Page 12 of Tending Our Omega
“Has he shifted yet?” Seth asked, refilling the tyke’s plate like he’d been doing it for years.
“No. He’s showing signs, but not yet. And apparently eating like a pig.”
Maddox’s answer to Romi was to snort and put a whole cookie in his mouth.
“Has he been around any other alphas?” I asked.
“Not since he was a baby, and that wasn’t a pleasant experience.”
Romi told us she worked at the bar to afford the bare minimum. She’d used the last of her savings from her alpha to buy Maddox’s hearing aids, but he would need better ones soon. She lived with an older woman who helped her with Maddox’s care when she was working, but she was concerned that he was wearing the kind lady down.
She only had a place to live because this older woman let her stay at her cabin for expenses and charged zero dollars for the care of Maddox.
The time between leaving the pack she once belonged to and now was a period of surviving. Holding her breath. Running on empty.
We could and would change that for her, if she let us.
She deserved to work only if she wanted to. To go to school or take up a trade. Whatever she preferred. Relax. Heal from the bone-deep trauma she had clearly gone through.
If she would let us in.
“We brought something we thought Maddox might like,” Seth said.
“What is it?”
“The best thing for entertaining children of all ages,” he said, getting up to dust off his ass. “Bubbles.”
She gasped. “I’m not sure I’ve ever shown him bubbles.”
“Oh, it’s on now.” I stood. Romi let me take her hands and haul her up to standing as well. “We did our research. Kids love bubbles, and,” I whispered in her ear, “I kind of like them too.”
Chapter Nine
Romi
They had been so spot-on with the bubbles. It had been a long time since I heard Maddox laugh as much as he did—chasing them, jumping up to grab them, blowing them, trying to catch them on sticks and failing every time. And I had to admit, I loved it too. There was something magical about those little sudsy spheres floating in the air.
But, soon enough—too soon—they were all gone, which was probably for the best, because Maddox sat down on the blanket, asking if there were any cookies, and then before I could find the answer for him, fell sound asleep.
People had a tendency to ignore Maddox when we were out in public. Part of me thought it was just because kids, but a greater part of me realized it had more to do with strangers being uncomfortable seeing that he was different and not knowing how to deal with it. And who knows—maybe I would have been like them too, had I not had Maddox in my life. I’d like to think that wasn’t the case, but you never knew until you were in that situation.
But with these three alphas, I saw him—really saw him—as the kid he was. It would have been easy for them to say that we could go out at a different time when we could get a sitter, or to pick something pretty grown-up-y to do and just hope he behaved. But they didn’t. They went out of their way not only to learn a sign and share it with me but to organize our time together in a way that was for the entire family.
He was just as much a part of today as I was, in their eyes, and I appreciated that more than they could ever understand.
“Do you want some more iced tea?” Seth offered.
“Yes, but I probably should take him home. If he fell asleep out here, it means he’s really exhausted. I had a good time, though, and…all of this…thank you.”
There was so much more to say, but the words kept getting stuck in my throat. It was so easy to let these men in. I needed to guard my heart—and my son’s—but it was so hard. They made it difficult, being kind and strong. Each of them was very different, and yet like they were meant to be together. Not once did I get a sense that they were having a pissing match to see who could win my favor. They were here for me, and that was a lot to take in.
I helped them pack up what was left, and then surprised myself by hugging each of them as a thank-you. They weren’t long hugs and hardly sensual, but they were warm and cozy and sweet. I picked Maddox up, somehow managing to get him in the car seat without waking him.
Maeve once said it was better to leave when you didn’t want to than to stay when you’d already wanted to leave, and that was how I felt today. I wasn’t ready to be done with our time together—terrifying.
Gram-Gram was home when we got there, and she helped me get Maddox into bed without waking him.
“Wow, he must have had a good time if he’s this exhausted.” She wasn’t subtle about her prying, but I needed someone to talk to about it.
