CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
A fter breakfast, we’re all sat in the living room, the guys looking at me expectantly. I mean, it makes sense, given that I’m the one that called this pack meeting. All the attention still makes me antsy though. Especially since I had another heat spike in the middle of our meal, causing Ollie to hop into action by crawling under the table and eating me out with two fingers in my pussy until the need to be knotted subsided.
“What did you want to talk to us about, tesoro mio ?” Mattie asks, taking my hand. “Is it about what we spoke of last night?”
Taking a deep breath, I nod and look around the room. “It is. Since it’s becoming clear that my heat will be here sooner rather than later…” I trail off, looking around the room, “I’ve decided that it’s time to talk about why I had lived my life the way I did until a few weeks ago.”
“Only if you’re sure, sweetheart.” Simon smiles kindly at me from one of the recliners, and Ollie, Archie, Mattie and Titus murmur their agreement.
“I’m never going to want to,” I pick at my nails as I talk, “but you need to know.”
“Then speak, amore ,” Mattie squeezes my hand, “we are listening.”
“My dads have always doted on my mom,” I start, “they set the bar. When I presented as an omega at sixteen, I had the expectation that I too would be loved and doted on when I got a pack. So when my parents told me they had a pack they wanted me to meet, I had actually been excited. They were only a few years older than me, smelled fine, and were relatively handsome in a cookie-cutter kind of way. And, they were well off, which was very important to me at the time. I attended dinner at their home, which my family left me alone for…” I shake my head at the memory. That should have been my first red flag. You always chaperone young, unbonded omegas. “I started talking about how I was excited to go to college and start my career and they laughed at me. They thought I was joking.” A growl rips through the air, and my head shoots up, seeing Simon, of all people, looking like he wants to rip someone's head off.
“Calm, brother,” Titus walks over and puts a hand on Simon’s shoulder, but Titus also looks on edge.
Well, they haven’t even heard the whole story yet.
“I had decided then and there that I would grin and bear it through the rest of the dinner, but that I wasn’t interested.” A shaky breath leaves me, bracing for the reaction to this next part. “Then they presented me with this contract. Lining out duties , not limited to, but including how many times a week I was expected to sleep with them, as well as a rotating schedule of what night each member of the pack would get to share my nest with me. That I would not participate in any activities that would 'take away' from my duties, including school and a career. When I told them no, that there was no way I was signing that, and that I’d rather rot in hell before bonding into their pack, the head alpha backhanded me across the face.” A chorus of snarls rips through the air, and my eyes shut, forcing the rest of it out.
“Then I ran. They tried to stop me,” my words choke in my throat as Mattie’s hand tightens around mine and tears sting my eyes, “I managed to make them think I passed out, and then when they left me alone I made a break for it. I ran all the way back to my home, and told my parents everything, convinced that they would be livid. Angry that anyone would dare harm their little girl.”
A single tear runs down my cheek. “Instead, they asked me what I did to deserve it. When I told them about the argument, they told me not to worry and that they could still fix it. I could still bond with them, and they would ‘make it right’.” A bitter laugh leaves me.
“Part of me thinks they left me there without a guardian in hopes they’d bond me right there. Make it so they had no choice but to pay for me. After that, I packed a bag and ran. They were so concerned about making sure I ended up in an abusive pack that they didn’t even notice I was gone until it was too late. I still don’t speak to them. My brothers say I must have misunderstood, but I know I didn’t.”
In the next moment, Ollie’s chocolate peppermint scent envelops me as he cradles me to his chest, sinking to the floor.
“Why did they think I deserved to be treated that way?” I ask no one in particular, a sob breaking through as I burrow against his chest. “What did I do that they would allow that to happen to their own daughter?”
Ollie’s purr rattles in his chest and one by one, all of my alphas stop their growling, their purrs making me go boneless.
“Sometimes people are idiots,” Ollie murmurs, pressing a kiss to my hair. “But I’m so glad that you didn’t give into them Tink. You are stronger than you know.”
In the next moment, I’m surrounded by my alphas, their purrs melting my worries away. Archie has reached over and taken one of my hands, desperate to comfort me.
After I’m done crying, I wipe my eyes and look around at my pack. “Your parents are never speaking to you again.” Titus mutters. “Not unless you ask for them, but even then I might ask for a minute or two alone with your dads.”
The rest of my pack murmurs their agreement and I can’t help the warm, fuzzy feeling that grows inside, seeing them all so up in arms about something that happened ten years ago.
Titus keeps talking. “I mean, I would never treat one of our daughters like that—” then, as if realizing what he just said, snaps his mouth shut, his eyes wide.
All of the purring has stopped as Ollie, Archie, Mattie and Simon look between Titus and me, gauging my reaction.
“Daughter?” I ask, standing from Ollie’s lap and taking a step towards my grumpy alpha. “You…do you guys want kids?” We haven’t talked about anything like that yet. We haven’t even talked about bonding yet.
Titus swallows, looking nervously around the room. His honey brown eyes settle on me, his eyes roaming my face, looking for some indication of what I’m feeling. His campfire and toasted marshmallow scent strengthens slightly when he gives a slight nod, his features turning from nervous to certain.
“Someday, yes,” he says, taking a step towards me, “And I won’t pretend that I haven’t thought about what a little girl with your curly blonde hair and my eyes would look like running around here. Or a little boy with Simon's auburn hair and your blues.”
His words make my heart pound in my chest so hard, I can’t even laugh when Ollie goes, “Hey, what about me?!”
Titus rolls his eyes. “Trust me. I’ve gone through every variation possible, I’m just trying to not freak angel out.”
“What do you think, blossom?” Archie comes up next to me, threading his fingers through mine. “Would you ever want little grumpy kids running around?”
“Well…” I clear my throat, “While they aren’t currently on my radar, I would like to have them someday.” Titus gives me a small smile that makes my heart flutter. “But I also think that talking about kids should be talked about after bonds and bites, which was the next thing I wanted to talk to you guys about.”
“What about bonds and bites, tesoro mio ?” Mattie asks carefully.
“Well…” my cheeks flush, and I go to sit back down on the couch, while my pack stays standing, staring at me like I’m about to read out lottery numbers. “Everyone knows that alphas near rut most times during an omegas heat, which can make it hard to resist a bonding bite, especially when said omega is begging for it.” I swallow roughly, eyeing each member of my pack carefully. “After my run in with Pack Anderson, I was determined to never have a pack. After meeting all of you though? Living with you, sharing meals, playing…” my lips turn up at the corners in a small smile, “you are nothing like that pack. You encourage me to make my own choices, and there’s no jealousy, no competition, and we all just…fit. So, I want you guys. To bond me. If you’ll have me.”
My words seem to unleash a dam of activity and I’m swept into so many arms at once I can’t keep straight what limb belongs to who. Kisses are being peppered all over my face, blinding smiles fill my sight, and words of praise fill my ears.
“You have made me the happiest alpha alive, amore mio ,” Mattie purrs, pulling me into his arms.
“Hell yeah! I’m gonna bond the fuck outta you, Tink.” Ollie comes up behind me and nuzzles my neck, making me giggle.
Someone tugs on my arm until I’m pulled from between Ollie and Mattie and into Titus’ embrace. “You mean it?” He asks softly. “You can’t leave my grumpy ass if we bond you.”
“I’ve never meant anything more,” I smile up at him and then Simon is in front of me, pressing a gentle kiss to my lips.
“I can’t wait to feel you in here,” he takes my hand and presses over his heart, which I can feel beating wildly.
And then Archie is standing in front of me, looking a little unsure of himself. Mattie places a reassuring hand on his shoulder and nods at him.
“Blossom?” Archie asks tentatively, holding out his arms.
“What’s wrong, Arch?” I frown, wanting to smooth away the crease between his brows.
“Would you…I mean…would you want to…” he rubs the back of his neck, looking to Matie for reassurance. I don’t like that he’s so nervous. What’s going on? Before I can ask, he finally spits it out. “Will you bond me during your heat?”
My jaw nearly drops. “Can…can I do that?”
Mattie nods emphatically. “Yes. It only works during the omega’s heat, but they are able to form direct bonds with betas as well.”
“Oh, Arch,” I say softly, stepping up to him and wrapping my arms around his waist. “If I had known I could do that, I would have offered it up a long time ago.”
His breath catches as his arms come around me. “Really?”
I smile, resting my chin on his chest as I look up at him. “Really. I didn’t have any beta dads, so I didn’t even now that was a thing. I figured I’d be able to feel you through my bond with Mattie. But having a direct line to you? That is so much better.”
He leans down and captures my lips in a soft kiss. “I love you,” he murmurs, nuzzling his nose against mine.
“I love you too, my Omega-Bop Teen heartthrob.”
Archie barks a laugh. “Omega-Bop Teen heartthrob?”
Chuckling, I give him a wink. “You always reminded me of the boys I would crush on in those magazines as a teen.”
“So it’s settled,” Simon looks around the room, “we’ll bond during Cady’s heat. There’s a lot of research that says how beneficial it is to wait until the end—”
Quickly I raise my hand, and with an amused lift of his brow, he points to me. “I just want to be lucid,” I say quickly, looking around at my pack. “As long as I’m coherent enough to answer a question about…something you pick, then it’s okay to bond me right then. I just want to remember it.”
Ollie bows low and lifts my hand before kissing it. “Your wish is our command, my queen. We’ll ask you some kind of question like ‘what’s your favorite book genre’ and if you answer is something other than ‘knot me now you pretentious prick,’ we’re good to go.”
His words shock a laugh out of me. “Pretty much.”
Ollie looks around the room. “Everyone got it?” At the murmured agreement, Titus comes up next to me, linking our hands together.
“So, you ready for our date?”