Page 79 of Omega's Refuge

I smiled back. Mrs. Rodwell’s energy was intimidating and I appreciated he was trying to run interference for me. I met her cool gaze. “Idon’t want drama any more than you do, Mrs. Rodwell.”

“Of course not.” Her smile was strained. “But is there some reason you wouldn’t tell Mr. Turlington about the child?”

Is that any of your business?

I decided to play nice and answer her. She was close to Rex, and I didn’t want to be at odds with her. “To be honest, Steve didn’t want kids, so part of me thinks he doesn’t need to know.”

“I see.” She pushed her hands into her coat pockets. “Well, I’m sure you’ll figure it all out.” She turned to Rex. “Would you want me to have your things moved into Mr. Smyth’s cabin, Rex?”

He hesitated. “Maybe hold off on that for now.”

I frowned, uncertain of why he was telling her that. If he was going to be my alpha, why wouldn’t we move in together?

Mrs. Rodwell seemed happy at his response. “Absolutely. It probably is best if you two get to know each other better before living together. You wouldn't want to put yourself in a situation where you accidentally lose control and claim an omega you don't really want.”

Rex scowled. “Oh, I'm claiming Tanner. I only hesitate right now about moving my stuff in because Tanner and I haven't had a chance to discuss our living situation yet. The respectfulthing to do is discuss that with Tanner before I make a decision for him.”

Mrs. Rodwell’s face twitched. “Oh, right. Well, I’ve got a bunch of phone calls to make, so I’ll leave you boys to talk.” She turned on her heel and strode toward the main house.

Once she was out of ear shot, I said, “She is not happy with this situation, is she?”

He grimaced and he put his arm around my shoulders. “So what? She doesn’t get a say.”

I smiled up at him. “She doesn’t seem to know that.”

“She’s protective of me.” He led me up the stairs and into the cabin. Once inside, he dropped his arm and went to sit at the chair near the desk. “But all I care about is what you want, Tanner. Not what she wants.”

I perched on the end of the bed. “Okay. Good.”

He clasped his hands. “So, if you’re okay with us moving in together, Mrs. Rodwell can assign us a larger cabin. If you think that’s what you want, I’ll ask for that. But if you feel the need to get to know each other better first, I’m okay with that too. There’s no pressure.”

I studied him. “You don’t care either way?” I wasn’t sure if that bothered me or not.

“I didn’t say that,” he said quietly. “I’m being respectful. This thing, it just happened and realquick too. Maybe you’re not ready to have me living with you yet.”

I frowned. “But you plan on claiming me, right?”

His eyes darkened. “Hell, yes. You know I do.”

Excitement thrilled through me. “Okay. Well, how would that work if you didn’t live with me? Do you plan on claiming me and then just going back to sleep at your own place?”

He laughed gruffly. “That’s not exactly how I pictured things with us, but I don’t want to do anything that spooks you either.”

“You think if you want to live with me, I’ll run back to Billings?”

“I don't know.” He sounded hesitant. “Maybe?”

I smirked and stood. “You must really think I’m a chicken shit.”

He watched me approach. “No. I… I don’t think that.”

“What is it then? Why don't you want to room with me?” I stopped in front of him. “Are you afraid I snore?”

He didn’t laugh like I expected. His expression was very serious as he put his hands on my hips. “I'm afraid you're going to change your mind about this whole thing any minute.”

“What do you mean?” I frowned. It hadn’t occurred to me he’d have insecurities like I did.

“I offered my protection to you when you were in the hospital, scared.” Guilt washed through his eyes. “Maybe I took advantage of you. Maybe this isn’t really what you want, but I talked you into it.”