50. Willow
Chapter fifty
Willow
What started as family dinner ended with me getting ravished on the table by three extremely fit, and overwhelmingly sexy alphas. Last night was wild. So wild, my cheeks heat just from walking past the dining table as I head to the kitchen for my morning coffee.
Pre Boss Pack, I’d normally be up an hour ago, had one video filmed, and be getting ready to start work for the day. Instead, I’m wrapped in a wrinkled bathrobe, my hair a bird’s nest, and my brain slush. And with my pussy gently throbbing from taking two brothers at the same time.
My alphas are hungry animals, but it’s different from anything I’ve experienced before. All the time they’re checking in with me. If anything, it’s like my happiness is their drug—the more pleasure I’m experiencing, the harder they work.
I’ve never had that before.
My previous pack used me, cajoled me, guilted me even, into serving their needs.
And that was before their requests for sex turned into outright demand.
Waking up with the twins either side of me and feeling completely safe was a revelation.
I tiptoed out of the room because I didn’t want to wake them, not because I was afraid of being pulled back into bed.
Mr Shares trots out and stretches in the middle of the room, tail wagging slowly like he’s not fully awake yet either.
“Where’s your new pal?” I ask, giving him a cuddle.
He walks toward the front door. When I let him out, Jock bounds toward us, dirt all over his nose and a goofy look on his face.
“Hello, big boy,” I say, grabbing his head to stop him leaping at me. “You look like you’ve been digging something up.”
He huffs happily in answer, still trying to jump up on me and spreading dirt across the floor.
Outside, the sun’s already warm, and yesterday’s moisture sits in the air, turning things humid. The front gate rolls open, admitting Alessandro. He’s shirtless and sweating, wearing only kicks and shorts, body glistening in the morning light. My alpha jogs up the drive, waving when he spots me.
Coming up the steps, he holds out one of my access remotes. “I borrowed this to get the gate open. Hope you don’t mind.”
I shake my head. “I’ll get access codes for everyone sorted out today.”
He leans in to kiss me, sweat and personal musk mixing in a lovely, active-man concoction. I inhale fully and Alessandro deepens his kiss. When I finally pull back, he grins. “Oh, this is a nice way to start the day.”
I run a finger down his sweaty body. “Hmm, I was thinking the same thing.”
He chuckles and herds me inside.
“Next time, should you take Jock with you?” I ask, staring at the patch of dirt on the floor. “He could use the run.”
“I thought about it, but wanted to ask Joel’s permission,” he admits.
“Oh, fair call.” I head back to the kitchen to look for a dustpan
Alessandro trails after me. “Can I make something for you? Coffee?”
“No, I’m doing it this morning, if that’s okay?” Mostly because I want to show off my skills.
“Coffee made by my omega? I can’t wait.” He sounds genuinely excited.
When I pull out the dustpan, he takes it from my hands and goes back to the entrance, cleaning up what the boxer dragged in.
I get the beans brewing and froth the milk.
Anxiety stirs in my heart when I set the completed coffee in front of Alessandro.
I’ve worked hard on my barista skills but maybe he won’t like it.
Then again, I’m realizing I need to readjust all my expectations.
These alphas don’t mock what I have to give them.
Sure enough, Alessandro’s impressed by my milk pouring skills and his soft coos of praise over the heart shape slide straight to my own soul.
“It’s so beautiful! I cannot believe you made this at home, even though I watched with my own eyes. I thought this was only possible in the café. Such skills, cara mia!”
I get plenty of people praising me online, but it hits different in person. More real.
“Thank you,” I mumble, cheeks heating.
Alessandro places his hands flat either side of the mug on the table. “How can I even drink something so beautiful? Destroy the artwork? No.”
When he shakes his head, I pick up the cup and take a sip, making the froth shift lopsidedly.
“Like that,” I tell him, setting it in front of him. “I can make you another later, or tomorrow morning.”
A gleam enters his dark eyes. “And the day after that?”
I snort and turn away to hide my burning face. He’ll keep asking about the day after that right up until he says “forever.”
“Yes,” I whisper under my breath while finishing off my own cup.
Once I sit down next to him, I ask, “Do you have plans today?”
Alessandro sips his coffee and hums in appreciation. “I need to check if I have work to go to."
The way he phrases that tolls a warning in my head. “You don’t know if you have any?”
He shakes his head. “I discovered yesterday that . . . bad rumors about me are circling this neighborhood.” The alpha’s jaw twitches before he looks up, meeting my gaze. “Saying I tried to harm the person who . . .”
The pain in his eyes twists my belly. I cover his hand. “Alessandro, I don’t believe them.”
He tops my hand with his. “That’s all I need, cara mia. I couldn’t bear if you thought the worst of me.”
I blow out my lips. “People don’t roofie themselves, and I saw how helpless you were.” Squeezing his hand and hoping some of my strength flows into him, I ask, “How do we fight the rumors?”
His Adam’s apple bobs hard. “I do not want to fight, but if I have no work . . .”
I remember that first year alone, when I had no skills, no personal care, not even a home to shower in. No one wanted to hire me, and it ate at my self-worth every day. I lean into his shoulder, hurting with him.
After a moment I growl under my breath. “That’s defamation, Alessandro, and we can prove economic loss if you already had clients booked and they cancel.”
He shrugs. “I do not have the money to fight in court, cara mia. That is how the world goes.”
I pull back and clench my hands in my lap while I think. He doesn’t want to rely on me for money, and I respect that. He’s a gentle, hardworking man who does his best in everything.
“Do you feel up to ringing today’s clients to see if you still have work?” I ask.
He nods.
I sip my coffee, writing a mental list in my head. I teach personal finances for a living, not to mention managing my portfolios. We need to do a financial audit anyway to get a prenuptial in place.
Alessandro brightens, and I can tell he’s doing it for my sake. “You work from home, sì? Can I make you breakfast?”
“That would be nice, but can I have it in an hour?” I lift my coffee mug. “Let this settle first. It also gives me a chance to get a solid hour of focus time in.”
“Of course, cara mia. Whatever you need. Let me walk you to your office.”
I laugh and point. “But it’s right there.”
He arches his brows and offers me his arm.
I shake my head but lean on him as we pad past the kitchen counter and toward my home office. My heart warms with his care, but his pain bothers me. We’re a pack now. He doesn’t need to do everything by himself anymore.
“Oh.” Alessandro stops in the triangular walkway between the kitchen and my office. His gaze latches onto the weather charts framed on the wall. “Now I understand these,” he says, touching the frames gently. “Storms.”
“Yeah. Ones with lightning strikes.”
He turns and cups my face, kissing me gently on both cheeks. “I am sorry, Willow, but I must still show gratitude for your life.”
I snort softly, but no inner sting rises. He has a point, and I just can’t get mad at a man who's being grateful for my life.
“Okay.” He smiles and kisses my palm. “We have arrived at our destination. You go inside, and I’ll find something to cook that Jeremy would approve of.”
I chuckle softly.
The next hour spent at my desk is even more productive than usual. Instead of the occasional noises from the kitchen disturbing me, they motivate me to move through the tasks faster so I can join my alphas.
With speed, I approve the next batch of videos returned from my editor, including the start of my “overseas holiday” and place some buy trades for stocks I’ve been eyeing.
I also find a draft template for a pre-cohabitation agreement so I know what kinds of questions to ask the guys and create a comprehensive list as for things we need to organize if they’re going to live here.
With a bit of luck, the next family meeting won’t derail into sensuality.
Or maybe it won’t be so bad if it does.
When I leave my office, I’m armed with a folder and pen, feeling like a military general about to marshal her troops. The idea makes me giggle.
“Oh, there she is,” Jeremy crows as he spots me. He and the two guys gather around the dining table. “We were just debating whether we needed to send Mr Shares in to rescue you.”
I shake my head as he hooks one arm around my waist and drops a kiss in my lips.
Joel sits at the table, nursing a coffee, and when we make eye contact, he pats his knee. I pop onto his lap for another kiss.
“Good morning, Princess,” he says, voice still thick with sleep.
“Good morning, sleepy head.” When I tousle his short hair, he leans into my touch.
“What’s happening today?” he asks.
“Do you need to go to work?”
He eyes me with a look I can’t quite decipher. “Are you ordering me away?”
My heart skitters in my chest. Did he mean that sending him away stuff literally?
“Well, since we’re all here, I thought we could have a family meeting. A more serious one,” I add, cheeks heating.
“Good idea,” Alessandro says, mouth ticking up. “Since we already set the standard for how they end.”
I hold up one finger in warning. “Not today, thank you very much.”
All three alphas snicker. I pop my fists on my hips around the folder. “Well? Are we going to keep our hands to ourselves today?”
“We’ll try,” Jeremy says earnestly.
Alessandro whines a little. “Cara mia, you torture us. How are we supposed to keep our hands off such a beautiful omega?”
Joel pulls my chair out. “Sit. Eat. We’ll talk after you’ve got food in your belly.”
Alessandro prepared a fruit salad, set out with yogurt topped with cinnamon and honey. He’s also added granola and oatmeal. We manage to keep our conversation G-rated, and the pleasant family atmosphere fills up my heart.
Later, we gather on the couches, and I flip open my folder. “All right, down to business. I thought we could start with a financial audit, so I know what to put in the prenup agreement.”
Jeremy gets his phone out. “Okay, so finances are our omega’s number one priority.”
“I wouldn’t say that, but it is important to me.”
His serious expression slips. “I’m only teasing, Willow.”
I roll my eyes.
Alessandro puts his hand up. “I have a question. A prenup is short for prenuptials, sì? Does that mean you are considering nuptials with us? Maybe it’s my English, but is that marriage?”
The way his eyes light up at the idea has my heart stirring all over again.
I cough into my fist to buy myself a minute. “Well, the term can be used for de facto relationships as well. For dating that turns serious.”
“I’m serious,” he assures.
“Me two,” Joel chimes in.
Jeremy lifts three fingers in silent agreement.
I chuckle. “Can we please stay on topic. Now, let’s talk finances. Jeremy?”
“My truck.” He shrugs. “Oh, and my rent bond of twelve hundred.” He flicks through his phone. “And a grand total of one hundred dollars and fifteen cents. First pay check from Heat Wave pending.”
The look he shoots me over his phone makes my belly flutter.
“And 401k?”
“What’s that?”
My mind blanks. I tally up the numbers in my head and look back at Jeremy. He stares at me blankly. Not joking this time.
“Any retirement fund?” I prod gently. “Shares? Life insurance?”
“Nope.”
Smothering my shock, I turn to Alessandro. “You have a business registration and insurance, yes?”
“Oh, sì. Let me find it.” He scrolls through his emails and shows me his latest registration certificate. And two bank accounts totaling four thousand dollars, most of that in his business line.
When I turn to Joel, he has more information for me. A thriving electrical business, a retirement account that seems low for a successful middle-aged person, half a property, and no investment accounts.
I grip the edge of the couch, a little winded. Of course it’s normal for people to have little to their name. The vast majority of the population live hand to mouth. That’s the entire reason behind why I started Boss Omega—because so many omegas didn’t have the skills to grow their own futures.
While I was so focused on omegas, I missed the fact that just as many betas and alphas were struggling. I massage my temples as I process. Well, it’s not like I was completely oblivious, but maybe because of what happened to me, I just didn’t have the empathy left.
Now that I see my own alphas in this boat I studiously avoided looking at, I’m forced to face facts. They’re all individual people with their own circumstances, not some collective of over-pheremoned muscle bags.
“Willow?” A touch on my knee makes me twitch. Alessandro sinks down beside my couch. “Are you so disappointed that your men have so little? Cara mia, please. I’ll get a second job, I’ll—”
“Shush.” I press my finger to his lips. “I’m not disappointed in you at all.
I’m just opening my eyes to a truth I’ve been avoiding.
” I tug some blank paper out of the back of my folder and slide them across the coffee table.
“Let’s start over. Rather than listing your assets, I want you to write down your biggest goal in life.
Something you really want to achieve or become.
Something that’s so important to you, you won’t stop until you have it. ”
Joel jumps up to grab extra pens. All three guys put ink to paper without hesitation and slide their answers back to me.
Willow.
Marry Willow.
Belong to Willow.
“For the love of—” I mutter, tearing all three sheets down the middle. “You already have me! Something for yourselves!”
The three alpha swap confused glances.
“Seems this isn’t approach going to work.” I shake my head. “If you belong to me, then you’ll do as I say, right?”
I have just the answer, and the idea sparking lifts my entire soul.