Page 3 of A Home for His Omega

“I was going to take Casey with me to visit the goats,” Sam said, a slight whine in his voice.

Aunt Mia shook her head. “Nope. He wants to stay warm and dry and watch The Bold and the Beautiful with me and the pets.”

“Alright,” Sam sighed pitifully. “I’ll play with the goats all by myself.”

“You’ll live, honey,” Teague added, leaning over to kiss Sam’s cheek. “I’m scheduled at Doc Grover’s for a couple of hours and have to do a minor surgery on a schnauzer. I’ll come play with you as soon as I get finish.”

“Promise?”

Teague chuckled and whispered something in Sam’s ear, making him flush.

Henry mock gagged. “Remember the rules. No PDA at the table.”

Sam laughed. “Casey doesn’t complain.”

“Give him time.” Aunt Mia rocked the baby. “He’s too young to know any better right now.”

They all looked at Henry and it took him a moment to realize they were waiting for his answer to Sam’s previous question. It still shook him that he was part of this family now.

“Oh, yeah. I’m going to my house for a couple of hours to do some planning.”

Sam frowned. “All by yourself?”

Henry’s gaze dropped to his soup, his chest tightening with familiar anxiety. One would think he could handle a little doubt or mockery since he’d dealt with it his whole life. He’d lost count of the dismissive comments and jokes sent his way through the years – You messed up again? Do I need to use smaller words, Henny? Can’t you do anything right? Just let me do it. They all started to blend after a while.

Coming from Sam, though, it hurt far more than it should have. His friend was one of the few that really listened to Henry and tried to help instead of criticize when there was a problem.

I can decide on a floorplan without help, he told himself, taking a deep breath. I’m not stupid.

“I don’t like it,” Sam continued, stabbing a roll with his fork. “None of us should go anywhere alone until we know it’s safe.”

It took a few moments for Henry to process Sam’s meaning. “Oh, you mean because of the dead guy in the woods.”

“What else would I mean?” Sam shuddered.

In the fall, a body had been discovered in the woods behind Farm Fresh, a quaint store owned by the Wilson family. The man, Eugene Scott, had been murdered by someone after murdering his own wife. The whole thing had shaken the small town. The malicious violence wasn’t usual in Hobson Hills.

“That was months ago,” Henry said with a shrug, suddenly feeling light. Of course, Sam wouldn’t mock him like that. “It was just one murder. It’s not like there’s a serial killer running around Hobson Hills.”

“Murder isn’t common here,” Sam reminded him, looking worried. “Not like New York. Please don’t go off by yourself, Henry. Not until the sheriff finds out who killed that guy.”

“Well, I won’t be alone for long. I’m meeting someone named Tomás at the house to talk through some last minute things, and then, I’m coming right back. I plan to clean out the chicken coops and put some herbs in their nesting boxes. I read online that certain herbs help with egg production and help prevent parasites.” He also planned on painting Sophie’s name on her coop, but he didn’t think they really needed to know that.

Sam looked relieved. “Tomás is a nice guy. Definitely not a murderer.”

“Are you sure about starting the renovation now?” Teague gave Henry a soft look. “Everyone keeps saying there’ll probably be a few more storms to make mud season even worse.”

“Carter, the guy in charge, says his crew can start on the inside.” Henry smiled as he thought about his new home. “It’ll take a few months to get everything done inside. Then, they can start on the outside.”

“That house is older than me,” Aunt Mia said with a snort. “You’d do better to tear it all down and start fresh.”

“It has it charms.” Henry licked his lips and grabbed another piece of bread. “The plumbing may be shit, but it has beautiful crown molding, a gorgeous fireplace, and a sweet little hand-carved reading nook in the master bedroom.”

Aunt Mia sighed and patted Casey’s back. “I must admit, it was beautiful back when I was a little girl. Of course, that’s when people still lived there and maintained it.”

“It’ll be beautiful again.” Henry said, excited. “This week, Carter and his team are tearing out walls and working on the plumbing and electrical issues. After that, once they install central heat and air, I can move in.”

“You’re welcome to stay here as long as you like,” Sam took a bite of his soup.

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