Dave and the Omega
Diana Reid stared at the handsome man that was signing books in her favorite bookstore. She came here often to pursue the volumes. The Omega in her was very attracted to this handsome author, but with her luck he was already taken, as the two of them didn't look that far apart in age. Most of their kind was mated by the time they were in their late 20s, early 30s and she was nearly 40. In fact, her mate had left five years ago so that her three children were now 10 years old. Her children were triplets of course and Spencer was turning out much like her.
Diana knew very well that they could all use a positive male figure in their lives, particularly her oldest son, because she knew that Spencer while very intelligent needed a male role model. Unfortunately, she had made a bad choice in William Reid, and their relationship had been very unequal from the beginning. The final straw though, was when her ex-mate had treated Spencer, in particular like crap just because he was turning out to be an Omega, though really he had treated his two daughters like crap as well to a lesser degree. It wasn't like her son could help having Omega traits as that's just the way he had been born. Her two daughters on the other hand however, were taking after their father, though they would hopefully, learn to treat people better than their own father had his oldest son.
Diana was actually glad that Will had left or she would've been forced to leave, taking her children with her. She would've left the collar that Will had given her along with a note, explaining her reasons and Will would have known that she wanted nothing to do with him and wanted to be free of the commitment she had made. It was just like divorce among the humans. The collar was very important to their race. It was like being presented with a wedding ring by a human. Unlike humans though, they didn't need a ceremony to say they were legally married. They just had to register with the correct department in the government, after an alpha presented their chosen omega with a collar and then sealing their bond, through sex. When an Alpha wasn't a good one there was a way to get out of the mating and that was by returning the collar and walking away with whatever children there were. That was what she had been going to do originally.
In the note she would've left she would have mentioned that because of his attitude towards his children, especially his son, not to mention his habit of treating her shabbily and not discussing decisions with her, just because she wasn't an Alpha was the last straw. She would have made sure that he was aware it was mostly his treatment of their son, just because he wasn't an Alpha that she found reprehensible.
Luckily, Will had left on his own before Diana had done so and she had actually been glad when he had. Diana had made sure that she had legally divorced him as there was a special department for that, when an Alpha and Omega didn't want to go through a human wedding ceremony. Actually, a lot of them went through both depending on what jobs they had and whether they thought it was necessary.
Now though, Diana was legally free to take another mate, if she cared to and she had been thinking about dating again now that her children were older. She had gotten over Will's betrayal, although that had taken awhile, mostly because, she couldn't believe she had been so wrong about him.
He had been so attentive to her when they had first met and she admitted that she had been rather infatuated. She had hardly been a young girl, as she had been in her late 20s when they had started dating then courting. She was 27 when they had decided to mate. However, it had been obvious once the first blush of love had worn off, that what Will felt for her wasn't truly love, but only lust, with perhaps a touch of infatuation. If he had truly loved her he would have loved any child as well and he wouldn't have started treating his son and daughters as if they were mistakes. Diana had seen this and had tried to tell Will that he should treat them with love and understanding and all that had done was cause an argument.
Diana shook her head, for she didn't understand her ex-mate's attitude towards his own children. How could you treat your own children so badly? It wasn't like they had been had out of wedlock, which some people objected to on pure principle, if nothing else. Her children had been born while she was involved in a legitimate, mated relationship, so how could their own father treat him so badly, particularly his only son?
She still didn't understand what had been wrong with Will before he left and she doubted she ever would. She was lucky that she had a job and could support her children for some Omegas did not, and expected their mate to bring home the bacon. She had also reported him to the proper authorities, as you didn't treat your mates and children like crap, unless they had done something to deserve it. No, they're race's laws were very strict.
Because she had reported them to the proper department that was set up for such complaints, Will's had been put on a list and all someone had to do was check that list that was publicly available. Will's name would remain on that list for the rest of his life and if an Omega was smart they would check that list before they got involved with William Reid. Being on that list, in that government office was not a good thing, as it would let whoever checked it know that William Reid was not a good mate, that he was careless and thoughtless.
That he wouldn't treat an Omega like an equal or at least there was a poor chance he would. Also, if that was an asterisk by his name that meant that an Alpha had treated his kids badly. If you had up to five asterisks that meant that, you were the worst possible choice to get mated to any Omega and to have children was an even worse bet and in fact, it was forbidden. At the moment Will had two asterisks after his name, which meant that not many Omega's would take the chance, because if they happened to mate with him there was only slim chance that he would treat them properly and also any children they had together.
No, William Reid's chances of ever finding another mate were very slim, though of course, it was still possible. Diana felt no sympathy for her former mate for she had only done the proper thing and reported him to the proper authorities. After all, he had just walked out and not come back not even paying child support and if she didn't have a job it was quite possible that she and her children would starve. A big no-no.
There were some strict laws or rules you had to follow that had been around for hundreds of years at least. Their race had existed for thousands of years and it used to be that an Alpha often forced in Omega to mate with them and then found out they weren't suited. This often led to that Omega committing suicide, sometimes even the Alpha. Now though, there were strict laws in place in order to prevent such things from occurring, though it still happened sometimes, just not as often. There was now heavy consequences for bad behavior by forcing an Omega to mate with you.
One of the things that had been decided on was that there would be an office where you could put the Alpha's name on a list. You of course, had to provide proof that the Alpha had done something, well, maybe, not strictly illegal at that time, not even by human standards, but that he or she had treated their mate and children shabbily at least. It was frowned on if you mated and the Alpha treated that mate as well as any children badly. Neglect tended be just as bad as physical abuse for their kind, and could cause serious problems in the future. Diana had done it, as was proper, but you needed evidence, so she had planted miniature cameras all around the house, so that she could capture Will's attitude towards her and her son and daughters.
Their race had very strict laws for a reason and one of those reasons was that children who were abused whether by extreme neglect or physically, often became criminals that had to be hunted down, because they seriously hurt or killed others of their kind and sometimes humans. Even Omegas had been known to go on a killing spree, because of the abuse they had suffered at the hands of those that should have cared for them.
It had happened often enough in their history, that this was one reason that they had an office to report to. Nowadays though, you just sent your evidence, the name and picture of the Alpha over the Internet to that office, instead of appearing physically or mailing it. You also sent along your name and your phone number, so they could check you out. If an Omega was smart they would check that registry, which was publicly available on the Internet and was updated frequently, before getting involved with an Alpha, as it was like the registry that humans had for sex offenders.
In some cases, it just meant that that particular Alpha was trouble and was unlikely to make a suitable mate, since they had already treated their first mate and children shabbily. In others, it meant they were unsuitable to be mated at least to an Omega and in extreme cases more than unsuitable to have children.
If you got five asterisks he or she was actually forbidden from ever mating and were informed of this immediately. If it was found that they had mated anyway and they could be put in prison or at least the Omega and any children were removed from the home, no matter how they protested. Most Alphas with five asterisks, just had to wear an electronic ankle bracelet for the rest of their lives to keep track of their movements. The reason the law was so harsh was that sometimes the Omega that had been so mistreated by the Alpha that was supposed to care for them had ended up taking their lives along with any children. Of course, it depended on the Omega in question, but still, it had happened often enough in the past, so that preventive measures had been put in place, that would, catch at least most cases. Of course, the Omega in question had to report the abuse and provide evidence to prove their case, because it had ruined more than one Alphas reputation because of false accusations.
There was also a similar list for Omegas and Betas, since they could be the one at fault as well, even if it didn't happen often, as Omegas and Betas could also have something go wrong with them.
Well, Will had gotten what he deserved five years ago, Diana thought, though she wasn't even sure that Will knew he was on that list. He might actually think he had gotten away clean. It probably hadn't even occurred to him that she would have placed cameras around their home while he was at work. Cameras were extremely small nowadays, and you could get ones that were hard to locate, especially if you didn't even know they were there, though some people didn't do that for the best of reasons.
That it had probably not even occurred to Will that she would set up cameras around their home wouldn't surprise her and just proved he didn't think much of an omega's intelligence. Was Will, so arrogant and thoughtless, to believe that he wouldn't get reported to the proper authorities? Or was he simply oblivious? Had he assumed that he wouldn't be reported for his behavior? That she wouldn't dare? She was only an Omega after all, unimportant and some Alphas considered them unintelligent as well, no better then cattle or sheep really. A lot of Alphas really didn't know how to treat someone who they considered a nonentity and not very intelligent to boot. Diana sighed, as Will hadn't been like that at first, but now she knew that they should have courted longer before they had mated. They should've had some serious discussion about responsibilities, something she intended to do if she ever did take another mate and if that Alpha took offense then he wasn't the right one for her.
It was possible that Will hadn't seen anything wrong with his behavior, Diana thought, as she looked at the books. It was also possible once he discovered that he was on the governments list that he would confront her. It hadn't happened yet, but that didn't mean it couldn't. It had been so long ago though she was probably safe from reprisals.
Finally, Diana headed up to the counter to pay for her selections and was in a hurry as she knew her children would be out of school pretty soon, that she nearly bumped into the same author that she had just been admiring.
"Excuse me," Diana immediately apologized, since some Alphas could have pretty prickly pride and took offense very easily. And this author was definitely an Alpha as they had a particular scent.
"No, I am the one that is sorry, my lady," came the smooth voice of the man that had just been signing his books. "I wasn't watching where I was going."
The two of them looked into each others eyes and were instantly attracted. "So can I have your name, my lady?" asked the man, even as he studied her unobtrusively to see if he could tell if she was mated or not. She wasn't wearing a collar like some Omega's did when an Alpha had claimed them, but that didn't necessarily mean anything, as some just didn't do that anymore. This beautiful lady also didn't smell like anyone else, as they usually smelled like their Alpha, since mated couples tended to indulge in a lot of sex. He also unobtrusively looked for a wedding ring and didn't find one and the skin of the ring finger was not discolored, so either she had been mated or married and they had separated long enough ago that their were no visible signs or she had never been so.
"Diana, Diana Reid," Diana said, even as she blushed at the Alpha's heated regard. It had been a long time since an Alpha had regarded her like that, like an object of desire. "So can I know your name as well?" Diana flirted
"David Rossi, at your service, my lady," Dave said gallantly. "Why don't we get out of here so we can have some privacy too talk."
"I need to get home," Diana said. "My children will be home anytime now and I always like to be there when they first come in the door. They'll be worried if I'm not there. No, I'm not mated any longer," Diana added answering Dave's unspoken question. "I have no objection to us getting to know each other, just that right now is not a good time."
"I can understand that," Dave said understandingly, pleased to find that this Diana Reid wasn't mated anymore. "So why don't we exchange cell phone numbers right now and I'll contact you sometime in the next day or two so we can set up a meeting. Of course, you're welcome to call me as well."
"Well, you certainly are accommodating," Diana said smiling a little, though it was tinged in relief.
"I understand that you have other responsibilities right now and I would never prevent you from fulfilling those responsibilities."
"You're so different from my ex-mate it's unreal," Diana said quietly. "We can discuss that later though, as now is not the time."
Dave nodded in understanding, as the bookstore was crowded and they didn't want anybody overhear what they were discussing. The two exchanged phone numbers as well as email addresses before they parted.
Dave knew instantly that his life had just changed completely with meeting Diana Reid, as he had never been so strongly attracted to any woman in all his life. This wasn't the first time he had been mated, but that was years ago.
He was truly hoping that a relationship worked out between them, but it was much too soon to be sure, so he would just have to wait and see. Still, he hadn't anticipated a date so much in years, as he just knew that Diana was something special.
~~~Dave and Diana~~~