Page 14 of Choosing Their Omega

It’s pretty easy to follow the giggles into a large playroom. My heart squeezes in my chest as I take in the space, which was clearly created with a lot of love and care.

A parade of elephants is painted on the wall, and glow-in-the-dark stars are stuck all over the ceiling. There’s a bookshelf full of books, a blanket fort, a comfy-looking beanbag chair with a small stack of books by it, probably where whoever’s with Ben reads to him, and a large collection of various toys scattered around.

They probably spoil this kid rotten. I find myself grinning as I take it all in.

I hear the giggle again, and I look over toward the blanket fort. “Mmm, I’m so hungry,” I say out loud. “I’m going to follow this yummy smell… and see if I can find something delicious to eat!”

I get down on all fours and crawl over to the blanket fort, peering inside. There’s a lump of blankets that’s shaking with laughter.

“Hmm. I wonder what this could be.” I reach in and tickle the blanket pile.

Ben shrieks with laughter and his head pops out. “Don’t eat me!”

I laugh. “But you smell so delicious!”

“No!” He shakes his head and crawls over to me. “You don’t eat kids!”

“Are you sure?”

“Mm-hm.” He nods seriously.

“Well, what do you eat?”

“Chicken nuggets.”

“That’s a good one. I also like macaroni and cheese.”

Ben grins and nods his agreement. Then he looks behind me, and he seems to realize for the first time that I’m alone with him. “Uncle Knox?”

He pronounces ‘uncle’ more like ‘unca,’ not quite able to get his mouth around the proper pronunciation. It’s adorable.

“Do you want to see your uncle?” I ask.

Ben nods, his face crumpling a little. I pull him into my lap. “Hey, it’s okay. I bet you love your uncle a lot, huh? And he loves you?”

Ben nods and, to my shock, clings to me. He buries his nose in my neck, a child’s form of scenting. A parent’s scent soothes a kid, helps them calm down when they’re upset, since our sense of smell is so very strong. Especially young kids, before they learn to filter out all the unwanted smells from random people.

He pulls back, probably sensing how shocked I am. “Sorry.”

“No, no, it’s okay. You can scent me if you want. Would that make you feel better?”

Ben nods. “I used to scent Mama but… she’s not here anymore. I miss how she smelled.”

My heart feels like it’s cracking in two. “I’m sorry. I lost my mama too. I missed her for a really long time.” I scoop him up into my arms and hug him, rubbing his back. “You know what helped?”

Ben buries his face in my neck again and shakes his head.

“Smelling other people who loved me. I had my grandmother. You have your Uncle Knox, right?”

Ben nods.

“Let’s go find him. Is he your favorite?”

Ben shrugs.

“You love all your uncles?”

He nods.

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