9. Daxton

Chapter 9

Daxton

After an amazing weekend with Oscar, it was hard to say goodbye to him and head back to work. But in order to continue the work Willy and his family in River's Edge were doing, we needed as many people on the inside as possible.

And now I was one of those people. It had started as all about me, trying to figure out who I was and how I came to be, and now? Now that didn't matter anymore. Now I had a purpose that was bigger than myself.

I was still trying to figure out my role in the big picture, but having Oscar on my side made me much more confident that we could help. We could contribute to stopping whatever it was AIDEN was doing.

Just before noon, I walked past Willy's lab and peeked in through the window. He caught my gaze, so I held up my arm and tapped my watch. When he nodded, I knew he understood what I was asking.

While it was acceptable and encouraged to be friends with our co-workers, I didn't want to draw too much attention to us. Suddenly becoming BFFs wasn't going to do either of us any favors. So instead we tried to toe the line.

A little while later, he dropped into the chair across from me in the center of the cafeteria. Hiding in plain sight. That was his philosophy and was quickly becoming mine too. It was a lot easier to hang out with him in public than trying to sneak around and worry about who might see us together and get suspicious.

"A salad?" Willy's tray held a big cheeseburger and fries piled high on a plate. "You on a diet or something?"

"Not hungry." I tried to keep a neutral face, but any time I thought about Oscar, I couldn't help but smile. "Ate a big breakfast."

He eyed me over a fry. "Is that a euphemism for something?"

I laughed, almost giddy to have someone to talk to about my mate. "Kinda, but also, I did eat a huge breakfast burrito, so I'm stuffed." I also had it with a side of cock, but that was best left out of the discussion.

He chewed on his burger and then took a drink of iced tea before responding to me. "Then why did you want to meet for lunch now? I could have waited another hour or so."

I shrugged and stabbed a tomato with my fork. "I'm just excited, I guess."

"Oh yeah?" Now Willy was interested. "Do tell…"

"I met someone. An omega." I sucked in a deep breath and schooled my features. "I think he's my mate." I didn't think it, I knew it and had been busting at the seams to tell someone.

Willy grinned and put down his burger. "If you think he is, he is. You know it when you meet him. More importantly, your friends know it. What do they think?" "Friends" was his way of referencing our beasts when we were at work. If anyone here caught wind of what we were, we'd be next on the table for the messed-up tests they were doing. We still hadn't found proof of that, but Willy's family had experienced it firsthand. It was happening.

I laughed at that. "They're very vocal that he's mine."

"Congrats, man!" He seemed genuinely happy for me, and it meant the world to me that I had someone to talk to about this stuff. About everything. "When do I get to meet him?"

"Soon, I think." I casually glanced around us to make sure no one was paying attention to our words. "He's got some skills that will help us in our project."

Willy's smile dropped, and he leaned forward, suddenly serious. "Are you sure you can trust him?"

"Very sure." I couldn't explain how I knew, but I knew. "He was in shock for a bit when I, um, when he met my friends, so it's all new to him, but he's with us."

He would never do anything that would harm me. Not on purpose. He was just as all-in as I was.

"My parents are hosting a barbeque tomorrow night at their place. Why don't you guys come? You'll be able to meet everyone."

His parents sounded amazing. His omega father was a puffin and his alpha father part fae. Neither were biologically his, which was wild since his omega dad gave birth to him. But that was the way of things when you were created in a lab. He was so lucky to have them.

I'd met a few people from the River's Edge pack already, but Willy was always talking about people I hadn't met yet. "Yeah, that's good. We'll be there."

Some coworker came and sat at the table next to ours, and we switched our conversation to a new show we were both watching. But the entire time, my mind was focused on going to River's Edge. It was a big deal and not because I was going to meet people, although that was always good. And it wasn't even because I was going to learn something about my origins, which was also always good. No, for me, the big deal was that I was going to take my mate and for the first time be a couple in front of people who would understand the wonder that was finding one's mate.

"I should've had a burger." I set down my fork. The veggies were fine, but they weren't cutting it. "I'm stealing fries." I reached for them, and he pulled the plate out of my reach.

"Or…hear me out…go buy your own."

The guys at the next table snickered at his banter. And that was when it clicked; he was making it look like our friendship was not real, just a work connection. He was so much better at this being-sneaky thing, which told me I needed to be better at it.

Because at the end of the day, it wasn't just me I needed to worry about. I had a mate, and his safety and happiness came first. Always.