Page 64 of The Omega's Secret Baby
I hated that.
28
Matthew
The day toreturn to Oceanport had finally come. I got into town deliberately late so I wouldn’t have to see my family before I met up with Eli. He was the very first person I wanted to see before taking care of anything else, and I made it to the hall the shelter people had rented just in time. I noticed that not all of the seats were taken, but quite a few were. It looked like they’d managed to draw a bit of a crowd. That was good. From what Eli had told me, they could really use the money.
I hoped this evening went well for him. He’d put so much work in.
I took seat just as the director of the shelter went up on stage to start talking. It looked like Eli wasn’t going to get on stage, which was a tad disappointing but not all that surprising. He’d never wanted to be in the spotlight. His creations were, though. Every cat and dog currently looking for a home in our town was shown off wearing something he’d made especially for them, and everything looked so carefully put together. You could really see how much love Eli had for these animals, and that warmed my heart. He was such a good person. And he’dsodeserved going to school to become a vet. I still couldn’t believe he’d given up on that, even though I knew why.
Wondering where Jake was, I scanned the audience looking for him. I couldn’t see him, but I thought I saw the back of Griff’s head in the front row, and figured that the kid was probably with him. After the show, I was going to have to go up there and ask Jake how he was doing.And whether he still hates me.Eli had promised me that he didn’t, but I was still uncharacteristically nervous. I wondered if maybe this was what being a parent did to you. If so, not my favorite part of it.
At least I’d thought to bring a present for the kid. Nothing big, because Eli had told me not to spoil him, but I hoped he was going to like it anyway. I’d spent a whole day in various toy shops, annoying the sales people with my indecision on what I should get.
Not my favorite part of being a parent, either.
But if he liked the present, it would be all worth it. That, I was sure of.
I leaned back, trying to enjoy the show as the most adorable poodle walked across the stage in a pink skirt when I heard the ladies next to me start to whisper among each other. It’s not that I wanted to listen in on their conversation, but really, they weren’t that great at the whispering part.
“Such lovely costumes,” the lady right next to me said.
“Yeah, such a shame they were made by that omega slut, though. The talent is wasted on him.”
“True. At least he works with pets, though. Could you imagine if he worked around children?”
The first lady held her hand in front of her mouth. “Dear heavens,” she whispered. “You know I feel sorry for that boy of his. The things that poor kid must be seeing!”
Okay. Enough was enough. Hands clenching and unclenching, I turned to the lady in the seat next to mine. “I couldn’t help but overhear you calling my partner a slut,” I said, making no effort to lower my voice. If these two were going to be embarrassed by having everyone else know what they were discussing, they deserved it. That and so much more. I was so sick of all the gossip.
Several heads turned our way as the lady tried to stammer an apology. It seemed I’d interrupted the event. I stood, feeling all eyes on me. Good, while I had their attention, maybe I could use this time to set some of them straight. “I’m sorry I’ve disturbed your show. I know a lot of work went into it, and I’m enjoying it immensely. I just couldn’t contain my anger when I heard the poor omega who put this show together called quite unfavorable terms. I want to take this opportunity to let everyone know that I will not stand for that. You might all think he doesn’t know who his son’s father is, but I can assure you that he does. It’s me.”
I let that sink in for a moment, seeing everyone stare at me. It would have been a lie to say I didn’t feel a little smug.
“That’s true!” I heard Jake’s voice from the front row. “He’s my dad!”
A feeling of pride tugged at my lips and made me smile. “That’s right, buddy.” I gave everyone else in the hall a cursory glance. “Excuse me, I will now sit down again, because my partner has put a lot of effort into this show. Please do continue to enjoy it.” I sat back down while the lady next to me did her very best not to look my way.
Bitch.
She had no idea how much Eli had sacrificed to raise Jake, and I was sure it didn’t matter to her either, but I wasn’t going to let people talk shit anymore. Not in my vicinity, anyway.
All in all, I was feeling pretty good about myself.
Jake had just called me hisdad.
How amazing was that?
I was adad!
Holy shit.
I spent the rest of the show playing with the gift bag I’d brought, trying not to let my nerves get the best of me. At least it seemed like Jake had forgiven me. That was good, right?
And just as soon as the show was over and everybody started vacating their seats, Jake ran up to me, squeezing past the ladies who’d sat next to me and who were about to leave.
“That was awesome!” he said with a big grin on his face. “You stood up for Daddy!” He seemed really excited about that.
