Page 5 of I Dated a Holiday Hero (Blind Date Corporation #19)

“Seriously. I have made the spirit of the holidays presents for the last decade. I donated so many toys to the Uraddan kids so they could learn to play with them.” She sighed.

“I am also done with not being remembered. I don’t like it, and the need for it has been blown out of the water.

So, from now on, people will remember me. ”

That caused a flurry of questions, but her mom held up some chopsticks, and Hever went to the family dining room to have dinner with her mom.

Auntie Salmet joined them, and slowly, the table filled with the family that had come to her rescue.

Uncle Iron was piling food on his plate. “You know, you are going to have to explain that last comment.”

“Oh, it’s related to the omega thing. I can make memories of me fade, and when Mom and I were going from embassy to embassy, it seemed sensible to blur the edges of what I was and where I had come from.

Then, one of my cousins told me that I was picked up like a stray puppy and not a real cousin at all, and that was when I started doing it with family.

Everyone remembered that Mom had a daughter, but the details were always blurry when I wasn’t there. ”

She beat Remark to an egg roll and smirked as she reeled it in. “Remember defeat, defender-boy.”

The table burst into laughter, and she kept eating as a battle to get the food commenced without a bit being wasted.

When someone beat Hever to a dumpling, she let herself tear up and sniffle. She snagged the dumpling from the chopsticks and had it in her mouth. “Sucker. This is why I don’t use my powers for evil. There just isn’t a challenge.”

Khytten laughed and said, “You are a lot livelier today.”

“I got to be my scaled self twice today. It returns me to health.”

“Right, so what are these wings you mentioned?”

“I had soft bat-like wings on my back, and they cut them loose, pinned them in a box, and watched them try to flap free.” She sighed. “I could hear them calling to me, and it is still there. I really want them back.”

Zera said, “ They were moving in the box? ”

“I have seen the scans. I am descended from Nelith and Tirra’s dad. I have luck and god knows what else with a lot of regeneration available, when I use it. I wasn’t going to do it in front of my kidnappers.”

“And the poisoning?”

“I didn’t notice it. Except for my pinkie toe.”

Another wave of delivery was placed on the table, and she had to explain the constant break in her foot, which made the defenders in the family describe small issues they had ignored that had nearly cost them a mission.

Hever looked at her mom’s hand on her own and squeezed it. This is what Veradil had always wanted for both of them: to be accepted as family. It just took getting kidnapped to accomplish that end.

When Keera was let through security, she drove up with her truck and the presents. Hever went outside and hugged her friend. “Wow. Was there any trouble?”

“No. I got the door back on and some plywood from your garage, sealing it. I also have a list of contractors if you want them. They work on weekends.”

“How bad was it?”

“You need to reframe some of the needlepoints in the entryway, but it looks like you caught most of the blast. I got some of the blood out of the entryway and scorched the rest in case they came back for samples.”

Hever blinked. “Thanks. How did you know to do that?”

Keera looked at her with a knowing expression. “This isn’t my first time hiding traces of you.”

Hever stared and grinned. “You look better without a tail.”

“Aw, I thought it had a certain aquatic charm.”

They hugged.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I wasn’t positive until I caught your scent and smelled your blood. Until then, you were just a coworker. Now, you are my cell-buddy.”

They hugged and laughed.

Her mother arrived. “Is this your friend, Hever?”

“Yes, Mom. You met her once. She was pushing me in a boat.”

Keera waved. “Hello, ma’am. I had a mermaid tail.”

“I thought you were Hyreno.”

“They don’t have tails, ma’am.” Keera grinned.

“You were raised in Aksalla?”

“Yes, ma’am. They fostered to adopt, and then I got a new brother, so they were even happier I was there.” She smiled. “I even got Aksallan citizenship due to scholastic excellence.”

The prefect came out and looked at Keera. “Keera Oranson?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“You are working for Z-Corp?”

“Yes, ma’am. In analytics.”

“What do you do?”

“Find out how much it will cost to make Hever’s designs as prototypes and as mass production.” Keera smiled. “We work out both and then head to marketing.”

Hever laughed. “And then Hera tells us that they are unsuitable for the company path but very cute. She likes the cars, the weapons, and the body armour, but for that, we have to get Litha in textiles to cooperate, and she’s working from home a lot.”

“But I get the numbers, and then we head back to marketing again.” Keera grinned. “It’s fun.” She waved her hand. “I also do work for biomechanics and other departments that want to make something commercial.”

Veradil looked at her in surprise. “Well, it looks like you two work well together. Are you listed with the BDC as well?”

Keera coughed. “Not that I am telling in mixed company.”

“So, that is a huge yes.”

“I have very different requirements from Hever.” Keera shrugged. “She needs what she needs, and I need what I need. Don’t worry. My parents are well aware of the situation.”

Hever said, “You don’t need to tell her that.”

“She’s learning new things about you today. I do need to tell her. She needs to understand more than she has paid attention to before. That includes being an escort.” Keera grinned. “Mom’s a therapist. No shame in our game.”

Hever hugged her again and got a soft and caring hug in return. This woman was an excellent hugger.

“We just had dinner. Did you want to come in? I can make you something.”

Keera laughed. “No. I will head home for dinner. Mom is keeping some pot roast for me. Can we unload all the stuff?”

The men stepped into action, and the truck was unloaded in under a minute.

Keera got a shopping bag from inside the truck.

“This was all the smaller stuff. Some breakable and some not. I wanted to make sure it was in your hands. I will send you the images and videos when I get home, but you may want to go shopping in the meantime. A lot of your clothing is trashed.”

“Of course.”

“Yeah, the door opened, and raccoons moved in. They are fast little fuckers.” She grinned and got behind the wheel, buckling in. “I am off to dinner.”

Hever watched her slowly drive around and then back out through the gates. “Right. So, what was salvaged?”

Her mother put an arm around her. “Let’s go have a look.”

They headed into the house, and Hever smiled. Crap day or not, she was home.

* * * *

K rix contacted Zera . “Where is she?”

“ Her account has been suspended until we confirm her situation. We have to run some more scans to make sure she’s stable. ”

He scowled. “She was stable with me. It was a very pleasant interaction.”

“ Yeah, she mentioned that as well. It was fine, but I am trying to get the ladies more than fine, so they want to do it again. With her identity being exposed, her family may not want her to resume her position as an escort. ”

Krix froze. “What? Why not?”

“ How would you feel if your sibling were an escort? ”

He paused. “I see.”

Zera sighed. “ There will eventually be another omega who will take you as a patron. Don’t worry about it. You just need patience.”

Krix frowned. “If I send her something, can you get it to her?”

Zera sighed. “ That I can do .”

“I will send it to her drop box later today.” Krix knew the rules. Despite the fact that he knew who she was, he didn’t have the right to go to her home and demand affection.

He looked at the ornament with the tiny woman in silver with black hair and black wings sprouting from her back.

He smiled and set it into a protective case and wrapped it with a ribbon.

He knew he wasn’t the best lover, but he learned every time they were together.

She refused to let her needs rise to the surface of her mind, so he couldn’t guess what she wanted.

He tried and eventually brought her pleasure, but he knew that it wasn’t with any kind of grace or speed.

She always got frustrated first, and then the clues began.

Krix walked out of the defender headquarters. “I have to run an errand. I have my com on in case of emergency.”

Sgoth nodded. “Got it.”

He left the headquarters and flew over to Z-Corp. He took the addressed package and left it at the security office. It would be run through scan after scan until it ended up in Hever’s possession.

As he flew back, he tried to overlap the woman he knew with the scaled little girl with wide blue eyes.

She had been introduced as the ambassador’s daughter, and some of the other girls had been mean to her because of the scales.

He couldn’t stop the girls from being mean, but he asked his older sister to talk to their sisters to prevent them from being cruel.

It worked, but the ambassador moved on six months later and took her little girl with her.

He was ten and wasn’t an alpha yet, but her shuttered eyes made him sad.

He had heard her mention wings, so he decided to find them. He knew just who to contact.

Wonder was a local alpha who kept to himself, but his mind was a net that could wrap around the world. He could probably find them if they still existed. It looked like Krix had a job for after his shift.

When he got back to the headquarters, Sgoth smiled. “Complete your assignment?”

“I was just bringing a present to an escort I have been seeing.” He ran a hand through his hair. “Things have gotten complicated.”

“Aw, are you thinking about making her a wife? I did it, and I regret nothing.”

“We are a long way away from that. I am still trying to get another date. I have been leaning on my activation with her, and she is close-minded.”

Sgoth frowned, and then his eyes opened. “Oh, shit. You are waiting for feedback, and she cools off by the time you make your next move.”

“Yes. So, I get what I need, but it isn’t really a desirable repeat for her.”

Sgoth nodded. “Come with me. You are going to watch some biology videos.”

“I am your elder.”

“Right, but I knew who I wanted when I was a teenager and just had to wait until I got authorization from family to jump her. I studied... for her. I wanted her to think of me with a silly smile on her face. And she does as long as I don’t kiss with the tentacles.

Then she punches me and gags a little.” He grinned.

Krix frowned. “I didn’t get the alpha classes. I was a slow developer.”

“This works for alpha or not.”

They went into a boardroom. Sgoth got a video and handed him earpieces. “You really don’t want the rest of the team listening in.”

Krix nodded and started watching the video.

He blinked in surprise at a few mentions, and he continued through to the end of the tutorial.

He exhaled and was still frowning when he put the learning unit away and closed and dismissed the file, so it wasn’t the first thing to pop up when someone opened the unit.

He groaned. He had fucked up royally. He had been looking for psychic feedback when he should just have been watching for biological signals. She had been giving him all the direction he needed; he had just been looking for what she wanted.

Sgoth looked at his face and clapped him on the shoulder. “Don’t overthink it. Just think of it as a fun fight. When she moves, you move.”

“If she accepts a date with me again. I have to wait for her to be reclassified. She got blown up last night.”

“Wait. Hever was your escort?”

“Yes. Why?”

“Everybody knows about her. Half the off-duty defenders went out to get her back. She’s related to the prefect, for pity’s sake.”

“Yeah, well, she’s an omega and has requirements.”

“Needs, Krix. We all have them.”

He sighed. “I know what she needs, but getting it for her will be difficult. It’s something not included in a video.”

“Well, you are off shift. I wish you luck. Are you still on call?”

“No. I have a few days off.”

“Right, well, give yourself time to absorb what you learned, maybe read a few romance novels but not the kind with creepy stalkers. These ladies have had enough of that. They can get stalked just by walking into the wrong office at Z-Corp.”

“Right.” Krix checked himself out of duty and left the building. He headed to the nearest coffee shop and sent a message to Wonder. Now he had to wait.

An hour later, he was on his third latte when he got a response. He nodded and left the building, taking off and heading for Wonder’s workshop. It seemed that the mysterious active was willing to help.