22. Chapter Twenty Two
Chapter Twenty Two
T he last thing I expected to come from my Alphas was that they are a part of a Mafia. Let alone one of them destined to become the next Don.
My knowledge of the underground is limited. I know that my father has dabbled here and there but other than that, that's it.
It makes sense as to why his reaction to Theo’s last name was so dramatic. I didn’t even catch onto that during our confrontation in the parking garage. I slowly keep connecting more dots. Conversations behind closed doors that I just happened to overhear. Men that would come to visit my father. Ones that he was desperate to impress.
There is so much more to the world that I have been completely oblivious to, or rather sheltered from. It makes me feel juvenile. Innocent. Dumb.
I don’t want that for myself.
I want to be able to stand on my own. Jax, Ledger and Theo are such big personalities. Of course they are, they are Alphas. I don’t want to fade into the background though. I want to stand next to them as equals .
I was honest when I said to Theo that I wanted to know and understand this part of his life. It's what the three of them deserve.
They deserve for me to give them the chance. It also is incredibly interesting to me. I want to know the nitty gritty details. The going ons of a Mafia and what the life entails.
I’ve already asked for the guys to help me learn how to fight; to stand up for myself. This will just give me a bit of an extra edge, I guess.
Something I know I desperately need.
It broke my heart when Theo deflated with the thought of me not wanting to be a part of his life completely.
Crawling across the nest, I climb into his lap. He looks up at me in surprise but doesn’t stop me from closing the space between us.
We are both still naked but I ignore the lack of clothing. This isn’t about that. I just want Theo to know that I am here. That I accept him no matter how he comes to me.
He is my Alpha and already, I am head-over-heels for him.
I can accept his warts, just as he accepts mine.
I tuck my head into the crook of his neck, breathing in his scent that instantly brings me peace.
I feel Theo as he mimics me, putting his face into the crook of my neck, his lips trailing over his mating mark.
“Thank you, Kennedy.”
I kiss his neck in reply, smiling as he gently lays us down. He doesn’t move me from his chest nor do I go to move. There is every chance for us to take our current position further, but right now I know that we both need this.
Skin against skin.
An Alpha and Omega just simply being; comforting each other .
One supporting the other when it's clear that they need it.
While sex with my Alphas is everything and more, being able to just exist with them like this, brings me a different kind of pleasure.
It's the emotional kind. The kind where I can feel our bond strengthening. The knowledge that we will be there for each other even when the times are trying.
He is mine and I am his.
I move my head to rest against his chest. The thumping of his beating heart lulls me into a trance-like state.
I sigh as his hand continues to rub over my back.
My eyes close on their own. After all of the up and down emotions of the day, exhaustion slowly begins to overcome me.
Each thump of Theo’s heart is like counting sheep. My own personalised lullaby.
A hand reaches out and begins threading their fingers through my hair, only making me relax even further into the Alpha underneath me.
I instantly know who it is.
Jax.
Our bond thrums happily in my chest. Each strand hums in delight, especially now that I can tell Ledger has come closer to us as well.
It's only moments that I get to enjoy the gentle touches before sleep claims me yet again. Except this time, I know that my three Alphas follow along with me.
The first thing I feel as I wake is immeasurable heat. Sweat covers every inch of my skin.
I try to escape the warmth but I am weighed down to the bed. Opening my eyes, I find two Alphas using me as pillows.
It's clear that we have drastically moved positions during our nap. I’m laying flat on my back, Theo curled in on one side of me with Jax curled on my otherside. Looking over, I find Ledger wrapped around him.
All three of my Alphas look adorable as they slumber. It's refreshing to see such big men curled up the way they are during sleep.
I know that there's no way that I will be able to get out of the jumbled limbs without rousing at least one of them. I don’t want to wake them but my bladder screams at me and I know that I have to move. Very carefully I begin to remove the limbs crossed over my body.
Theo grumbles and I freeze half way through moving his arm. He mumbles something unintelligible before rolling onto his back.
I blow out a breath, thankful that he rolled over on his own accord. I turn to face Jax who is still fast asleep. I know that moving him will be no easy feat.
It takes me a good ten minutes to move completely out of Jax’s arms.
Sighing, I finally make my way out of the nest and into the bathroom. Relieving myself, I rub my hands over my tired eyes.
For the first time in three days, it feels like I finally have a moment to myself. A moment that I can attempt to process what has happened.
Finding my scent matches.
Being claimed and marked by one of those matches.
Being welcomed into their home and spoiled by them .
Added being an exhibitionist to my resume.
Confronting my father with the help of my mates.
Losing my virginity.
Putting my schooling years behind me once and for all.
Finding out the truth of what my father put me through.
Being told that I will have a heat and have the chance of having children.
Being claimed and marked by my other two Alphas.
Oh. And the Mafia thing.
It's a lot. An overwhelming amount of information and emotions to process. I don’t think I would have been able to get through these past days without my Alphas by my side. They have been my lifeline.
It's strange how quickly I have become dependent on them. How quickly I have given myself over to them.
Is it because I have been starved of this kind of care and affection that the moment I have been given it, I’ve clinged onto it?
It's hard to allow myself to believe that this isn’t all some kind of smoke screen. Some sick joke that I have been pulled into. I’m just blindly putting my trust into the Gods. Hoping and praying with everything that I am that they wouldn’t match me with Alphas that would want to hurt me.
Over the years, I have become fairly confident in trusting my intuition. I have become used to the creeping eyes of my father’s men. Especially Derrick. The way my skin would crawl as they leered at me, their touch making me feel queasy even now.
I could always tell the types I should stay away from and so far, my intuition has kept me safe. Well, as much as I could.
There hasn’t been a single red flag or warning light go off in any of my interactions with them. Not even when Jax claimed me during the middle of class.
They have been incredible with me.
Even amongst all of the ups and downs, I feel like they have kept me above water for the most part.
I walk over and turn on the shower, stepping in and sighing in relief as the water trickles over me. Standing under the spray, I close my eyes and allow myself to let go of the bullshit from the past few days.
I need to let go of it. Holding onto so much hatred will eat me alive. While I don’t think that I will ever let go of what my father did to me, I need to allow myself to grow. To not forever be weighed down by him and what he did to me.
What matters to me now is my future. My future with my Alphas. Which feels surreal to think.
I have Alphas. Me. Insane.
I gasp as hands grip my arms. My fight or flight kicks in and I lash out, kicking whoever it is between the legs. A gasped “fuck” and a groan follows as I step out of the water and quickly wipe my eyes.
Looking down, I find a bent over Theo clutching his junk. I curse, my stomach dropping as I rush towards him.
“Theo, oh my god! I’m so sorry! Are you okay? Oh God, of course you aren’t okay! I’m so sorry. Do you want me to get you some ice? Do we need to go to the doctor?”
I feel tears spring to my eyes so I grab his face and lift it up. He is gritting his teeth but there is a slight smile to his face.
“You have one hell of a kick, love.”
I sigh, deflating as I rest back on my feet, “I’ m so sorry, Theo.”
He shakes his head as he slowly stands up. Still in my crouched position, I come face to face with the dick I just practically pulverised. Giving me a hand, Theo helps me stand back up.
“Don’t be sorry, baby. I’m proud of that. You have one hell of a kick behind you. I think you are well and truly ready for some training.”
My eyebrows shoot up, “Really?”
My ball shot was cheap. I not only had my eyes closed but was also in a vulnerable position. Theo was also not expecting it. I’m sure given the opportunity, I would not stand a single chance in a proper sparring session.
“Of course! We will have you fighting like the badass Omega you are in no time.”
It feels like my heart blossoms at Theo’s words. I don’t know if I will be as badass as he thinks, but I owe it to myself to at least give it a go.
Theo brings me into his arms. I have to bend my neck to look up at him, his six-foot-threeheight towering over me.
“How are you feeling, my love?”
I take mental note of my entire body, “A bit sore but that's it.”
Judging by the look on his face, he isn’t happy with that fact. It’s not surprising that I am sore. I took all three of them earlier. Knotted by two of them. That's no easy feat for anyone, let alone a newly mated Omega.
“How are you feeling about everything else?”
His voice is a bit lower this time. Like he doesn't want to trigger me. It's a good thing too because I feel a spark of anxiety in my chest at his words .
“I can’t pretend that I am okay because I’m not, but I am getting there.”
Theo tucks a strand of hair behind my ear as I place my hands on the smooth planes of his chest.
“Having you three has made dealing with everything so much easier.”
Theo’s chest rumbles as he grips me tighter, “That's what we are here for, Kennedy. I want you to always feel like you can lean on us. No matter what it is. Day or night. It's what we are here for.”
My heart soars as I look up at him. His eyes are filled with so much earnest, there's no doubt that he is telling me nothing but the truth.
It’s hard to describe the feeling of having someone that wants to be there for me as much as Jax, Ledger and Theo do. Nothing has been too much for them.
Through the tears, they have been here.
Through the drama, they have been here.
I wonder just when I will get used to this.
Theo distracts me as he grabs a pump of soap on a washcloth and begins washing me. The moment is so gentle and tender. There's nothing sexual about the moment. It's simply just him taking care of me. Ensuring that all of my needs are taken care of.
Once he is done, I grab the cloth off him, grabbing some more soap before returning the favour.
It also gives me a bit more of an opportunity to take in Theo. His skin is smooth and completely free of blemishes. It's hard to not get lost in the hard planes of his pecs and abs.
He is absolute perfection .
Moving away from his chest, I drop the cloth, hearing it splat to the floor. I soap up both of my hands and begin rubbing my hands over his arms. Getting down to his forearms I trail my fingers over the veins extruding from his skin.
My breath hitches in a surprising way. My core clenches as I admire them. I’m sure my scent spikes through the vanilla and coconut scent of the body wash.
I never thought that forearms would be attractive but God damn. This shit is straight up porn.
Theo chuckles, shocking me out of my trance-like state.
“Are my forearms that good, baby?”
I feel my cheeks blush as I look away from him, embarrassed over being caught out. It's not like I was being inconspicuous. He was quite literally watching my internal freak out over his arm.
Reaching out, Theo grabs my face in his hands, directing my attention back to him.
“My arms are available for your viewing pleasure any time, my love.”
I chuckle, unable to stop from finding the humour in his words even though there is a hint of innuendo.
“Come on, we better get out before we are in here for hours.”
I note the hint of disappointment in Theo's voice, knowing that he would have gladly stayed in the shower with me for the rest of the day. I don’t dare let myself go down that trail of thought. If my scent spikes, there's no way Theo and I will be getting out of here until we are done.
Once I have redressed, I head down stairs. I hear voices along with the most tantalising smell coming from the kitchen. My stomach growls, reminding me that I didn’t get to finish my late breakfast. Looking outside, I find the sun slowly disappearing behind the trees .
Shit, no wonder I am so hungry.
Surprise fills me as I find all three of my Alphas crowded around the island bench. I didn’t expect to see both Ledger and Jax in here as well, assuming that they were still asleep in the nest.
“Hey, Angel. Feeling better?” Jax asks as he comes to stand beside me. He leans down and gives my cheek a gentle kiss. I lean into him as I inhale his scent, allowing the peace he provides to wash over me.
“I will be okay. It's been a rough couple of days.”
Jax’s eyes sadden, “I’m sorry, Kennedy. If I could go back and change things to make all of this better for you, I would in a heartbeat. I hope you know that.”
A spike of regret filters through the bond. I look at all three of my Alphas, surprised to find similar looks on their faces.
“No, don’t you dare hold any regret for how our story has begun. What makes it so special to me is that it is ours.”
“How the fuck did we end up with such an incredible Omega?” Ledger asks as he looks at me with so much love and wonder.
“We don’t deserve you, love. But God, am I thankful that you are mine.”
Jax sends a look of daggers at Theo, “Ours.”
His growl sends shivers through my system and it takes everything I am to hold back a whimper.
Refusing to allow us all to get caught up in our bodies, I rush towards the food spread out on the bench. It seems like one of the guys at least had half a brain to put our food away before it all went bad. I find the same burger that I was eating earlier that has been heated up. I take a bite, groaning as the flavours burst on my tongue .
This. This is what I needed. A delicious greasy burger to distract me from my Alphas that allow me to forget about everything else.
They each chuckle before taking a spot around the island bench. We each stuff our faces with food until the majority is gone. I knew that Alphas, especially younger ones, ate a lot, but watching Jax, Ledger and Theo eat was impressive. It makes sense now as to why they practically ordered the majority of the menu.
They seemed disgruntled that I was barely able to fit my burger and a few fries in before I called it time. There was no way I could have even attempted to eat as much as they did.
Once the guys have finished their meal, we sit in silence for a few moments. I think along with me, the guys need their own time to process everything that has gone on. Their lives have been turned upside down as well. It hasn’t just been me.
Theo eventually breaks the silence which doesn’t surprise me at all. Out of the three of them, it's obvious that he is the unofficial leader.
“I was thinking that maybe we could take you to meet mine and Jax’s fathers. It would also give us a chance to show you around the compound and give you a bit more of an understanding of our lives?”
I can hear the nerves in Theo’s voice. I know that it's a lot for him to bring me into his life like this. Allowing himself to open up to someone and risk being hurt. It's intimidating. I only know that because that's how I feel right now. It makes me want to do everything in my power to protect him from it. To make him feel safe like he has me.
“I would love to.”