11. Ezra
Ezra
J ames grabs a fist full of Luna’s panties and shoves them in the top drawer.
“I’m in over my fucking head,” he says, just fisting the different lace and cotton into the top drawer.
I shut the closet door behind me after hanging up her last dress and stand in front of him. “You know if you’re not comfortable, this goes no further.”
“Yeah, like that’s not a fuck ton of pressure.”
“James.” He sighs and shoos me off with his hand.
“I like her, I like this idea. I think she’ll be good for us.”
I pet his hair, and he pushes my hand away, and I sigh. “You promise to communicate with us if you feel uncomfortable?”
“Yes.”
“So assuring,” I say, trying to grab him for a hug, but he runs away. “You better get back here.”
He stops in the foyer, and I nearly run into his back. Luna is wearing yoga pants and a tight white T-shirt. Her face is done up in pretty light makeup, and Ian’s hand is on her back.
“Hi,” she says, waving a hand and blushing.
“Hey, Luna girl.”
“Hi,” James says.
“Luna’s decided to come and stay with us,” Ian announces like he didn’t make us pack up all her shit and put it in the bedroom he had made for her.
“Did he have to rip you out of one of those cages?” James says, and I nudge him with my elbow.
“Yes, actually,” she says, giving James a small smile. It does something to me. I haven’t seen James and Luna interact much, but it’s almost like they already have a mutual understanding of one another.
“Been meaning to try an amateur night or something,” James says, and Ian glares at him. James laughs and waves. “I’ll be outside if you need me,” he says, and Luna looks affronted.
“James likes a lot of alone time, don’t take it personally,” I tell her, and she nods. She looks around the house with a curious expression.
“Would you like a grand tour?”
She nods, and I hold out my hand, and she takes it eagerly.
Her hand is soft and small against my own, and I can’t help but to smile.
I fucking love James with every fiber of my being.
I love his jokes, and when he does give affection, it feels like I’ve won the lottery.
But the truth of the matter is, I’m a needy ass Alpha.
I want an Omega in my lap 24/7, and that’s just not who James is.
I love him for who he is, but our love languages are so different.
I know he feels the pressure to be what we need, but I wonder if Luna is that missing piece.
That can take the pressure from James, so he can feel more independent but also give Ian and I the needy Omega that we can’t help but to crave.
There’s a lot of stress in making this dynamic work and hope that this is what everyone needs in the situation. But I can’t help but to be hopeful. I want everyone in this house right now to be the happiest they can be. And with Luna’s small hand in mine, I feel like it might just be.
“Ezra?” she asks, and I realize I haven’t moved from the spot.
“Sorry, love.” We walk through the foyer into the large kitchen. “Kitchen, any food you’d like ordered, you can just write down on the pad on the counter.”
“Okay,” she says, sliding a hand against the countertop, clearly feeling a bit out of sorts about how she got here. She looks around, and her lashes fall against her reddened cheeks as she shakes her head. I squeeze her hand, and she looks up at me.
“What’s wrong?”
She shakes her head and forces a smile. “I’m happy to be here.”
“That’s not what I asked, love.”
“She didn’t care,” she says on a sigh.
“Well, we do.”
She gives me a real smile, then I take her through the rest of the downstairs, showing her how to work the TV and how the security system works. She glances out the patio doors, glancing at the pool and James’ greenhouse.
“You can use the pool at any time, but I would prefer if someone was out there with you.”
Her brows furrow, and she tilts her head. “I can swim. I’m actually a great swimmer.”
“I don’t doubt it. I would just worry,” I say shyly, and she smiles and nods her head.
“The greenhouse?” She points, and I nod my head.
“That’s James’. I’m sure when he’s ready, he will give you the grand tour.”
She clears her throat, and I look down at her. She’s such a tiny little thing. “You’re sure that he wants me here?”
“James is a hard one to get to know. But I promise you, having you here is something we talked about as a pack, and you are wanted. By all of us.” She blushes and nods her head as I put her hand back in mine and take her upstairs.
From left to right, I point to each door down the hall.
“James’, mine, Ian’s, and your room is the last on the left.
” I didn’t take her into the basement because I figured that would be a little bit much for now.
We’ll save that surprise for another time.
I think she’s had to take in enough as it is.
Her hand slightly shakes as she turns the knob to her bedroom, and the light gasp that catches in her throat makes me smile. “How… When?” she says, shaking her head.
“We wanted you to be comfortable, is it okay?”
“It’s more than okay,” she says, touching the light purple comforter and taking in all the feminine touches in the room. When she opens her closet, she gasps again. “Ian wasn’t lying, you really did pack up all my stuff from home.”
“Everything’s put away, I hope that’s okay.”
She nods her head and smiles. “Thank you, Ezra.” Her voice is soft and hearing her say my name sends a tingle down my spine. I don’t want to rush things; it’s clear she’s been overloaded. No matter how badly I want to scoop her up and put her on my lap.
“Do you need anything, love? Do you want to be alone, or we could watch a movie?”
Her smile is radiant as she nods her head. “Let me get changed first?”
“Sure thing, I’ll be in the living room.” She nods as I turn and give her some space. Even though I want to be all up in her space.
Fucking play it cool.
When I get downstairs, Ian is already in the living room, having changed from his suit, and wearing sweatpants and a white T-shirt.
“So, wild night?” I ask, and he scoffs and rubs his beard.
“I just couldn’t leave there without taking her with me.”
“Mate, I get it. We’re happy she’s here. She seems happy to be here, just upset that her mom’s a fucking cunt.”
Ian groans, and his head hits the back of the couch.
“What is she doing?”
“Getting changed and coming down to watch a movie.”
“We need to make this work,” he says, and I hold my hands up in surrender.
“You don’t see me complaining.”
“I know, it’s just that I promised her that this would work, and she seems to not believe me.”
“Yeah, well, when your stepbrother kind of lowkey kidnaps you, it can be confusing.”
“I didn’t kidnap her,” he says.
“Well, you did pack up all her shit and tell her mom she was coming to live with us before you even asked Luna if she wanted to be here. By the way, how did that all go down at the club?”
He’s mid drink of his water and slightly spits it out. “She told you?”
I point at him and snap my fingers. “Knew you did something. You’re a deviant little fucker, Ian.”
“Whatever,” he says, waving me off. “I was jealous, and she looked so good, and I’ve been so patient.”
I arch an eyebrow at him. “Have you?”
“Did you come down here solely to give me shit, Ezra?”
“Someone has to. Seeing as I’m not blinded by your monster cock, I’ll need to be the voice of reason.”
Suddenly, there’s a clearing of a throat, and a pink cheeked Luna wraps her arms around herself. She’s wearing pink shorts and a simple white T-shirt with some band name on it. Ian groans next to me as Luna comes to sit between us on the couch.
“Is James coming?” she asks softly.
Ian shakes his head. “James is a night owl; it’s when he works on his plants.”
“Oh,” she says dejectedly. I’m already plotting ways to get these two to have some alone time together.
This is never going to work if Luna thinks James doesn’t want this.
Ian and I are used to how he is, we love how he is.
But it’s something that Luna needs to make sure James is someone she likes—she needs time to get comfortable with our aloof Omega.
“What would you like to watch?” I ask, and she looks at the screen as I click through the menu.
She shockingly chooses a thriller, and as soon as it starts playing, I watch as more tension leaves her body.
Luna shivers slightly, and I grab the softest blanket we have, hoping that James doesn’t mind, and I toss it over her lap.
She gives me a small smile before bringing the blanket to her nose and taking a deep sniff.
She sighs with contentment as she sinks deeper into the couch.
It’s like she’s a beacon that Ian and I are drawn to as we both seem to get closer and closer to her as each minute passes.
I’m not sure when it happens, but her head is on Ian’s thigh as he runs his fingers through her hair.
Her legs are propped on my legs, and I knead the tension out of her calves.
A soft moan leaves her lips, and it makes me hard against my free will.
It must do the same to Ian as he shuffles his body and moves Luna slightly on his thigh. She yawns and squeezes Ian’s thigh before sitting up. I can read his disappointment in his face, but she gives him a small smile. “I think I might try and get some sleep.”
Ian nods his head, and I can tell he wants to say something, but he holds back.
“Um, do you all work tomorrow? Or?”
“I have work to do at home, James sleeps a lot during the day, and Ezra has to be at the zoo.”
“You’re welcome to come with me,” I tell her, and all the sleepiness that was on her face is gone instantly.
“Really?”
“Really,” I say, trying to hold back my excitement. This is what I wanted, someone who wants to spend time with me. God, I’m needy as fuck.
“I would love to. What time should I be up?”
“Need to leave here at 8:30. Wear something comfortable.”
She pops up, so she’s standing. Her shorts have ridden up, and I can see the shape of her pussy lips.
She claps her hands once and smiles, looking between Ian and I.
She leans down and touches my scruffy cheek before doing the same to Ian.
Her cheeks are red by the time she looks at us one more time.
“Goodnight,” she says softly.
“Night,” Ian and I say in unison, both of us with a look of awe as she makes her way up the stairs and to her bedroom.
“We’re so fucked,” I say with a laugh, and Ian rearranges his cock in his sweatpants and groans.
He scrubs his face and nods. “That’s for fucking sure. Thanks for inviting her to work tomorrow. I’m going to go to bed. Will you check in on James?”
“You got it.”
When I stand up, I have to do a similar re-arrangement as I walk outside. The humid air sticks to my skin as I walk across the lawn and knock on the door to his greenhouse.
“Yeah?” he shouts, and I come into the even hotter space.
“Hey, love,” I say, and he nods his head as he’s leaning over a plant and delicately clipping off buds.
I clear my throat, and he stops what he’s doing to look at me with some frustration. “Luna really missed you at movie night.”
He waves his hand at me and shakes his head. “She’s here for Alphas, I’m just an extra.”
My brows furrow, and I cross my arms. “So that’s why she was inhaling your blanket like it was a new addiction.”
That gets his attention as he stands straight and looks at me. “Okay?”
I sigh and approach him. His stance is open, so I put my hand around his neck and squeeze lightly.
“It’s not just about Ian and I, it’s about all of us.
She asked about you multiple times. I’m just saying, she’s an Omega.
I think she needs to know that you’re interested just as much as you need to know that she is. ”
He takes in my words with a nod of his head.
“She was really sniffing my blanket?”
“She was, made me hard.”
He snorts and shakes his head. “Yeah?”
“Yeah, wanna feel?” I push my crotch against him, and he laughs.
“Raincheck. I need to finish manicuring these plants tonight.”
“Fine, I guess Ian and I will just have to jerk off tonight.”
James nods and turns back to his plants. “Guess so.”
“Love you, night.”
“You too,” he says as he goes back to his work. I shake my head but smile. I fucking love him, quirks and all.