Page 5 of The Bear, the Eagle, and their Wombat Omega (Omegas of Animals: SD #14)

Arkyn

As we left the last meeting downtown, we got into Bruno’s car. I thought we were going back to the hotel, but he casually spoke.

“One more meeting in Mission Valley. Then I swear we’ll go get something to eat.”

I glanced at the business itinerary Bruno had sent to my smart watch. “Another meeting? It’s not on the list.”

“Stuff always gets added at the last minute.”

“You said this would be a light-workload trip.”

“The first day is always the worst.”

“I hope the last meeting is short. This day has been busy. I’m starving.” I didn’t want to complain, but I hadn’t even had a glimpse of the beach yet, except distantly off our hotel balcony. And I saw flashes of the harbor while we were downtown, but we never really got near it.

“Help yourself to the leftover donuts. They’re on the back seat.”

“We bought those hours ago. They’re day-old by now. Probably crusty.”

Bruno laughed. “You’re just being picky.”

In my defense, old donuts were the worst. In the humid weather of San Diego, things got stale fast. I’d found that out when I’d secretly poked one of the leftovers between our last two meetings. I’d been hungry then. Now, I was definitely on my way to malnutrition.

The meeting lasted about an hour. My stomach was not happy. Neither was my beast.

I need to fly. Bruno promised shifting time.

“Eat first, then fly,” I mumbled as I waited for Bruno to show up by the front doors.

When he arrived, he looked put out.

“Problems?” I asked.

“No. Just a lot on the plate.”

“Anything I can help with?”

“Of course. But not until we get home. Now it’s finally time to relax.”

“Do you just want to go back to the hotel?”

Bruno shook his head. “I need to stretch a bit. My beast is restless.”

“Mine, too. He’s insisting he needs to shift. Doesn’t even care that I’m dying of hunger.”

“Hmm.” Bruno tilted his head in the way he often did when coming up with a great plan. “There’s a great private shifter place on a secret beach south of here. I know a great drive-thru sub shop. We’ll get subs and have a mini-picnic.”

Any food sounded great to me.

But I want to go straight there. I promise to catch fish to fill our belly.

“My eagle wants fish for dinner.”

“Then get the tuna melt.”

I chuckled, drowning out the internal screeing protests that we should go straight to the shifting site with no delay.

The shifter beach turned out to be a gorgeous place with a guarded gate, and fenced land and cliffs for privacy. The air was clear of fog, the restless sea churning deep blue in the late sunlight.

I saw a couple of animals farther down the beach, distant enough that I couldn’t make out what they were. In essence, we had the place to ourselves.

We found changing benches and sat together, wolfing down our sandwiches, staring at the ocean. It was hypnotizing to gaze at so much water.

Hurry. I want to fly to the horizon and back.

“My beast sure is restless,” I commented.

Bruno nodded. “Mine, too. He always gets this way in new territory. He wants to play in the surf.”

“Aren’t you supposed to wait an hour after eating before you swim?” I winked to let him know I wasn’t all that serious.

Bruno sent me a dirty look. “My bear doesn’t care. He eats while he swims. That is, if he can catch the fish. Don’t tell anyone, but he’s not that great a hunter.”

When we finished eating, we gathered our trash and I put it into a nearby canister. I turned back toward the bench to see Bruno was already half undressed. My breath hitched. Shirtless, shoeless, he was a beautiful man.

When he bent to take off his pants, I couldn’t help but absorb the image of his muscled backside and strong thighs. I didn’t get to look for long. His shift was fast. One second, a man stood in the soft hillocks of sand, and the next, a big brown bear occupied the space.

The bear’s head rocked back, watching me for a moment as I unbuttoned my shirt. Bruno’s beast was huge but elegant. Despite the bear’s large body, his agility and strength made him look like he weighed nothing as he ambled toward the shoreline.

I quickly folded my clothes and set them aside.

“Now,” I spoke softly.

Now?

“Now,” I repeated.

Took you long enough.

Suddenly, I was airborne, the wind in my feathers, my body light and free as the breeze lifted me.

My blood rushed in my veins. My chest filled up with warmth. How I loved to fly.

Bruno had just entered the shallow waves below, standing on his hind legs. My eagle circled low, letting out a friendly cry. The bear looked up and let out a roar.

Then, my eagle gathered speed, flying out over the sea. Once in a while, our eagle eye would spy a silvery flash in a cresting wave. We flew down, skimming the surface with our talons. But we always came up empty.

We made a semicircle. Far below us, Bruno splashed playfully, letting out yips of pleasure.

You should not have said no to him.

Mentally, I shot back, “I don’t need your opinion right now.”

But I’m involved, too. I love the bear.

“And if his fated mate suddenly shows up, then we’re left behind. Again.”

Sometimes, Bruno feels fated for us.

I couldn’t disagree. But sometimes wasn’t enough. Fated mates always knew. They had no doubts. They were compelled as if by magic to immediately bond, to commit. I cared about Bruno too much to stand in the way of that for him.

I didn’t reply to my eagle. On that note, he slowly soared back to shore and landed on the bench, scaring off a twittering seagull.

Bruno saw us and turned from the waves to trudge toward the bench. I shifted, shivering in the sea wind, and put on my pants.

Bruno sat beside me, a naked human again, and flipped back his wet hair. Except for my feet, I was completely dry.

Once we had our shirts on, Bruno spoke. “It’s pretty here.”

“It is.”

“That shift was nice.”

“It was.”

“Then why am I still restless?” Bruno asked.

I frowned at the sand on my bare feet. “Me, too. It’s a weird feeling. Like I’ve been running a long distance.”

“You just flew pretty far.”

“Yeah, but my eagle doesn’t get winded from that.”

“I know we’ve had a long day, but I keep thinking about that nightclub. Animals. Do you want to maybe check it out tonight?”

“I’ve been thinking about it all day, actually.”

“You want to go? You’re not too tired?”

“Yeah, I want to go.”

“Let’s do it, then.” Bruno got up, dusting off his shoes then slipping his feet into them sockless. “Let’s go back to the hotel, shower and change, and drive over there.”

“Sure thing, Boss.” I held back a grin.

Bruno sent me that sweet smile of his, the one he always had for me when I called him that.

On the way back to the car, I had a bounce in my step, happy the night was not yet over.