Page 31 of Duke's Baby Deal
“How did you know I liked my bacon this way?” Duke asked.
Bram shrugged and smiled across the table at him. “I heard you say it one time. It stuck.” He turned back to his breakfast and picked up a piece of bacon in his fingers.
“And the eggs?”
“That too.”
Duke bit into his toast and thought about that as he chewed. “What else do you know about me?”
Bram paused, a strip of bacon in his mouth. “Stuff,” he mumbled around the food.
“Stuff, huh?” It was tempting to keep pushing, but the interrogation was making Bram uncomfortable, so Duke let the subject drop and applied himself to his breakfast. It was really good, a hint of bacon on the eggs, the bacon itself cooked to perfection. Bram must have picked up on his preference for licorice in his tea—a sweet tooth he tried not to indulge—because his tea tasted like cinnamon cookies, with the sweetness of licorice in the background. And he was sure it wasn’t a mix he’d seen in the cupboard yesterday. But he didn’t want Bram to think that Duke hadn’t paid any attention to him either. “I know some things about you too.”
Bram gave him a slightly wary look. “Like what?”
Where to start? “I know you got really good grades in school, and that the pups all like you. I know your favorite color is green, and it looks great on you. And I know you’d like to go do more school after you finish here.”
Bram sat up straight and put his fork down with a clatter. His eyes were wide and his mouth hung open in surprise. “How did you find that out?”
Duke grinned into his mug. “You’re not the only one who pays attention.”
Bram snorted and picked up his fork again. “I’ll bet Rosie told on me.”
Duke choked on his tea, because Bram was right. “How’d you know?”
“Because I know Rosie.” Bram sighed and stared down at his breakfast, idly twisting his fork back and forth in the spill of egg yolk. “It was only a thought. I know omegas don’t do stuff like that. I have a job and there’s going to be a pup soon, so it’s not like it was ever going to happen anyway.” With an effort that was obvious to Duke, he cut off a small piece of egg white with the side of his fork and put it in his mouth.
Even though he knew that it bothered Bram, Duke couldn’t help himself asking. “What did you want to do?”
Bram sipped at his tea. “Does it matter?” He glanced up at Duke, his eyes full of hurt. “Really, I don’t want to talk about it. It’s not practical anyway.”
Something about this infuriated Duke. That Bram, his mate, who was doing his best in a shitty situation, should have that dream taken from him… Duke had never had any interest in school. He liked his little woodshop, and he was good at the security thing, though to him, it was just a job. But everyone in the pack had to contribute, and sometimes you didn’t get to do the job you really wanted, either because someone else was already doing it, or there wasn’t any need for it in the pack. But if Bram wanted to go to school for something that the pack could use, why shouldn’t he? “Tell me. Why shouldn’t you go to school?”
Bram’s eyes widened. “Because I’m having a pup?”
Duke shrugged. “Like I’ve never changed a diaper. What do you want to do?”
Bram sat back and stared at him in astonishment for a moment, then nodded slowly. “I thought about doing what Adelaide does. She’s a nurse practitioner, right?”
“I think so.”
“Then that.”
Duke ate a mouthful of toast while he thought about the idea. It would be a good job for Bram. The extra hours he’d be working would make organizing the family a little harder, but Duke’s schedule could be flexible. “You really want that?”
Bram nodded. “It’s not really an omega job, but I like the idea. The daycare is okay, but it’s kind of boring. I like the pups, but sometimes my brain just wants something more interesting to do, you know?”
He could see that. Duke had no problem at all with the idea that his mate was smarter than him. And he had no doubt at all that Bram would be a good medic. After all, he noticed things. Lots of things. “Well, I’ll talk to Quin. I know that Cas is done school this year and he’s coming back to help Garrick. There won’t be anyone to run the pack’s house in town for the ones that want to go to school. Maybe we can work a deal. I’ll take over looking after the house, and you can go to school.”
“Duke!” Bram exclaimed, and dropped his fork. He ignored it as it tinged against the floor, and ran around the table to throw himself at Duke. “You mean it?”
“A change is as good as a rest, my granny used to say.” Duke fought off the ferocious hug, but agreed to a kiss or four in exchange. “No guarantees. He might have found someone already, but I’ll ask him.”
Bram slid into his lap and curled against him. “Oh, Duke. Why couldn’t it have been you full moon night?” he whispered.
Yeah, he needed to get his hands on Justin. Someplace where no one would see them. “No matter. It’s you and me now, and Justin can fuck himself with whatever pointy plant is native to Montana.”
Bram snorted and hugged him tighter. “Thank you for being you, Duke.”
