Page 11 of Shifter Omegaverse AU

Troy had been the one to suggest they co-lead Riley’s company. The idea never would have occurred to Rowan, but Troy had somehow known exactly what Rowan needed. He’d provided steady support for Rowan to make the transition and take a step back into family life.

“How can we help you?” Troy asked when Ray just stood there, biting his lip.

Ray’s shoulders rose even higher towards his ears before suddenly dropping into a firm line. “This isn’t something I would usually do, and I’m honestly not sure if it’s the right decision, but I haven’t heard Milo mention his—or their gender or gender expression to a single person, not even me, since their great-aunt died.”

Troy’s gaze was heavy on Rowan’s shoulders as he swallowed audibly.

Ray scanned his face before thrusting his hand out in front of him. For one horrible second, Rowan thought Ray might be testing him, to… what, prove himself?

He didn’t know Ray, so it shouldn’t matter, but Ray knew Milo, and Rowan’s hawk apparently also wanted to know Milo, so he fluffed up his feathers and decided that no matter what the test was, he was going to try and pass it.

Ray made a “give it here” gesture with his fingers. “I’m going to give you Milo’s number,” Ray said. “You can decide if you want to text them or not.”

Rowan’s hawk jumped to his feet, fanning out his wings to his full wingspan. Rowan pulled out his phone and took care not to touch Ray’s fingers as he handed it over. Ray typed in the number, but when Rowan tried to take it back, Ray held the phone just out of reach.

“If there’s any chance in the world that Milo can find happiness, after everything they’ve been through the past few years, then I think it’s worth taking a chance on. I told them as much, and I really think they were going to come over and give you their number, but Ethel’s retirement home called, and they have a bit of tunnel vision when it comes to her. If you can accept that and can accept them and all their wonderful quirks, then I think I’m doing the right thing by giving you their number.”

Troy was silent, and there seemed to be a lull in conversation around the room, like the world was holding its breath to see what Rowan would do.

“I might have to give that some more thought, but I really appreciate you giving me a chance.”

Ray’s lip quirked up into a small smile. “Now let’s just hope Milo is willing to give you a chance, too.”

4

Author’s Note:

You’ll never guess where I wrote this chapter.

It actually wasn’t a coffee shop, that’s why you’ll probably never guess.

Milo

This was embarrassing.

Milo wasn’t usually the kind of person who got embarrassed, but truly, this was shameful.

“He’s not here, Ray,” Milo said, sending an email with one hand, sipping his latte with the other, all while holding his phone between his shoulder and cheek. “Troy said they come here every Wednesday, and I’ve been camped out here for three hours, and there’s no sign of either of them. He also hasn’t texted, and trust me, I’ve checked.”

It was sweet, really, that Ray had tried to play matchmaker, but just like all the times Anabelle had done it with “Joe’s sweet grandson” or “Monique’s nephew’s roommate” things never seemed to work out for Milo.

His pony hung his head. Milo really didn’t think it was that big of a deal, but his pony had been pining for the past week.

Milo had been planning to go over to Rowan and ask for his number, but then Ethel’s care coordinator had called to complain about yet another prank she’d pulled. Milo had wandered around downtown for an hour, commiserating with the harried woman on the phone about how much of a “joyful handful” Ethel was.

Truly, Ray was sweeter than Anabelle’s famous snickerdoodles for wingmanning Milo; it just wasn’t meant to be.

Like Milo ever getting to taste Anabelle’s snickerdoodles again.

Ray was still talking in Milo’s ear, and he tuned back in to hear him say, “They could both just be hung up with something in the office, and that’s why neither of them is there. If Rowan was avoiding you, Troy would probably have come on his own.”

“Would you have come without me if I was avoiding someone?” Milo asked, opening yet another email he needed to respond to.

He’d actually gotten more work done today than all week since he wanted to prove to himself—and his very lenient boss—that he had, in fact, needed to sit in a coffee shop for three hours today to “regain his office mojo.” Milo sipped at his drink and answered three more emails as Ray debated with himself whether he would go to the coffee shop without Milo

Ray was just wrapping up his thesis—that if Milo decided they could never go back to this coffee shop because it had been tainted by the ginger giant, Ray would research coffee shops near their office, and they’d try each one until they found a new favorite—when Milo’s phone vibrated against his face. He somehow managed to drop his phone and his nearly empty coffee cup while also knocking his laptop off the table.

Several concerned and a few skeptical eyes turned his way, but Milo ignored them just like he’d ignored the looks he’d gotten when he’d come in wearing a sequined maxi dress in quite possibly the loudest color orange to ever exist. Anabelle had loved loud colors, and while it worked on her, it often overwhelmed Milo’s gray eyes and pale blonde hair. That hadn’t stopped him from buying every item she’d ever suggested for him, regardless of color, fashion, era, or gender.