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“Kindness and principles. More beautiful with every word.”
What in the heck was going on? Had I rolled in some sort of alpha catnip? I felt a blush flare up on my chest.
“Ms. Jacks, please don't misunderstand. You’re very attractive, but I’m not looking for any more alphas in my life right now. In fact, I just got rid of one yesterday morning, thank goodness.”
“Thank goodness?”
“Yes. I never should have led him on like I did… but now that he’s more or less out of my life, I’m so relieved. Is that awful to admit? That I’m glad he’s not going to—” The sound of shattering glass behind me, and a scream from the pool, had me jumping up to see what had happened.
The door behind me that led to the bar had somehow shattered, the glass now in tiny particles. “What happened?” I slipped on my sandals and hurried over to check on Sylvia. “Are you okay?”
“Fine, Soleil. You?”
“Not a scratch on me. I’ll go inside, though.”
I felt someone wrapping my cover-up around me, and smelled cherries and cloves. “Not a scratch, no. But you do have some lovely handprints there. Keep this on while we walk and talk.”
I wanted to die. This glamorous woman had seen my spank marks?
She burst out laughing. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. They are very lovely ‘spank marks,’ and they’ll be gone soon enough.”
“Oh, crap. I said that out loud. Sorry.”
“Never apologize for calling a woman glamorous. ‘I can live for two months on a good compliment.’”
“Mark Twain,” I said, recognizing the quote.
“Well-read on top of all the rest? I do like you, Miss Fairweather.” She nodded as if she’d decided something, then gestured for me to follow her toward the walkway around the side of the boat. “You said you might not be able to keep your business. You have your own company?”
“Yes. For now, at least.”
“Tell me about it.”
So I did. I shared everything from my reason for starting it with Rain, our experiences with the first clients, the anonymous donation that helped us get our LLC set up, even my accidental engagement. She listened carefully, and was extremely thoughtful about staying downwind when she noticed I was overwhelmed by her scent.
“It sounds like you need a fairy godmother, and a little help with your parents to get them to see your potential. Not just as an omega, or some alpha’s fiancée.”
“Ex-fiancée, as of yesterday.”
She burst into laughter. “You broke up with—what was his name? Goldtoe-Camembert?”
Goldtoe-Camembert.I snorted. “Socks and cheese? Yeah. I know it was chicken shit, but I did it on the phone. Thank goodness we had enough signal for a call. He took it pretty well, but we’ve been friends since our playdough-eating days. I’m pretty sure he saw it coming.”
She was shaking her head, her arms wrapped around her middle like she might burst out laughing again at any moment. “You said earlier that you’d gotten rid of an alpha. I thought you meant… Oh, this is rich. He has no idea, does he?”I opened my mouth to ask who she meant, but she continued. “All right, Soleil Fairweather. When you get home, I want you to ask your parents to call me for a meeting. I’d like to invest in your little company, if you think you can stand to have me come by to meet your ‘betasitters,’ and stink up your office space every once in a while.”
“Oh, Ms. Jacks, you don’t stink. Your smell is… fine. It’s just—”
“Not for you. I know how it works. My mother and father were true mates.” She smiled and looked out over the ocean, the wind whipping her curls around her neck. “My mother said she always thought alphas smelled like stagnant water until she met my dad. And his aroma reminded her of almond cake. That was how she knew he was the one.”
“Have you… I mean, do you have a special someone? An omega?”
“Not just an omega,” she said, so softly the wind almost drowned out her words. “I found my true mate. But she doesn’t seem to realize who I am to her.”
I took her hand in mine and squeezed it. “Then she’s an idiot, Ms. Jacks. You’re not for me, but you’re generous and kind, and any omega would be lucky as heck to have you.”
“Thank you. I keep hoping she’ll wake up, before it’s too late. And call me Anne-Marie.” Her eyes flitted to the top of the ship, where Lorelei stood alone at the railing. Watching us, with an expression that made me let go of Anne-Marie’s hand and step away.
“Is Lorelei…?” I let out a whistle when Anne-Marie nodded slightly. “That’s a lot. She’s beautiful. But—”
