The Merry Moose’s Mates (Male-Order Mates #16)

Chapter Two

Shay

“What about you, Shay?” Theo asked.

I was more interested in my homemade meatball sub than anything they had to gossip about. They said omegas gossiped. Those people had never visited a shop with a bunch of ax men.

“What about me?” I asked and pushed the last bite of my perfect sandwich into my mouth.

“Have you heard of the new app everyone is using to find their mates?”

I retrieved the small, square container of carrot cake from my lunch bag and shrugged. “What’s it called?” I asked, paying attention but only a little. These guys still thought every video on social media was real and the gods’ honest truth.

“Male-Order Matings.” Theo jutted his phone in my direction. I looked at the app while he rolled his finger down the screen, showing me he already had several matches. Good for him.

“Never heard of it. Did it cost your life savings?” I chuckled. They already called me cheap and a tightwad. They had no idea what I was saving for, but I could wring every last penny from a paycheck. No problem.

“No. I mean, there’s a small signup fee, but what’s a couple of bucks if you can find your mate or mates.” Theo waggled his eyebrows, making the others laugh.

“Has anyone you know in person actually found their mates on there?” I took a big bite of carrot cake and mentally patted myself on the back for the perfect flavor combination.

“Remember, I told you all about the mating I went to this weekend?” Everyone nodded. Theo had gone on about it for days, but I barely paid attention. I kept to myself, mostly. Probably why I hadn’t found a mate in the first place. Besides, Theo was always talking about something. It was his superpower, the others had joked. “That was my cousin and his two mates. He found them on the app. Just a few dollars and about a half hour’s worth of answering questions about your preferences and bam, the mate matches should come rolling in.”

“Sounds too good to be true,” I said, grumpiness level rising.

“Well, it’s not. I already have two matches. Two fine omegas. You’re telling me your bear isn’t ready for a mate already, or two, or three?”

“He is.”

The rest of the crew got up and walked away, chittering about mates and omegas and alphas and babies on the way. “What’s the worst that can happen, Shay? You lose a few dollars? You’re almost thirty. High time you settled down. You’ve talked about it a few times.”

I had. When I was a teenager, I thought that by twenty-five, I would magically have found my mate and be settled in, a couple of cubs underfoot and more on the way.

Things hadn’t gone to plan. Then again, Fate didn’t pay my dreams any mind. She worked at her own pace.

“I’ll download it,” I answered, mostly to get Theo onto another subject. I downloaded the app on my next break but didn’t have time to answer the questions until I arrived at home. While a big pot of taco soup simmered on the stove, I answered the questions. They wanted to know everything. Everything.

How many mates?

What species?

Did it matter to me if they already had children?

Did I want children?

Was I seeking a breeder?

Then there were questions about preferences in the bedroom. My face was hot for a full hour after answering those and it wasn’t the heat in the soup either.

I went through my routine, taking my bear for a long run and coming back to enjoy my nightly ice cream. My bear loved our life. I was completely comfortable with it, but my human side and some of my bear side craved a mate. We wanted to make one or more mates a den. Build it exactly the way they wanted.

Make them happy.

I also knew that meeting me might be a problem. I could be a grumpy bear. I would never be mean or unkind to a mate, but I could be set in my ways.

There was the other thing. I was not what you would call thin. Not lean. Not even a bit chunky.

Fluffy. That’s what the guys called me.

They meant it in a nice way, but I was far from one of those sculpted alphas.

Still, when choosing a picture of myself, I gave them a full body shot. If an omega was matched with me, they should know what they were getting themself into.

They would be mating with a big bear with an even bigger appetite. As long as they were happy with who I was, then I was too. I was a fantastic cook, and I’d been saving my whole life in preparation for having an omega or two.

Yeah, two. My bear raised his snout and huffed out a noise for two. Greedy grizzly.

When I was about to go to bed, I heard a notification and almost busted my ass jolting for the phone.

I had a match.

I clicked on the omega’s profile. His name was Briar. He was a moose shifter and from the looks of it, lived in a perfect cabin, deep in the woods somewhere.

What a dream, and I wasn’t talking about the landscape. He was tall and lean, with a killer smile.

I’d never clicked accept so fast in my life. I sent him a message, hoping he would respond.

Theo was right. Hours after downloading the app, someone was already matched to me?

I put the phone down and went to sleep, hoping the next day held a response.

If it were up to my bear, we would already be packed and on our way to the moose, but we could wait. There was hope now.

Hope for what Fate promised me all along.