Chapter 9 - Adam
I was glad that Wes’s assistant had informed me that business casual was fine for the meeting. Though I couldn’t decide if it hurt or helped. One minute the lightweight blazer would feel suffocating, the next I wished it was heavy wool. My shirt felt like sandpaper against my skin.
The black sedan parked in front of the TechSpeed offices bore the same discreet logo that I’d seen the night of the gala, and as soon as the driver verified my identity, I was whisked away to the section of the city known as Billionaire Row.
Wes’s home had the sort of airy, understated ambiance that could only be achieved through extreme wealth. Everything was immaculate in that way that screamed that buying a replacement was better than something unused cluttering the space.
The illusion was broken when an excited toddler ran past, his omega father on his heels.
Would that be me soon? Would my alpha get me pregnant as soon as we met?
“This way, Mister Collins,” said Wes’s assistant, pulling my attention from the duo.
I followed him toward a hallway, then paused as he stopped at a door and knocked. He announced my presence, then I was ushered inside.
Wes Abrams had a commanding presence, and I couldn’t decide if it was because he was a billionaire, a CEO, or if it was just a sort of natural confidence.
“Mister Collins,” he said as he motioned to a guest chair. “Please, have a seat.”
“Thank you, Mister Abrams,” I said as I accepted his offer. “And please, call me Adam.”
“And you can call me Wes,” he replied. Then he paused and studied me before letting out a sigh. “I would ask if you’re feeling better, but I can see… and smell… that you’re not.”
I held up my hands. “Don’t worry. It’s nothing you need to worry about your mate or child catching.”
He let out a single snorted chuckle. “I know, but I was hoping that you and your alpha would have resolved your differences over the past few days. Neither my Cody nor I had it nearly as bad as you do. Our cases were relatively minor compared to yours, but fate-sickness can be quite serious.”
“You… you knew?”
He nodded. “It took me a bit at the gala to recognize it; there was too much going on. But once you’ve had it, or known somebody with it. The signs are there.”
“I’m sorry…”
“Nothing to apologize to me for. But I hope you and your alpha can work it out before you get any worse.”
“It would help if I knew who he was.”
He blinked. “You’ve got it this bad, and don’t know who he is?”
I nodded. “I caught his scent at the beach; that’s when it started. But I couldn’t find him. I’ve smelled him a handful of times since, but I always seem to just miss him.”
He hummed. “That does change things, though I wonder why it hit you so hard.”
I shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“Well…” he grabbed a notepad on his desk and scribbled something on it before passing the paper to me. “That’s the name of the endocrinologist that Cody and I saw after he stopped fighting it.”
I blinked at the paper. “Endocrinologist?”
He nodded. “Excuse my language, but you’re still going to feel like shit for a while after. It affects your whole body, and recovery isn’t instant. Our doctors recommended he and I get specialist help, and it made things a lot easier.”
“Thank you,” I said as I pocketed the paper.
“You’re welcome, and I hope you find him soon.” He paused. “If you have a few minutes after, perhaps Cody can talk to you. I’m not sure what it’s like for omegas, and like I said earlier, our cases were relatively minor, but he’s been through it and may have advice.”
“I would appreciate that.”
He nodded, picked up the handset to a phone on his desk, and spoke into it for a moment. “I let them know to tell Cody.”
“Thank you… again.”
He smiled. “Of course. Now…” He glanced at his monitor.
“I’d like this discussion about where you—or others from TechSpeed—see a need in apps like mine to be a continuing dialog, rather than a one-time thing.
So today I’d like to lay the groundwork.
Let’s come up with some guidelines for information we’d like from each other, then we can go to our respective teams.”
“Sounds good.”
We spent the next forty-five minutes working on a framework of what kind of feedback he was looking for, and I was able to secure alpha and beta test access for my interns so that they could learn to stress-test apps, as well as spot bugs and user interface issues.
I went over my notes as the meeting came to a close, and promised to copy him on the email I’d send to Linden. He informed me that a car would be waiting as soon as I finished speaking with his mate.
I found Wes’s omega, Cody, in one of the living rooms. He gave me a mug of ginger tea, then started telling me what helped him. It was mostly things I’d tried, but it was nice knowing that other people understood.
We ended our discussion when his toddler started fussing from another room.
I was able to summarize the meeting, including the loose arrangements we’d agreed to, in the ride back to the office, and sent it as the sedan pulled to a stop in front of the TechSpeed office.
I got out, ready to talk to Dylan about it, walked in, and doubled over as a cramp hit me.
My alpha’s scent was overwhelmingly strong in the lobby—as if he’d just been there.
A sob escaped, and tears sprang to my eyes.
I’d missed him. He’d been at my work, and I’d missed him.
Had he scented me? Did he know? Was he still in the building? Where was he?
“Adam!” cried Amelia. The sound of her heels as she rounded her desk and rushed over. Her hand on my back. “What’s wrong? Do I need to call an ambulance?”
I gulped lungfuls of air, which only seemed to make things worse, but shook my head. “It’s… it’s…”
“I’m calling Dylan and Taal,” she stated.
She rushed back to her desk, even as I braced an arm against a window. My feet were rooted to the spot where I’d smelled him, every inch of me desperate for more.
Alpha…
Mine…
Alpha…
Alpha…
Mine…
My instincts were stuck in a loop. Did I run through the building trying to find him? Did I run down the street?
The elevator dinged, then two sets of rushing footsteps.
“The server room,” Taal said as he and Dylan each took one side. “It’s independent of the main AC.”
My feet refused to work as my two alpha friends braced me between them and dragged me across the lobby and into the small hallway where the entrance to the server room was.
Harsh white-blue light spilled out as the door opened, then I was engulfed in cold sterility.
They eased me onto a chair.
“I’m going to get him some water,” Dylan announced as he ran back out.
Taal knelt in my line of sight. “Talk to me. Did you smell him just now?”
I swallowed and nodded, unable to speak.
“Ok… I want you to listen to me. Can you do that?”
I nodded again.
“Dylan thinks he knows who he is, unless somebody else came in after he left. If it’s who Dylan thinks it is, then we know where he is… or at least have his phone number.”
“R-really?” I croaked, my throat parched.
Taal took my hands in his. “Dylan had a meeting while you were out. He said the alpha got fidgety every time the AC kicked on. You know how it blows your scent into his office because of how it’s laid out.
Then he talked to Amelia after this alpha left.
He’d been asking about food and deliveries, saying something smelled good. ”
“Y-you think…”
He nodded. “I do.”
I started to rise. “Where?”
Taal pushed me back onto the chair. “You’re in no shape. I don’t know if you can even walk through the lobby right now. Give yourself a minute.”
“But…” I needed to find Dylan and ask him where my mate was.
Dylan came back into the server room and pressed a paper cup of water into my hands. “Drink.”
I didn’t want to, not when I was so close. But I drank the water anyway.
“There were no deliveries,” Dylan told Taal. “Brent was the last non-employee in and out of the building. He has to be the one.”
“His name is Brent?” I asked.
It was Dylan’s turn to kneel in front of me. “I think so.” He took a deep breath. “Adam, I don’t know if he’s your mate. The signs are there, but I could be wrong. I want you to promise me that you’ll keep that in mind.”
I nodded. “I will.”
“Take another minute to catch your breath. I propped the front door open, so hopefully his scent won’t be as strong in the lobby. I texted when I was getting your water. He’s within walking distance.”
“Really?”
He smiled and sat cross-legged on the server room floor. “While you recover… I’ll tell you what I know.”
He paused, then started. “I received a call on Monday from a local high school technology teacher. He wants us to give presentations to his classes about how what he teaches is used in the workplace. I think he’s your mate, but I also think you are the best person to give these presentations—at least the first one.
“He said his students are used to apps and things like cloud storage, so don’t understand why they need to learn some of the fundamentals.
But you know the apps and cloud stuff inside and out.
You know where it fails. The kids probably think that anybody telling them not to use apps are people who just haven’t kept up with technology.
But that’s not you. I’ve watched you recommend an app for one client, then turn around and say it’s not robust enough for the next.
You know their place in the ecosystem. I can’t think of anybody better to help bridge that gap. ”
“So he wants me to talk to his students?”
Dylan smiled. “Yes, and in case he’s not your mate…
you now know why I want you to talk to him.
This is a good thing to do either way, and you’re still the best to give that first presentation.
I asked him to stay close because I think he’s your mate, but I would have asked you to talk with him either way. ”
“Two non-client meetings in one afternoon?” I asked.
Dylan smirked. “Sorry. But I decided it was worth the chance. I’ll get you pizza if I’m wrong and you end up in another meeting instead of his bedroom.”
“What if it ends up being both?”
He laughed. “I guess I need to find a pizza place as good as Slice of Heaven.”
“I miss their pizza.”
“Same. But tell me how the meeting goes if you do discuss presentations. Maybe we’ll schedule an office pizza party since all the interns should be settled by the end of next week.”
“Ok.”
“How are you feeling?”
I blinked and realized that Dylan and Taal had made the right choice by putting me in the server room. The absence of my mate’s scent had allowed my head to clear. “Better.”
“Good. Do you think you can walk?”
I stood, and for a moment my legs were unsteady. But after a few steps I was walking normally.
“Do you think you can make it to The Daily Grind?”
I looked to where he was still sitting on the floor. “Is that where he is?”
He nodded. “Brown hair, neat beard. Button-up shirt open at the collar, tan trousers.”
The description was Dylan’s way of giving me permission to go.
“Thank you!” I cried, giving him a hug as he stood.
“Go get your mate.”
I nodded, then walked over to where Taal had decided to lean against the wall. “Thank you for taking care of me.”
He pulled me into his arms. “You’re my friend. Of course I took care of you. Now, don’t make him wait any longer.”
He thumped my back twice before releasing me.
I didn’t quite bolt out of the server room, but I walked as fast as my feet would carry me without breaking into a jog.
The lobby wasn’t entirely clear of my alpha’s scent, but the level was manageable as I crossed it and made my way outside.
I weaved through tourists lingering in front of shop windows, and the wait for the pedestrian crossing light felt like an eternity. Then I was there, outside The Daily Grind.
I took a deep breath, both hoping and steeling myself for disappointment. Then I pushed the door open and looked around.
My eyes landed on him, just as Dylan had described.
He was perfect. Brown hair and a neat beard, average build. Even though he was sitting, I could tell that he was several inches taller than me.
An iced matcha sat waiting.
His gaze met mine, and his eyes widened.
Alpha… Mine…
I swallowed. Two weeks, and my feet were rooted in the doorway.
He was there: my alpha.
“Excuse me,” said somebody trying to get around me.
“Sorry,” I muttered. My legs started working again and took me toward the table.
He’d half-stood by the time I was there.
“A-Adam?” he asked, breathless.
I nodded. “Brent?”
He returned the nod and rounded the table.
Then his arms were around me. I was enveloped in the scent of my mate.
“Finally…” I breathed.