Chapter Thirty-OneWes #2
“I understand. When we moved here, a lot of the friends I’d grown up with didn’t stay in touch. When I made friends and then went to a fancy private high school across town instead of the local one, it made things hard sometimes. Leaving university to join the military. It can be tough.”
She nodded and put her arm around me.
“You’ll make friends here. I have a couple of people in mind to introduce you to at work,” I told her. “If you spend any time at the Omega Center, you’re going to end up taking a dance class, joining a book club, or finding a group of friends for spa days.”
“The Center has some interesting offerings. You know, I wouldn’t mind joining a book club.” She finished her cone and threw away her trash.
“My sister and her pack, they’re nice people and their omega makes moon cars or something. Go be friends with them. Annoy Brennan and hold wine night in our hot tub.” I grinned. We loved the ‘sister pack.’
“They seem fun.”
The moon hung heavy in the sky as someone played a romantic song on the trumpet. Taking her in my arms, I swayed back and forth.
“Wes,” she giggled, “what are you doing.”
I took her hand and spun her. “Dancing.”
An elderly couple held each other in the moonlight. A young couple showed off their steps. A dad twirled his bundled-up child in the air.
The song ended, and I took her hand and kissed it.
“Having fun?” I asked.
“I am. Going on a paddle boat with you, seeing your favorite places, this is everything I could want on a date. Ready to go home–or maybe there’s a make-out spot you’d like to show me?” Grace waggled her eyebrows.
“I have ideas. But I’ll show you our make-out spot another time.” Pulling her to me, I nibbled her neck, making her squeal the way I liked. The older couple gave us a fond look.
My dad was out with Lexi. We could go visit my old bedroom. Maybe take it for a spin. Because the make-out spot we’d go to in our dreams had rules about doing what I'd very much what I'd like to do.
But you know what didn’t? My childhood bedroom.
Oh yes. Happy early birthday to me.
We pulled up at my dad’s house. It was an older house that had belonged to my dad’s grandparents. Him having a place for the three of us to live, along with much of his family being in Rockland, had motivated him to move back here after the divorce.
The house was dark, and I texted my sister.
Me
Please keep Dad out for another hour?
Lexi
We’re about to see a movie.
Me
Perfect.
Good. I turned to Grace. “This is where I grew up. Want to see my bedroom?”
“Please.” Her shoulders wiggled happily. She got out and looked up at the roof. “Oh, we sat up there sometimes.”
I took her hand, and I unlocked the door and led her inside.
“Let me give you a tour.” I showed her around the little three-bedroom house. It really hadn’t changed much since I’d moved out to go into the military. Lexi had lived here until after she’d graduated from university, gone through the police academy, and moved in with Katie to start their pack.
“I love it,” Grace told me as she looked at all the photos on the wall of Lexi, my dad, and me.
There were no pictures of my mom out here. I had some, but I’d put them all away. She hadn’t just divorced my dad, she’d left us. It had been a very long time since I’d heard from her. She hadn’t even come to the party Evan and I had to celebrate our mating.
“There’s Lexi’s room.” I pointed to the closed door with stickers on it. “Here’s mine.” I put my hand on the doorknob. Mine had a little sign on it that said Wes’ Room: Keep Out. Lexi, this means you.
I opened my door.
“It’s your room.” Her chest shuddered a little as she took it all in.
“Yeah. While we’ve taken stuff out of our rooms, they’re still about the same. Dad said he never felt the need to change them.”
“That’s nice.” Grace’s brow furrowed, like she’d remembered something unpleasant and sighed.
I kissed her furrowed brow. She was probably remembering how her mom would take all her things–or that they probably made her room into a workout room or gave it to her brother after she left.
My room was cleaner than she’d usually seen it in my dreams, because the bed was made. But a bunch of my sketchbooks were on my desk, probably from when Lexi was looking through them. Also, there was no Mr. Hippo, since he was on Grace’s bed.
I kissed the top of her head. “We spent so much time here when it was too cold for the park. We’d talk. Play games.” I waggled my eyebrows. “Study anatomy.”
It was here where I’d explained sex to her after she’d been so confused after her biology class. I’d shown her how it worked here. We’d tried out my knot in here.
This was also where we’d bonded. I hadn’t just bonded her, she’d bitten me back–on the shoulder, where my military tattoo now was. It just hadn’t left a mark. That was another reason to believe that she had been close to being a full omega.
The last time I’d seen her in my dreams had been here, too.
Scooping her up, I tossed her on the bed, like I had so many times in our dreams.
She giggled. “Are you going to cover me with blankets, too?”
“Of course.” I took off her shoes.
Like I had when she’d had a bad day and needed cuddles and comfort, I piled all the blankets around her, including the ones in my closet.
“Here.” I handed her another one of my stuffed animals to hold since we didn’t have Mr. Hippo.
Taking off my own shoes, I climbed in with her and pulled her to me and began to purr.
Memories of all the times I’d done this hit me. It had been one of my favorite things–to be able to comfort and care for her. She’d been so fucking neglected back home, even before the mistreatment really started.
“I remember this.” Tears pricked her eyes as she looked up at me.
“I love you so much.” I kissed away the tears. “Grace, I’ll love you until the end of the universe.”
“I love you, too, to the end of the universe. I… I never want to leave you again.”
I held her tight to me. “You never have to. Promise.”
She was mine, and I’d never let her go. Ever.