Page 3 of Our Haunted Omegas (Moonscale Heirs Duet #1)

I let him ramble as Cobalt dropped my hand and shooed me off in the opposite direction of him.

He headed toward the loading docks while I headed deeper into the belly of the store.

I was Cobalt’s backup plan. We both knew that if the fruit hadn’t been stocked already his jaunt out to the loading dock was all that would be needed.

It’s not like the employees enjoyed stocking fruit.

“You don’t know that,” Teal teased me. “A job is a job and stocking shelves with food is an important job.”

Okay. He was being serious again. He was always serious these days. Not that I blamed him. He’d found something serious to be passionate about.

“I’m back here!” Someone snapped.

“Are you yelling at me?” I called back.

“Did you just toss a box of sponges back here? If you did, then, yes, I’m talking to you!” he snapped again. “If not, I’m talking to Missy, the Queen of Not Watching What the Hell She’s Doing!”

“Fuck you, Ambry! The sponges go back there! I put them back there! Saved you a walk, didn’t I?

” a woman snapped back as I wound my way through the shelves trying to find them.

I smelled the wolves before they ever came into sight, and I stopped in my tracks.

I grabbed ahold of one of the light blue shelves and shook with the need to rip it down or climb up over it.

I breathed in deep trying to settle down my dragon.

I reached out for Teal and Cobalt at the same time.

They had to know – needed to know what was going on.

Either the angry sponge man or woman were my mate.

My attraction never discriminated based on gender or parts or whatever else folks were creating labels out of these days.

“AGAIN!” my dragon roared inside my thoughts.

He wasn’t about to give up breathing in the scent of his furry mate.

I gave in and drew in another deep breath before he forced my hand on the shelf issue.

The guy. It was the guy. The shewolf’s scent was there but it wasn’t her.

It was him. The angry wolf. The wolf who didn’t want to be clocked with a box of sponges again.

Wait! I didn’t want her to clock him with sponges either!

“INDI!” Cobalt’s voice rang out from nearby.

“No yelling in the store!” The sponge man called out.

“I’LL YELL WHERE I WANT TO!” Cobalt roared and both employees rounded the corner wearing khakis, black shirts, and blue knee length aprons.

Their shoes were white, and both had their hair pulled up into buns.

The woman said something, but I didn’t care.

Usually, I wasn’t rude. Usually, I didn’t discount the so-called fairer sex because they were vicious, but I didn’t care right then.

She wasn’t him. She wasn’t mine. Missy could ramble on all she wanted to but my ears were closed.

“No, you won’t!” Missy snapped at Cobalt. “I don’t care what royal butt crack you crawled out of---” The sponge man tapped her on the arm with the back of his hand.

“I’m seeing double and smelling ---” the sponge man said.

“I don’t care if they’re related to Clarence or not!” Missy rolled her eyes. “If they really are Medwin would’ve taught them better than to come into someone’s store and yell like their balls have been set on fire.”

“This isn’t a usual circumstance,” Cobalt said.

“I know. I know. You want the coconuts and limes. We’ll sell them to you. We will but you don’t have to yell,” she sighed.

“Missy, which one of them is it?” he asked her.

“Uh…. I think they’re both related to them,” she sighed. “I mean, they look identical! Hey! Are one of you guys Teal? Because Teal can yell his bloody head off any where he damn well pleases and---”

“He’s our brother,” Cobalt said because for the first time in my life all my words were lodged in the back of my throat.

“Me,” I said, answering my mate’s question from a second ago. It was the only word I found that would cross over my lips. Cobalt patted between my shoulders, and I took a step forward, breathing in my mate’s scent again.

“You what?” Missy asked still oblivious.

“Me,” I said again.

“You,” the sponge man said.

“Huh?” Missy grunted.

“They’re responding,” Cobalt said, flashing her the same sort of grin that he set on Crilus not so long ago.

“Don’t smile at me like that. My girlfriend could kick your ass,” Missy said, crossing her arms and narrowing her eyes at my brother.

“That’s sort of hot,” Cobalt teased.

“She is very beautiful,” Missy nodded, arms still crossed.

I left them to banter, knowing Cobalt would cut his flirting crap now that he knew the shewolf was a lesbian. Despite his reputation and the leaked dick picks, he wasn’t a creep. We were always together. So, if he was a creep, I’d be the first to know about it.

I stepped forward and almost melted to my knees. He smelled so good – delicious, perfect, and a bit annoyed.

“Still annoyed about the sponges?” I asked him.

“That too,” he narrowed his eyes on me.

“At me?” I pointed to myself, confused.

“It’s complicated. You’re not going to like this.”

“Like what?” I asked him as he turned to walk back behind the shelves.

He took a deep breath and picked up a box. He popped it open and started stocking the three packs of sponges onto the shelves. I picked up the next box and started to help, figuring the sooner he finished up his work the sooner we could get out of here and really talk.

“You don’t have to do that,” he said.

“I know. I don’t have to do anything.”

“How do you like doing nothing?” he asked.

“I didn’t say I did nothing. I said I didn’t have to do anything. Freewill and all that.”

“You’re related to Clarence and them, right?” he asked, opening the next box of sponges. He must’ve worked at the store for a while because he was faster than me at stocking.

“Yeah. He’s my grandpa,” I nodded.

“Can I ask you a question then?”

“You can ask me anything.”

“Why is the whole unity celebration in summer if the war ended in the winter?”

“Because the winter has enough holidays,” I shrugged. “That’s what was told to us anyway. I think it’s just an easier time for some communities to celebrate. Before you said I wasn’t going to like this. What is this?”

“I have a roommate.”

“I have Teal and Cobalt, and we live behind our grandparents.”

“Teal and Cobalt,” he nodded. “You’re one of those heir triplets, huh?”

“You say it like you stepped in horseshit,” I laughed. “Did my grandparents do something to you? I know it wasn’t my parents. They don’t come over here often enough to bother anyone. Wait! Have you fucked with Cobalt? No, I’d have known, right?”

He laughed and took the half-empty box of sponges from me and started to shelve them.

“I was doing that,” I groaned, stepping closer to him. “How do you keep doing it so fast? Why aren’t you stumbling over your thoughts?”

“Because I like having our apartment and I’m rather fond of food I don’t have to hunt,” he said, the laughter fading from his voice. “I hope you don’t expect me to become some house omega. If you want to pay for someone to have to never leave the house again you can do that for Odie.”

“Who’s Odie?” I asked. “Wait! Do you already have a boyfriend? I’m trying to figure out what’s complicated.

My being an heir isn’t complicated. My granddad will live forever and then my dad’s in line.

It’s not complicated. I won’t make you follow any stupid leading family rules.

If I can’t shut them up, I’ll call my carrier and he’s---”

He stopped stocking the shelf and rubbed the bridge of his nose. My heart sank into my stomach. I wasn’t sure what I said wrong, but something was.

“I’m not moving out of my apartment and I’m not leaving Odie. No, he’s not my boyfriend.”

“Is he your dog or something?” I asked gently. “I like pets.”

He sighed and picked up the next box.

“You can’t be mad at me for guessing when you’re not giving me anything to go on,” I sighed back at him and started opening the boxes still on the floor because I had to do something to make his job easier.

“Have you ever had a job in your life?” he asked.

“Yeah. A few. A lot of internships too,” I shrugged.

“I went to university for food management. That’s from seed to table.

I grew up working alongside my parents. My carrier is an ag engineer.

I may not know how to stock a grocery store, but I know how to get the food here and to the tables of people who want to eat it. ”

“But you’ve never had to work for---”

“Excuse you,” I laughed. “I farmed. Every summer as a teenager we worked half the summer in the growing process of food for Heartville. I have worked for my food. Sure, I’ve never paid rent. I’ll give you that but I know what work is.”

“What’s your current job?”

“I’m not getting paid for anything right now,” I shrugged. “You don’t have to work if you don’t want to either.”

“Someone has to. Like I said, I’m keeping my apartment. I’m keeping Odie.”

“Who is Odie?”

“You’ll meet him. No, he’s not my boyfriend. No, we’ve never been intimate. We did share a boyfriend,” he said and set down an empty box before meeting my gaze.

“Are you saying you want me to be his mate too?” I arched a brow.

“If that’s what he wants. It’s complicated.”

“And that doesn’t bother you?” I asked him, leaning one hand on the shelf.

“No, it doesn’t,” I shook my head. “We share everything. Like I said it’s complicated. I don’t expect you to get it.”

I laughed and fought off the urge to steal a kiss. He was adorable when he thought his life was so complicated and unusual that no one would ever understand him. Give him a paint brush and call him a moody misunderstood artist.

“It’s not funny. This isn’t a joke,” he stood akimbo.

“I know but you missed the part when I said I had a Cobalt and a Teal.”

“And you’ve shared a boyfriend before?” he asked.

“Shared, swapped. Not always boyfriends. Sometimes it was girlfriends. One time we had this really confusing pregnancy scare because if she were pregnant, it could’ve been any of us.

We all joked about how we wouldn’t tell whose baby it was because then if someone found out which of us cracked first the baby was protected no matter what.

Anyway, her period came two days later, and she wasn’t pregnant. Just stressed out and exhausted.”

“Do you expect me to sleep with them?” he asked, his voice too flat for me to discern what his thoughts were on that.

“No,” I shook my head. “You have to put up with them being around, though. They’re not going anywhere. Though, I guess, if you wanted poly, I’d prefer if it were one of them. Someone else we’d have to talk about because I am a dragon and ---”

“Shush,” he rolled his eyes at me. “Yeah. You’re a dragon. You could eat someone who crossed your boundaries, but everyone has boundaries. Believe me, I’m not going out hunting for strange. Though, same. If you want someone else you have Odie if he wants you.”

“Do you think anyone else has ever had this conversation before?” I leaned in close to ask him.

“Probably not. I hope not,” he sighed. “Seriously, I have to finish work.”

“Cobalt! Come unpack these sponges!” I shouted.

“STOP YELLING IN THE STORE!” Missy shouted back.

“Don’t mind her. She’s the nightshift manager and thinks she’s my dad. Not because she isn’t a girl. She is. My dad owns the store,” he said, picking up more sponges.

“How many sponges do Londoners buy?” I laughed.

“They’re compostable. So it doesn’t really matter,” he shrugged. “He doesn’t have to help either.”

“Yes, he does. If this were the other way around…” I stopped before I said anything too dirty.

“I’m here. Sheesh. Teal is coming too. He’s going to haul the limes and coconuts over to Crilus since it doesn’t look like we’re going back tonight,” Cobalt rolled his eyes as he picked up a box.

“Pissed off?”

“Who? Teal? No. You know him. He’s happy to haul his fruit around,” Cobalt shrugged.

“You,” I said.

“No,” he shook his head. “This is a good sign, right? Like if he’s here mine and Teal’s must be just around the corner.”

I didn’t mention Odie because I didn’t want to get anyone’s hopes up. Just because we’d have preferred that all our mates be connected didn’t mean we were going to get our way. The universe didn’t play favorites most of the time.

“Though, I always thought Teal would find his mate first,” Cobalt said as we worked.

“Me too, honestly.”

“Do you think he’s going to be mad that he didn’t?” I asked.

“You know I can hear you,” he cut into our conversation over our link. “And why would I be mad? I know Ambry and Odie from making deliveries. Good wolves.”

“Ambry,” I said the name aloud and mate twisted to look at me.

“Teal told him,” Cobalt filled in the blank. “We have a triplet link. You should know that and that if you need anything and for whatever reason Indi isn’t around Teal and me will take care of it. We’re sort of a package deal.”

Usually, I’d have accused Cobalt of flirting, but his tone was all off. He was too sincere. He bumped me with his shoulder in mock offense at the thought he’d ever flirt with my true-mate.

“Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind. Though, one day you might regret that offer,” Ambry chuckled.