“I would, one day. But you were telling me about the house?”
“Right. Leesie was a city employee, and I had a job in an insurance office. Neither of those things paid enough for anything fancy, but her grandfather owned the house and gave us a deal. It’s much smaller than yours, of course…”
“But you have kept it so nice.”
“Our neighbors in this house did, too, until the alpha mate passed and the omega had been a house husband and couldn’t keep it up.”
I’d wanted to hear this story for a while, so paint or no paint, I wasn’t going to stop her. “That’s very sad.”
“Worse than that. He was alone and desperate and fell for the wiles of an alpha with no morals. He moved in, pretended to care for him, and talked him into taking out a mortgage for a ‘business opportunity.’”
“And?” I was breathless, imagining what the poor omega must have been going through. “What business?”
“Monkey business. He took the funds and left town, never to be seen again. So Ralphie, the omega widower, had to sell for what was owed and just a few thousand more. Enough to move away. He was so shamed by the whole thing, he wouldn’t tell uswhere he was going. We offered to help, too. We didn’t have a lot, but we would have let him stay with us and get on his feet…”
I was sitting down now, leaning against the wall. Floored by the cruelty of some people. “And you never heard from him again?”
She shrugged. “Not so far. He’d be as old as I am now, maybe older. I’m not sure exactly. But I’d love to know if he’s doing okay.”
“Me too.” I flushed. “Not that I know him, but he lived here once. And I hate when someone is taken advantage of.”
I wanted to hear more about the house and its history, but my neighbor had to make dinner, and I had to get working or I’d have to sell the house, too. So, I said goodbye and picked up my brush.
Maybe I was better off never having someone in my life than risking unkindness.
Chapter Five
Oswald
Signs around town announced a food truck festival in two days. Explaining why the one small motel was fully booked for the next week or so.
No rental units available. No vacation rentals.
Nothing. There was no place for me to stay.
I really didn’t want to go to the next town, but it was looking like that was my only option.
I’d called Troy back, but he basically told me the same. Go to the next town. The city would pay for whatever I found.
That was great, financially, but not for my morale.
I found myself outside the Bear’s Den again. It felt like a safe spot to park. Under a streetlight. And the alpha who maybe lived inside seemed nice from a distance. He was working on his place and starting some kind of business. That had to mean he wasn’t a complete jerk. Right? Probably a stretch, but I really wanted to like him.
I finally gave up trying to find somewhere to stay and tossed my phone into the passenger seat.
Den. The Bear’s Den. It wasn’t listed on the town website as a place to stay, but with all those rooms, from what I could guess from the outside, maybe there was one available? For rent?
Hell, at this point, I’d sleep on his couch or the floor if he let me.
Emboldened by my lack of options, I got out of the car and bounded up the steps of the Victorian home, sending a prayer to the goddess that the alpha would have a kind heart.
I knocked, stomach tightening.Please. Please. Please.
“Hello,” he said, opening the door.
I stepped back as his scent pushed at me, so much more complex than the faint cedar and rum I’d caught before. He was everything a bear should be. Warm. Smoky, in a good way. Fire. Cedar and rum were there as well but underneath a cinnamon ribbon. Whatever business he was starting here would be fruitful because of that alone.
While the scent hit me first, his power affected me more. He was certainly an alpha. The power came from him in waves, making my fox bark, piercing and sharp inside, showing me how much he approved of the man standing in front of me.
