Chapter 39
“Isn’t it too early for this?” I asked as Jazz guided me into Baby Nest, a spin-off of Best of Nests.
“Most definitely, but you’re lucky I was able to restrain myself for a whole week.
We could’ve gone the day after the cookout if we were doing what I really wanted.
” Jazz beamed, her braids coiled into a bun on top of her head, making her look like a queen with the gold satin scrunchie holding it all in place.
“But we don’t have to buy anything. We can just look and get inspiration. ”
I wasn’t about to argue with that. I loved looking at baby stuff, even though it felt surreal to be looking for mine. At the very least, I could hunt down some cute stuff for Charlotte and Ava.
Jazz gravitated to the baby clothes and held up a tiny dress covered in rainbow dinosaurs. “I’m so jealous of kids now. These are all way cuter than when I was little. I’m warning you now, your kids are going to be the best-dressed babies out there.”
“I’m totally cool if you want to dress them. You have better taste than I do.”
“Nothing wrong with athleisure,” Jazz quipped, taking in my raspberry pink ensemble. “I’m not a ‘beauty is pain’ kind of gal unless I’m sitting for my braids. Comfort is most important, especially for omegas.”
“Madison?” I perked at the sound of my name, turning to see Farrah on the other side of the baby clothes.
“Hey, Farrah.” I smiled and waved, gesturing for her to come over. “Farrah, this is Jazz, one of my new sisters. Jazz, this is Farrah, one of my class instructors.”
They bypassed a handshake and went in for a hug. “No introductions needed, I know Jazzy.”
“Oh, sorry, I shouldn’t have assumed.”
“It’s cool.” Jazz tucked her hands into her pockets. “You’re taking classes from Fare?”
“I’m not very good at it, but yeah.”
Farrah tutted. “You’re doing just fine. No one expects you to be stage-ready your first time.”
I tilted my head, glancing between Jazz and Farrah. “How do you know each other?”
Jazz pursed her lips before sighing. “You can’t say anything to anyone.”
“Lips are zipped.” I mimed the action and grinned at her.
“Farrah and I work together at Les Bijoux.”
“Oh my god, really? That’s so cool!”
“Mama doesn’t know and I’d like to keep it that way. She thinks I work as a gymnastics coach. I’m pretty sure Amara might suspect, but none of the family knows for sure.”
“I won’t tell a soul.”
Jazz’s shoulders dropped with relief. “Good. I didn’t think you’d be a snitch, but better safe than sorry.”
“I get it. I had to jump through a lot of hoops in my old life.”
“It’s not that I think Mama would be mad, or disappointed, but I don’t know how she would react and I’m too nervous to find out.
She’s pretty chill about a lot of things, you kind of have to be with six omega daughters in the family.
I just worry she’s got a conservative streak in there somewhere and we just haven’t found what will make it jump out.
I don’t want her baby girl performing on stage in very little clothing to be what does it. ”
I nodded, absorbing her concerns. “That’s totally fair. I’ll keep your secret as long as you want me to.”
“You’re part of the sister squad now, so I would expect nothing less.” She held out her pinky finger to me. “Swear a sister’s promise.”
I only knew what a pinky swear was because of movies, but that had been enough education to know I had to hook mine around hers. “I pinky swear your secret is safe with me.”
“So, what’s everyone doing in the baby store?” Farrah asked.
“This one is making me an auntie in about eight months,” Jazz announced. “I came to snoop.”
“Congratulations!” Farrah beamed at me. “I know you were wondering. I’m glad you found out for sure.”
“You’re not here for you, are you?” Jazz asked her. “I’d hate to lose you at work.”
“No, not for me. Razi is having another baby in a few months and the hand-me-downs are getting a little worn, so I’m being a good cousin and getting new stuff for the baby, plus a new outfit for each of the kids so they don’t feel left out.”
“That’s so sweet,” I gushed. “Why wouldn’t you be able to work if you were pregnant?”
“They don’t really recommend flinging around as hard as we do if you’re pregnant,” Farrah explained.
“I wouldn’t be able to do more than half my job, and it wouldn’t be safe for me to try working with an altered center of gravity.
Thankfully, though, Razi is the only one adding to the family ranks, and I remain the childless spinster auntie who shows up with treats and goes home to sleep in her quiet apartment. ”
Jazz laughed. “I love when we twin.”
“I might be proven wrong,” I said carefully, “but I had a painfully quiet home the last few years, and I’m tired of it. I can’t wait to have a whole family living together.”
“You looked overstimulated as hell at the cookout,” Jazz pointed out.
“But that was strangers. It’s different if I know everyone, so the next time there’s a family event, I won’t be so high-strung.”
Jazz nodded. “Fair enough. Let’s pick out some cute stuff together.”
Growing up, I’d craved sisterhood. Sometimes it was to have someone to confide in about all the bullshit of my childhood, sometimes it was wishing someone was around to protect me, but that always made me feel guilty. Loneliness was better than anyone else experiencing that struggle with me.
But now I was an adult—I was out of that situation and free to embrace what life offered.
Today, it was offering time with Jazz and Farrah, gossip about their coworkers, and a mountain of adorable baby clothes we’d painstakingly selected together.
I had chosen matching sets for Charlotte’s triplets with the same design but different colors so they were easy to tell apart, and I got them in every size up to two years, since I was pretty sure everyone would be buying for the baby phase.
I picked out some for Ava as well. She was only having one baby as far as I was aware, so that offered a lot more selection.
“We should go bother Jax at work after this,” Jazz suggested. “Is Leo in today?”
“He should be. He’s there most days.”
“I’m glad they picked Jax to step up while the bosses are on leave. It’s been really good to see him thrive under the responsibility, but they should definitely look into hiring some more folks.”
“They’re working on it, aren’t they?”
“They’re hiring more performers, but they’ll need someone for at least a few months between Leo going on parental leave and the big bosses coming back. I’m sure he could probably hold down the fort, but I’d rather he have support.”
“That’s fair. We have a very long list of stuff to do before the baby gets here, so I’ll be sure to add it on.”
“Good. He’s bad at asking for help, so he hasn’t said anything about wanting the bosses to hire an additional manager.
If Leo knows, too, there’s a much higher chance of it happening.
” Jazz turned to Farrah. “Do you want to come bug my twin with us? I might have to pretend I don’t really know you, but we can get treats on the way. ”
“Sure. I could do with a proper break day, and if I go home, I’ll just end up doing chores.”
I was giddy at the prospect of a proper girl’s day. Farrah took her own car, following us to get some fancy iced tea before swinging by the arena.
Jax let us into the back, hugging his sister, then me. He didn’t reach for Farrah, looking at his sister for guidance. I took over introductions, explaining Farrah was the instructor of a class I was taking and I really wanted to show her the horses.
As if sensing my presence, Leo emerged from his office. I melted straight into his embrace.
“I missed you.” He kissed me softly, then turned to greet Jazz and Farrah. “Nice to see both of you, too. You can go ahead and visit Eclipse if you want. I have a call in about five minutes to sort out some contracts, but it shouldn’t take long. Feel free to hang out.”
“Will do.” I grabbed Farrah’s and Jazz’s hands, tugging them toward the stables. “Come meet my giant baby boy.”
We were cooing over Eclipse when some sort of commotion had all of us turning. Knocks thundered against the door, but no one moved to answer it. The horses danced in their stalls and Jax sighed. “Let me check on whoever is freaking the fuck out over there.”
We crowded together and I held my breath as Jax opened the door, a red-faced Tyler flanked by Jenna and her pack standing on the other side.
Tyler’s gaze darted around Jax and landed squarely on me.
Panic flooded my system and I dug my fingers into Jazz’s arm.
Alve’s anxiety shot down the bond, and my phone started buzzing in my purse.
“I knew I’d find you here,” Tyler growled, shoving past Jax. The men behind him moved into place, cornering Jax, but thankfully not touching him. “Where is he?”
Jazz and Farrah held on tight when I tried to step in front of them to face him.
“Back off, fucker,” Jazz snapped and focused on me. “Maddie, who is this?”
“My ex.”
Neither of the women knew the full story, but they were both instantly protective anyway.
“Any of you assholes touch my brother and I will cut your balls off with a butter knife,” Jazz growled.
“Baby, relax.” Jenna scampered after Tyler, but he held out a hand, halting her. “Excuse me? What the fuck is up with that hand?”
Tyler huffed, moving forward and ignoring Jenna. I vaguely knew her pack, but I didn’t understand why they were here. If Jenna was having an affair with Tyler, shouldn’t they be upset about that?
“It’s okay,” I said to Jazz and Farrah, even though it wasn’t remotely. I slipped between them and stood firm. “Tyler, what do you want?”
“Proof. You’re ruining our dinner reservation, by the way.”
“How am I ruining anything? You’re the one who came in here. Proof of what?”
“Am I supposed to just ignore when you traipse by giggling on the way to see the man you left me for?”
His words were a slap in the face that only made me more confused. “What the fuck are you talking about? I didn’t leave you for anyone. You left me on the side of the road.”
“And you were supposed to come home.”
He possessed a level of audacity that didn’t even exist in this reality.
“In what universe would I come home after that? You don’t get to treat me like garbage and think I’ll come crawling back.”
Tyler rolled his eyes. “Sure could’ve fooled me.”
My spine stiffened, hackles raised. “Go fuck yourself.”
Leo bolted from the office, sprinting to get between Tyler and I. “This is private property, and you’re not welcome here.”
“She was private property, too, but that didn’t stop you from getting your dick in her, did it?”
Shock rippled through everyone. Panic twisted my stomach and Leo’s fury didn’t make it any easier to contain. “Did you just call me property? What the hell is the matter with you?”
“We both know that pussy was bought and paid for.” Tyler looked at me with such disdain, it was a struggle not to wilt and go hide in Leo’s office. “You knew exactly what you were doing with me.”
Leo looked ready to commit a murder. “Tyler, get the fuck out of here. You’ve done enough damage to her life, and if you say anything else, I’m going to break your nose.”
My ex scoffed. “You’re such a fucking joke, Madison. You go on about how you don’t need alphas, but then I hear from Jenna you’re out on the town with four of them?”
“Get. Out,” Leo snapped, his growl low and threatening.
“I told you, didn’t I?” Tyler continued as if Leo hadn’t spoken. “You can’t get by without an alpha. I bet you presented for the first fucker who looked at you, didn’t you? You’ll use anyone to get what you want.”
The moment Leo put his hands on Tyler to direct him out, Tyler swung, the shock of pain radiating down the bond as Leo stumbled back. I jumped in front of him and Leo turned me right around, keeping himself as a shield between us.
“You’re lucky I didn’t report you to the cops,” Tyler snarled. “Saved me the bullshit trouble of moving you out at least. I can’t believe you’re such a fucking coward.”
“Baby…” Jenna tried again to placate him.
“Jenna, shut up. I’m busy.”
“Hey, man, that’s not fucking cool,” one of Jenna’s pack said, finally coming to intervene. “You don’t get to talk to her like you do the home-wrecker.”
“Home-wrecker?” The word tumbled off my lips. “You can’t keep telling people I cheated when you were the one fucking around on me.”
“Get him out of here or I’m pressing charges,” Leo demanded, looking to Jenna’s pack to do something actually useful.
“Come on,” the closest one begged. “Forget her. Don’t make me rethink getting you registered.”
I blinked. Registered? Realization dawned, hot and sharp.
Tyler was joining their pack.
For Jenna.