Page 8 of Omega's Pretend Mate
I’d never seen him so disheveled or miserable-looking. His black hair was mussed, and the red tint to his grey eyes told me that he’d probably been crying. For a man who normally maintained a flawless appearance, it was disconcerting. He was normally so reserved that I couldn’t imagine what had led to this, and it made my heart break.
Gabe picked up an empty glass, raised it to his lips, then glared at it as if it had personally offended him when he got nothing out of it. He lifted it to signal for another, but I pulled his hand back down.
“I think you’ve had enough Gabe.”
“Cause I’m omega?” he accused, slurring his words.
My frown deepened. “No. Because you’re drunk and you’re going to regret it in the morning.”
“Doesn’t matter.”
“Yes it does.”
“I’m irresponsible,” he spat. “I’m giving them something to say I’m irresponsible about.”
I was confused, but knew I wasn’t going to get anything coherent out of him until he sobered up.
“Stay here Gabe” I said. “I’m going to get you some water.”
“You’re not my alpha!”
I growled. “No, but I am your friend.”
“Oh.”
“I’ll be right back.”
“Kay.”
I walked over to the bar again and got the other bartender, Beau’s, attention. “Hey there. Can we get a glass of water for my friend? He’s sloshed.”
Beau looked over and sighed. “Damn it. I told Gabe he should back off.”
“You know him?”
Beau nodded. “He lives several houses down from me. We’ve only talked a few times though.”
I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. “Look, I don’t think he should be alone tonight. Something seems off. You’re not going to call the cops if I take him with me, are you?”
Beau narrowed his eyes. “I dunno. How do you know him?”
“We work together.”
“Yeah? What do you do?”
“Gabe’s a lawyer, so am I. Same firm”
“He’s cool,” Randy said, having caught enough of the conversation to chime in. “They’ve come in together for office parties. And I’ll vouch for Christian. He’s good people.”
Beau looked between us, then nodded. “As long as Randy vouches for you.”
I dug out my wallet and handed Beau a business card. “My phone number. Feel free to give me a call in the morning to check in on Gabe.”
He accepted and pocketed the card. “I’ll be right over with some water. I agree that given his state, he shouldn’t be alone.”
I walked back over, and sighed when I saw that Gabe had finished my beer.
“Beau is bringing some water,” I said.
