Page 2 of Alpha & Omega

“Earth to Alpha,” Pippin said, waving a hand at me.

“Huh?”

He snorted a laugh. “And people sayIspace out. You were staring at Ajax and Blaze being all lovey-dovey, so I was asking how you’re doing in the love department. We’ve been talking about you, especially since Stix has found his forever love, I found mine, and now Ajax has his. When is it going to be your turn?”

“Ugh. Who knows? I’m just too busy with this place, Pip. Owning your own business takes way too many hours to find the time not only to find someone, but to maintain something healthy and loving.”

“You could hire more staff or even a manager so you can take a break.”

Don’t I wish, I thought. But I wasn’t about to burden Pippin with my financial woes. It would only stress him out, and he stressed out way too easily. It didn’t take much to send Pippin down into a world of anxiety and panic.

“I guess,” I said out loud.

“What about just finding someone to fuck?” Ajax chimed in, overhearing our conversation.

“I have,” I insisted.

“When?”

I had to think back…wayback. “Uhm…”

Ajax narrowed his dark brown eyes, leaning his tall body over the counter. “Uhm? So it’s been so long you can’t even remember?”

I simply shrugged. “I’ve been busy.”

“So you keep saying. You’re always fucking busy, dude,” Stix said, walking up to the bar with Stone right on his heels, always at his side, who wrapped his arms around Stix from behind, protectively and obsessively, and kissed his bleached head of hair.

Always being surrounded by couples was a constant reminder of what Ididn’t have. I sighed and tossed my arms in the air as the frustration swelled. They meant well, but I wanted to be left alone about what I didn’t have. “I can’t pull time out of my ass, guys. It takes a lot to run your own business. The competition is too fierce and I need to make sure I succeed, which in turn keepsyouall in work. Not to mention the fucking new bar and restaurant right next door, taking my customers. Baltimore is getting better economically, but until it improves more, it’s always going to be tight.”

Stix rolled his dark brown eyes. “See, this is what happens when a person doesn’t let off steam. You get all grumpy.”

I pinched my nose and groaned. Stix was the nosiest out of all of them.

“Stix is right, Alpha. I know this from experience,” Blaze chimed in unhelpfully, leaning against Ajax, who had his thick arm wrapped around Blaze’s narrow shoulders.

“Jesus. What would you have me do?” I dried my hands, stepped out from behind the bar with the money bag in my grip, and headed toward my office to grab my shit before heading up to my apartment as they all followed me.

Jesus. They weren’t going to let this go, were they?

“How about a dating app?” Stix suggested. “They’ve got those ones where you can find someone to hook up with.”

I sighed, and then groaned, trying not to get annoyed with his good intentions. “I’m well aware of dating apps and how they work, Stix. I wasn’t born in the dark ages.”

“Then why don’t you use one?”

“Again… time?”

Ajax leaned in the doorway to my office. “You realize we can cover for you if you want to take a night off to fucking date, dude? The place will still be standing. Not to mention you live right upstairs, so it’s not like you can’t get here quickly during an emergency.”

That was the problem. There always seemed to be some sort of emergency whenever I wasn’t around.

Nacho stepped into the office and sat down in the chair across from my desk, his dark curls, which needed cutting, bounced. “Yep, you don’t have to be a control freak all the time. We know how you are.”

“Jesus. Why the sudden push into me dating? Is this some fucking love intervention? Why does it even matter?” I asked, sitting heavily in my chair across from Nacho, feeling my shoulders tense.

“Duh, because we care about you,” Stix explained.

I swiveled in my chair, opened the safe, and shoved the money inside before locking it up. “Look, I appreciate that you all care, but you do realize people are allowed to be single, right?”

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