3. Rejected #2
My phone rang as I parked my truck in the lot. “Boy, you’ve kept me awake half the night with your fretting.” Janet greeted me, tone sharp.
“I’m sorry, ma’am.” The best thing was just to apologize to the omega bear. Elders automatically demanded respect. They had so many years of wisdom on us. Janet was nearly two hundred, by the sleuth’s estimation.
“You best be. Mind and bring me some of that candy you know I like. My stash is running low.” She didn’t let me get a word in.
“Now, I know you’re a busy man, but I have a reminder for you.
Destiny says that you are fated to be in Kade’s life.
As his papa’s mate. You know it feels right.
Now I know you’re torn because of Cooper.
You loved him so very much. Dear Cooper wants you to be happy.
He was such a sweet, tormented boy. The Luna called him to her to save him from suffering. It wasn’t time for him to be here.”
Tears threatened to fall and I could barely get the words out. “He wants me with Jasper?”
“He wants you to follow fate.” Her voice softened.
“You and he were never meant to be forever. There were different plans for both of you. He knows he will always be your first love. Cooper was so well loved by you then that he can be happy for you now. You have his blessing. Not that you needed it, but apparently you had to hear that.”
I made a strangled sound.
“Now, don’t forget my candy. Pop by soon, and we’ll have tea.” Then she hung up on me.
It took me a while to get myself together, and I was grateful I’d given myself plenty of time or I would have been late for the meeting. Not that it would make any difference.
There was tension in the air as I approached my office, people already milling around, going about their tasks. I greeted the familiar faces and most replied. Isaac was tense, and I understood. As our union rep, he’d been the one to report me and would sit in on the meeting.
Just before the meeting was due to start, I opened my office door and walked to the larger meeting room, where I met several unknown faces. They introduced themselves and the person taking the minutes of the meeting as Isaac sat by my side and listened.
Knowing that I wasn’t about to keep my job, I stayed silent. I’d left work to go help Blake get Kade back. I’d taken days off to nurse Kade back to health, and I knew what was likely to happen.
Fired.
Strangely, I didn’t care. I knew Kade wouldn’t be working for Mercury much longer and I’d done all that I could with the place.
Financially, I was okay, or would be for a while.
I owned my perfect home on the outskirts of the Sweetwater pack compound on land that belonged to the bear sleuth.
I had savings and leave I hadn’t had a chance to take.
“We’d like you to finish out the week to get your replacement up to speed.” The name of the man that spoke eluded me.
Next to me, I felt Isaac flinch, and I rolled my eyes.
Great, so it was him I’d be training up.
I knew I should reassure him there were no hard feelings, but there were.
He was Kade’s friend, except he’d been nowhere to be seen while Kade was suffering.
He hadn’t left work to find him. Probably why he was getting my job.
I was pretty sure that he’d made complaints about me to the higher ups too.
About how I was with Kade and my general attitude.
After the last few weeks, I didn’t have it in me to care.
“If Isaac is ready before the end of the week, then I’ll finish up early. You can take it from days owed and the overtime I did when we had a lot out.”
They conferred before the man spoke again.
“That’s acceptable. Thank you, Mr. Flemming, for making this process painless.
It’s unfortunate that we have to let you go.
You’ve been an exemplary employee until recently.
Do you care to give an explanation? We can note this on your file for future employers. ”
Not really wasn’t the right answer. “I’ve had a change in personal circumstances and am prioritizing my personal relationships over work at the moment as I help my best friend,” there was a dig at Isaac in there, “through a difficult illness. I made the company aware of some things, but Mr. Turner is important to me.”
“Yes, Mr. Turner’s job is safe as we have related his absence to his designation and it’s safer for all for him to be on leave.
” This guy didn’t like omegas. I couldn’t quite get a hold of what he was.
His ears were hidden and his scent locked down.
Elf or fae, he was one of the elder races and they looked down on shifters.
“If that’s all,” I said, standing.
“It is, thank you, Mr. Flemming.”
Isaac followed me to my office, soon to be his office.
I stopped at the door and removed the nameplate.
“Ask Shelby to order one for you.” I said quietly, trying not to attract the attention of the whole warehouse floor.
The ogres were watching me and I saw the instant that they figured out what had happened.
Their shoulders slumped, and they began to talk among themselves.
I took my usual seat and gestured for Isaac to pull up a chair next to me. He was unusually quiet and sort of folded in on himself.
“I’m sorry, Dakota,” he finally said.
“I’m not. I did what I had to do and am taking the consequences. If it had just been the absences, then maybe I’d have gotten a warning, but there were the complaints too. I’ve crossed the line with my temper too many times.”
“I didn’t realize Kade was so sick. You know he never said anything bad about you, right?” Hadn’t stopped Isaac reporting every terse conversation over the last couple of years, often without context.
“Doesn’t matter. It’s done. Let’s just go over this so I can get out of here.”
I spent the rest of the day with Isaac as my shadow as I took him through all the paperwork and procedures I’d set up to have the place running as functionally as it did.
All the while, my phone buzzed in my pocket.
Messages from Kade saying he was safe and well.
Just recovering from his heat and excited to see his papa.
Questions from my own papa about Jasper that I knew better than to ignore.
I told him I’d call him after work and left it at that. He finally took the hint.
It was painful for me to get a voicemail from Kade saying that his visit with his papa hadn’t gone well. Seemed we were both having issues with the prickly omega.