“Oliver?”

I tried not to sigh and Marge called after me. I had barely left the office and was quite ready for some down time. There were many things I loved about my job, the state paperwork and reporting we did each week wasn’t one of them.

“Yes, Marge.” I stopped, contorting my body in her direction without the full commitment of facing her completely. I just wanted to get a shower and figure out what I was going to do about the job posting I saw. It was probably meant to be for omega residents, not the staff, but it was intriguing, and it called to me.

“What did you think?” She had that look in her eye she only held when she was up to something.

“About?”

“About the posting I left for you.”

I closed my eyes. My head buzzed with all the why’s. “For me?” I gave up my odd twisted position and turned to face her fully. She rewarded me with her “I won” smile.

“Yes. The live-in manny job.”

“You left that for me?” Never once had it crossed my mind she planted it there. I had assumed it had been misdelivered. I loved Marge, I really did, but sometimes she needed to be less clever and more blunt.

“Yes.” She nodded before leaning against the wall. Looked like our conversation had just begun. “What did you think?”

“That it was pretty perfect and if I didn’t have a job I’d jump at it.” It sounded ideal in so many ways. The pay was better than here, meals were included, as was housing, and the hours were odd, but not unbearable.

“Consider yourself fired then.”

I raked my hand through my hair trying to figure out if she was serious or not. With Marge, it could go either way.

“On what grounds?” I copied her stance against the wall, feeling out if she was teasing.

“On the grounds that this is the perfect opportunity for you to get out of here before the emotional toll wears you down to nothing.” She winked at me with a sad smile, so teasing, yet truthful in an odd way. Ugh. As if wanting a job and having it actually work out were the same thing. Just then, her eyes shifted and I saw something she rarely let me see. She was tired. Not tired in the sense she stayed up too late, but the bone tired you get when are about to burn out.

“You?” I lowered my voice, the conversation suddenly feeling a bit too personal for the hallway.

“Yes, me,” she confided before standing tall and slapping on her “everything is awesome” face. “And my friend’s husband tells me he is a perfect fit for you.”

He is a perfect fit for me. That sounded like more than just you would do a good job. I would have to shake her down for information later if I interviewed and if I was offered a job.

“But your friend’s husband doesn’t know me.” All of a sudden this felt more like a blind date than a conversation about a job.

“No, but I do and we chatted and decided to make sure you at least got a chance to feel each other out.”

I bit my tongue at her overstep. I had learned a long time ago that anytime she overstepped with an employee, which was far too often in my opinion, she always did it with the best of intentions. She loved us all and, in her way, she was helping. Who knew, maybe this time she actually was.

“And if the interview is awful and I hate him and everything about the position?” I doubted she was actually firing me, but I needed to be sure. And keeping her on her toes was always fun.

“Then you will be rehired.” She looked at me in disbelief as if I was completely oblivious. “Out of curiosity, what could possibly be so horrible about the position that would cause you to turn it down?”

“Snakes.” It wasn’t a lie. “He could live in a house of snakes. He’s a vet, after all.”

“Go.” She shooed me in the direction she’d just come from. “He’s in the daycare office. Get yourself a job.”

There was no use arguing even if I wanted to. Marge was right, I was on the cusp of being here too long for my own wellbeing. A nanny position would allow me to finish my classes, still do what I loved, and in this case, get away from the city. I was ready for fresh air and no rush hour traffic.

I wasn’t sure if I should knock or walk in and opted for number two, since, technically, it was sort of my office. If he got caught picking his nose, that was on him. “Hello?” I made my way in, taking my place behind the desk, my hand extended. “I’m Oliver.”

It was a power play and I knew it, but some alphas only respected power. From the strength of his scent, he was all alpha. I needed to make sure he wasn’t going to be an asshat when I needed to make decisions as his child’s caretaker. His scent was not only strong, but very enticing. All cedar and coffee, like a morning cup on the porch of a cabin in the mountains. Too enticing. I needed to dampen my reaction to him, and quick. No one was going to hire a nanny who got a hard on every time they were in the same room as you, and I already had a semi. Freaking great.

“Hello, I’m Wyatt Stanley.” He shook my hand, the warmth of his skin feeling too good. I immediately sat down, needing to conceal my biological reaction to his scent. It had to be only that, and not the wavy hair and dimple in his left cheek. “I’m waiting for Marge.”

“Marge sent me in to see you.” He leaned back in his chair in his own power play. Not in your face, but letting me know he was a strong alpha and wouldn’t be frazzled by the likes of me, an omega, trying to take control. And then my mind strayed to other places where that power play would be fun. Maybe Marge was wrong. Maybe I was best working here, away from the sexy alpha.

“About the nanny position?” He feigned disinterest, yet I watched him soak in my reaction.

“Yes. She thought I might be interested in it.” And I am, I wanted to shout, but was determined to play it cool.

“Are you a resident here?” My eyes must’ve shown my shock because he quickly added, “Not that that would... Never mind.”

“No, it’s fine,” I reassured him. Honestly, it was a question I would have. As much as we help the omegas here, some of them come terribly broken and, depending on the situation, that could be extremely important information to know before trusting them with your small child. “I’m live-in staff. I work in the childcare department.”

“I see… And you want to leave?” He seemed to grasp for a different question before settling on this one. Interesting.

“Honestly, I’m torn. I love this place and all that it does. I love working with the kids. I love practically all of my job. I’m not going to lie, I could do without the administrative paperwork, but other than that I love it.” If I was going to completely uproot my life, it needed to be based on honesty and not an interview where I showed the side of me I wanted them to see.

“Then why did Marge think you would want to leave?”

“She thinks, and is probably right, that it is starting to take an emotional toll on me. She fears I will get burned out.” She’d mentioned it a few times over the past month, today the most bluntly and the first time I was ready to hear her.

“And what do you think?” He leaned forward, his elbows on his knees and his hand rubbing his chin with its stubble. I closed my eyes for a moment, schooling the attraction that fueled in me. What was it with this man? He was my potential boss, not a potential mate.

“That she is not wrong. I don’t know how much you know about Omega House, but it’s not all sunshine and roses. The reasons omegas end up here vary, and none of them are any good.” There were many nights I cried myself to sleep over what these men, women, and children had faced.

“My late omega and I were here a few years back for a fundraiser. She was very impressed with the work you did here.”

“I’m sorry.” I didn’t know what else to say. Losing a mate, a true bonded mate, had to cause a pain like no other and with a small child…I just couldn’t…

“It was a few years ago, but thank you.” He forced a small smile.

“So tell me about your little girl.” I quickly changed the subject to something sure to put a genuine smile upon his face. Why did that idea have me smiling so?