Except whoever took over... It would be so easy for them to snuff out Ollie’s shop. All they had to do was bring in more products, offer the same services Olivier did. All for a lower price.
How do I tell Ollie this?
He sank back into his seat, staring unseeingly at the white ceiling. Thought about sending Ollie a message.
But what use would it be? Already, Eric was trying his best to direct sales to Olivier’s shop. If he were forced to ramp up his sales figures, or if someone else took over his position... The end result would be the same. Olivier’s Strings would close—permanently.
Eric swallowed hard, tucking his phone away. He’d tell Olivier later. When he found a better way to phrase things, or maybe when he received more news from HR. Didn’t want Ollie panicking and lying again.
They’d had enough uncertainty for a while. Who even snitched on him, anyway?
He logged out of the computer, took a deep breath, and stepped out onto the sales floor. The day had to go on.
27
Olivier
Ollie glanced at Eric, his senses whispering with unease. It had been fifteen minutes since they arrived at the prenatal clinic, and Eric had hardly spoken.
“Eric?” Olivier asked softly, slipping his fingers into Eric’s hand.
Eric sucked in a breath, glancing over. “Yeah?”
“Are you okay?” Olivier asked. “You’ve been really quiet.”
Eric’s throat worked. He glanced around the clinic, with pastel rainbows and unicorns painted across the walls. Then he blinked and stared, as though he was looking at the clinic for the very first time. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.”
He breathed out, his forehead creasing.
“You’re worried about something,” Olivier said.
Eric winced. “You can tell?”
Did you think I can’t? Olivier’s unease grew. “Of course I can.”
Eric took some time to answer. He looked at his phone, frowned some more. “There’s been some trouble at work. “I’ll fix things.”
“Want to tell me about it?”
Eric shook his head. “Maybe another time.”
But he fiddled with his phone, turning it over in his hands. It was as though he didn’t care about the baby in Olivier’s belly at all.
Ollie’s heart sank. What had happened at Eric’s work? Was it because Eric helped him? Eric hadn’t even been this stressed with the burglary.
So Ollie changed the subject. “I decided on a couple of names.”
“Did you?” The worry in Eric’s eyes lifted slightly.
“If it’s a girl, maybe Kate or Priscilla. I have a list of backup names if you don’t like those...”
“I like them. What about the boy names?”
“There’s Jacob or Bill or Steve. Or what about a neutral name, like Taylor?” Olivier squirmed. “I don’t know. It seems like such an important decision, and yet not at the same time.”
“How so?” Eric slipped his arm around Ollie’s waist, pulling him close. Then he pressed his nose into Olivier’s hair, and Ollie relaxed.
“Do you believe that babies grow into their names?” Olivier asked. “I mean, some people do, some people don’t. Yours means ‘always a king’.”
Eric raised his eyebrows, looking dubious. “Me, a king?”
“Well, you do preside over two whole branches.” Olivier smiled wryly, thinking about Eric’s Total Sounds T-shirts at home, and the times he brought his work back on his laptop. “You have tens of staff looking adoringly up at you.”
Eric rolled his eyes. “Yeah, right. What does your name mean?”
Olivier winced. “Depending on who you ask, I’m either an elf army, or an olive tree.”
He looked down, imagining leaves growing from his hands.
Eric’s smile grew. “What if I said your beauty is like a hundred elves combined?”
“You mean, like a chimera?”
Eric elbowed him lightly. Then he leaned in and kissed Ollie soundly on the lips. “Stop talking yourself down.”
“Only if you do, Mr. Ever-Kingly.”
“I mean, you’re beautiful,” Eric said. “I’d rather have you over a hundred elves. Maybe that’s what it means.”
“Sweet-talker.” Olivier elbowed him back, but he couldn’t help blushing.
The other couples in the waiting room talked amongst themselves. No one looked over, and no one knew that Ollie and Eric were related to each other. It was nice, blending in like that.
“For all you know,” Olivier said, “I was named after an olive tree.”
Eric kissed Ollie’s temple. “You know how the olive is a symbol of peace. Never seen anyone as selfless as you.”
That made Olivier smile. “You’re determined to see all the good in me, aren’t you?”
“Yup.” Eric grinned. “That makes me a king, right?”
Olivier laughed, looking up when a nurse called his name. He glanced hopefully at Eric. “Will you come with me?”
“All the time,” Eric growled, catching Olivier’s hand. “But you can come without me, too.”
Olivier’s cheeks scorched. “Eric!” he hissed.
Eric smirked, tugging Ollie to the doctor’s office. “All I am is your alpha. It’d be sad if I couldn’t make you come.”
Olivier nudged him, trying not to blush.
Walking through the clinic with Eric at his side, Ollie was starting to believe that things would turn out okay. Eric’s worry had faded somewhat, and it was comforting, having Eric hold his hand.
Dr. Smith’s office smelled like hay. She was a beta, older and blond, a pair of glasses perched on her nose. “Olivier,” she said, extending her hand. “And... Eric.”
Ollie had written down Eric’s name as his next-of-kin, and their relationship as bondmates. So there was no reason to worry, having Eric in the room with him.
Dr. Smith took him through a short discussion on his diet and exercise habits. “Is this your first child?”
Ollie nodded. Eric puffed up his chest, chipping in, “But he’s been caring for my one-year-old, and he’s doing great!”
Dr. Smith smiled. She took Ollie’s heartbeat, then the baby’s. The baby kicked, as though it felt Olivier’s excitement. What would it look like on the ultrasound?
Olivier climbed onto the exam bed. He glimpsed Eric looking at his phone, Eric’s smile fading. What was happening at Eric’s workplace?
“Eric?” Ollie asked softly.
Eric glanced up, pulling on a strained smile. He tucked his phone away, then came to stand next to Ollie.
Dr. Smith tapped on the keyboard beside
