Page 22 of Talk About… Rivalry

“Okay, this has the wheels turning, but I want to see the shop now.”

“Let’s go,” I said, giving him a grin. I was more than happy to show off the next space.

We tossed ideas back and forth the entire drive, but as soon as we stepped through the front doors of what would be Harvey’s Hideaway, he was off again. I’d talked about our plans and shown him pictures of ideas for long enough that he didn’t even have to ask first before he started visualizing what this place could be.

Right now, the white walls and old fixtures left over from the library that was here before me, looked nothing like what I’d always had in mind, but the building itself was perfect.

So was the location. I couldn’t pass it up.

And in just a few short months, I knew that this would be exactly what we’d always wanted—the first steps of making a life for my pack.

Maverick

“The new guy is opening up some sort of bar,” the woman whispered to her friend, both eyes darting my way. My dark sunglasses kept them from seeing me watching them, and I kept on a mask of indifference, like I wasn’t listening to every word.

“A bar?” The other woman gasped, her voice loud enough to gather attention from the nearby patrons.

I didn’t know when I walked into the diner this morning to grab a breakfast sandwich and coffee that I would be in the midst of the Rockwood Valley Rumor Mill.

“The Whitakers aren’t going to like that,” the other said, eyes casting to me again, clicking her tongue with disapproval.

At least the old biddies at the counter were on my side.

“Yeah, Rhonda over at the town office said that he closed out on that and bought some old broken-down farmhouse on the edge of town.”

The first woman clicked her tongue again. Apparently, that was her go-to disapproval sound. The other woman mimicked it before they all chuckled a little to themselves.

“Well, this town could use some good old rivalry, couldn’t it?” That comment had me standing up. They all fell into silence, but I just walked up to the counter as a waitress came back with my bag in hand.

“Here’s your coffee, Maverick,” she said with a flirty smile. “And your breakfast sandwich, just the way you like it.”

I slid her a twenty. “Keep the change,” I said, giving her a quick smile that wasn’t really a smile, but it was the best I had at the moment.

The beta blinked at me in surprise. It was the first time I’d really spoken to her. I couldn’t deny that she was pretty. She just wasn’t Sidney.

I was out the door and walking toward Whitaker Brews to get some paperwork done when I saw a black SUV pull up outside of one of the old abandoned shops—the old library, if I remembered correctly.

“This is going to be amazing,” I heard an omega man say as he stepped out of the car. He had soft brown curls and was one of those people that just exuded sunshine. The beta that climbed out of the other side was giving him an indulgent smile. They had a camaraderie, but I didn’t think they seemed like mates. There was a certain type of chemistry that they lacked.

“God, why am I analyzing these people?” I questioned my sanity. Before I knew it, I was moving across the street.

The beta was pulling a box out of the back seat. They’d clearly just come from the hardware store.

“Hey, you buy this old place?” I asked. Even though my voice was rough, the beta didn’t flinch; he just gave me a friendly smile.

“Sure did.”

“Going to be a lot of work,” I offered. Damn, it was really hard to be conversational when really I just wanted to punch him square in the face. The smug smile, the cocky attitude—all of it just made me clench my jaw.

Though, he’d been doomed from the start. I knew why he was here.

“That’s alright. I’m not scared of a little work,” he said, eyes narrowing slightly as he studied me. “The name’s Leo Valor. And you are?”

“Maverick Whitaker,” I said, watching his features closely to see if he recognized the name. The understanding there had me bracing myself, but he just nodded knowingly.

“I remember you from school. You guys own the bar across town, right?”

“Yes,” I said pointedly. “I hear you’re opening up a bar, too.”

---