Then, he looks back at me.
“What’s wrong?”
I blink. “Um, nothing. I don’t …”
“You’ve barely touched your lunch.”
“Oh. I … I’m not that hungry, I guess.”
“You usually eat three meals a day?”
“Since I’ve been here, I do.”
He nods. “I’m not going to push you to eat this now if you don’t feel like eating, but you need to promise you’ll have something like this soon. Skipping meals isn’t good for anyone. It’s especially unhealthy when you’re recovering from malnutrition. Promise?”
“I promise,” I agree quietly.
Once he’s gone, and my nerves have calmed down, I’ll eat.
I feel my shoulders relax now that I know I don’t have to try and finish lunch in front of him.
My stomach is still full of butterflies so I might not be hungry for a while.
I take a sip of water while he does the same.
“Do you know your work schedule?” he asks, as he places his glass back down on the table.
“Um, I’m assigned to day shifts, and to work through the week but not the weekends. Laundry and kitchen orders and some general cleaning duties, I think.”
“So, you’ll have some free time at night?”
I nod, realizing he’s thinking about when we’ll see each other again.
“After six,” I add, remembering the times on the schedule Katie showed me.
“Every night?”
“Um, yeah.”
He nods slowly. “Shayne is keen to see you again. He was disappointed when Lana said she’d only admit one of us for this first visit. I think she’ll speak to you when I leave today. If she asks about visits, I’m hoping Shayne can come see you tomorrow night, and then Jay and Harper together the next night.”
My skin warms when I think about Shayne. We collided on Friday night, and his smile was dazzling. Another Alpha, this one with softer energy.
“I’d like to see Shayne again,” I admit. “It feels right to meet with you all individually.”
“We all wanted to come today, but I think Lana was right to limit it to me,” Falcon confesses after a few seconds. “Unfortunately, when it comes to Harper, we can’t send him anywhere alone.”
“Because he’s an Omega,” I add, not sure how I feel about that.
I have even less experience around Omegas than I do around Alphas.
All I know is what I’ve seen in movies.
“That’s right. Jay’s used to standing back and letting Harper do his thing. Harper’s a concert violinist, and he uses suppressants so no one in his orchestra knows he’s an Omega. Jay takes him to his recitals. They have to maintain a little distance on those days because the suppressants could stop working if they don’t.”
I blink at him. “Harper goes out in public? Isn’t that kind of risky?”
He nods. “It is, but it wouldn’t be fair to keep him locked away just because some assholes out there can’t be trusted around Omegas. Jay’s always close enough to keep him safe. Harper hasto put on an act, pretending to be a Beta, around those people, so none of them really know him, but he’s good with that. He’s there for the music. That’s what he lives and breathes for.”
