A doctor, huh? Or at least something similar to a doctor. I listened to Thad’s message at least twenty times, each time focusing on different bits of information. He takes care of sick babies. And his first name is Alistair.

Alistair Thaddeus Eardt. A.T.E.

I laughed out loud when that finally clicked in my mind. God, he’s hot. And busy.

I waited five hours before returning his call because I knew he would be running all morning, but by three in the afternoon, I started to get antsy.

That’s when I started to text.

Hope you’re having a good day.

Twenty minutes after that, I sent another doozy. Sorry for interrupting earlier. Call me when you take a break.

And then twenty minutes after that, I realized how desperate my last text sounded so I tried to fix things. If you can’t call me during a break, wait til your drive home.

But then I realized how dangerous that could be and didn’t want him to think I was encouraging him to text and drive so I sent a follow up to that. But not while you’re driving. Only if you have hands free. Or when you get home.

“Dammit!” I tossed my phone across my desk and then had to dive after it when it almost slipped off the other end. It would totally be my luck for my only method of reaching Thad to shatter on my office floor and leave me with no way to communicate with him ever again.

Although, that would have probably been preferable to whatever I was doing with those texts. Communication isn’t even the right word to describe the shitshow I was putting on for my omega. And let’s get real. He’d never be my omega if I kept this weird desperate and beggy thing going on.

“Is everything okay, Ren?” Soren peeked into my office with a concerned look. He was the new office assistant and had never seen me without a polite smile.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” I reread my pathetic texts and wished there was a way to recall every last one of them before Thad had a chance to see them. I pretended to bash my phone against the desk, stopping just a fraction of an inch from the surface each time I thrust my fist toward it. “Just wishing I could go back in time and not be such a douche.”

Soren stepped into my office with his hands clasped behind his back. It was a standard omega pose in a professional setting where mostly alphas were in positions of authority. But our office wasn’t discriminatory against omegas at all. I’d mentioned to Soren several times that he didn’t need to be submissive with me.

But some habits die hard.

“Is there something I can do to help? I’m pretty handy with smartphones.”

My fist hovered above my desk as I seriously contemplated his offer. “Is there any way to delete a text message that you’ve already sent so it can’t be read?”

“Oh.” Soren’s shoulders drooped, and he looked devastated by the answer he had to give me. “Sorry, Ren. I wish there was. But I don’t think that’s possible.”

I closed my eyes and twisted my chair so I was facing the window. “Yeah, that’s what I thought.”

“Well, let me know if you need anything else.” He slipped out of my office, giving me the privacy I needed to wallow in my misery.

* * *

I’d finally fallen asleep after a long day of frustration and self-induced humiliation when the phone buzzed on my nightstand. It took a second for me to wake up enough to realize what was happening, but when I reached for my phone and saw Thad’s name on the screen, I was one hundred percent awake. And not just my rock hard dick but my entire body.

“Hello.” I cleared my throat to sound less froggy. “Thad?”

“Yeah, hi. Are you asleep?” Thad sounded both exhausted and worried. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize how late it was for regular people. I still haven’t made it home to sleep so my days are rolling into each other.”

“No, I’m fine. I’m glad you called.” I sat up and turned on the lamp. “I wasn’t sure you were going to.”

“Why not?” The background noise on his end of the line died down. “I said I would.”

I was glad he couldn’t see me blushing over the phone. “Yeah, well, that was before I got all text happy. I figured you would have blocked me after the tenth text.”

Thad let out a sweet giggle that had me imagining a big smile on his face. I loved being the one to make him smile, but I hated not being able to see it. “I thought they were...cute.”

“Gawwd.” I closed my eyes and threw my head back. “That’s just what every alpha wants to hear.”

“It should be,” Thad whispered. “I mean, a good alpha doesn’t have to be tough and strong all the time. I like a man who can be cute now and then.”

“You do?” My dick had started to soften, but it was coming back to full attention just from the sound of Thad’s throaty breaths.

“I do.” He exhaled slowly. “I also like an alpha who cares about my use of a hands-free phone while driving.”

The light amusement in his voice made me want to reach through the phone and grab on to him. I could imagine how good his smile would taste. “Again, sorry about that. I was… I don’t even know.”

Thad laughed and then yawned. “God, I think I’m delirious at this point. I seriously need to sleep.”

“So, where does that leave you for dinner tomorrow night?”

“What day is tomorrow?” Thad laughed but it didn’t seem like he was joking. “Today started like forty hours ago for me, so I’m not sure I’ll be conscious tomorrow night.”

I hated that Thad had to work so hard that he couldn’t even find time to sleep. “What about Saturday?”

Thad sighed heavily into the phone and voices filled the background where he was. “I’ve got one day off then a scheduled c-section on Sunday. If all goes well, I should be free on Sunday night, and I won’t start another shift until Wednesday.”

“I’ll take it.” Yes, I knew how desperate I sounded, but I didn’t care. I’d waited a long time to see him, and although I was willing to wait a few more days, I wasn’t about to build in any unnecessary slack. He was only agreeing to Sunday night, but if the opportunity to stay with him until Wednesday presented itself, I was sure as hell gonna take it. “I can come to Mapleville so you don’t have to drive on your night off.”

“Really?” He sounded surprised. “You’d come all this way to see me?”

“Of course.” What kind of assholes had he been dating? I figured that John guy was a one-off, but maybe Thad had been with more than one douche in his time. “I’ve been looking forward to this date for a long time.”

“Me too…” he said wistfully. “But if I don’t get out of here now, I’ll never make it home.”

“Go home and get some rest, Thad.” I imagined him half asleep at his desk with those orange curls shielding his eyes from the harsh hospital lights. “Send me your address tomorrow, and I’ll pick you up on Sunday.”

“It’s a date,” he said softly. “Good night.”

“Good night, little omega. Have sweet dreams until I see you again.”

I’d just put my phone down on my nightstand when it buzzed again with a text from Thad.

In case I forget, just come anytime after 6PM on Sunday. 441 Ashland Ave, Mapleville.

Anytime after six worked just fine. In fact, I’d probably be there at 6:01. Regardless of how desperate I seemed, I wasn’t about to miss a single minute of our first date.

Besides, I had a lot of plans for my little omega, and I didn’t plan to come back home until I’d accomplished every last one of them.