Chapter 39 #2
“Bruises,” Shiloh replies for me. “She’s still a little self conscious of it.”
“That’s true,” I say. “What shoes am I wearing? They need to be closed toed.”
“I have cute loafers for now, and there are boots in the bag,” Shiloh says. “I’m going to make sure Winter, Bellamy, and Ansel are ready.”
“Thank you for fixing my hair,” I say, blending the makeup into my skin.
Ugh, my skin is still a little dry, so I needed to use several skin care products to even it out.
“Anytime,” Shi says, walking out.
“How are you holding up?” Abbott asks.
“Honestly, it’s a swinging pendulum of chaos,” I groan. “Sometimes, I’m okay, and then one thing happens to suck me back into my head. We know nothing good happens there.”
“That hoe is a liar,” he agrees, his lips curling into a smile.
“Exactly!” I exclaim, adding a little blush, bronzer, and lip gloss. “Okay. I’m ready.”
“You’re as gorgeous with wet hair as you are now,” he says, offering his arm for me to take.
He’s a good southern gentleman, and I don’t think he’ll ever change. He’s dressed in a pair of slacks and button up shirt today, but he’s left some of the buttons undone.
Abbott looks good enough to eat. There’s no amount of trauma that’ll make me think any differently.
“Don’t look at me like that,” he grins, grabbing my shoes from the closet.
Ooh, slip ons! Fuck yes. Abbott makes sure my feet are comfortable before straightening.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say, chuckling.
“Mmhmm. Well, I’ll be keeping track of every heated glance and smirk, Cassidy,” he growls. “I will happily attack you once you’re ready. ‘Ow’ isn’t going to be one of the things you say when I fuck you.”
“No, I suppose it’ll be more like ‘fuck me, Alpha’,” I giggle, grabbing my purse and filling it with essentials.
My gun, knife, pepper spray, and lip gloss.
I won’t be paying for anything today, so I’m not worried about money.
“That’s a very interesting conglomerate of items,” Abbott says, his hand on my back as we walk.
“I don’t think I’ll be able to let my guard down for a long time,” I sigh.
“We’re all armed, and I’m teaching Winter and Bell how to use a gun.
I want them armed at all times, even when they go to work.
Beau said he understood that Bellamy couldn’t help going into heat and then being kidnapped, and that he looks forward to seeing him soon,” Abbott says.
“Beau seems to have a soft spot for Bellamy, thank god. I told Bellamy he needed to be able to shoot straight before he goes back, so he’s going to practice after our bonding murders. ”
“We need to file paperwork to declare that they’re our omegas,” I add.
Abbott nods as we begin walking down the stairs.
“When are you going to redo the bond?” he asks me.
“I…”
“Now,” Winter says, at the bottom of the stairs, eavesdropping unapologetically. “I was a good girl and shot a gun, ate lunch, and really want it.”
“Oh, her pouting game is on point,” Abbott groans. His hand is on my elbow now, ready to help if my foot slips.
I can see that his protective instincts are flaring up. He’s never been like this with me. Abbott knows I can handle myself, so he’s never worried about my solo walks before
Now, I’ll be lucky if I can pee by myself. This will be a very interesting pregnancy.
“I can join in if it’ll help,” Bellamy says with a smirk.
“I don’t think my heart could take it,” I say, sighing as I step onto level ground. “Are you sure you want my bite before we leave?”
“I’ll grab a towel,” Shiloh says, hearing me.
“I’m sure,” Winter says.
“Make sure you sit,” Abbott says, grabbing a chair from the foyer and pushing her into it. She makes a face at him, but gets comfortable without a word. “The bite bond could make you dizzy, Winter. Play nice.”
Yep, he’s a bossy little shit, isn’t he?
“I guess since you’ve been a very good girl,” I croon, smiling as I walk closer to her. I enjoy the heated look she gives me and her blush.
I’m not broken, dammit. I can tell the difference between danger and people who love me. It also helps that the men who hurt me are dead.
Strangely, I haven’t had nightmares. I keep waiting for it to happen, but my mind is quiet while I sleep. Bellamy and Winter, on the other hand, they’re still struggling.
Maybe it’s because I lived through one of my biggest nightmares. Having my control taken from me and men using my body against my will has happened to me before, and I know how awful that is. However, not once did my body respond to those men.
At least that’s a small mercy.
“Ready?” I ask Winter.
Giving me a large smile, she nods.
“Ending with the best,” she says. I was her first bond bite funny enough, and now her last.
Here’s to this one lasting forever. A bond breaking medication is fucking evil. Shiloh found out that there’s medical reasons where it would benefit others, but it’s so easy to misuse.
Taking a deep breath to settle myself, I smile at Winter and find a spot on her arm to bite down on. There are three bites up the inner part of her arm, and I think about how pretty they are.
Maybe Shiloh is right about getting them tattooed on ourselves.
Lifting her arm, I carefully angle my body so I won’t have to bend very much. Biting down, I hum in contentment as I break skin and the bond comes flooding back. Winter moans softly, and it’s like coming home.
Our bond never should have been broken to begin with.
Releasing her, I feel peace as I offer my wrist. It’s probably the least bruised part of my body right now.
One of the reasons that Abbott chose the dress he did is because my upper thighs are still black and blue from being shoved against the leather table.
However, I don’t want to think about that. My body protected my omegas the best I could, and that’s what matters.
“Yes you did,” Winter whispers, making me blink in surprise as she bites down on my wrist.
I’m not sure what just happened, but our bond has never included mind reading. I guess it’s yet another thing that I won’t dwell on.
Winter shivers as the bond is complete, and gives me a wide, happy smile as she lifts her face.
“It feels amazing,” I agree. Shiloh cleans up the bite on Winter’s arm which thankfully isn’t bleeding much, and I raise my brow at Bellamy.
Grinning, he comes over to hug me. Burrowing his face in my neck, he breathes in my scent.
“Are you getting our bites tattooed as well?” he asks.
“I was just thinking about that,” I admit. “I want to. My mother can get fucked.”
“Oh, I’d rather not see that,” Shiloh says, shuddering.
“Don’t gag, Shi! I think I’m becoming a sympathetic gagger,” Winter groans.
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” he says, smoothing her hair back. “Sure you want to go for a walk?”
“It’s like I have no energy but also need to move,” she says in annoyance.
“Maybe you should try to nap in the car when Henri picks us up later,” he soothes.
Shi is definitely good with Winter.
“She’s going to be impossible,” Bellamy says with a smile. “Winter likes to be able to do everything.”
Thankfully, Shiloh is distracting Winter and she doesn’t hear that. Eyes sparkling with mischief, he keeps an arm around me while lifting the wrist to his lips to bite me. It’s kind of romantic as I lean into his body, and I watch as he completes the bond while maintaining eye contact with me.
“Fuck that’s hot,” Ansel mutters. He’s been suspiciously absent up until now. Knowing him, he was cleaning up so the house would be tidy when we left.
Bellamy kisses the bite, making me shiver due to how sensitive the area is, and then he offers his wrist to me.
Finding an open space near the crook of his elbow, I complete the bond with excitement, finding that everything is as it should be.
Abbott told me that his eyes went back to normal when his bonds were broken, but now, they all have a white ring around their pupils, regardless of who they completed the bond last with.
I suppose that’s because of Bellamy’s reaction to the bond, and the fact that his eye turned white to match Winter’s. The metaphysical world doesn’t like when people fuck with fate.
Their gazes are much more intense now with their mismatched eyes, and just intensifies how beautiful they both are.
“I feel so much better,” I sigh, almost feeling boneless as I lean into Bellamy’s side.
“Good,” he murmurs. “Look at us, all responsible and shit.”
Abbott snorts as he shakes his head.
“Shh. I think we’ve thrown responsibility away, Bellamy,” he says. “Are we ready to go?”
“Yes,” I say, straightening. “How’s the weather? Wasn’t it supposed to rain later?”
“I just looked outside. It’s pretty out still,” Ansel says, opening the front door slowly before looking outside.
We’re all on edge to some degree. I don’t want to move. It would be easier to simply kill everyone who comes for us instead.
I walk outside, smiling as I see the sun is shining, and begin to slowly walk down the stairs while Abbott locks up. I’m still in pain, I’m just currently sucking it up.
“Abbott, do you have any of Cassidy’s pain meds?” Bellamy asks as I turn at the bottom of the stairs.
“I don’t like them,” I groan.
I know they’re safe to take while pregnant, but they make me kind of fuzzy.
“Take one, and you can join Winter in her nap,” Abbott suggests. “I can see how stiffly you’re holding your body.”
Pulling a plastic baggy from his pocket, he opens it and pulls out a white pill.
“You’re the perfect drug dealer,” I tease him.
“Cassidy,” Ansel chuckles as one of our neighbors walks by with wide eyes.
“They’re legal,” I complain.
“Open, Troublemaker,” Abbott says, coming toward me with the pill in between his fingers.
“Always,” I say, parting my lips so that he can pop it between them.
One of us typically brings water, and Shiloh hands me the bottle so I can take a sip to wash it down.
“Alright then, I guess now we’re ready,” I say, making a face.
Yuck. I hate taking pills.
“Ugh, quick. Someone distract me,” I complain, as we begin to walk.
“Birthday plans,” Abbott says, as if that just popped into his mind. “I need to make some reservations.”
“Whose birthday?” Winter asks.
“Yours,” I say gently.
Winter blinks as she tries to orient herself on the calendar before shaking her head.
“Wow, that went fast,” she mutters.
“It’s in four days,” Bellamy says, looking equally surprised.
“What are things you want to do for your birthday? The tattoo is on the back burner for a little longer,” Shiloh says.
“The museum is on the table still for your birthday,” Abbott adds.
“Ugh, I actually met Avery at the museum,” Winter sighs, shuddering as we walk. “She was in the bathroom washing her hands.”
“What the fuck is up with that creepy girl and goddamned bathrooms?” I ask, shaking my head. “Did she ruin the art museum for you?”
“Surprisingly, no,” Winter says. “I’d still like to go back and explore.”
“Me too,” Bellamy says. “I kind of want to try paintball art. We can cover the floors with newspaper and shoot the canvas in front of us with paintballs! Is that too violent?”
“Ahh, not for us,” Shi snorts. Bellamy grins as he remembers we’re going to kill people today, and it’s just adorable. “It’s a great alternative to shooting each other with paintballs.”
“I’m not in any shape to get hit with those things,” I admit. “It’s a lot of fun though. I’m in. So we have our morning and afternoon planned. Food in between?”
“I really want breakfast for dinner,” Winter admits. “It was one of my favorite things to do before my parents died. It was so simple, but Aunt Matilda had this serious issue with food being outside of its specific time.”
“I think she knew it was our thing, and made it a big deal because she didn’t want us to have it anymore,” Bellamy says gently.
“Breakfast for dinner it is,” Ansel says immediately. “There’s a really good diner we could go to for breakfast, but will the smell of food in such a close proximity trigger your nausea?”
“Probably,” Winter groans. “I love this baby, but could they maybe give me a break, please?”
Abbott’s arms wrap around Winter while he walks behind her, and he’s tall enough that he can look down at her body while he holds her belly. My lips twitch in amusement, wondering what he has up his sleeve.
“Be nice to your mama, Little One. She’s got all of this work to do, and you’re not making it easy,” he growls, kissing Winter’s cheek. “Probably won’t work, huh?”
Giggling, she shrugs. “It’s worth a try,” she admits.
“Hmm. Okay, I’ll make crepes for breakfast,” Ansel decides. “I can make sure to air the kitchen out really well. It doesn’t look like it, but we have a cute little backyard we can eat in. The high shrubs give us lots of privacy.”
“That sounds nice,” Winter agrees.
“It’s been awhile since we’ve done a projector outside, but it could be fun. We could watch Shakespearean movies outside. It shouldn’t be loud enough for anyone to complain, either, because there’s just a carriage passageway there,” Shiloh adds.
“I’m excited,” Bellamy admits. “This’ll be fun.”
Sighing happily, we walk to the taco stand, and I find myself looking to the future. It’s all happening so fast, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing.
I need the good things to hold onto after the horrors of the past.