Mafia's Broken Omega (Mated in the Mafia #6)

13. Avery

13

AVERY

The Ferrini family compound seemed more like a castle than a regular house. And the fact that it had a full birthing center was crazy but helpful when it came to discreet medical appointments.

Cord guided me from wing to wing, down marble stairs, and then we were finally in an exam room. The midwife waiting with Jeremiah knew exactly how to make us feel like part of the family as she measured and weighed and wanded me.

"All healthy." She pointed at the baby on the monitor that my entire world now revolved around. “But I can’t quite get a money shot.” She frowned at the screen as she fiddled with dials and angles. “But next time I see you, we’ll try again.”

“Thank you, ma’am.” Cord pulled my hand to his lips and kissed it. “Healthy is all that matters to us.”

“Call me if you need anything.” She nodded at me and then waved. “Have a great afternoon.”

Cord helped me up and then gave me a hug. “I’m so proud of you, Avery.”

“What?” All I did was lie there, it wasn’t like I’d run a marathon. “Why?”

“For being so strong.” He kissed my chin. “And for keeping our baby healthy.”

I pressed a hand to my stomach and could almost feel the warmth spread out to my fingers. "It's really happening, isn’t it?"

Cord’s hand covered mine with an uncharacteristic softness in his eyes that made me truly believe he was as invested in this as I was. "It is. We’re doing this. Together."

“Yeah, together.” It still felt foreign to say, but I wanted to believe what he said. I just had to keep saying it and hope that someday it would sink into my thick skull.

We slipped out of the Ferrini home without too much fanfare. Jeremiah smiled and waved as we passed, but he didn’t stop us. He probably knew we needed to spend some time alone.

Cord pulled me closer. "Don’t worry about anything today. It’s a happy day."

"It’s hard not to worry when things are so precarious. What if they find us or try?—"

"No one will hurt you or our baby. Ever." Cord always knew what to say to reassure me. Even when he was just saying what I needed to hear and had no idea what was actually gonna happen. They’d been following up on leads but nothing solid. The risks were still there.

"I hope not." I blew out a long breath as I climbed into the back of his car. "Because this little family of ours is starting to grow on me."

He grinned, and I saw a hint of the man who was more than just a powerful boss and alpha. I saw the man who was as excited about being a father as I was. The man who wanted everything I did. As my mate.

And then he kissed me, deeply and with so much intensity I got a little dizzy. “Wow.”

He chuckled. “Don’t seem so surprised. I’ve kissed you before.”

“I know, but now it feels different.” I leaned toward Cord as his driver started the engine. “It feels like we really are a family.”

He kissed my temple and held his lips there. “We are a family, Avery. I know it’s hard for you to believe, but you’re it. You’re mine, omega. Both of you.”

I just leaned against him as we started to drive.

“How about we do something fun?”

I pulled away and looked at him. “Fun? Like what?”

He chuckled again. “Like…a surprise.”

“Okay.” I shrugged and leaned on his shoulder again. “I like surprises.”

He said something to the driver, but I wasn’t paying attention to what. I was just so damn happy to be in the moment with my alpha.

“I know.” He squeezed my hand, making me relax even more.

I watched the streets as we passed. We were headed back toward Cord’s place, but then the driver turned left instead of right on Sycamore and we were heading downtown. Curious about where we were going, I sat up and looked around to get a better idea of where we were. “The outlet mall?”

He smiled. “Yeah. You been here before?”

“Well, yeah. There’s a lingerie shop that carries my size.” Dancing already felt like part of my past and not my future. “I’ve gotten some costumes there.”

The car stopped in front of a small bakery at the end of the building, and Cord put his hand on the door handle. “I’ve got something a little different in mind.”

I slid out of the car behind him and the smell of cinnamon sugary deliciousness was enough to overtake me before the door was even shut behind me.

"Cinnamon rolls?" My voice was higher than usual from the mix of shock and excitement. Not to mention my sudden craving for cinnamon and icing. “Really?”

"Sound good?" Cord waggled his eyebrow as his hand pressed at the small of my back like he wanted to keep me within reach.

I low-key loved it. "Sounds fucking amazing."

He laughed, and his lightness filtered straight through me. "You’re supposed to be eating healthy, but I think you deserve a little treat."

"I totally do.” I was almost giddy as I bounced beside him. “It smells so good.”

Inside the bakery, the air was thick with sugar and butter as we approached the display case. The rolls themselves were sold plain, and then you got to choose from an impressive selection of icings and toppings. “Choose anything you want.”

“Are you getting one?” The display pieces were all enticing, and I had no idea how to pick.

“I’m not that hungry, so I can take a bite of yours.”

“Oh.” I couldn’t help the disappointment in my tone. “Okay.”

“What? You don’t like to share?” Cord poked my side and tickled me.

“No, I don’t mind sharing.” I cleared my throat and decided to just say what I was thinking. “I was just thinking if you got something different, maybe we could share two so we could get a little bit of each.”

Cord’s eyes were glued to me as I inspected the delicious options. “How about we each pick two different toppings and we can each taste four.”

“Really?” The entire display now called to me, but finding four delicious options seemed easier than finding one. “Okay.”

We took longer than necessary to place the perfect orders. It didn’t help that I changed our orders twice because choosing only four was much harder than I expected. Cord mentioned a few toppings that looked good, but he let me make the decisions. It was good and bad because I wanted to try everything.

"You know we'll never be able to eat all these." The tray with four huge cinnamon rolls piled high with sprinkles and butterscotch chips and nutella and toasted almonds and about ten other delightful toppings was heavy enough that Cord insisted on carrying it.

“I know, but I’ve got room for at least a bite of each one.” We stopped at a corner table, and I dropped into the chair and watched the tray until it was safely placed between me and Cord. “I’m gonna cut them into quarters, okay?”

“Of course.” Cord sat down across from me and opened a napkin with a flick of his wrist. He gestured to the plates. "I’m just curious to see if you’re actually gonna like Cap’n Crunch berries with shaved coconut and maple."

“I’m gonna love it.” I cut that piece first and popped a small piece into my mouth. It was a little…much. Almost inedible, but I didn’t let Cord know that. “Mmm…delish.”

“Liar.” He laughed and took a tiny bite. His puckered face said it all. “God, that’s gross. You can have the rest.”

Yikes. “Thanks, but I have a lot more samplin’ to do before I can get greedy.”

He just shook his head with a smirk, not buying my story for a second. “Yeah, okay. Whatever you say.”

I did my best to destroy those buns, but I barely got through a bite of each one before feeling full to bursting. Cord tried two of the four and then leaned back to watch me enjoy the rest. When it was clear I couldn’t eat another morsel, Cord stretched and sat forward with his elbows on the table. “How about we pack these up and head home? I’m already feeling my sugar coma, and a nap sounds pretty good right about now.”

“That sounds amazing.” Every bit of that was a fantasy, but napping with my alpha sounded especially wonderful. “Let’s go.”