Stepbrother's Secret

by Anna Wineheart

  “Sure,” Ollie said, staring dazedly at the customers queuing at the cashier, multiple items in their hands.

  “It’s been a while since I visited,” an old beta said, her cheeks rosy. “I came all the way from Highton! Brad Saxon announced that he’d be here for an impromptu meet-and-greet. I hope you aren’t really going to close—are you?”

  Ollie looked at her earnest, hopeful face, and wavered. She’d made an hour-long drive just for this. “Perhaps not,” he said. “I’m hoping not to.”

  And Eric smiled next to him, squeezing Olivier’s waist.

  One by one, the customers came up to speak to him. Ollie remembered most of them, and the instruments they played. A Clossney for a tall alpha, a Bavarian viola for the tiny, bouncy beta.

  Brad was further back in the shop, Ian and their children with him, surrounded by a group of people.

  At one point, the cash register ran out of small change. Eric pulled open his wallet, handing Ollie the bills so he could complete his transactions.

  It was much later, when it became time to close the store, that Ollie sank back against Eric, exhausted with all the interactions.

  He’d never seen so many people in his shop before. But to receive their smiles, their memories of being here, their gratitude for having Olivier’s Strings in their lives... it gave Ollie hope.

  “Wanna reconsider closing?” Eric murmured, nuzzling his temple.

  “Maybe,” Olivier said.

  Eric’s smile lit the flame of hope in his chest.

  Levi waved at the last customer, flipping the sign from Open to Closed. “Well, that was a day.”

  “It was,” Olivier said, smiling when Brad and his family stepped up to the register. “Brad, I... I don’t have any words. I’m just... floored.”

  Brad waved it off. “Just count it as me helping a friend. ‘Sides, I wasn’t expecting this crowd, either. Looks like people do appreciate having your shop around, Ollie.”

  Levi squeezed Ollie’s shoulder, and Eric kissed Ollie’s cheek. Olivier held onto them both, grateful for the support he had around him.

  “You okay, though?” Brad asked, eyeing Olivier’s bruised face. “When I saw you earlier... you looked fine.”

  Then he glanced at Eric, his nostrils flaring. Olivier blushed. There was no mistaking the musk on him now, the heavy scent of cedar all over his skin. Even Levi looked askance at him.

  “I’m fine—I ran into a spot of trouble earlier,” Ollie said, squirming. “I think you were gone when the police got here.”

  “Things are fine now?” Levi asked, looking pointedly at Eric.

  “They are,” Eric said, linking his fingers with Ollie’s.

  “For real?” Levi still seemed doubtful.

  “Yes,” Ollie said, and Eric’s smile warmed him to his toes.

  “Okay, I didn’t need to see that,” Levi muttered. “That’s just too sappy for me.”

  Levi rolled his eyes, but he was also smiling.

  Eric reached for his phone, tapping out a message to someone.

  “Well, see you around,” Brad said, waving. “Tell me if you need more help.”

  “Will do.” Ollie watched Brad and his family leave, his chest full.

  “Hey, is it okay if Cole drops by?” Eric asked. “I left Jenn with him.”

  “Sure,” Olivier said.

  Next to Ollie, Levi froze.

  Ollie looked suspiciously at Levi. “What’s with you and Cole? Every time he drops by the shop, you pretend he’s not even there, or you disappear.”

  Levi squirmed. “I’m not on speaking terms with him.”

  But that only piqued Olivier’s curiosity. “Why?”

  “Because.” Levi glanced warily at the shopfront windows. “I’ll, um, work on the inventory.”

  Ollie followed Levi into the backroom, studying the silvery bite mark on Levi’s neck. “Because he’s your ex?”

  Levi’s ears turned pink. He shoved his glasses up his nose, pulling out the inventory sheets—he usually avoided those at all costs.

  “C’mon, don’t tell me you’ve forgotten what he smells like,” Olivier said.

  Levi didn’t answer. But from the way his nose twitched, it seemed like he was sniffing. He remembered Cole’s scent, didn’t he? Did he want Cole back?

  “Why’d you break up?” Ollie nudged him. Was it because of something small? Because they weren’t compatible?

  Or had something terrible happened between them?

  The bells on the front door jingled. Levi sucked in a sharp breath, his face growing inscrutable.

  “Levi,” Ollie said. What had Cole done?

  “I’m not here,” Levi said, glancing warily at the backroom entrance.

  Giving up, Olivier wandered back into the shop. At the front door, Eric took Jenn from Cole, giving her a noisy kiss. Jenn kissed Eric back; Olivier’s heart melted. Jenn learned to kiss?

  “Jenn!” Eric said, beaming. “How have you been?”

  “Dada,” she said, patting Eric on the chest.

  Eric’s smile widened. “Missed you, too. Thanks for watching her, Cole.”

  “Anytime.” Cole shrugged.

  Eric turned Jenn around, meeting Ollie’s eyes. “You think? Want her as your own?”

  And Ollie stopped breathing. If he accepted Jenn as his own, if he became Jenn’s father... “Do you think she’ll be okay with it?”

  Eric tilted his head to look at Jenn. “What do you think, Jenn? Want Ollie to be your Papa?”

  Jenn nodded. Ollie didn’t know whether to laugh or cry; Jenn was too young to make that decision. “I meant—I meant whether Alice will be okay with it.”

  Eric flashed a wry smile. “I think Alice would love to have you watching over Jenn.”

  Then he handed her to Ollie. Ollie squawked, taking Jenn into his arms on instinct. She was soft and warm, heavier than before, and she smelled like soap.

  If what Eric said was true, if Alice would be okay with Olivier adopting her daughter... I’m sorry I ever said anything bad about you, Alice, Olivier thought, his heart wringing tight. I hope you’ll forgive me for that.

  Around him, the shop was quiet, the streets calm outside. Was that a sign of Alice’s goodwill? Ollie swallowed. Maybe things would work out, after all. And he’d always be grateful for having Jenn in his life.

  “Hey,” he said quietly, meeting Jenn’s vivid green eyes. “It’s been a while. Remember me? I’m Ollie.”

  “Ollie,” she said, grinning. She had more teeth now, and she seemed to understand him better. “Play?”

  It was as though he’d never left. As though she wanted to have Ollie in her life all along.

  Olivier swallowed hard. Imagined this baby as his own. Somewhere out there, perhaps Alice was watching them.

  “Sure. I’ll play with you,” he murmured, hugging Jenn close.

  Jenn patted him, and a smile crept through Olivier’s face. He truly would do his best as her father. He wanted to make Eric proud. And Alice, too.

  When he looked past Jenn’s shoulder, Cole was handing a tiny black box to Eric. “Thought you might want this,” Cole said.

  Eric’s eyes widened. Then he pocketed the box, glancing up at Olivier. Eric’s cheeks darkened.

  “You’re actually blushing,” Ollie said, glancing at the bulge in Eric’s pocket. In all their time together, he hardly remembered Eric being flustered at all. “What was that?”

  “Just a box,” Eric mumbled.

  Cole coughed discreetly. “Well, I’m leaving,” he said. “Gonna sleep a bit before my shift starts. Busy times at the station. Bunch of fires in the summer.”

  “Take care,” Eric said. “I’ll be moving my things out soon.”

  “Sure,” Cole answered.

  “Have you seen Levi?” Olivier blurted. Before mending his relationship with Cole, Ollie wouldn’t have dared tease him like this. He still was a little nervous, but it was an improvement from before. “Levi’s in the backroom somewhere.”
/>   Behind them, Levi groaned.

  Cole paused, glancing at the backroom doorway. Then his nostrils flared—as though he was sniffing through the mess of woodsy, grassy, and floral smells for Levi’s jasmine scent.

  He must’ve found it, because an odd, unreadable look flitted through his face.

  Eric met Olivier’s eyes; Ollie shrugged innocently.

  “I smell him,” Cole said quietly.

  Olivier waited, but Cole didn’t move. He wasn’t chasing Levi down.

  Ollie hid his disappointment. After all, when you’d just bonded with your alpha again, you wanted everyone else to share that same happiness, right?

  “See you around,” Cole said. Then he slipped out of the shop, the door swinging shut behind him.

  Olivier sighed.

  “What was that about?” Eric’s forehead creased.

  “He’s Levi’s ex,” Ollie whispered. Eric stared at him, aghast. “They used to be bondmates.”

  Eric looked at the backroom entrance, and then Cole’s retreating figure down the street. “So you gonna get them back together?”

  With the way Levi and Cole hadn’t run out to meet each other, though, Olivier wasn’t sure. Their problems seemed too big for him alone to deal with. “I don’t know.”

  Eric sighed, gathering Olivier and Jenn in his arms. “Then we’ll wait, but we’ll help if they need it,” Eric murmured. “Some things can’t be rushed.”

  “Like you and me?” Ollie smiled wryly.

  “Exactly.” Eric grinned, kissing Ollie on the forehead. Jenn kissed Ollie on the forehead, too. Ollie laughed.

  “You’ll need to tell me all about Jenn,” Ollie said. “She’s learned a lot!”

  “I taught her how to kiss,” Eric said, his chest puffing out with pride. “She learned your name, too. And she’s been reading books—she likes this one animal book with the flaps on the page. I gotta show you that. And she knows where her nose is, too. Jenn, where’s your nose?”

  Jenn fumbled a little, pointing to her own nose. Ollie melted, his heart swelling for her.

  “You’re so delightful,” he murmured, ruffling her hair. Jenn babbled at him.

  “You’re delightful, too,” Eric said, dropping a kiss on Olivier’s nose. Jenn leaned in, planting a sloppy kiss on Olivier’s face.

  Ollie looked at them both, his heart fluttering. With Eric and Jenn back in his life... things would go better now, wouldn’t they? As long as he could help Eric return to the family, and as long as he delivered the baby safely...

  Eric pressed his palm to Olivier’s belly, his gaze soft. “Quit worrying,” he said. “We’ll be fine.”

  “I hope so,” Ollie said, breathing Eric’s scent off his chest. If he sent their dad a message... would it help repair things for Eric and the family?

  36

  Eric

  “I have a surprise for you,” Ollie said one morning, when he was thirty-eight weeks pregnant.

  Eric froze, fingering the rings in his pocket. “What surprise? I have one for you, too.”

  Their gazes locked over the kitchen table. “You go first,” Ollie said.

  Eric weighed his options. He’d planned out the entire day. He was going to propose. Then they’d take the day off, go to the park, and feed the ducks at the lake.

  That was, if Ollie agreed to marry him. If he didn’t, well. Life would go on as usual. But if they could get married, if Ollie could be legally his...

  Eric’s stomach fluttered. “Why don’t you start,” he said. “Omegas first.”

  Ollie snorted. “Yeah, right. And I’m telling you to go first.”

  “No, you.”

  “Eric.” Olivier narrowed his eyes, even as his lips twitched into a smile. “I want you to go first. So I’m not ruining any of your plans.”

  Eric sighed. There was no winning against Olivier when he was this pregnant. Especially not when the baby would be here any day, now. He stood and rounded the table, stepping over to where Ollie set a meatball in Jenn’s bowl. “I want us to go down to the store. Now.”

  Olivier lifted an eyebrow. “It’s 9AM. You want to head there now? It’s not even open yet.”

  “I know that.” Eric gulped, running his fingertip over a ring. Was it worth it, packing up everything just to go to the store? So he could propose?

  He’d arranged for Levi to go down early, with his phone fully charged. There would be videos.

  Of Eric making a fool of himself, and Ollie maybe saying yes.

  When Olivier hesitated, Eric paused, uneasy. “Would that be interfering with your surprise?”

  Olivier made a face. “Kind of? But it’s not a hassle.”

  “You’re sure.”

  “Yes!” Ollie kissed Eric’s fingers. “Let me get ready. I just...”

  He fumbled to stand. Eric helped him, admiring the sheer size of Olivier’s belly. Alice had been this round with Jenn, too.

  Some days, the memory of Alice still hurt. But Eric could think back on those times with fondness now; sometimes, he even imagined Alice with himself and Olivier, Alice saying, You know he’s going to want a foot rub. Don’t forget the foot rub, Eric.

  Other days, Eric moped, and Ollie handed Jenn to him. She was eighteen months old now. Eric saw Alice’s fieriness in her, the way Jenn protested when they told her no.

  So he did still have part of Alice with him, and that was good, too.

  He helped Ollie out of the kitchen, keeping an eye on Jenn while his bondmate got dressed. Ollie’s belly stretched his shirt, round and precious with their child.

  Eric leaned in, kissing his abdomen. Ollie grinned.

  It was a short ride to the shop; Ollie tapped on his phone, and Eric sang along to a song with Jenn in the backseat.

  When they showed up at Olivier’s Strings, the front door was unlocked, and Levi was there.

  Ollie frowned, confused. “Levi? What... You’re supposed to start work at ten.”

  Levi grinned, waving from behind the counter. “Eric said it’s okay if I opened the shop early. I get an extra hour of pay.”

  At Olivier’s increasingly-suspicious stare, Eric shrugged. Then he pulled a chair forward, and helped Olivier into it. “Sit.”

  “I’m not an invalid,” Ollie said.

  Eric ducked his head, catching Ollie’s lips with his own. Ollie’s protests died immediately; he opened for Eric with a low purr, his mouth damp and soft, his hair wispy against Eric’s fingers. It was amazing, how easily he accepted Eric now.

  “I love you,” Eric whispered. “So fucking much.”

  Ollie blushed, watching as Eric let Jenn loose on the store. Jenn raced up and down the aisles, her little cheeks rosy.

  Then Eric picked an acoustic guitar off the racks like he hadn’t done it fifty other times, and Olivier’s mouth fell open.

  “You play the guitar?” Ollie asked.

  “Just started recently,” Eric said with a shrug.

  Behind the counter, Levi bit down his laughter. Eric had been coming down to the store for an hour every day, learning to play the guitar while Ollie was at home with Jenn.

  Olivier eyed Eric uncertainly; Eric caught him glancing at the guitar model—because of course Ollie had to know which exact instrument Eric was using.

  “The Cajola is a good choice,” Olivier murmured.

  “I heard you liked this one.” Eric grinned. Before Ollie could ask more questions, Eric began to play.

  It was the first few notes of Stories With Us—the song from their childhood, the song with which Eric had practiced harmonizing his voice with Olivier’s.

  The moment Olivier recognized the song, he froze, his fingers curling into the chair’s armrests. “Eric—”

  Instead of answering, Eric began to sing.

  “Under the stars on a lonely night, when all the world’s alone, I’m somewhere out there in the world, my love is overgrown.

  “My tears are shed and my voice is thin, but my love is like a stone. If I could be a shooting st
ar, my feelings for you will be known.”

  Ollie’s eyes grew wide. He gulped, looking as though he wanted to smile or cry, or join Eric on the floor.

  Except Eric sang a third verse, one that he’d written and Ollie had never heard before.

  “And if I could have my love tonight, if my love would be mine, I swear to the heavens and the gods, my heart will always shine.”

  Eric stepped forward, kneeling in front of his omega. As the last notes hummed in the air between them, Eric reached up, catching Olivier’s hand. Ollie’s gaze lingered on him, heavy and disbelieving.

  So Eric fished the rings from his pocket. “Marry me,” he murmured, pressing the rings into Ollie’s palm. “Be mine.”

  Olivier sucked in a shaky breath. Then he looked at the rings, and his eyes filled with tears. “Eric,” he said, his voice cracking. “I didn’t—I thought...”

  “I almost threw these away,” Eric murmured. “That box you forwarded to Cole’s place? It was from the jeweler’s. Meadowfall Dreams. I told Cole to toss the box, and Cole... that bastard. He opened it. He kept the rings.”

  Olivier lifted the larger ring, turning it over. That was Eric’s. It was white gold embedded with an aquamarine, words engraved in cursive on the inner surface.

  A song from my heart to yours.

  Olivier fitted the larger ring around the smaller ring, still silent. His eyes were filled with awe, though.

  Eric wet his lips, nervous now. “I ordered them a few months back, so yours might not fit—think your finger will change sizes again?”

  “It’ll change sizes for a while after the pregnancy,” Ollie said, tears trickling down his cheeks. “Or are we stopping at two?”

  Olivier was staying for more children, so that meant... Eric gulped. “Up to you. Are you gonna marry me or not, Ollie? I’m dying to know—”

  “Yes! Yes, I am.” Ollie pulled Eric close and kissed him, wet and messy, his laugh bubbling against Eric’s mouth. “I’ll marry you if you’ll have me.”

  “I won’t have anyone but you,” Eric murmured, his heart swelling with joy. He slipped his fingers through Olivier’s hair, kissing Ollie tenderly, caressing the firm, round bump of his abdomen.