“Oh, I’m aware.” Blair sits up straighter. “I’ve seen all the awards your games have won over the years.Wicked Bytesis an impressive company. Your competitors have been around for decades, but you two are keeping them on their toes.”
Rowanbeamswhile I grin. “You looked us up?” he asks.
She shrugs innocently. “You’re my scent matches. You’re myfriends. I care about what you do.”
I don’t stop smiling like an idiot until she huffs and playfully smacks me on the arm. “Just show me the least scary game you have, and we’ll go from there.House Haunterswas one of your first releases, right?”
Rowan looks at her like she’s grown a second head. “You really researched our company?”
“Of course,” Blair replies. “You guys are a big deal in the industry. Why do you look so surprised? You’re obviously successful as hell.” She scrunches her face. “What am I missing? You guysknowyou’re a big deal, right?”
On paper, sure.
But not everyone knows or cares.
Our parents, as decent and understanding as they are, have never understood why their sons used their computer science degrees for entertainment purposes.
Travis isn’t a big gamer, so he doesn’t get too excited about what we do, either.
I’ve had more than enough friends in the past casually mention how what we do isn’t a “real” job.
But Blair? The hardworking, smart as hell, gorgeous Omega that’s determined to save cats?
Shetook the time to look into what we do.
She’simpressed.
My Omega is pleased.
“If you say so.” I grin, my face burning from her compliment.
This girl has me smiling like a love-sick teenager and not the grown thirty-five-year-old man I am.
“I do say so.” She grins. “Andplease. It’s not like you haven’t done the same with Furs and Purrs.”
Rowan shrugs. “Cats are awesome, what can we say? If I had it my way, I’d take the whole rescue home.”
The jingling of bells interrupts us, and the three kittens come barreling into the room. They zip past us and down the hallway, and Ash goes galloping after them.
Blair laughs. “I seriously can’t believe you chose to foster. There’s no way this house gets any peace.”
“We don’t,” I say. “But we don’t mind.”
“They have reign of the house,” Rowan adds. “I wake up to at least one of them on my chest every day.”
“It seems like they’re bonded to you and Ash already,” Blair muses. “It might be hard to adopt them out.”
My brother and I freeze, and she must see something on our faces, because she tilts her head, confused.
“You’re fostering,” she reminds us. “Not adopting. Right?”
“Wait.” Rowan’s face twists in agony. “What do you mean?”
“Fostering means you only keep them until they grow a bit older and are ready to be adopted out,” Blair says. “Piper and Maeve explained that to you, right? I’m sure they did.”
All three of us adore the kittens, but Rowan has become the most attached to them.
And he likely ignored that part of what they told him.
