Page 17 of A Farmer’s Guide To Gamers

“Do you need to go?” Jack sounded so disappointed that I was glad she declined a ride home.

“Nope. She wants to stay and teach her friends on the inside some poker skills before she gets picked up tomorrow,” I said.

“Am I awake?” Kai whispered loudly to Dean. “This feels like a crazy fever-dream.”

“No, that’s just Marigold,” Sabrina snorted. “She is an activist and her protests nearly always wind up with her there.”

He glanced at me, eyebrows raised.

“She does,” I confirmed. “Mom has a lot of strong feelings and isn’t afraid to show it. You should have seen the time she dressed up like a cow to stop the slaughterhouse from expanding. That one ended up being picked up by some big groups. It was fairly effective.”

“Oh my god I forgot about that,” Pop barked out a laugh. “Didn’t they send her a big box of meat as an apology?”

“In her words it was a bribe made by small-dicked meatheads, but yes,” I said. “She literally stood in front of the mayor’s office and handed it out to anyone who walked by, along with a flyer about the negative impact of them expanding.”

“Language!” Jade yelled out from the kitchen. It wasn’t the worst she’d heard out of all of us but I just yelled back a quick apology.

“The burgers are ready,” Dad interrupted. “Any longer on there and they’re going to be charcoal. Everyone, grab a plate and get comfortable.”

“Don’t have to tell us twice,” I said, snagging Jack’s arm and leading him inside to get our plates. “Let’s go before Sabrina takes all the good crispy edges of the mac and cheese.”

“Hey!” my best friend yelled out but it soon turned into laughter as she ran after us to catch up.

Aiden

Kai had to have hotboxed me before we left for the cookout.

I blinked a few more times, trying to figure out how things had ended up here. Tillie had taken Jack with her to get first dibs on food but it wasn’t long before Sabrina snagged Jack to sit beside her to get the lowdown on the other night.

Tillie just backed away, mouthing sorry to the alpha as the other omega started hitting him with question after question.

“Come on, Tills, before Sabrina pulls you into the questioning, too,” Dean called out, patting the seat beside him and right across from me.

She walked over, her maxi skirt hugging every delicious curve with the movement.

“Well, fuck me,” Kai muttered, licking his lips before taking a long sip of his water.

“Thanks for the save,” she said, settling in beside the alpha. “Poor Jack, though.”

“Sab isn’t going to let him go anytime soon,” Dean commented as he shifted as if he needed to get more comfortable.

I could understand why.

The vanilla had hit me first, but as she sat there and started talking to Kai who had jumped right into conversation, I started to get more notes. Hints of rose and amber followed, every part of my beta coming to alert and focusing on the omega across from me.

My anxiety levels were rising, uncertain how I felt about being called to this omega, while also not wanting to miss an opportunity to get to know her better. The irony, that I as a beta, had anxiety issues wasn’t lost on me.

A firm hand patted my knee and I looked down to find Kai had placed his hand there. His touch helped me calm a little bit, centering me in the midst of my mind starting to race.

I hated my brain.

The anxiety that could take over without a moment’s notice. But, thankfully, it was never an issue with my packmates, each of them helping me in their own way.

Kai wasn’t even looking my way as he offered silent comfort. He simply knew me well enough to tell the signs when no one else could.

The conversation around us lulled and Tillie’s honey brown eyes were on me. Her smile had them crinkling around the edges slightly and having her full attention on me seemed to empty my brain of all coherent thought.

“Aiden, right?” she asked. I nodded mutely and she pushed forward. “So, how did your pack come together?”