the layout of the room memorized, I would have jumped up and licked her right away. By the time she’d made me coffee, I was able to keep a cooler head.

Barely.

The sound of paper rustled, and then Ember cleared her throat. “You two are open to whatever designation you’re matched with?”

“That’s right,” I said, focused on her scent. “Even another omega.”

Rian brushed his hand over my forearm, the touch comforting. He didn’t feel any more or less anxious through our bond, but I felt his hesitation toward Ember all the same.

It would take the two omegas time to get used to each other, but judging from how strong the amber in Rian’s scent was coming through, he wanted her as much as I did.

I could be patient.

“We’ve put your profiles into the computer and came up with your best matches.” More paper sounds. “We have several excellent men and women who are high matches for both of you. During this meeting, we like to tailor the first couple of dates to anything that might make you two more comfortable.”

Ember’s voice, already a pretty husky-sweet alto, took on the confidence of a professional in her element. It was absolutely sexy. She could read me files any day.

“I see both of you work in music.” Another pause, and I filled in the blanks of what my vision was not giving me.

I was born with degenerated optic nerves, and by the time I was five I mostly saw shadows. The room was one big gradient of gray and black, and since my depth perception was also garbage, I couldn’t see well enough to know when something was in the way.

Since I’d been blind my entire life, I didn’t miss the sense I never had, but I was occasionally annoyed by the rest of the world reminding me they thought I lacked something.

Life would have been easier if I could see, but of all the times in history to live with a disability, it could have been worse. Computers read out loud for me, letting me surf the Internet and listen to books on audio.

It could have been a lot worse, but still. Coming out of the bubble Rian and I had made for ourselves was a little intimidating. Not just because of my vision impairment, but because it had been only the two of us for almost a decade.

“Ben, you’re a sound producer.” I could almost hear the question in Ember’s voice. Most people had no idea what a sound producer actually did. “Rian, you’re a guitarist. Did you want us to skew the results in favor of people who are musically inclined?”

Rian froze next to me. “No,” he said immediately. “No musicians. We want to date someone who wants to date us for who we are, not their next big break.”

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