Page 2 of Omega Dragon Manny (Shifters For Hire #3)

CLARK

I was always gonna have a family…eventually. That was the plan, anyway. I figured I'd get around to it somewhere in my forties, maybe early fifties if I made partner and needed some more career time. At some point, the need to get domesticated would hit me. That was what I’d heard my whole life.

It was what alphas were meant to do. Be wild. Play the field. Dominate.

And, eventually, when all that was out of my system, I was supposed to meet a nice omega and start a family.

Well, that was happening, minus the omega.

When a social worker showed up on my doorstep with three infants under three months old, everything changed. My whole life was upended, and now I was forty-three hours into fatherhood and not sure any of us would survive.

Until that moment, the most experience I’d had with babies was holding a buddy’s kid for a photo and making sure not to drop it. But that was before the triplets. My triplets, now.

Ever since I was informed that a distant cousin passed and named me as the guardian of his new babies, I’d barely gotten any sleep and my brain was foggy.

I’d never even met my cousin who left his precious babies in my custody, but the lawyer was very clear about the terms. There was no one else to take them. It was either my home or foster care.

My choice.

So now I was a dad. Times three.

As soon as I figured out how to get three babies to sleep at the same time, I needed to get some kind of nursery set-up in my guest bedroom.

Since I’d never hosted anyone overnight, I didn’t need to keep it ready for visitors.

The three tiny but permanent visitors staring at me from the middle of my bed were enough to keep any romantic guests far away.

That first night was fine. Almost easy. They were cute, and the smallest one, the girl, had this frown that reminded me of a bulldog puppy.

The boys were louder, but they slept well when they were curled up on my chest. Of course, they woke up every two hours for a bottle, but I’d survived rougher nights than that.

At least for a weekend.

But that was when I was feeling young and energetic.

I no longer felt any of that. I wasn’t exactly old, but I was tired by nine most nights, and the sleep deprivation was starting to catch up with me.

By the end of the third night, I was operating at a level of exhaustion that felt dangerous.

If there were an emergency, I wasn’t sure I could function well enough to handle it.

When the trash can was overflowing with diapers, and I couldn’t actually remember changing any of them, I knew something had to change.

I’d tried every song on Spotify’s “Lullabies for Modern Dads” playlist, but they only responded to white noise.

The sound of the blender or my constant groans were interesting for a while, but not long enough.

And I learned quickly that what they definitely didn’t respond to were my attempts at reason. I’d negotiated multi-million-dollar deals with less screaming and tears…mostly mine.

As I watched the sun come up on day four through grainy eyes and a pounding headache, I caved.

I called in the big guns. The one service I was confident could handle a litter of young better than any mere human could, at least according to my business partner, Leon.

Shifters for Hire was his go-to for his own brood, and that man was as fertile as a rabbit.

They were my best chance at surviving the week, and I really hoped they had someone great ready to jump in…today, if possible.

Part of me expected judgment and a lecture about how someone as incompetent as myself could agree to take on precious babies.

But the man who answered acted like my request was completely normal.

Maybe it was. “How many?” He spoke to me as if I were placing a takeout order, and that was oddly comforting.

“Three.” I sucked in a breath and bounced Betsy on my knee. “Is there a volume discount for triplets?” It was a joke but not really.

He chuckled, and I could hear typing in the background. “We don’t charge by the head, so you’re fine. Do you have a preference for species? Male or female?”

Preference? How about someone with three arms and zero sleep requirements.

Leon swore by his lion nanny. She’d raised ten of her own and at least a dozen for families like his.

But I wasn’t picky. I just needed someone who wasn’t going to judge me for the state of my laundry or my total lack of baby-proofing skills. “Not really. What would you recommend?”

“If you’re not in a rush, we’ve got just about everything. Wolves are good for discipline, rabbits are gentle. Bears are excellent cuddlers. Dragons are smart and great tutors.”

“I am in a rush and all those traits sound great. Can you just send me someone…fast? I’ll take anyone who is good with newborns…” And overwhelmed alphas.

“We generally require vetting and in-home visits before we can place anyone in your home full-time. Let me talk to my boss and see what we can do. Look for an email with next steps.”

For the next ten minutes, I checked and re-checked my email, waiting for good news. The babies were all asleep for the first time in days, and I wanted nothing more than to join them, but the fear of sleeping through an important update about my childcare options kept me wide awake.

I picked up the living room, shoving burp cloths into a laundry basket and cramming empty formula cans into the recycling just to distract myself from checking my email.

I even shaved because stubble was one of the best ways to wake up a sleepy baby when trying to give a cheek or forehead kiss. I learned that the hard way.

I’d just put a frozen pizza in the oven when my phone dinged with a message. A dragon manny had just become available for a live-in assignment and could be at my place in an hour.

Holy dragon…this was really happening.

The triplets woke up right as the doorbell rang. Part of me worried that the first impression we were giving was of chaos, but at least that was honest. And on the plus side, I’d be able to see how this dragon handled them and me while under pressure.

I managed to get Betsy and Colby into the bouncy seats, but Rory wasn’t having it, and I kept him tucked into my arm as I opened the door. “Oh, hi there.”

A young omega looked up at me with an unreadable expression. I wasn’t sure if he was amused or afraid or just surprised to hear three varying degrees of pissed-off baby cries coming from inside my house. “Um, Mr. Robin, I presume?”

I nodded and stepped back. “You’re the dragon, right?”

“Yeah, I’m Beau Draco.” He chuckled and reached for Rory. “May I?’

I looked down at the bright red face that was scrunched up and screaming and was happy to hand him off. “Go for it.”

Beau dropped his suitcase by the door and pulled the squirming baby into his arms. Even from a few feet away, I could feel the warmth radiating from him.

Rory immediately quieted and curled against the omega’s neck as he softly hummed. I could tell it was perfect even through my sleep deprivation.

“Wow.” I stood in astonishment at how natural he moved with one baby, but there were two others that got louder when their brother quieted down. “Impressive. Can you do that two more times?”

“I can try.” Beau reached into one of the bouncers and pulled Betsy out, then carefully positioned her on the same shoulder as Rory and secured them both in that arm before reaching for Colby with his free arm.

“I didn’t mean literally.” I stepped closer, spotting him to make sure he had a secure grip on each of the babies. “I can help.”

“I’ve got em.” He carefully swayed with the three bundles, and they immediately quieted. They weren’t asleep but they were content, like he was exactly who they’d been waiting for.

I was speechless.

“Can I sit?”

Oh, shit. “Yeah, sorry.” I waved him toward the sofa. “Of course. Let me get you some pillows…and some water. A steak. Pretty much anything you want for that sorcery you just pulled.

He glanced at me with a grin. “Babies like me.”

“I can see that.” And in case he didn’t notice, alphas did too.