Page 2 of Admiring His Omega
“Is that really possible?” he asked, serious. Hobson Hills had a local pub called The Irish Rose. The place was known for its delicious food and the fresh draft beer it served, brewed by a local man.
“You only barely compare,” Van answered him, shrugging. “You don’t cook with meat very often, so that detracts from your score.”
“I cook with fish a lot.”
“Only when you catch it.”
He wrinkled his nose. “Meat in stores tastes funny. Buying fresh or catching it yourself is so much better.”
Van shook her head. “That’s called picky eating.”
“It’s just simple living.”
“Simple living, my ass. If you were living simply, you’d just eat a can of ravioli instead of making your own pasta once a month.”
“That’s just wrong.” Mal fake gagged. “Can pasta? You monster.”
“Snob.”
Bianca giggled. “You are so bougie, Mal. I mean look at your RV. It’s huge and nicer than the apartment we first lived in. Right, Mom?”
Van nodded. “His bathroom may be bigger than that apartment’s kitchen.”
“Now, who’s being dramatic?” he asked, glaring at his friend.
Bianca’s phone pinged and she grabbed it, looking at the screen excitedly. “Oh, I have to go.”
“Be careful, sweetheart,” Van said, reaching up to kiss Bianca’s cheek. “Do you have gas money?”
“I’m just going to Paula’s, Mom.” She hugged Mal. “Sorry to leave so quickly. Thank you for the delicious food.”
“No problem. Have fun.” He held his plate high as Truffle tried to stick his face into the pasta.
“Be home by ten and text me.” Van took the last bite of her pasta. “This is so good, damn it.”
“Okay.” Bianca grinned and practically bounced to the door. “Have a good shift at the hospital, Mom. I’ll see you when you get home.”
Mal waited until Bianca closed the door behind her. “Who is Paula?” he asked Van. “What happened to Jennifer? I thought they were best friends.”
“Jenn and her family moved out of state late last year. Paula is a friend she met at work.”
“Okay, what’s wrong with Paula?” Mal shook his head. “You look like you just sucked on a lemon.”
“It’s not Paula. She seems nice enough. The problem is that something’s going on with Bia.” Van looked tired.
“What makes you think that?”
“Well, her grades are slipping. You know how hard she has to work to keep decent grades. Lately, though, she does the bare minimum for school. I thought it was work at first, but she’s been working at the grocery store part-time for over a year and hasn’t had a problem with it until recently.”
“Can’t you just make her quit the job? I can help out if she needs some extra money.”
Van gave him a hard look. “We don’t take charity. Plus, she seems to really like the job. I don’t know why. Eugene Scott owns the place, and the man is a grade A bastard. But it is what it is.”
“There’s one of those in every town,” he said, scowling. “Maybe she can get a job at one of the other shops.”
“Easier said than done.” She sipped her water for a moment. “The job isn’t really the problem. It’s just… she keeps things from me now. Bia used to tell me everything, even if I didn’t want to know. Since she started hanging out with Paula, things are different. At least, that’s what I tell myself.”
“It can’t be that bad,” he said. “She has a good head on her shoulders. One teenage girl’s influence isn’t going to change her.”
