Chapter 14 #2
Milton turns into the town. It’s cute and set in the middle of two massive hills covered in thick pine trees. Like someone turned a corner, found paradise, and said, let's hide a town here.
“What’s this town called again?” I ask, playing dumb.
“This is Second Chance. Only a forty-minute drive from Sunshine Cove, but it sure has its own beauty.” Milton parks the car and climbs out, stretching. I round the back of the LandCruiser and stand beside Cordie while I look around with interest.
There are a handful of specialty stores, nothing like Sunshine Cove.
There’s The Nest, which is where we’re going.
Creamillo, an ice cream and dessert bar.
The Alpha Box which appears to be a shop for all things alpha.
The Rocking Horse which is a handmade furniture store.
The Blazing Bar that, despite its name, is actually an apothecary, Toxic tonics, which, to my surprise, is a shop that specialises in sauces, especially hot ones, but also sells ribs, barbecue, and beer.
“Wow, this place is unreal.”
“Yes, we don’t advertise for people to come here. Sunshine Cove likes tourists, Second Chance doesn’t.
“Oh.”
“But don’t you worry, you’re with us. You’re practically a local now.”
A dog sees me and flattens itself to the ground, whining in joy. I approach and pat the cute little baby. It looks like a big blue pit bull, but it’s one of the friendliest dogs I’ve ever seen.
“What’s your name, then?”
The dog whines and licks my face.
“Sorry, buddy, I have to go shopping, but if you are here when we come out, I will come say hello.”
He lets out a shrill bark and tries to follow, but the leash holds him up.
Inside the store is a visual masterpiece, a rainbow of colours and textures. I have to stop to really take it in. It extends so deep. Much bigger than I would have thought. This place is perfect.
“Hey, Wendy!”
A young woman with thick brown hair lifts her hand and waves.
“This is my son’s alpha. He brought Cordie, their omega, to shop for her first heat.”
The transformation on the shop owner's face is startling. She smiles widely.
“Nice to see you again. Welcome, Alpha. Cordie, if you need any help at all, just shout out, I’ll come straight over. I haven’t forgotten the help you and your mum gave my gran when she was sick. So, anything I can do to make this easier, let me know.”
Cordie smiles. “It’s really good to see you, Wendy, and it was our pleasure.”
“Wendy mostly makes a profit on her online orders, but people come from everywhere to buy her nesting materials when she has pop-up stores in the cities. If you want it, she either has it or can source it,” Lorelei says proudly.
Cordelia has that lost look on her face, it’s returned with a vengeance.
“All right, we’re going to do this with a game plan.” I say with confidence, stealing a page out of Katsu’s playbook. “We’re going to walk around until you figure out what calls to you. If it feels good, grab it.”
She glances up at me and bites her bottom lip. “I didn’t think I would get my heat. It hadn’t come before, and there was no real sign it was going to suddenly appear.”
The lost little voice tells me so much about her mood right now and how I can fix this. I need to empower this omega.
“Luckily, we showed up at the right time,” I murmur and drop my arm over her shoulders.
She shakes her head. “I wonder if I’m going into heat because you are here. It’s like my body and mind decided that once the criteria were met, it would do it. I don’t know, it’s just a thought. A stupid thought. You should kiss me to make it stop.”
My mind goes blank, but I’m not going to sleep on that offer. I bend down and brush my lips against hers. She makes a startled noise but just as I start to pull back, she presses into me. Yeah, her lips are as soft as I imagined.
I reluctantly pull away from her and cup her cheeks. “Perhaps you have never felt safe enough to enter a heat,” I suggest.
She looks at me with relief, and I realise she fully expected me to brush her musings aside.
“It could be that, too. I am a little bit…”
“Needing control?”
She bobs her head but reaches out and grabs a blanket, her fingers linger and stroke over it. I want to jump and fist pump the air, but I don't. I just let my scent swell in the air, happy, approving.
“Do you like this one?”
“Very much. It reminds me of one I used to have when I was a kid. This feels safe. It reminds me of winter.”
I grab it, and before I can speak, Lorelei appears, drops a shopping trolley beside me, and speed-walks away. We both watch her.
“Very subtle,” Cordie mutters.
I put the blanket in the trolley.
“Was it really so bad, having everyone know you? As Wolf, I mean?”
“Oh, yes,” I say before I can think better of it. “I don’t have a nice family. I have expectations, and those expectations were to do certain things by certain times. We didn’t do affection, and suffering is an art form in my parents’ house.”
“It wasn’t home?”
“No, it was never home. My brother split when I was twelve. I don’t know where he is, but I overheard from someone once that he was doing well. My sister is very happy to be my parents’ point of success. I’m just happy they have let me go, but then they have always disapproved of Katsu.”
She grabs some massive pillows and chucks them in, and another couple of blankets, all in dark blues and greys. The more I talk about myself, the easier shopping is for her.
“You’ll really like Katsu’s family. They are nothing like mine, and as rich as they are, they are just about the most affectionate people you will ever meet.”
Despite my assurances, she still hesitates until we get to the electrical section. Her eyes light up, and she goes from one to the other, back and forth, humming and agonizing.
She touches the boxes and looks over every single picture and description.
“And that’s how you tell what your omega is going to need in her nest,” Milton says from beside me.
“Lights?” I ask, surprised.
“Yes. By the looks of it, it’s what is going to make her experience a sensory wonderland. That is an omega’s purr. If you get lights, she will be happier than she would with a million blankets,” Milton says.
I ponder the situation. “Okay, I think I know what I’m doing now, thank you for the instruction.”
“Good, Alpha, shall I take her and Lorelei for ice cream after?”
“If you wouldn’t mind, there are a few errands that I absolutely must run.” I beam at him.
“Of course, of course. Take all the time you need. The, uh, car will be open.”
I grin at him; he grins at me, and then he turns and walks off, cheerfully whistling.
“I really like this place,” I say to myself as I approach my omega. But I don’t mean this store, I mean this community, Sunshine Cove, this omega. I could be happy here.
It takes me a while to load the car, but I get it down in the nick of time. They come back, and seeing the relief and excitement on her face, I know that I’ve made the right decision.
I’m going to get my omega to purr, no matter what happens. She deserves to be happy.
There are four more bags of material, blankets, and pillows, plus the ten boxes of lights. I spent a small fortune, but it was absolutely worth it.
“Everyone ready to head home?”
I look at this omega who, just by existing, has changed everything for me.
“Yes, I’m ready to go home.”