Falling Together (The Omega Haven Book 1)

by Claire Cullen

  “And you used to be someone I respected. Someone who acted. Not someone who stood back and watched the world burn.”

  “That was then. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.”

  He turned back towards his office, intent on burying himself in paperwork until Chris was long gone.

  “You forget, Will. I’ve seen you happy. Truly happy. And this isn’t it. You can’t hide from the past forever. What happened wasn’t your fault.”

  He kept walking, ignoring Chris’ parting words and only relaxing when he heard the door slam closed. Reaching out with one hand, he braced himself against the wall and took a deep breath. It was so hard to push the memories away, what with Jake’s scent lingering on him. He needed a shower.

  Chapter Twelve

  Dave was waiting in his office when he got out of the shower.

  “That visit anything to worry about?”

  “No. Part official business, part missing person's inquiry.”

  “And?”

  “And I’ve given permission for shifter crimes officers to act within the city’s boundaries again.”

  “There’ll be more than a few people disgruntled at that news.”

  “It was a mistake to ban them in the first place. The city is slipping further into disarray.”

  Dave took a seat. “I take it Jake was the missing person?”

  “He was.”

  “And that problem you were talking about?”

  Will gave him a rundown of the situation.

  “I’m guessing you’ll want to get him out of the city?”

  “I think it’s for the best. Find a safe haven for him, somewhere he’s out of reach of his family.”

  “There’s a few places that come to mind, places we’ve sent others. I’ll make some inquiries, see what comes back. It’ll probably take a few weeks to get something sorted.”

  “I’m sure we’ll manage until then.”

  Dave had only left when there was another knock on his door.

  “Come on in, Jake.”

  The Omega slipped inside, shifting uncomfortably, and tugging at his t-shirt so it didn’t cling to his body.

  “You’re not showing if that’s what you’re worried about.”

  The Omega blushed and let go of his shirt. “I guess that’s something.”

  “Long day, huh? And it’s only just midday.”

  Jake laughed, giving him the first genuine smiled he’d seen all day.

  “Sit, Jake. And we’ll talk.”

  Jake perched on the chair, tucking one leg up under him.

  “I’m sorry for bringing that cop here.”

  “You didn’t. Chris was here on other business and you just happened to come up.”

  Jake gave him a look that said he didn’t quite buy that.

  “He said they were looking for other Omega. That there was a network of rich Alphas, and they’re selling them…” Jake was babbling and Will silently cursed Chris for telling the Omega too much. Standing, he came around the desk and crouched next to Jake’s chair.

  “Hey. I know it sounds scary but you don’t need to worry about that. You’re safe here.”

  “Is that what would have happened to me, if you hadn’t come for me?”

  He was shaking, fine tremors coursing through his slight frame. Will rested a warm hand on his knee.

  “It didn’t happen. We did come for you. That’s what matters.”

  “I’ll need to leave, won’t I?”

  “You know the score. You’ve seen firsthand what this city can be.” He squeezed Jake’s knee gently. “Dave knows a few places that might be able to take you in, keep you off your family’s radar. Keep you safe.”

  “I feel safe here.”

  This from an Omega who’d spent the night on his knees out of fear he’d be fired?

  “This is no place for a baby, Jake.”

  “I know.” A fear tears slipped down Jake’s cheeks, and he wiped them away with his hand.

  “Where’d you learn to sing like that?” Will asked, casting his mind for something to take Jake’s thoughts from his situation and landing on the Omega’s sweet voice that had drawn him back into the bar the previous night.

  Jake shrugged. “My Mom used to sing to me. She taught me to play guitar. There’s always been a big emphasis on music in our Pack. Most of us learn to sing and play an instrument as kids. I stopped after she died. It… it made my dad sad.” Jake shook off the sadness and neatly turned the tables. “How about you?”

  “I don’t really…”

  “I’ve heard you. On the piano.”

  “I know a song or two. The music was a big part of the reason I took over Snakes. You can lose yourself in music, let it guide you, carry your emotions when they’re too much of a burden.”

  He stood and offered Jake his hand. “It should be all quiet in the bar right now. You want to go play a song or two?”

  Jake broke into another smile, setting his hand in Will’s, and letting the Alpha pull him to his feet.

  The last thing Jake had expected, after a night of no sleep and a visit from the police, was to be at the piano in the bar with Will.

  Will took a seat in front of the instrument, opening the lid, and tapping a few keys. He glanced up a Jake who was hovering nearby.

  “Come on, sit here with me,” he said, patting the piano stool.

  Jake sat down.

  “Do you play the piano?” the Alpha asked.

  “No, just guitar. And I’m out of practice.”

  “Alright, see if you recognize this then.” After a false start, the Alpha began to play. The melody was slow and familiar.

  “Falling Together, right?”

  “Right. You know it?”

  He nodded readily. Will played the intro again and this time, Jake added his voice. He got to the chorus and almost faltered when Will’s deep voice joined his. It was the perfect song, haunting and desperate and full of hope.

  It felt good to sing again, to let his voice be heard after so long in the silence of grief and oppression.

  The song came to a close, and they sat side by side in silence.

  “Did you play for him, your mate?”

  Will went rigid at the question, then slammed the lid closed. Jake winced, inching his body away to give them some distance.

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to pry.”

  “It’s not your fault. And no. He played for me. He was a violinist. Music was his soul.”

  “He died?”

  “He left me. And I let him go.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “So am I.” Will lifted the lid of the piano again. “You want to play another?”

  Jake nodded.

  “How about we play a duet? Something simple. Watch this.”

  With one hand, the Alpha hit five keys in slow succession. He repeated it, then nodded Jake towards the keys.

  “Start here,” he said, tapping a key with his finger. Jake imitated the pattern Will had shown him.

  “Good. Again.”

  He played it over and over, until he didn’t need to think about which key he was hitting.

  “Here’s the second bit,” Will said, and demonstrated. Jake copied him, then put the two together, smiling at the little melody.

  “Just keep playing and I’ll play my bit,” the Alpha added. He matched Jake’s pace, and they played together, though he didn’t recognize the piece of music.

  Will’s elbow bumped his as they played. Jake liked their closeness after weeks of the Alpha keeping him at arm’s length. But it wouldn’t do him any good to read into it. Will was being nice because of the previous night, because of Jake’s condition, because of that instinctive need in some unmated Alphas to protect any unattached Omega who crossed their path.

  As he played, his mind drifted to his situation. He had hoped the city would give him the freedom he’d been hoping for. He wasn’t looking for much; a job to support himself and somewhere to raise his child. But now that he kne
w his family were looking for him, now that he knew the kind of people targeting unprotected Omega, his needs had narrowed simply to somewhere safe. And as much as he wished that safe place could be right there in Snakes, Will seemed equally adamant that it couldn’t. If not here, then where?

  Chapter Thirteen

  The next two weeks passed slowly. Jake had taken to hanging around his office more. Will thought it was the relief at having someone who knew his secret. And not having to suck in his stomach all the time. He found that when Jake wasn’t watching his words so carefully, he was quite the chatterbox.

  “I can’t believe you do all this crap by hand.”

  He turned from putting some checks in the safe to find Jake poring over his ledgers.

  “There’s nothing wrong with my method.”

  “Yeah, except it went out with the dinosaurs. Do you even own a computer?”

  “What use would I have for a computer?” He was teasing the Omega, but Jake could be surprisingly easy to wind up. Pregnancy hormones or just his nature?

  “If you did your bookkeeping and inventory on a spreadsheet instead of a paper ledger, you’d save time. Plus, you’d be able to track trends in spending and purchasing.”

  “What would be the point?” he asked, taking a seat at the desk, and tugging his ledgers from Jake’s grasp.

  Jake heaved a put-upon sigh and perched on the edge of the desk.

  “Say every year, there’s a huge uptake in cider during the summer months. But maybe it’s not equal all the way through. Like a thirty percent increase in June, fifty in July, forty in August. A spreadsheet will help you track that trend year on year. So that next year you know to purchase more cider for June. Even more for July but a little less for August. You wouldn’t have run out of those Slovakian craft beers last week if you’d realized you were out of stock midway through last month and ordered more for this month.”

  Will blinked at that. Daryl had been complaining all weekend about being plagued for orders of that exact beer.

  “Why is that one so popular all of a sudden?”

  “A renowned Eden food blogger has been singing its praises,” Jake said succinctly.

  “Okay, how do you know that?”

  “Unlike you, I know how to use a computer.”

  He set down his pen, giving Jake his full attention. “How much is this going to cost me?”

  “If you want to go really basic, a few hundred on a computer and basic spreadsheet software. I could set it up for you.”

  “You have skills, huh?”

  “I studied bookkeeping at the local tech. And inventory management. I did the accounts for my Dad’s business.”

  “And that’s what you were going to study, in college?”

  Jake shook his head, looking wistful. “I was going to study software development. I was going to expand my Dad’s business with one of my own.” His mouth turned down. “And now look at me…”

  “I am looking at you. And you know what I see?”

  “What?” Jake asked.

  “A brave wolf who struck out on their own…”

  “And failed.”

  “And survived. Check the bottom drawer in the cabinet.” He pointed to a metal cabinet tucked in the corner to the left of the door.

  Jake glanced over at it. “Why?”

  “Look inside and you’ll see.”

  He watched the Omega cross the room and pull open the metal drawer before an exclamation of surprised delight carried across the room and Jake turned, laptop bag in hand. He set it down on the desk and pulled out the sleek black machine.

  “What do you need a computer for?” Jake wondered.

  “Back in the day, when I worked as a cop, good equipment was invaluable. Anyway, it’s yours if you want it, go bookkeep or program or whatever it is you kids do these days.”

  “Am I going to find all sorts of spy software on this?” Jake joked.

  “Just a few programs for breaking into phones, hacking emails, that sort of thing.”

  Jake started to laugh then stopped, his expression sliding to one of bemused disbelief. “Seriously?”

  “Yep. We did not have a lot of friends in regular law enforcement. Where they’d just hand things to their tech department, we were often a lot faster just taking matters into our own hands.”

  “I’ll get started right away.”

  Will reached out, snagging the eager Omega’s wrist. “There’s no rush, Jake. It’s just something to sink your teeth into if you’re bored. And I’ll pay you, as well. We’ll work something out.”

  “You don’t need to do that. You’ve done more than enough for me already.”

  “Hey, if the world was fair, you’d have landed on your feet your first week in the city and would be working your way up the corporate ladder. But it’s not, so the least I can do is play my part in redressing the balance.”

  The last person he was expecting to hear from was Chris, especially on a Sunday afternoon. He bit back the ‘how did you get this number’ and focused on the call.

  “What can I do for you, Chris?”

  “Is Jake with you?”

  “He’s gone out with a few of the others. Why?”

  “His family didn’t take the news that he’d gone it alone all that well. But I didn’t tell them where he was and I thought that would be the end of it.”

  “I take it it’s not or you wouldn’t be calling?”

  “They put out a contract with bounty hunters. Someone has picked it up. It’s not going to be too hard to track him to the city, you need to get him out of there.”

  “We’re working on it.”

  “Work faster. And keep him indoors and out of sight until then. We heard a rumor Solomon and Brothers picked up the contract.”

  Will couldn’t stop the curses that fell from his lips. “Any idea which brother?”

  “No, but they sometimes tag team for city runs, so you may be dealing with more than one.”

  “Thanks for the heads-up, Chris.”

  “Glad to be of help. Take care of him, Will.”

  “I intend to.”

  He was halfway down the corridor in search of Dave before he’d hung up the phone. He dialed Jeff’s number, then Celine’s, cursing when both phones rang out.

  “Dave!”

  The other man stuck his head out of the cleaning supplies room. “What’s up?”

  “Where did they go this morning, the group with Jake?”

  “Picnic out on Knowledge Hill. They wanted to show Jake Eden’s version of the Black Forest now that the weather's warmer. Why?”

  “Bounty hunters have a contract out on him. Solomon's guys.”

  Dave’s cursing was almost as colorful as his own. “Any idea how much of a head start they have?”

  “At least a day or two.”

  “They could’ve been here since yesterday. There were a few oddballs hanging around Snakes last night. I did see one paying attention to Jake, but no more than the average red-blooded Alpha. Jake didn’t recognize him but then I presumed we were watching for family, not bounty hunters and their ilk.”

  Will didn’t like the sound of that. If it was true, and they had been spotting for Jake last night, then it was just as likely they’d watched the group leave this morning and followed them.

  “We need to get out there and bring him back in.”

  “You tried calling them?”

  “They’re not picking up. Cell signal’s poor that far out of the city.”

  “I’ll keep trying while you drive.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Jake lay back in the grass, listening to the sound of his friends chattering away to one another. Micah and Andy were arguing, getting louder and louder until Jeff snapped at them to cut it out.

  “Can’t appreciate the scenery with you two chewing each other up. If you want to have a verbal disagreement, find somewhere else to be.”

  They were quiet for a while but Jake got the sense they were bored and restless
. Jeff, on the other hand, was sharing a blanket with Celine and they were very wrapped up in one another.

  “How about a run in the forest?” Andy suggested.

  “Yes, please,” Micah agreed. “Jake?”

  “Is it safe?” he asked.

  It was Jeff who answered, pulling his attention away from Celine for a moment. “This is shifter land, owned by Will’s family. Safest place to let your wolf out this close to the city.”

  While at one time or another, he'd seen most of Snakes’ employees in wolf form, they never went outside. Will deemed it too risky. All it took was one idiot with a gun or one police officer with a grudge.

  “I think I’ll stay here,” he said, realizing that being naked in front of the others wasn’t the best plan right then. Will and Dave were the only ones who knew about the pregnancy and he wanted to keep it that way. It wasn’t so noticeable in wolf form, though.

  He watched Micah and Andy step into the forest, hearing the howl of a wolf a few minutes later. While he itched to go join them, he couldn’t shake the worry of discovery. But maybe if he found a quiet space in the forest by himself to change. He could find an equally quiet place to change back and be dressed before anyone saw him.

  He debated it for a few minutes before clambering to his feet. “I think I’ll join them.”

  “Suit yourself. Stay this side of the river. There’s a fence marking the boundary, but it makes the neighbors nervous to see a lot of wolves roaming.”

  “Okay. Thanks, Jeff.”

  Strolling towards the forest, he listened out for Andy and Micah. They were some distance to his right. He veered left, stepping a good way into the forest. He found a small clearing and decided it would make a good change spot. Reaching for the hem of his shirt, he paused, hearing the crack of a branch in the near distance. Was someone there?

  Pivoting in a slow circle, he watched the forest carefully, listening for any sign of another person present. Nothing, it was all quiet. Turning his attention back to his clothes, he grasped his shirt again, lifting it. There, another sound.

  Letting his shirt fall, he started walking back towards the edge of the forest. Was it Andy and Micah playing a game with him? But no, he could still hear them in the distance.