Page 9

~November~

I sat in my dark car for several minutes, staring across the parking lot at the busy bar.

“I should go home,” I muttered, even though I knew I wouldn’t.

Another minute passed. I sighed, sniffed myself to ensure the scent-blocking lotion was working, got out of the car, and strode toward the building. I edged my way through the crowd and managed to score a table with a good view of the bar.

Now to hope that my alphas came that night.

I hadn’t meant to start stalking them—if you could really call it that—it had just sort of… happened. But now, I found it nearly impossible to stay away.

It had been two weeks since I’d first met Axel and Tripp, and ten days since I’d decided to find a restaurant for dinner.

However, instead of finding a quiet place for a meal, I’d spotted Axel heading into the bar. Curiosity won out, and a few minutes later, I’d given up on the idea of dinner and instead followed him in.

The real surprise was when I saw that he and Tripp were there together. They sat beside each other at the bar, but their interactions were strange. They would talk for a few minutes, then fall into long stretches where the only thing they did was drink.

The best description I could think of was: Misery loves company.

The good news was that there didn’t seem to be any animosity between them. However, they also didn’t seem to have any deeper relationship than friends—maybe.

There were more questions than answers. Was I really supposed to be with both of them? Would they have any sort of relationship with each other? Somehow, the thought that they might both love me, but not each other, felt wrong.

The need for answers drove me back to the bar the following night, and multiple nights since. I’d find a table out of the way and watch them—wearing scent-blockers so they were less likely to notice me.

My thoughts returned to the present when a foul odor washed over me. I looked up to see a disgusting alpha leering at me.

“Hey, Cutie,” he slurred, leaning in and resting a hand on the table. “Lookin’ for some company?”

I angled away from him as much as possible and somehow managed not to crinkle my nose at his stench. “Not interested.”

“Aw, but you look lonely at this table all by yourself.”

“I said ‘no.’”

“It don’t hurt nothin’ to sit and talk.”

I sighed and pushed up my glasses. “I’m meeting someone, ok?”

He snorted, stood straight, and held out his hands while pretending to look around. “Oh? Where are they?”

“I… uh…” I stammered, realizing he’d called my bluff. Then, as if on cue, Axel and Tripp walked in.

My alphas!

I stood and waved. “Axel, Tripp, over here!”

Both men turned, confused expressions on their faces. Then Axel’s expression darkened as he caught on to the situation. He grabbed Tripp’s wrist and marched over.

“This guy bothering you?” Axel asked.

“I was just offering some company while he waited,” the strange alpha argued.

“Well, we’re here now,” Axel growled. “So you don’t have to worry about him anymore.”

The alpha seemed about to move on, then he paused, looking between Axel and Tripp. “He’s meeting both of you?”

“Yeah. What of it?” Tripp demanded.

The stranger turned back. “Well, if you’re into multiple…”

“Leave!” Axel commanded with a snarl.

The man flinched but seemed about to hold his ground. Then Tripp took a firm stance next to Axel.

“You heard him,” Tripp growled. “Leave our omega alone.”

Our omega … The words made gooseflesh rise along my arms—luckily hidden by my long sleeves.

“Whore,” the alpha spat at me as he turned and shuffled to the bar.

Axel and Tripp watched him walk away for several seconds before turning to me.

“You ok?” Axel asked, his fury having turned to concern.

I forced a smile and nodded. “I am now. Thank you.”

Tripp grabbed one of the empty chairs and took a seat. “We’ll stay with you for a few minutes to make it look legit. Then we’ll escort you to your car, or the bus stop, or whatever… if you want.”

Axel hesitated a few seconds, then took the other empty chair. “You sure you’re ok?”

My smile was more genuine that time. “Yeah.” I paused. “Sorry for roping you two into it, though. He kept pushing, so I panicked and told him I was meeting someone.”

“Are you?” Tripp asked. “I don’t want to make things awkward.”

My face heated. There was no way I could tell them that I was there to watch them. “No… but…” I scrambled. “I’d like to stay for a bit… if you don’t mind drinking with me.”

Tripp grinned. “Are we allowed to flirt?”

Axel elbowed him. “Not the time, Slip.”

Tripp snorted. “Always the time, Asshole.”

I chuckled. Maybe things could work with the three of us, after all.

My cock perked up at the thought of both of them being with me, and I scooted closer to the table in an attempt to hide it.

“What y’all drinkin’?” asked a server.

We all ordered beers, then Tripp leaned in—making me choke back a moan of desire as I smelled him. “So,” he asked, “what do you do that you’re shipping several packages every day?”

I rubbed the back of my neck. “I’m a digital artist. My style is cute and cartoony, and I’ve developed a following over the years. A few years ago, I was able to transition to self-employed as I started selling things with my art. Plenty of stickers, but sticky pads, notebooks, calendars, and other things like that are also big sellers.”

Axel laughed. “So that’s why most of the boxes are on the smaller side.”

I nodded.

“That’s cool that you can sell your art like that,” Tripp said.

I smiled. “I love it. When I first started doing printed products, I thought that the physical side of the business would get in the way of my art. Then I learned there’s a thrill to holding it in my hands—knowing that somebody wanted a piece of my creativity enough to buy it for themselves. I’m even planning to look into places that can do small runs of stretched canvas for a few of my more popular pieces. I’m thinking little four-by-four or similar-sized that will be inexpensive and allow people to make their own collages.”

“Don’t those have to be specially packaged?” Axel asked. “I trained on a gallery route, and those shipping boxes had to be built to protect the work.”

“I think…” I replied, “special boxing is for original works. One-of-a-kind, where if it’s damaged, there’s no replacing it. I’ll be selling prints, so good padding should be enough since I’ll be able to replace damaged ones.”

“Makes sense,” Tripp stated. Then he turned to Axel. “I didn’t know you trained on the gallery route.”

Axel snorted. “Why would you? That was before we met.”

“I just think it’s cool,” Tripp replied. “I trained downtown… where people thought the ‘delivery parking’ signs were just a suggestion, and too many times we had to resort to double parking to do the job.”

“That’s a problem everywhere,” Axel huffed.

I set my elbow on the table and rested my chin on my palm as I watched my alphas talk. Part of me was already imagining nights of long conversations.

“What’s that smile for?” Tripp teased, turning to me.

I sat up. “Oh… uh… just wondering why you two chose to work as delivery drivers.”

Tripp tilted his head to the side and studied me for a few seconds. Then he laughed. “I’m not exactly the smartest guy. I didn’t struggle in school, but I didn’t do great either. College seemed like a stretch, and I was kind of done with it all anyway. None of the trades seemed appealing, and I didn’t want to do retail or restaurant work. I needed to work, though. So I started in the warehouse right after high school, saw that a lot of the drivers tended to have stable jobs, and managed to get promoted to driver not long after I turned twenty-one. Been doing it ever since.”

“How long has it been?” I asked, trying to get a better idea of his age.

Tripp hummed. “About eight years.” He then grinned and leaned in. “Which makes me twenty-nine. And how old are you?”

“Busted!” Axel burst into laughter as heat crawled up my face.

“Thirty-one,” I muttered.

“Thirty-two,” Axel stated. “Before you ask.”

I pinched my nose, trying to regain my composure, then righted my glasses again. “And you? What made you want to do deliveries?”

Axel shrugged. “My parents are working class. They always kept food on the table, and we had a few nice things. They tried to take us on a road trip every year or so. But it was always clear that I would have to pay my own way for college. When I was younger, I thought it would be the way out. Then my older sister went. I watched her take out loans, despite several scholarships. She went to a state school and graduated on time. But she still had a lot of debt and struggled to find a job that paid enough.”

He shook his head. “I didn’t want that. So I started working out of high school, and I took some community college classes just in case I changed my mind. But… like Tripp, I saw a fairly stable job with decent pay. I applied and got hired as a driver at twenty-two.”

“Do you guys like it?”

Tripp laughed. “It’s a job. There’s good and bad. The pay is ok, and I don’t have to sit in a cubicle all day. I like driving, which helps.”

Axel nodded. “I’ve been doing it for a decade, so I must not hate it.”

I chuckled. “Makes sense.”

“So what do you do, besides make art?” Tripp asked.

I smiled and pushed up my glasses. “I like video games and cheesy old sci-fi movies.”

One of Axel’s eyebrows rose. “What kind of games?”

“Usually RPGs and cozy games. I have a hard time with shooters.”

“Have you played Silverscribe ?”

“The wait for the next chapter is killing me!”

Axel nodded. “Same, but I’d rather they take their time and do it right. I get tired of companies rushing out buggy updates.”

“That’s true,” I sighed.

“At least they get them out quick,” Tripp added. “I’ve played games that take a year or more between chapters.”

Both Axel and I turned.

“You play it too?” Axel asked.

Tripp laughed. “It’s one of the best games of the year! Of course I’m playing.”

I grinned as my alphas started discussing some of their favorite game strategies.

What had started as a covert operation to learn more about them had turned into an actual opportunity to ask directly.

My only regret was wearing a scent blocker.