Chapter Four
Orin
Poe and his mate Karissa often came into The Alibi since their mating.
The thing about my speakeasy was that the first visit was by invitation only.
So, you had to know someone who already came.
It preserved the atmosphere and gave me a sense of secrecy, the whole point of a place like mine.
But in a small town, secrecy and illusion weren’t exactly good for business, so thank goodness the people of Pleasant invited visitors when they thought it was a good fit.
When Poe came in alone, at around noon, I knew something was up.
“What?” He chuckled. “It’s five o’clock somewhere, right?”
I shrugged one shoulder. Who was I to judge? “Sure. What will it be?”
Poe was dressed in all black, not a surprise. His usual drink was an old-fashioned, but when his mate was with him, they got adventurous.
“Not really in for a drink. Just testing you. I wanted to ask you something, but you have to swear to secrecy.”
I cocked my head. Secrecy was a given around here. “You got it. What’s up?”
“We want to have a small wedding. We registered the pack and Karissa’s ours, but we wanted to give her a wedding with locals. A celebration.”
“That sounds great, man. Is she excited?”
He flexed his neck and took a seat on one of the barstools. “Well, that’s the thing. It’s kind of a surprise. She doesn’t know. So we would need the venue to take care of all the setup and ordering things.”
“Where is it going to be?” I asked, still wondering how I could help. I would, of course. They were my friends and regulars here.
“Well…” He looked around and it all clicked with me.
“Here? You want to have your wedding here? I’m honored.”
“That’s a yes, then?” Poe was of brooding before Karissa showed up, but now we got to see him smile all the time. The aftereffects of finding his fated mate.
I wished to have that smile one day.
“It’s a hell yes. What do you need me to do?”
We went over the plans. The decorations were ordered, and they would take care of setting the place up, but the flowers had to be ordered.
Karissa was a smart omega. She would know something was up because they didn’t really give her flowers.
She preferred plants and desserts to flowers that would die one day.
But a wedding demanded flowers.
Poe had the plans written on a folded sheet of paper he pulled from his pocket. Some were checked off like the decorations and the rings, and I was happy to see him mark off the venue.
“How about we take care of the flowers as a gift to the pack?”
Poe’s eyes widened. “You would do that for us?”
“Absolutely.” I clapped him on the shoulder.
“There’s a new flower shop around the corner. Off Main Street. The Happy Flower. You’ve seen it?”
I’d seen it on my way to work but didn’t have the time to stop and see what exactly it was. Also, it was late at night when I did. “I passed it the other day, but I haven’t been in. Didn’t think twice about it, actually.”
Poe nodded and folded up his paper after marking off flowers as well. Damn, I bet it was nice to have an omega to dote on and surprise. I grew a bit jealous, not of his omega but at his situation. If only we could find ours, it would change our whole lives. Give us purpose.
“How do you not know what is going on in your own town?”
Altan came in from the back where he was helping me stock up for the week. I had the deliveries come in on my days off. No rest for the wicked. “What are we talking about?”
“Poe is surprising Karissa, well, his pack is surprising Karissa with a wedding, and they are using The Alibi as the venue. I thought we could take care of the flowers as a gift. Poe was suggesting the new flower shop that just opened up.”
“I saw it yesterday. There was someone inside, but I didn’t stop in.”
Poe shook his head. “You two. Maybe you should spend more time shopping in our town.”
“Maybe so. Who owns it?”
Our friend got up from the barstool and opened his mouth but then shut it again. “You know what? I’ll let you two find out when you order the flowers. And it’s coming up soon, so do it fast. This has to be perfect for our mate. She deserves a destination wedding, but our girl likes things simple.”
“That’s mean,” I teased. “What is it, some hot omega who owns it? She’s just waiting for someone to scoop her up?”
Poe slapped the bar. “Go to the flower shop. Just trust me.”
Altan sidled up to me. “What else do we need to do? Order extra booze? Get some champagne?”
“That’s a good idea. We’ll make it the best wedding this place has ever seen.”
Altan laughed. “It’s the only wedding this place has ever seen.”
“Maybe the first. If we make this good, other people might want to have gatherings here. That would be cool. Drum up more business.”
“That’s true. Hey.” He looked at his watch. “How about we head over to the shop now and make the order. Let’s call Sovann. He’s got a better eye for these things than we do. I’d just order a shit ton of red roses and call it a day.”
“I’m on it.”