by Ava Beringer
“The ones of which we do not speak.” Colby leaned over to me, his lips nearly brushing my ear.
“Flowers Now. It’s where we all used to work before Miguel got his shop.” I nodded. So that’s where they all met and became so tight-knit. Gabe wrangled another bouquet, the leaves whispering and stems scraping on the wooden tabletop.
“They just didn’t care. They cocked up this small wedding order two days before the big event. This is not only our opportunity to save this girl’s wedding and make it the one of her dreams, this is our chance to put Miguel’s Fabulous Flowers on the map.” I wiped the sheen of sweat off my forehead with the back of my hand.
“No pressure, then,” I joked. Colby laid a soft hand on my back. It was comforting and arousing all at once.
“No pressure. Besides, your job is impossible to mess up.” There was that sass I was falling for. Wait, falling for? It should be too soon to say that, but Colby had me captivated.
We worked shoulder to shoulder, the electricity between us buzzing, surrounded by the warm family atmosphere. This was the sassiest group of omegas I ever met. Colby gave as good as he got, but he was still so achingly sweet and gentle.
His soft hand brushed mine as he accepted the flowers carefully, like they were all precious. He startled, knocking a box of bows to the ground. The thin paperboard box made a soft scuff sound as it hit the ground. Light, papery bows skittered all over the place.
“I’m sorry, Colby.”
“No, no, it wasn’t your fault.” We went for the bows at the same time, our hands scrabbling to pick them up. Our fingers twisted together.
“Oh, sorry-” Colby started.
“I didn’t mean to-” I said. We stood up at the same time. Both on our feet now, we were chest to chest, so close our lips nearly touched. We were frozen in time, breathing desire back and forth between us. Colby’s eyes slid over my shoulder.
“What are you doing?” He asked with narrowed eyes. I whipped around to see Miguel’s phone trained on us. He had one eye closed in concentration, fully focused on his screen.
“What? I’m gonna send this to Nicholas Sparks, he’s gonna make one of his big ol’ movies, and I’ll be filthy rich!”
“You already are rich, Mr. ‘I’m Having His Baby,’” Gabe said with a laugh. Miguel shrugged.
“Guilty as charged.”
The sexual tension between Colby and I was as thick as salt water taffy and I was ready to go along with Miguel’s romance idea and kiss Colby in front of everybody.
“Colby, we need you up front.” It was Ginger, her long hair swaying as she poked her head in the doorway.
“Saved by the bell,” Miguel said, rolling his eyes.
“Come on.” Colby grabbed my wrist and towed me out of the room.
“You’re fools if you think you can escape us,” Miguel said. His evil villain laugh rang out behind us as we made our way up front. Colby looked towards the ceiling and shook his head, laughing.
“Register,” Ginger said as she greeted a customer who was thumbing through a book of floral arrangements. Colby put on a smile as bright as the sun, and I hated that customer because the smile was directed at him.
“How can I help you sir?” Colby asked, eyes bright and cheerful.
“I forgot my anniversary,” the thin, wiry man said, his eyes shifting back and forth nervously.
“Don’t worry, you’ve come to the right place. We’ll save your hide.” The man relaxed, slouching his shoulders and dropping his forearms on the checkout counter.
“You’re a lifesaver.”
“I never get tired of hearing that.”
I stood around like a bump on a log, watching Colby help the man find an “I’m sorry” bouquet.
“Hey, Colby’s alpha. Put some whip cream on this and dust it with cinnamon. Make sure it’s as pretty as you,” Ginger barked. She rested a delicate china cup full of steaming coffee on the counter with a soft click. I shuffled over, completely flustered. I’d never made fancy coffee before; it was always made for me. “Just a twirl and a shake, Preston,” Colby called, amused by my confusion.
“That’s what he said. Whoops.” Ginger pretended to cover her mouth. I found the whipped cream and squeezed out a fluffy cloud over the coffee’s surface. The cream was homemade and in a piping bag. There were sticks of real cinnamon and a grater. The reddish bark made a schick sound as I scraped it over the rough metal surface.
“Pretty as a picture, honey,” Colby said, as his fingers flew over the register screen. Did he realize he called me honey?
“Table three, honey,” Ginger said, grinning and pointing. I took the steamy coffee to a bespectacled woman at a table with a marigold plant. She nodded gratefully.
“We’ll turn you into a regular old retail worker in no time,” Colby said when I got back behind the counter.
“I don’t know how you guys do it. One cup of coffee and I’m in over my head.”
“Welcome to our world,” Colby said.
“Welcome to hell!” Ginger said.
By ten PM, I was staggering. We were up front, closing down the registers and cleaning the equipment while the rest of the group focused on the last-minute flower arrangement in the back. The quaint little shop was a totally different place without the hustle and bustle.
“I have a whole new appreciation for retail and food service workers.” Colby steadied me with soft hands on my waist.
“I’m glad I could teach you something,” he said smugly.
“You could teach me a lot of things.” I smoothed a knuckled down his creamy cheek. He gazed at me for a moment, just blinking and breathing with me. My phone alarm beeped, shattering the moment. I cursed.
“It says it’s past my bedtime.” Sadness showed in his eyes.
“This was fun, Preston. I’m glad you hung in there with me today, but you need rest now. Get some sleep and knock ‘em dead tomorrow.” I gripped his shoulders with both hands.
“This can’t be goodbye.”
“Really?”
“Have lunch with me tomorrow.”
“Yes! Tomorrow!” I barely finished my sentence, and Colby was agreeing to see me. A fresh rush of energy pumped through me. He wrapped me in a hug; a sensual, lingering, body-molding hug. I felt more connected to him in that hug than I had with anyone else I’d ever been with.
When Colby broke away, I still kept a hold of his hands. Our arms extended between us as I backed away, reluctantly. It physically hurt me to leave him. Tomorrow, I told myself, I’ll be back.
“See you tomorrow,” Colby whispered, ducking his head, as shy and sweet as ever.
“Yeah, you will.” I finally let his hands go, our fingertips glancing over each other’s in a final touch.
Inside my Uber, I leaned my head back against the plush leather and images of Colby danced behind my eyes. His smooth body and creamy skin, his pretty lips and tight muscles, his sweet smile and cute little ass. I’d love to ravage him but top of my mind was getting close to him, and that had never happened before.
I was supposed to leave for home after work tomorrow. Only one more lunch with Colby? Unacceptable. I had to see where this led. I had to know if he felt even an iota of what I felt.
My oxfords shuffled on the hotel carpet as I approached my room. I was still high from the time spent with the omega of my dreams, but a crash was imminent. My shoulders drooped and my feet dragged. I needed my bed.
I held the key, a piece of flat white plastic like a credit card, up against the reader. Instead of a beep, a flashing green light, and the sound of the automatic lock, the reader blinked red and honked at me. I blinked back in confusion. I tried again. Another red blink and a honk.
“What the…?” I double checked the room number. Yup, 224. I tried the key a third time and got the same result.
Frustrated, I grabbed the door handle and jiggled, putting my shoulder to the door and applying some pressure. I flashed my card rapid-fire, getting a series of honks and red flash
es.
“If I have to go down to that desk for a new key, I swear…” Just then the handle flapped. From the inside. Shocked, I took a step back and the door opened a crack.
“What do you want?” The man on the other side snapped.
“Who the hell are you?” I snapped back, shocked.
“I should ask you the same thing, buddy. You’re at my door.”
“This is my door. How did you get in my room? If you stole my things…”
“This is my room, asshole.”
“Says who?” I squared my shoulders, ready for a showdown.
“Says my credit card and my hotel key. Go down and talk to the front desk and ask them, or whatever. Just get your ass away from my door before I call security.” The guy slammed the door in my face. My fist came up to pound on it, but I stopped myself. It wouldn’t be good for me or my company if I got caught on camera making a scene.
I yanked my phone out of my pocket and checked my email for the booking.
“His room, he says,” I mumbled as I pulled up my booking. Obviously, it listed this hotel. Room 224; that was right. The dates, they were…
Wrong. The booking listed today as my check-out date instead of tomorrow.
“There must be some mistake,” I said to the clerk. I’d been at the checkout desk causing a stink for the past ten minutes. “Check it again.” His fingers clicked over the keyboard for the fourth time.
“Sir, I apologize, but your booking doesn’t include tonight. It does not appear to be a glitch on our end.” That was his polite way of saying, your people screwed up. This is on you. I sighed and relented. It was too late to get Jane on the phone, or anybody else in Chicago, for that matter. I ran my hands through my hair.
“What else do you have available?” I asked gruffly.
“Nothing.”
“Come again?”
“We’re booked up. There’s a, ahem, convention in town.” He nodded toward the lobby area, where the seats were filled with…animals. People in animal suits of all kinds walking around and carrying on like everything was normal.
“Is it a mascot convention?” The clerk dipped his chin, trying to hide a smile as I twisted around for a better look. A striped tiger waved at me. I waved back. I was suddenly hungry for frosted flakes. That’s when it hit me. “Furries.” The clerk gave me a little nod. I dropped my head on the counter with a light “slap” sound. “What about other hotels in town?”
“All booked, sir. You might try an airbnb, but they’re-”
“Booked, too.”
“I’m sure there are some you could find last minute.”
“Yeah, probably some seedy underbelly in a secret brothel.”
“I truly am sorry, sir,” the clerk said in an “I’m not sorry about anything” voice. I stomped away from the desk. I dropped into a lobby chair across from a gray fox, who gave me a business-like nod. Frustrated, I called home anyway. Nobody picked up.
I had a few “strongly-worded” emails to send that they’d get when they woke up. My inbox had a new email from Miguel’s Fabulous Flowers; my delivery receipt. I sat forward in my chair, bolstered by thoughts of the omega I was falling for after two days. I could admit it now, that I was falling for Colby. I was alpha enough to be honest with myself about how he made me feel. He might think I was a creep for it, though.
I pulled the receipt up. The money I spent was worth it to see the wonder on Colby’s face. He was worth it. His address was listed as the recipient of the delivery. A thought struck me. It was a wonderful, terrible thought. I could stay with him.
I looked over the receipt for Colby’s number; it wasn’t there. Only his address. I wanted to see him so badly. I felt a pull in my heart, a knowing in my gut. This had to be a sign.
I ordered an Uber.
Inside another Towncar with my overnight bag, which thankfully the housekeepers had thought to bring to the desk, I ignored all the reasons this could go wrong. Maybe his alpha was there. The thought shook me, but he didn’t smell or act mated. If an alpha answered his door, I’d want to fight them, even though I’d be invading their territory. What if Colby just plain didn’t want to see me? Rain fell again, starting out gentle then drumming at the windows in another onslaught.
“Lookin’ pretty nasty out there, sir. I hope you’ll be able to get dry and get yourself some sleep,” my driver said.
“Me, too.”
A humble two-story apartment building squatted in the distance. It didn’t look very impressive in the dark in a downpour, so I doubted it was any better in the light of day. I grabbed my bag and pulled it out of the car, dashing through the rain before the puzzled driver had a chance to ask if we were in the right place. My heart said I was. The omega of my dreams was on the other side of door fifteen.
“Please don’t think I’m a serial killer,” I muttered, struggling to hear myself over the crashing rain. I splashed up the stairs and up to his door. I gave it a long, firm knock, then stood still. I heard nothing. I knocked a second time, more urgently. Rain water soaked my socks and pooled in my shoes. I hadn’t thought this through. What was I going to do if this didn’t work? It’ll work, I assured myself and knocked a third time, heavy and strong.
“Colby? It’s me, Preston. If you’re here, please open up.” I cursed. He might not even be here. Just as I thought I was defeated, the door opened with a high whine.
There Colby was in a SpongeBob robe with a matching eye mask high on his forehead. His hair was sleep-mussed and his eyes were wide. He was so damn cute he took my breath away.
His mouth dropped opened, he squeaked, then he slammed the door in my face.
“I’m sorry, Colby, but can you please open the door? I swear I’m not here to make you into a boy suit, I just…” I cursed again. “There was a mix-up with my hotel reservation, and I have no place to go.” Slowly, the door creaked open again. “This is the creepiest thing I’ve ever done, hands down. I apologize if it’s inappropriate.” Colby huffed a bit of a laugh.
“It definitely is, Dahmer.”
“I would never have come here like this if I had a choice. I would never have disturbed you or made you feel uncomfortable, no matter how much I wanted to see you.”
“You wanted to see me?”
“Of course I did.” I’m your fool, I wanted to say. His body softened as the caution seeped out of his muscles. Still, I pulled out my dripping phone and pulled up my email reservation with fingers like ice.
“Okay, Okay, I get it. They messed up your reservation. Get in here before you catch your death. I won’t beat you into a coma with my Louisville Slugger.” He guided me in with a hand on my soaking shoulder. His heat soaked through the fabric faster than the water, heating me up inside.
“You have a bat?” I asked astonished.
“No, silly.” He shook his head fondly.
His apartment was a shoebox, barely big enough to turn a circle in, but it was made up as comfy as could be with fluffy couches, colorful throw rugs and blankets, pictures, and of course, lots of plants. It gratified me to see the flowers I bought him on every available surface. Anybody walking in would feel my presence. Especially any alphas. Good.
“Nice place you have here,” I said. I noticed he had room for an alpha in his bed, in his closet, by his side. Jealousy surged through me, then I had a thought; what if that alpha was me? Yesterday, I would have called myself crazy. Today, I wondered how to make it happen.
Colby shrugged.
“It’s nothing special, but please don’t leak all over it. It’s all I have. We can’t all be big time Chicago businessmen like you.” He squeezed my shoulder playfully, still touching my arm even.
“So, I shouldn’t shake like a Labrador?”
“In the kitchen, Fido.” Again, Colby’s deft hands were all over me. He made quick work of my sopping blazer, shirt, and tie. With the tie, he tugged carefully at the knot, loosening it until he could pull it over my head. Something about that man jerking my tie made me w
ant to go mad on him in his tiny kitchen. I withstood more torture as I let him help me out of my pants. They dropped to the floor with a wet slap and clink of my belt buckle.
We stared at each other, me barely clothed and Colby’s hands damp from my skin. He cleared his throat.
“W-would you like, would you like a shower? I’ll make you some tea. I’m gonna heat you right up. I mean…” I brushed close to him as I went to the bathroom.
“For the record, I love how you heat me up.” That got a little involuntary shiver out of him.
Twenty minutes later, I sat at his kitchen table barefoot with a steaming cup of chamomile tea and a plate of leftover pot roast. My phone was on the counter in a bowl of rice. I was back in Colby’s pajamas, since my clothes were soaked through. They were still too small, but I loved the feel of them. I loved being surrounded by his scent, hugged and squeezed by his essence as if in his arms, his body all around me. Sitting opposite me with both hands around his tea mug, I don’t think he had any idea how badly I wanted him.
“So what happened, again? Furries ganged up and kicked you out of your hotel?” He asked. I chuckled.
“Apparently, my company booked me one night less than I needed. I didn’t find out until I got to the hotel and some strange guy answered my door. I get down to the lobby and they tell me there aren’t any rooms in town because it’s been overrun by the Banana Splits.” Colby nearly spit out his coffee.
“You remember the Banana Split Show?”
“I love their theme song. The animals themselves weird me out, though.” I shuddered and Colby laughed again. I was beginning to live for that sound.
“You’ve only known me for what, forty-eight hours?”
“More like thirty-six,” I said, then winced. “I’m not helping my cause, am I?” Colby grinned and shook his head slowly. “I didn’t have anywhere else to go, so I took a chance. I’m glad I did.” The small smile on his face satisfied me. “Listen, I’ll be the perfect gentleman. I’ll sleep on the couch. I’ll be as quiet as a church mouse. I’ll get up in a few hours and go to work and it’ll be like I was never here.”