Page 16 of Omega's Heart

P ersonnel had promptly set me up with a job in the pack’s daycare, which was a new concept to me but one that I almost instantly fell in love with. Imagine having a place dedicated to looking after your pups, teaching them words and colors and good pack behavior, someplace guaranteed so you could go back to work after your bearing time and not have to worry. It was a brilliant idea and I wondered why we’d never set up something similar back home.

It had been almost funny to watch them try to discreetly change out the rest of the list to something that suited my size better.

But only almost.

It wasn’t hard to find things I already knew how to do, especially now that most of the work on the hospital was done. Just the finishing touches left to cupboards, walls, and counters. Curious, I put my name down for that for most of my hours, and then—with some hesitation—for some time in the older daycare in that stretch of houses that ran off to the north of the enclave. That one might be a mistake, but I figured I could always come in and request a different job if I found looking after other families’ pups too hard on the heart. Denver, though, had been cheerful enough and even thanked me for signing up for the daycare.

“The pups do seem to like it when the omegas work in the daycare. I guess you guys really are natural caretakers.”

It stung a little, but she was so sincere in her gratitude that I couldn’t hold it against her.

The other thing they’d set me to doing was painting in the new hospital. Because I was tall and could reach the tops of the walls with only a short ladder to stand on. It wasn’t nearly as much fun as the pups but it kept me busy and made me feel like I was contributing to the pack, even if neither of my jobs was anything special.

It also made me realize that this wasn’t the kind of life I’d ever wanted either. Still, it was better than what I’d had to look forward to at Winter River, which made me kind of sad, but also made me glad that I’d figured this out after I’d left. I was a grown omega; I’d sleep in the den I’d made.

I had today off, which meant that by nine in the morning, I was already bored.

“Why don’t you go to the library?” Cale suggested during one of his trips back to the kitchen for coffee or water or, when Julius or I caught him, food.

“I’m not in the mood to read.” Though the library did have a surprisingly good stock of racy romance novels. Courtesy, as I understood it, of the former Alpha’s Mate, Bax. I just didn’t need a reminder today that all those perfect romantic endings would never be mine.

Cale dug around in the cupboard and pulled out the can of coffee grounds. “Have you thought about applying to the education trust to do a course or something?” He glanced over at Julius, who was down on hands and knees scrubbing the floor. Again. “You should have a look too. It’s not that bad.”

“I can’t even pass high school,” Julius said sharply and Cale sighed. That’s his story and he’s sticking to it.

I watched Julius speculatively for a moment. “What was Minnie training for before you guys ran away?”

He paused and sat back on his feet. “Just administrative stuff. Inventories and things. My parents didn’t really have the pull to get her into anything that paid better. I think they were hoping my new mate could pull strings for my two younger brothers.” He sighed and stared down at the floor. “Maybe I should have just stayed…”

Cale flicked the switch on the coffee machine and spun to lean against the counter with his arms crossed across his chest. “Would that have made Minnie happy?” he said shrewdly.

“Oh.” Julius glanced over at me, then back at Cale. “Probably not.” He flopped back onto his butt and leaned against the cupboard beside him. “You guys must think I’m dumb, huh?”

“I think you haven’t been expected to think,” Cale said dryly. “It’s a skill like any other one. Your brain muscle is flabby.”

Julius made a squeak of surprise, then clapped a hand over his mouth, but not fast enough to stop the giggle from escaping. He’d have been snapped up so fast back home. I shook my head and laughed along with him, not because Cale’s joke was so funny, but because Julius was.

Cale shook his head at the two of us. “Felix, you’re wasted on painting and puppy care. And Julius, you need something to do other than clean, or there’ll be no walls here.” He paused as if wondering if what he was about to say next was wise, then in a resigned voice said, “Why don’t you both come down to my room and we have a look and see what kinds of courses are out there that you might be interested in?”

Julius and I stared at each other for a moment. I could almost see the thoughts running through his head, because they were the same as mine. Neither of us was interested in taking courses, though of course I’d do it if Mercy Hills asked me to. But getting training for something outside an omega’s responsibilities and duties had never been a goal of mine. I guessed I was more traditional than most omegas here—they all seemed to jump at the idea of having a job and working outside the home.

My wants were more simple than that. My can haves, on the other paw, were an entirely different trail.

But Julius… All he’d ever known was that traditional future that I craved. Maybe he didn’t have enough information to make a choice here. A proper choice, where you know what all your options are. It wasn’t something that he’d do on his own though, I’d have been willing to bet. “Sounds like fun. But I have no idea where to start,” I announced. “Come on, Jules, what else are we going to do today?” I leaned over and stage-whispered, “And we get a peek inside the Cave of Caves.”

He giggled again and threw a glance Cale’s way, but Cale had obviously decided to treat us both like irresponsible teenagers and was watching us with an expression of pained tolerance.

I winked at Jules and waited.

“I suppose I can look,” Jules said uncertainly. “But—” He stopped there and bit his lower lip.

“What?” I asked. There was more here than just the anxiety.

“Just…” He hugged his knees to his chest and began to rock and I started to worry about another panic attack.

“It’s okay Jules—” Cale began, but Julius interrupted him with an agitated wave of his hand and a frustrated whine.

“No, let me talk. No one ever lets me talk.” He nearly whispered the second sentence and when I met Cale’s eyes I saw the same suddenly bloom of understanding on his face that I was certain he saw on mine.