Chapter 28
Oriana
“ T his is all mine,” I whispered as I looked around. It was just me and Roman now, because the others were on yet another round of transporting the antiques Cameron had in storage.
We didn’t have much more time before Cam was needed for a shift at the bar. The others were still in limbo and I could tell it was wearing them down. I couldn’t know how well my antique store would go over in this town, but with Artisan Fairs back up and running and tourists coming in, it might just be too much for me to handle alone.
My plan was to ask them. Honestly, the selfish part of me didn’t want to have to be alone any more than I had to.
Not after being alone for so long.
My omega was now borderline needy. Good thing they seemed to soak that in and never once made me feel like I was too much.
Even when I broke down in my heat spike the other day… something I was still embarrassed about.
“It is yours. How does it feel now that you’re settled in at home and have this? Is it everything you wanted?”
I considered his question. At one time I had mourned this home, the town, and my potential business.
Now that I had it all back, and them, I realized they were what I was most grateful about having.
“It feels nice. Not as nice as having a pack, though,” I admitted. “Thanks for trusting me, Roman.”
“Always, Stormy,” he said, pulling me into a kiss that had my toes curling and heat pouring through my veins.
He chuckled as he pulled away, eyes full of hunger. “We better stop before I trigger your heat. It’s close.”
He took a full breath, filling his lungs and letting out a guttural groan as my scent hit him.
Of course, that did nothing to stop me from pumping more of my scent into the air.
Good thing we weren’t in business yet.
“Okay, propping the door,” he said, practically running for it and using a heavy box to keep it open. The cool air poured in, snatching my scent away and cooling off my heated skin.
“You stay over there,” I warned, pointing to one side of the store while I went to the other, putting as much distance as possible between us. He bit back a laugh but uttered a quick ‘yes ma’am’ before listening.
I fell into my happy place as I unboxed another set of antiques. My pack was taking such meticulous care about how they wrapped each item in bubble wrap to keep them safe that I had to stop myself from blubbering all over again.
A loud knock on the door was followed by a chipper voice calling out.
“Oriana, you in here?”
“Hey, Mayor Adams,” I greeted, standing up and walking around the chaos to meet him. “What brings you by?”
“Oh, curiosity a bit,” he admitted with a chuckle. “That and I have your licenses for you!”
He held out the manilla folder that held our business licenses and town permits they’d required. That meant we were official. The squeal I let out had him chuckling.
Roman approached and the Mayor beamed at him.
“This must be one of your pack?” he asked.
“Oh, yes! This is Roman,” I said. “He was an art teacher that ran a community art program for the elderly and youth. If you know of any openings for that kind of role, let us know, please.”
You would have thought I gave the Mayor the best present ever.
“You’re kidding,” he said as he barked out a laugh. It was boisterous and free, making him look a little like a slender Saint Nick with his gray hair and glasses.
“No?” Roman said, confused as I was. If I knew anything about this man, it was that he always had something up his sleeve for this town.
“We just had a council meeting yesterday. Someone brought up that we lack a community center here. I believe it’s just a bit of jealousy. A few of our older members have a strange rivalry with Golden Oak.”
I chuckled. That wasn’t the first time I’d heard this. Both were great small towns, though I was obviously partial to Rockwood Valley.
“Anyway, we could use some fresh eyes and ideas on that committee. In fact, if you join in, we could absolutely find funding for a new art program. Maybe a few variations. Though, don’t be surprised if you get roped into a booth at the Artisan Fair.”
“Oh my god, that might be perfect,” I hissed, not wanting to give Mayor Adams a yes just yet. Not until Roman knew what he was signing up for.
I shouldn’t have worried. Roman was already running a hand over his chin and asking for more information.
If he had it under control then I would just stand here and admire him. I swear he was adorable in his sweater and dark jeans. His glossy curls were a bit longer now, hitting below his shoulders. Those gorgeous silver-blue eyes were sparkling right now with hope and excitement.
He needed a purpose and I knew how bad he was missing those kids. Maybe this would give him a flexible schedule as well.
“We could absolutely allocate funding and we have someone on our council who is a wizard with grants. Doing community outreach is one of those things that can surely snag us a bit extra so you get fair payment for your time,” the mayor continued, his voice excited now. He was officially a man on a mission. “Once Avery is back full time she could cover that on our social media pages. That always brings in more excitement and a few extra people from the towns around us.”
“And then the council will know they’re better than Golden Oak,” I teased. He shot me a wink and nodded.
“Oh, it absolutely would,” he agreed. “Give me your details and let me go send out the proper messages. I’ll get back to you fairly promptly I would guess.”
He was out as quickly as he came but the beaming smile Roman shot my way had him crushing me in a hug.
“God, I love you, Stormy,” he said, burying his face in my neck. “Thank you.”
“I didn’t do anything,” I chuckled, but pressed a kiss to his cheek. “I love you, too.”
“Oh god, have we even said that before? This was how it comes out?” he groaned. “Typical for us, honestly.”
“I like that it wasn’t all gushy right now. My emotions are a mess and it fit the moment,” I said with a shrug as he released me. “But how perfect would that be? Are you going to try and join in the rest of the community center stuff or just for art?”
“You know, I don’t know. It depends on what they’d need, but I wouldn’t be against it. I’m already invested in this town and if I can put my skills to work, I’m all for it. I’ve missed the sense of community I had at school and the nursing home,” he admitted.
“I know life is a bit upside-down right now but I have a really good feeling that the pieces are going to start falling into place.”
As if on cue, I heard the back door slamming open, because alphas were the opposite of gentle, and voices echoing in. The amount of teasing and laughter there only added to the mushy feeling already growing inside of me.
They had taken Cameron under their wing in a way. The others included him when they could and refused to let him punish himself. It was making it so much easier for my omega to trust him and I think they realized that.
When they came in, their eyes went from us standing inches apart, to the front door, then back again.
“What did we miss?”
“Only Mayor Adams recruiting Ro to be part of starting a community center and heading the art program there!” I said, clapping my hands excitedly.
Lane whooped and rushed over to tackle the other beta in a hug while Hudson and Tate congratulated him. Cameron was last, giving his shoulder a squeeze and a genuine smile.
“Rockwood Valley needs that. They’ll eat it up, just you wait,” he promised.
Roman was blushing adorably at this point but Cam looked at his watch and swore.
“Shit, I have to go. If I miss work again, my brothers will kick my ass. Avery, too, because we’re missing out on content.”
He gave a look that said exactly what he thought about keeping up with social media.
“Though, the comments have been hounding me since someone posted about my omega. I try to avoid the comment sections these days. People are relentless.”
Roman winced. “That… uh, was me. In a moment of frustration.”
Cameron snorted and shook his head. “I deserved it. Maybe you guys can swing by the bar sometime and I can introduce you on live.”
“I’d like that,” I said, perking up. The thought of showing every girl thirsting after him that he was mine had the omega inside me practically preening.
Was it a bit petty? Hell yeah. But I think I’ve earned that right.
“Actually, I think we could swing by in a bit,” I said, biting my lip to try to stop myself from smiling like a villain.
“Oh god, Princess. What are you planning?”
“Nothing,” I sang out. “Get to work, Cam. See you later!” I leaned up to kiss him once before rushing off to unpack more, ignoring their worried chatter.
I wasn’t going to do anything, per se. More like go home, dress up, maybe call the girls for help, and look hot as hell.
I’d had to see girls thirst after the alpha who kicked me to the curb. The messages were disgusting and desperate enough that I was ready to stake my claim loud and clear.
I also knew damn well that if I played my cards right, this night could end with one very happy and sated omega.
Multiple orgasms, here I come.
I giggled to myself as I finished putting away another several boxes before it was late enough to head home.
“I’m ready to go!” I called out. The guys didn’t hesitate to drop everything and start locking up. It wasn’t our first day doing this, so they had it down to a routine.
I had to admit it was nice being free to do my work knowing someone else had my back.
“Have you guys considered working with me here? I mean, the three of you since Roman is a community man now and Cam has the bar?” I blurted out, surprising all five of us.
“Like, help you run the shop?” Hudson asked, curious but definitely not against it.
“Don’t feel obligated,” I started but moved on when Tate gave me a warning look that said I better not start down that road. “But there are plenty of roles. Bookkeeping, setting up stock, cash register, keeping an eye on sales and going to them for new stock, inventory… you get the idea.”
“We don’t want to butt in on your business, Princess,” Lane said, hesitant but I could see the excitement in his eyes.
“Can I be blunt?” I asked. “And maybe a little needy.”
“We always want your honesty,” Hudson said, urging me to talk.
“I don’t want to be alone. This is my dream and I absolutely will, but I also kind of love making it a pack business. Coming in together in the mornings, sharing shifts and duties, going on hunts when we can. I’ve been lonely a long time and I really don’t want to do it again.”
“Then count me in,” Tate said, needing no further convincing. “I’m pretty solid with numbers, I could help with bookkeeping and Hudson is good with security. This will need some solid cameras and maybe even keypads on the doors.”
“Definitely,” Hudson agreed. “We can look into insurance on the antiques for peace of mind.”
“We could do an inventory system with pictures. There’s this cool program I ran across last week when I was looking into what all went into the antique business,” Lane added in.
Just like that, my pack was in.
“How did I get so lucky?” I asked no one in particular.
Tate pulled me in, kissing my forehead gently like I was the most precious thing in the world. To him, I was. He’d come in and not looked back.
“We’re all lucky,” he promised me. “Now, let’s go home.”
Home. Now that I had them, it truly was a home.
Now it was time to get ready so I could show the world that the sexy, leather jacket wearing, tattooed, Whitaker was mine, too.