His Manny Omega

by Harper B. Cole

  He came and sat, his body hugging the arm of the couch farthest from me. He was close, yet so far. Baby steps. Only moments earlier he had been ready to bolt because of the elephant in the room. And by elephant, I meant crackling sexual tension you could almost see.

  “About the other day,” he began, relieving me of the pressure to start this conversation. I knew it was necessary, yet it still freaked me out. So much could go wrong. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that. You’re my employee.”

  “I’m not.” It slipped out without thinking. Maybe this was a conversation best approached without thinking. Maybe cerebral functions would only ruin it. Or maybe I already had by opening my mouth. I inched a bit closer, knowing he noticed but not caring.

  “You’re quitting.” His eyes opened wide with alarm. Okay, thinking before speaking was a necessity.

  “No.” I took a full slide over, forgetting about my inching strategy and grabbed his hand. “Absolutely not.” He looked to my hand and for a brief moment it looked like he was going to take his hand back. Instead, he gave mine a little squeeze before settling our joined hands on his knee. His eyes might still hold worry, but his body seemed to be relaxing, and that was a step in the right direction. “I’m not sorry you kissed me. I wanted you to.”

  The words didn’t stick in my throat as I feared they would. They flowed freely, his acceptance of my hand making me braver than I had been seconds earlier. A slight smile crossed his face before he schooled himself. That was a good sign.

  “It was taking advantage of you and nothing good can come of it.” It sounded almost rehearsed coming from his lips. Had he talked himself out of things before they started? That wasn’t gonna work with me.

  “I’m pretty much thinking a ton of good can come of it, like, orgasms for instance.” I winced at my words. What the heck was I thinking?

  I was thinking the alpha beside me was hotter than hot, and from the quick glance I “accidentally” took of his lap, he reciprocated the thought. I closed my eyes briefly, willing myself not to ruin this. As he inched closer to me, relief set in.

  “But it could ruin everything we have here. You. Chloe. Our life.” His voice was trembling. I wanted to cover his face with kisses, reassure him this would make things better, not worse. I could feel it.

  “Or…” I brought my hand up to his cheek, “it could make things exponentially better. Answer me this. Do you like men?” That startled him back and I dropped my hand.

  “I like you.” He grabbed my free hand and brought it back up to his cheek, a silent apology for his almost freak out.

  “Not the same.” He gave a subtle nod but I needed to be sure. If he was more into vaginas than cocks, that was a long-term issue. If he was exploring his sexuality, that was a different thing altogether. “Are you bisexual?”

  “No.” He shook his head. “Not really. I think I’m more demisexual, but your scent has me questioning even that. It attracted me to you faster than… So no, but I’m attracted to you.”

  “That actually makes this less scary.” I dropped my head into the crux of his shoulder, inhaling his scent deeply. This was going to work out. I could feel it. And as his arm wrapped around me, pulling me closer, I knew he did too.

  “How’s that?” he asked, the tension easing from his voice.

  “Because it means your connection to me is why you are so attracted to me, not my tight ass.” Being attracted only after you knew someone, scents aside, was the best kind of attraction in my opinion. It meant it could stand the test of time. I’d experienced insta-lust, and it had quickly faded. That sucked. This? This I could work with.

  “It is a nice ass, though,” he teased, the Wyatt I had known before the kiss-tastophe reemerging. As Chloe would say, it was a rainbow time. When badness turns gorgeous, like when a storm fills the sky with radiant colors.

  “Not the point.” I pulled my head back, needing to see his glorious face.

  “So what now?” he asked, a hesitant sparkle in his eye. Oh yeah, we were on the same page.

  “I don’t know. I’ve never been in a position like this before.” And now it was time for my insecurities to come bubbling forward.

  “You mean you’ve never been in the position where your boss had the hots for you but was too terrified to do anything about it?” His lips danced across my forehead. It was the first time he’d been openly affectionate like that, if you take away the kiss-tastrophe. I could get used to it.

  “No, that happens a lot,” I joked. It had never happened before. “I meant I haven’t been in a position where it matters so much that it works.” And matter it did. So very much.

  “So where does that leave us?” Wyatt asked, his sexy brow furrowing.

  “I’m thinking more kissing.” I shrugged. “We can work on the rest later.”

  “Works for me,” he said against my lips before brushing them gently with his. I leaned into him, inviting more, which he openly took before Chloe’s bedroom door creaked open and we both snapped apart.

  “I think we need to take “fix Chloe’s door” off of the to-do list, Wyatt.”

  “I agree. It appears it is quite handy just as it is.” He kissed my lips quickly before getting up and calling for Chloe. I had no idea what was next in all of this, but as I saw her run into the room and jump in his arms, I knew next included both of them. My alpha and the little girl who made my world.

  24

  Wyatt

  I felt like a damn teenager coming home from work every day. I sped through my end-of-day paperwork so that I could leave the clinic as soon as possible so that I could see Oliver. We hadn't progressed beyond kissing. It was too awkward with the constant threat of Chloe walking in on us and we didn't have much time with birthday preparations. Besides, I was comfortable with taking it slow. I hadn't dated since Jen, and we'd been together five years before we had Chloe. I was extremely rusty in this getting to know someone game. And it was strange with Oliver, because I did know him. But we were redefining our relationship, and that may have been harder. I had high hopes that things would progress soon. Chloe's grandparents had started the yearly tradition of taking her to Disneyland when she was just a year old, and they would be picking her up in a week. It would be a prime opportunity for us to...explore.

  Oliver finally gave up attempting to help me plan the birthday party, but he wasn't above giving me a list of things to do, which worked well for me. He'd been working almost non-stop from after dinner every night, hiding the preparations from Chloe. I stole his attention when I could, and he was more than willing to give it.

  And now today was the big day. Oliver had found the most ridiculously adorable, quintessential three-year-old girl's dream invitations with unicorns and a castle and sparkles. We'd prepared the guest list together, my half mostly people from the clinic and his a few little girls from the library and some neighbors. First thing when she woke up, Chloe had put on her favorite tutu and princess crown. Oliver made her purple and pink rainbow pancakes, and then sent me off to pick up the pizza while they took a break over at the cafe for her birthday sprinkles. He had commandeered my time the night before to decorate the house, but we wrapped the night with a rewarding make out session.

  All the work he was putting into this event almost made me feel guilty for just buying a cake and lighting a couple candles during dinner with Helen and Chloe last year. But she'd only been turning three, there was no way she would remember it. And maybe she wouldn't remember this birthday, but I would, and I would make sure that all the birthdays to come would be just as memorable. And maybe Oliver would be there to help.

  Oliver and Chloe were already greeting guests when I returned, and soon, the house was full with little girl squeals. They loved pinning the horn on the unicorn, and that game kept them occupied for at least twenty minutes. After pizza and cake, Chloe opened up her presents and it was clear that everyone knew my little girl fairly well: unicorns and kittens and puppies covered just about everything. When we ca
me to the end of the wrapped presents, Chloe looked up at Oliver and me with big, sad eyes.

  "Daddy? Didn't you get me a present?"

  My heart nearly broke that she thought I might not get her a present. I couldn't speak past the lump in my throat, and Oliver saved me yet again.

  "Of course he did, sweetie, but we're saving the best for last. So my present first, and then your daddy's. But for my present, you have to come outside."

  Chloe and I gave him twin looks of confusion, but we obediently followed him out onto the front porch. Oliver had been keeping his present a secret, refusing to tell me even when I had him drunk on my kisses. Not that I was able to push very hard, being equally drunk on the taste of him. My jaw dropped. In the road, pulling a white carriage with gold trim, straight out of a fairy tale, was a real, live unicorn.

  Chloe screamed and jumped up and down, launching her tiny body at Oliver in a full tackle hug. "Is he real? Can I ride in the carriage?"

  "If your daddy says it’s okay," Oliver said.

  As if I could deny her. "It's okay, Chloe bug."

  She screamed again and ran down the sidewalk.

  "Careful, Chloe! Slowly, you don't want to scare the unicorn!" I couldn't believe that sentence had just left my mouth.

  "How did you do it?" I asked Oliver as the little girls all piled into the carriage. One of the other girls' mothers offered to chaperone, and soon they were pulling away from the house.

  "Unicorn rentals are all the rage these days," Oliver said loftily.

  I grabbed his waist and pulled him in close for a quick kiss. "You're amazing," I murmured.

  "No, Chloe's amazing," he deferred.

  "I won't argue with that, but it doesn't diminish your accomplishments." I suddenly realized we were under pretty intense scrutiny from the other adults and I reluctantly let Oliver go. I could thank him more thoroughly later. "My present is going to pale in comparison."

  Oliver snorted. "If you think that, you don't know your daughter all that well."

  "Wanna bet?" I asked.

  "What are the stakes?"

  Everything that popped into my mind right then was completely inappropriate.

  Oliver's eyes sparkled as if he could read my mind. He turned away from me to go back into the house, most of the adults following him. I trailed after. The girls took a few more turns around the block, harassing almost every adult to go at least once, and then we all waved good-bye to the unicorn and his driver.

  "Now it's time for daddy's present!" Oliver proclaimed. I'd found the perfect one about a week ago and had kept it over at the clinic once I'd gotten Oliver's approval. It had killed both of us to wait, but we didn't want to spoil the birthday surprise.

  Sally came into the living room and nodded. She'd run over to the clinic to pick up the present for me while the girls were on their last ride. I passed her with a quick thanks and picked up the box with the completely ridiculous giant bow Oliver had attached to it. I held it firmly on both sides as it started to wobble as I picked it up.

  "You need to sit down to open this one," I told Chloe and set the present in front of her. Oliver had wrapped the box and top separately so all she had to do was remove the top. And there was her present. A tiny Pomeranian mix, no more than four pounds, and about two or three years old. I'd observed its behavior before even talking to Oliver, but the dog rarely barked and she was very alert and intelligent. It was full-sized but still looked like a puppy. I couldn't think of a more perfect fit for Chloe.

  “His name is Sprinkles!” she screeched.

  If I had thought she had been excited when she saw Oliver's unicorn, that was almost nothing compared to how excited she was with this dog. Oliver slipped next to me with a mischievous twinkle and leaned over to whisper in my ear, "I won. What do I get?"

  As much as I loved my daughter, I couldn't wait to ship her off with her grandparents.

  25

  Oliver

  Chloe’s grandparents were coming to pick her up for their yearly pilgrimage to Disney and I was excruciatingly nervous. Wyatt and I weren’t even really a couple yet. The entire thing was confusing on a good day, and today wasn’t a good day. I was feeling off center. Chloe was leaving for a week. I hadn’t gone a day without her in…months. True, I’d get to spend that week with Wyatt, preferably kissing and licking and sucking and a whole slew of things I had lined up, but she would be gone.

  And then there were the what if’s. What if Wyatt was content keeping things the way they were? Things were good, great, even, but I needed more. Not this second, but eventually. I understood taking it slow and I got the feeling that part of the slowness had more to do with finding alone time than anything else, but slow needed to come into more at some point. A man can only live off of fantasy and his right hand for so long.

  But honestly, as much as I wanted to wrap my mouth around Wyatt’s cock and feel his knot as he exploded in me, that was only part of it. It was all of it if you asked my lower brain, which seemed to be on high alert at all times now. But for the rest of me, I needed holding hands and waking up in each other’s arms and planning for what our future might look like.

  Which was probably why the day was so difficult already at not even seven in the morning. A headache was growing just behind my temples. Today I would meet his parents for the first time, and I had no idea what that even meant. Would I be Oliver, his nanny? Would I be his beau in some sort of an antiquated notion of casual, yet not? Would I be his boyfriend? Parents felt huge, and I was woefully unprepared for what this might mean.

  I wanted to give Wyatt and Chloe a little bit of time alone before she left, so I waited until I heard them cooking breakfast before beginning my shower. The selfish part of me wanted to have had breakfast waiting when they awoke so I could savor every minute of us together before she left, but he was her dad and right now, I was only her nanny.

  “Morning, everyone.” I rounded the corner into the kitchen.

  “Morning, Oliver. Daddy and I are eating toast,” Chloe mumbled between bites of her tiny piece of toast. They sure had made a lot of noise cooking toast.

  “I see that.” I poured a cup of coffee and joined them at the table.

  “Her grandparents called and said they’d be by earlier than originally planned.”

  I tried not to show my disappointment. Cutting what little time we had left this morning short wasn’t my idea of good news. It was only a week, I kept reminding myself. Just seven days. And honestly, I probably would spend today in bed, and not for fun. My head was aching more and more by the minute.

  “When will they be here?” I barely got out the words before I heard a knock at the door. That answered that. Chloe bolted to the door and I mumbled, “Never mind,” before stealing a quick kiss from Wyatt.

  “Hello, little girl.” An older male voice boomed from the front door. As he came into view, my face brightened. He adored Chloe. The adoration on his face sent my heart soaring. “We came here looking for our granddaughter,” he said with a wink.

  “That’s me, Grandpa.” Chloe formed little fists at her waist, still not realizing it was his form of teasing her.

  “Couldn’t be.” He shook his head and held his hand out indicating something short. “She’s little and you’re so big.” He raised his arm as he beamed. I already liked this man. I would need to ask Wyatt about why they didn’t come around more often or vice versa. They had seen Chloe a few times since I moved in, always on my days off, but living only two hours away, that didn’t seem like enough. Not when he so obviously loved her so.

  “I’m four now.” She held up four little fingers, her smile still plastered across her face.

  “Is that why there is a package on the porch with a big bow?” Her grandmother stepped in, her face almost as bright as Chloe’s. She held out her hand and led Chloe out to a dollhouse almost as tall as she was. Squeals of joy filled the air and probably woke a few neighbors.

  “I think she likes it.” Wyatt stepped in behind
me, close enough I could feel his warmth, but not close enough to feel his touch. I wanted to lean back into him, but his parents were here, and Chloe was here, and we were…complicated.

  “Did the squeeing give it away?” I looked over my shoulder as I spoke, wanting to see his face. I was officially addicted to him and no part of me cared.

  His dad held out his hand which I immediately shook. “I’m Marv, and this is Joan, by the way. Sorry I got tied up in our ‘surprise.’ I’m not normally this rude.”

  “Don’t let him fool you. He’s always that rude,” Wyatt’s mother interrupted, stepping in and giving me a quick, unexpected hug.

  “I’m Oliver, nice to meet you.” The awkwardness of introducing myself so late in the conversation started to give me a queasiness I was unprepared for and I leaned against the wall as nonchalantly as I could. “She’s loving the doll house. You might not get her to leave the porch.”

  “Challenge accepted.” Marv perked up, pulling a headband out of nowhere, complete with sparkling giant mouse ears. “Chloe – ready for your ears?”

  He had barely gotten the words out when she came barreling into him, ready for her ears.

  “I’m pretty sure that’s cheating, Dad.” Wyatt laughed as he spoke. It was a beautiful sound. A sexy sound.

  I needed to record it. You know, because that didn’t sound creepy or anything. My brain was a hot mess being so close to him, his scent distracting me. I needed to get some air before I spoke the words that kept filling my head. I was pretty positive his parents didn’t want to know about where I wanted my finger and tongue and that was the direction his laughter was quickly taking me. What the heck was wrong with me?

  “I never claimed to play fair.” Marv shrugged.

  “I’ll take her bag out to the car,” I offered as I snatched her bag from the alcove and booked it to the car. Air. I needed air, and not just any air. Scent-free air. I was getting hot and bothered and it sure as fuck wasn’t the time or place for that. I put her suitcase in the car and, because I’m a total car seat freak, checked to make sure their car seat was installed to my approval before heading back