Chapter 8 - Craig
Oscar looked around, leaned on the counter, and grinned at me. “Got a little job for you.”
“Oh?”
“Need you to make a call and let a customer know that their order is ready.”
“I mean… sure… but don’t you like to call your accounts?”
He grinned. “This isn’t one of my accounts. And…” he paused to lean in, “you’ll want to call this customer.”
I raised an eyebrow.
He passed over an order slip. ‘Randy Quinn’ was scrawled in the space for the customer's name.
I groaned. “You too?”
He chuckled. “It’s been a few weeks since he’s been in, and that right there gives you a reason to call him. If you ask nicely, maybe you can even figure out when he plans to come to pick it up.”
“I hate you,” I grumbled, even as I slid the slip closer.
He laughed. “That didn’t sound like a ‘no.’”
“I’ll do it,” I growled. “I know y’all be assholes about it either way.”
He grinned. “You know it. But you’ll get to talk to Randy at least.”
“So he ordered something,” I snapped. “Gonna tell me what?”
Oscar laughed again. “He had us cut and kiln some wood for him—trees from his land. They’re ready for pickup.”
I blinked. “He… has us… do that?”
He nodded. “Yep. Has for a couple years. Apparently, he used to dry them himself, but now has us do it.”
“Do you know why?”
He shrugged. “Not my business, but you can ask if you want. He’s pretty open.”
“Ok.”
He stood and rapped his knuckles on the counter a couple times. “I’ll leave you to it, Romeo.”
“Oh, fuck you.”
He laughed as he walked away. “The sooner you call, the sooner you get to talk to him.”
I glared at his back, but couldn’t help picking up the slip as soon as he strode through the double doors that separated the showroom from the mill and admin sections.
No waiting for my omega to come in—hoping that I was working that day. I hated the teasing that would come from it, but it wasn’t like not calling him would make it any less.
I looked around to be sure, but it had been a while since the last customer had walked in. Midday on a Wednesday wasn’t exactly the rush for us, so I figured it was as good a time as any.
I glanced at the number on the form and dialed.
Ring…
Ring…
Ring…
I started to worry that the call would go to voicemail.
“This is Randy,” he answered, out of breath over what seemed to be the sound of machinery coming to a stop in the background.
“Um… hi…” I started. “Th-this is Craig from Mount Sable Mill.”
“Just a minute.” There was a moment where it sounded like he was doing something, then, “Sorry, could you say that again? I forgot I doubled up on ear protection today.”
“This is Craig from Mount Sable Mill,” I repeated.
“Oh… hi… does this mean my order is ready?”
I chuckled. “It is.”
A moment of silence. “Do you know the final weight?”
I glanced at the form. “Three thousand?”
He hummed. “Sounds like three trips.”
“Do you want us to schedule a delivery instead?”
He laughed. “Naw, my old truck can handle it. Unloading is the worst part.”
“Unloading?”
“You try unloading three truckloads of wood into a shed by yourself.”
“If you want… I can…” I started.
He laughed again. “Thanks, but I’ve got it. I schlep wood all day. This is just a bit more than normal.”
“Ri-right.” I swallowed. “D-do you know when you might come in? That way I can ask the guys loading to be ready.”
“I want to run these boards through the planer a few more times, then I’ll be at a good stopping point. If I could pick up the first load this afternoon, that would give me all day tomorrow to get the other two.”
“Sounds good. Besides the first load, anything else I should have the guys get ready for you? Extra stickers?”
He hummed. “I mostly use the stickers I take off when loading. But a few extras are always appreciated.”
“I’ll ask them to throw some in a bag for you.”
“Thanks.” There was a pause. “I should be there in an hour or so.”
“Got it. We’ll be ready.”
“Bye.”
“Bye.”
I restrained the urge to do a little happy dance as the line went dead. I was going to see him… that afternoon.
Nobody had come in while I was on the phone, and I decided I could duck back to talk to the guys in loading. I grabbed a paper sack from under the counter, then headed for the doors to the warehouse.
Forklifts beeped, and the whine of the saws filled the space.
I stopped next to the kiln and waved down the operator.
“Yeah?” he shouted.
“Can I get a bag of stickers for a customer?” I asked at the same volume, holding out the sack.
He nodded and slid several handfuls of the long, thin wood slats into the bag. “That enough?”
“Probably.”
“Ok.” He handed over the bag. “Anything else?”
“No. Thanks!”
He nodded again rather than yell in the noisy space.
I returned the nod, then continued to where men assembled and readied the orders for pickup or delivery.
The supervisor—Carlos—spied me and smirked.
“Here about your boyfriend’s order?” he yelled.
I sighed. “He says it’ll take three trips. He’ll be in for the first this afternoon.”
He grinned and pointed to three wrapped stacks. “We’re ready for him.”
“Great! Thanks!”
I started to turn when he waved to get my attention again. Then he motioned me over.
“Yeah?” I yelled.
He smirked again. “Call Oscar down to man the counter when he comes in.”
“Why?”
“He’ll solid stack it in his truck. Goes faster if it’s a two-man job, and,” he paused to wink, “all my guys are busy today.”
“So is this just a thing now? Is everybody going to give me shit?”
He burst into laughter. “Yes. There isn’t a man here who isn’t waiting to watch you trip over your own feet around him.”
“Glad to be everyone’s amusement,” I grumbled.
He laughed again, then clapped me on the shoulder. “Enjoy it. Means you’re one of us.”
I somehow managed not to flip him off as I strode away.
The front was still quiet as I made my way back to the register. I’d already swept and done any other busywork I could think of, so I sat on a high stool, elbows on the counter, spinning one of the scraps I’d saved for Randy.
“Save your little surprise for the last trip,” Oscar said, walking up and leaning on the other side of the counter.
“Hmm?”
“He’s going to be thinking logistics for the first two,” he explained. “How much more weight can the truck handle? How long will it take to unload? The last trip is when he has the freedom to pick up extras.”
“Thanks,” I mumbled as I stared at the small piece of wood in my hand. The grain was pretty, the scrap cut from where the tree had twisted to withstand mountain winds.
I wondered what Randy would see in it.
“Too bad he won’t have Spud with him,” Oscar continued. “No chance for you to show off that jar of treats.”
“He won’t bring his dog?” I asked, finally glancing up.
Oscar shook his head. “Not for a pickup this size. I think Spud would behave and stay close. But Randy’s attention will be on the wood and the truck. He’s not going to take the chance.”
“Responsible dog owner,” I murmured.
“Damn straight.” Oscar laughed. “Now, try to stop pining before he gets here. You’re starting to stink up the place.”
“Ass,” I chuckled.
“Real talk?” he asked.
I cocked my head to the side. “Sure?”
“All us front guys. We all know Randy. He’s been coming here for years. But in all the time I’ve worked here, there’s not been as much as a whiff of alpha on him. Maybe Emmett knows if he had one at some point, but anybody else who might know is long retired.”
“Ok?” I asked, wondering where he was going.
He sighed. “Look. Some people want to live a life of solitude, and there’s nothing wrong with that. But I never got that vibe from Randy. He was always so lonely before he got Spud. That dog helps, but…”
He paused and ran a hand through his hair. “People who have been alone that long… they put up walls. They tell the world they’re ok with being single until they have to believe it themselves. Being single becomes the choice, because the other option is to wonder why.”
“What are you saying?”
He shrugged. “Like I said, I never got the vibe that he wanted a solitary life, but he had to embrace it. For what reason, I don’t know.”
Another paused. “We all want to see him happy, however that looks. But it’s not going to be easy. You’re not trying to convince him to go on a date. You’re trying to convince him to step out from behind a carefully crafted lie.”
He straightened and studied me. “You need to ask yourself if you’re serious about him. If this is just a crush, or wanting to get into his pants….” He shook his head. “Once those walls come down—if they come down—you need to be prepared to catch the man on the other side. Understood?”
I swallowed and nodded. “Understood.”
He rapped his knuckles on the counter a couple of times. “Good chat. Lemme know when he gets here, and I’ll cover the counter so you can help him load.”
“Did Carlos call you?”
He laughed. “No, but I had a feeling.”
“Thanks. I will.”
“Good.”
He strode back to the admin area, and I turned my attention back to the piece of wood in my hands.
Oscar’s words played in a loop in my head. Sure, I’d been single for a few years, but it sounded like it had become a way of life for Randy.
I’d only been around him that one day, but I couldn’t get the handsome omega out of my mind. Every instinct insisted that he was the man for me.
But what if I was wrong? Would pursuing him do more harm than good?
I was lost in thought when the little bell over the door rang. I startled, looked up, saw Randy standing there, and tossed the scrap back into the bin beneath the register before he could see it.
“We-welcome,” I stammered.
I’d known he was coming, but having him there again…
He was as breathtakingly beautiful as my memory insisted, and despite the aroma of wood that filled the space, I could still make out a scent that was distinctly him.
I longed to wrap my arms around him and nuzzle into his neck to breathe him in.
“Hi,” he said, striding over. “I think I have a balance due?”
I blinked, then looked at the order slip. “Oh, yes.”