“Ugh, I can’t believe I lost that bet,” Steven added as we looked around for the hotel bar. He’d been beating himself up over it.
“Marilyn would’ve found a way regardless. You know that,” I assured.
Part of me wanted to tell him that it was a dumb bet. The moment he mentioned it, I knew that he’d lose, because I knew him.
But I didn’t, because,I told you so,wouldn’t do anything but cause a fight.
“You’re right. Maybe it’ll be fun. She could be nice. It was considerate of Marilyn to say that we were just supposed to show her a good time, and it wasn’t really a date. Oh, this way.” He tugged my hand, leading me across the lobby toward a sign for the bar.
Steven spoke quickly, like he did when he was nervous. He was the talker of the two of us. The one that was rasher and more temperamental, but not in a bad way. With Steven, everything he did was big. He loved big, fought big, and oh, he could get big mad, but that was part of why I loved him.
Steven and I met in junior hockey. We played for rival teams. The sparks were there so much that we risked being shunned by both of our teams to sneak out and be with each other. It continued in college. By some stroke of luck, we both ended up on the Scorpions. We knew we were finally being rewarded for our patience and had been a couple ever since.
I pulled him close, reassuring him. While Steven wasn’t a small guy, I was even bigger. Not just taller at six-foot-four, butbigger.
It might not be a date, but we knew Marilyn’s standards and had dressed the part. I wore a nice plaid button-down and I’d probably spent way too much time putting my hair up in a bun, giving my beard and the sides and back of my head a good trim.
Steven looked like a surfer who’d been forced into slacks and a blue button-down that matched his eyes, though he’d never surfed. I’d tried to teach him, but he thought the water off the Washington coast was too cold. Still, he looked nice. We both did.
Be good,she said. We’d certainly try.
Honestly, part of me was a little annoyed that Marilyn was putting this on us with the finals in a couple of days. Did she really want to distract us by having us show some omega around town?
At the same time, we couldn’t afford to piss her off, or we might find ourselves sidelined, which was the last thing either of us wanted.
Rhett, who was the other half of my defensive pair, would be pissed if somehow, I got myself removed from any of the games.
Especially if it was for not cooperating with Marilyn.
I wasn’t really ready to meet a new omega. I wasn’t sure I even wanted to make any omega friends. Though part of me was a little jealous after seeing all the happiness some of my teammates now had.
Maybe we could've had that if we didn't have such bad judgment last time.
What Steven and I had together was good. Really good.
I was pretty sure Steven was ready to try again. But he wasn’t saying anything, because he knew I wasn’t.
We were in our mid-twenties and had plenty of time to find an omega. Our careers were solid, but not flashy. We had a lot to offer the right someone.
The bar was noisy and crowded. I didn’t like places like this. I didn’t even like our usual team bar, but I went because of my team–and Steven.
There were a few places I did like… but this wasn’t it.
“Do you see her? Dragonflies and sunglasses aren’t really specific. I don’t know why Marilyn’s being so weird about it,” Steven muttered, as we did a lap.
It made it more stressful. I didn’t want to stare at anyone too long, because I didn’t want to come across as creepy. Especially to whoever it was that we were supposed to meet. I’d been told my stare was a little intense, especially since I didn’t talk much when I didn’t know people well.
While there were a few people alone at the bar, it was a little hard to tell if they were an omega or not. There were just too many smells in here for me.
“I see a lot of sunglasses, but I’m not seeing any dragonflies on someone alone,” I finally replied.
We started our second lap, trying not to be too obvious. A few people recognized us as hockey players and invited us to sit with them.
“Thanks man, but we’re looking for someone,” Steven replied.
“Us?” a group of women asked, flirting.
“Not unless you are wearing a dragonfly?” Steven asked.
