Page 3 of Romancing the Omega

“Yes! Look, Caden. I found a set of Starfire comics,” Grey said. He bounced in place as he stacked up eight comic books. “It’s the whole set, and I’ve been looking for them forever.”

“Starfire? Pink hair? Teenager?” Elijah looked confused. “You like her comics?”

“Not that Starfire,” Grey said. “This one is a badass from the seventies. I wanted to get a set of them for Olive. Starfire will be a good role model.”

“The cover has a woman pointing a sword at a man’s throat, saying you dare ask for mercy,” Caden said. He thought for a moment. “I agree. Olive needs those.” He snuggled Linc close and flipped through a different box of comics while Grey and Elijah argued. He picked up some Spider-Woman and Captain Marvel comics too. He grabbed the pile in front of Grey and added the Starfire comics to his own selection.

“Come on, buddy,” he said to Linc. “Let’s go look at the kid’s books. I bet we can find some fun stuff to read.” He left his arguing friends and pushed through the crowd to the kid’s corner. Olive already sat in a comfy, kid-sized chair, book in her lap. Several other kids ran around the area or sat and played with the toys.

“Uncle Caden,” she said, jumping up. “What you looking for? I can help.”

“Linc and I want to read a book. What would you recommend?” He set the boy on the ground. Linc promptly grabbed his leg, refusing to let go. Caden laughed as he unstrapped Huckleberry.

“The Cow Said Neigh is a good one,” she said. She pulled it off the shelf and handed it to him. “Can I read with you?”

“Of course. You make the sounds. Okay?” He kissed the top of her head, and they settled into a corner filled with large pillows. Linc and Huckleberry cuddled in his lap, and Olive leaned into his side. Several of the kids, turned their attention to him and crept forward so they could hear the story too. A little red-headed girl, around Linc’s age, plopped into his lap, squishing Huckleberry between her and Linc.

This was a perfect moment, he thought. Just a few months ago he had been so unhappy that he had wanted to just disappear from the world. Now, he was settling into a damn good life. Hopefully it was a life an angel would be interested in. He needed to think carefully about his courtship, so he would get it right. He was a romance author. How hard could it be?

“There once was a cow in a barn,” Caden started reading. “Who could see a horse in a field.”