Chapter Eleven
Edris
My mate left me with a kiss in the early hours.
Hardly the morning after I would have wished for, but it gave me time to think after our first night together.
After the marking, we’d lay together for an hour, drowsy and golden before the closeness of our bodies brought on another round of lovemaking.
By the time the sun rose, I was wondering how happily mated couples managed to get enough rest ever.
I certainly couldn’t imagine a night together where I didn’t want him at least once an hour.
Of course, practicality was bound to come into the picture.
We would get tired and sleep. And once the babies came…
babies! I hadn’t even considered that aspect of mating until now.
Without having met my mate, the idea of family lay in the far, unconsidered future.
But, now, I went from hoping I’d meet my fated—hoping Fate even had one for me—to wanting everything.
Home, family, music lessons, and sports, watching our children shift for the first time.
Grandchildren.
Okay, way to jump ahead. But I did want them, too.
Lying in bed while my mate showered to get ready for work, I pictured what some of that future might be like.
Romantic weekends away, holidays, birthdays, quiet evenings at home.
Barbecues with friends. Diner lunches and breakfasts in bed on the weekends.
Eventually trips to amusement parks, the zoo, school plays.
The water in the shower turned off and I could hear soft humming from behind the bathroom door. I had almost gone in to join him, help him wash, but he really did have to go to work, and if we were rubbing lather all over one another, he would almost certainly be late. Or not get there at all.
And his job mattered. Omegas and babies, even their alphas, counted on him to be there when the little ones made their appearance. He seemed to do more than the traditional definition of a doula as I understood it, leaning toward midwifery, a shifter sort of crossover.
And he loved it here. Obviously had zero desire to leave this community, even to do the same work elsewhere.
My omega had a bond with the local community that I had to admit, I did not.
That said, I’d put years into my job with the hope of moving upward and had recently seen glimmers of possibility.
Could I just give notice and walk away?
The bathroom door opened, and a cloud of steam preceded Zac into the bedroom.
He wore only a towel around his waist, droplets of water running down his chest and flat belly.
“I hate to go, but we’re so busy. For a small town, we’re experiencing a population boom.
” But he smiled as he said it, eliminating any chance it was a real complaint.
Zac loved his work, and he loved the people he worked with.
The new parents and his coworkers as well.
I lay propped up on pillows while he dressed and combed his hair in front of the dresser mirror.
As an alpha, I had always had a vague image in my head that I would be putting on my suit while my omega stayed behind, caring for the home and everything that meant.
When had I become so sexist? Or was it just so commonly spoken of that way in shifter circles that it seemed normal.
Looking adorable in olive-green scrubs, Zac came over for one more kiss then asked, “Will I see you later?”
“I don’t exactly have a way to go anywhere else unless you drop me off at the motel on your way to work. Do you want me to go?”
“No, please stay here.” He rubbed his palm over my scruffy jaw and gave a little shiver. “In bed, if possible. I like thinking of you in my bed.”
I kissed him again. “I will hang around, but I will have to get up soon. I need a shower and coffee.”
“Make yourself at home, and I’ll be back as soon as I can.” Then he was gone. I missed him already.
In the quiet of his home, I lay back and tried to figure out what the next step would be.
Zac leaving his work, his town, might not be a possibility.
At least not one that would make my omega happy.
And his happiness came first. Perhaps I could spend at least weekends here and then stay in the city during the week?
Or Zac could arrange his schedule to spend weekends with me?
But it was a long drive to the city and back, and it would take up a good portion of our weekends, our precious time together. And no matter how I worked it in my head, I could not imagine spending more than half of our time apart every week.
Climbing out of bed, I padded into the bathroom.
My omega had been gone for less than an hour, and already I was missing him so much it hurt.
He’d be back later, but that didn’t make it better.
Standing under the shower, I shampooed my hair, sniffing the scent that had clung to him when he kissed me goodbye.
A fresh toothbrush still in the wrapper sat on the sink for my use, and after my ablutions, I dressed in yesterday’s clothes and made my way to the kitchen.
He had a coffee maker with a variety of pods, the kind that had a pressure function.
Not quite espresso, but a good substitute, and I settled at the kitchen counter with my mug and a couple of slices of buttered toast.
One way or another, we were going to have to figure out how to be together.
And I had to consider Zac’s job a given, which made the town a given.
But how could I, a middle-level civil servant, find a job in this place?
I didn’t want to be a server at the diner, and I knew nothing about retail, leaving out the small stores.
Possibly some sort of remote office job?
Maybe?
Hopefully?
Perhaps splitting time was the way things would have to be. It sounded awful, but if I couldn’t find work, it was the only option. I didn’t want to be too snippy at Fate, and I wouldn’t want any other mate, but it would have been nice if my mate was a doula at a birthing center in my same town.
Glancing at my phone, I saw my mate had only been gone an hour and a half. This was going to be a long day without him.
I wasn’t going to do well if we couldn’t find a way for us to be together full-time. Maybe my mate would have ideas. Better ones.