Blueberry Scones (MxM)

Chapter 1 - Awkward Encounter

"Welcome, Alpha Kristen. We are honored to have you here," our alpha said with a smile, walking next to the tall she-wolf.

Today we had a neighboring pack visiting. They were going to renew a treaty of alliance between our packs, especially since the current alphas would be stepping down soon. Along with them were Alpha Kristen's son and his soon-to-be beta, but the beta wasn't around. I think I'd seen him at one point, but he must've gone off somewhere else. Our alpha's son and his future beta and gamma were with the group too.

My eyes were immediately drawn to the alpha's son. He was so handsome. Beautiful curly hair, tanned skin, and bright brown eyes that always made me swoon a little. He felt my eyes on him and turned his head briefly. He smiled at me, sending a wink.

Since I'd given up on my mate, I decided to date anyone that I could. Erin's mate had unfortunately died before he could meet them. He'd felt the bond sever one day out of the blue. We'd been friends for a few years beforehand and I'd always found him attractive. A couple of months later, we decided to start dating. He was amazing. It had already been a year and I couldn't be happier. He was a very passionate man and fun to be around.

I waved to him, deciding to head off to work now. Since I couldn't become a warrior with my wolf form, I decided to open my own cafe. It did pretty well and I enjoyed the work, so at least I was happy with what I got. I knew my parents worried I was unhappy, but I wasn't. Life dealt me a bad hand, but I was making the best of it. They didn't have to worry but they did anyway. I wished I could reassure them. When I told them I was dating Erin, they'd been happy to know I wasn't lonely. They probably hoped Erin and I would mate. Since both of us were mateless at the moment, we had already discussed mating anyway. It was rare to mate with someone other than your fated mate, but we couldn't really do anything else.

A few minutes of walking took me to my cafe. I unlocked the doors, heading into the back to start making the items I'd sell today. I was starting late today but I'd prepared some of the recipes already so I could finish quickly today. I hummed to myself as I worked, hearing the door open again.

"Morning, boss!" A voice chirped.

"Farah, I'm back here," I called back, hunched over some dough.

The young girl walked into the kitchen, a smile on her face. "Need any help, boss man?" She asked me, heading over to grab an apron.

"No, I'm fine. Can you open up, though? And stock the display case, please. I have some finished items over there," I told her, pointing to a cooling shelf unit.

She quickly got to work, bouncing around. She was fresh out of high school but an extremely hard worker. She'd been a part-timer here before but she decided to come on full-time, thank goodness. I loved to have her around. I wasn't old or anything, barely twenty-three, but she still made me feel more lively. Plus, she was one of my closest friends nowadays. She was an omega as well, so we kind of bonded over being the runts of the pack, so to speak.

An hour later we started to get customers, mostly regulars. Our pack made up most of the town we lived in. There were few humans, nor were there many visitors, so business was usually from people we knew well. I decided to man the counter after a little while, watching Farah go around and take orders. One of the part-timers also moved between the tables, while another full-time worker was in the back making sure food kept coming. It was a small business, but it was home.

The bell rang over the door and I looked up, smiling brightly when I saw Erin, his father, Alpha Kristen, and the rest of the group coming in. Erin walked over to me, a smile on his face as well.

"Hey, babe. Happen to have room for us right now? We decided to take a little lunch break."

"Of course. Go ahead. I'll be right over to take your orders."