“Or you and Katsu can go and get dinner for us and organise groceries for a week.”
The relief on his face is adorable. We all have strengths; that’s what Katsu always tells me, but it’s good to see a practical point made, one I can use when I start feeling insecure.
“We’re going shopping.” I’ve already made the plans; I just hadn’t had a chance to reveal them yet.
“Where?” Cordie asks. “We only have one store.”
“Let’s check it out first, and if we can’t find what we need, there was a gorgeous town not far away that I saw has a nesting shop.”
She gapes at me. “Second Chance? You want to drive all the way to Second Chance just for nesting materials?”
Is she serious? “Of course, an omega needs to feel secure and have only the best nest. What kind of alpha would I be if I didn’t make sure your nest was perfect?”
She blinks rapidly and looks down, hiding her face.
“Go alone?” Sebastian asks. “Are you sure?”
Katsu shrugs. “Fox is exceptionally well trained, he can take care of himself and her. But if it makes you feel better, Lorelei and Milton are going. Fox asked if they could catch a ride with them.”
“How do you know that?” I ask, mildly annoyed he’s stealing my thunder. He’s always doing this, somehow getting one step ahead of me, even when I think I’m being sneaky.
The way her face relaxes means I’ve done the right thing. So, I give myself a mental pat on the back and take her hand. It would be amazing to have this time alone with her, but I am a stranger, and she did see me get railed this morning. I need to show her other sides of me, too.
Good job, Fox.
“We’ll see you soon, lovers.”
I wink at Sebastian and see him turn a delightful crimson colour and scowl at me. Without another look, I lead her up and to the Ville Road, which has a whole heap of more traditional grocery-type shops and tourist-themed ones. We head into the small secondhand shop, but she looks like it’s all too much.
“What do you like, Cordelia?”
“Empty rooms.”
I snort a laugh because she barely let me get the word out before she was answering.
“You want an empty room?”
She looks up at the ceiling light as if everything is painful. “I like stars and lights that twinkle.”
I pass her two pillows. “Which material feels nice?”
She tosses them back on the rack and grabs a cushion that squishes in the most delicious twisty way. Then grabs satin. Her fingers slow and tremble as she strokes it, but then she puts them back.
My eyebrows go up as I watch her look at a nasty brocade and hover over cheap white linen and cotton. No omega would ever choose cotton unless there was a practical reason. Especially not for a heat. Even more so for her first nest.
Katsu’s parents have drilled so much nest behaviour and theory into me that I feel confident that I can help her, more now that I’ve identified what emotion is going to hold her back.
“Do you like it or are you getting it because it’s practical?”
She exhales roughly and seems to shrink into herself.
“I don’t know.”
“Well, that’s what we’re going to explore. Don’t worry, I am really good at shopping.” I wink at her and brush my hand over her lower back. She whines and leans into me, surprising me. I pull her closer and just hold her.
“It’s going to be okay, little bird, I promise.”
I watch discreetly as she opens her banking app. I take her phone and shut off the screen.
