Chapter 32
“ Y ou’ve upgraded,” Nathan stated as we drove away.
“The pack house?”
Nathan nodded.
My home as a kid had been a nightmare the longer my mom’s struggles had gone on. The pack house was a palace by comparison. Nathan was the only one of everyone who knew exactly what I came from and the stark differences in where he’d found me. I didn’t like to think about the conditions I’d grown up in. I’d made some modicum of peace with it, but it wasn’t pleasant to dwell on.
“It’s brand new. Jesse, Micah, and I were living in an apartment when Ava showed up. Bryce bought the house so we could all stay together.”
Nathan snorted. “Ava bagged herself a rich one just like Mom always wanted.”
“She didn’t know that when she met him, and I don’t think she’s told your mom he has money either.”
“Why not? That would probably make Mom back off.”
“I don’t know what’s going on in Ava’s head about it. Maybe she wants your mom to like her pack without a financial incentive.”
I didn’t blame Ava if that was the case. If her mom was going to switch gears and suck up to Bryce just because he had money when she couldn’t see his value as a person, I wouldn’t want to tell her either. She seemed to like Andrew for his bank account, since god knew he didn’t have any other redeeming qualities.
“I remember your mom being a lot more chill when we were younger,” I said.
“She was better than your mom, but in fairness she capped a lot of shit until she figured we were old enough to handle it. She also behaved better for guests. So, where are we going?”
“Food, activity, or staring off into the abyss while we talk?”
“I already ate with Ava, but we can grab you some rations so you’re not starving while we do some existential abyss staring.”
“Sounds good to me.”
We were on our way to a drive-thru when a call from Micah came through.
“I’ve been gone for five minutes.” We weren’t an especially codependent pack, so I’d answered it instead of letting it go to voicemail in favor of catching up with Nathan.
“Ava has news everyone needs to hear. If you and Nathan had stuck around for those five minutes, I wouldn’t have had to call you.”
“What’s going on?”
Dread snaked through me. Had she purposely waited until we were gone?
Ava launched into her explanation of Andrew’s wife trying to snap up our baby. Rage filled every pore as she spoke.
Nathan’s fingers were white-knuckled on the wheel. “Want me to drive to New York and run him over?”
“In what universe would that help anything?” Ava snapped.
“I never said it would help,” he replied. “Would be damn satisfying, though.”
It was difficult to listen with my pulse pounding in my ears. Even without the indicator of her scent, Ava’s distress was obvious. Why couldn’t this fucker just leave her alone?
Nathan and I listened as the pack comforted her, offering suggestions.
“Ava,” said Nathan as he whipped a U-turn, “should I bring your alpha back?”
“No.” Her voice cracked. “I’m okay. Catch up. I’ll still be sad about it later.”
“We’ve got her,” Jesse told us. “Finish your visit and we’ll work on a plan.”
I was torn on what to do. Ava had the others, and Nathan looked ready to commit a homicide. I probably looked the same.
“Let’s give her some breathing space,” I told him. “You and I both have all the finesse of a bull in a china shop when it comes to dealing with shit. That’s not what she needs right now. Let the others be soft and then you and I can raise hell.”
Nathan gave me a speculative look. “Who are you and what have you done with Luke?”
“Can’t a guy have some personal growth without getting accused of being body snatched?”
“Nope. I can’t believe how deep into shit she’s gotten. I had no idea.”
“You didn’t know about Andrew?”
Nathan’s hands flexed on the wheel, and he pulled another U-turn to get us back on track. “I knew he existed. I thought he was too old for her from the start, but Mom was fucking jazzed, and Ava seemed happy with the situation so I kept my mouth shut.”
“That’s more self-control than I would’ve had.”
“I feel like a shit brother.”
“Welcome to Guilt City, population us. I’ve already been through feeling like the scum of humanity for bolting before finding out we were scent matched and not being there to stop her from getting involved with him to begin with.”
“And how’re you feeling about that now?”
“Mostly just trying to make up for it. I can’t change it, but I can be the person she needs now.”
Nathan ordered me an extra large root beer, double cheeseburger, and large fries when we got to the restaurant. A replica of what I always ordered as a teen.
“Where to now?”
I plugged the canyon’s location into my phone, letting the computerized voice guide him.
“What’s the plan, Luke?”
“What do you mean?” I froze, a handful of fries halfway to my face.
“I assume you’re fucking my little sister.”
It was a damn good thing I hadn’t taken a bite yet because I would’ve fucking choked. How was I supposed to respond to that? “Not as often as I’d like.”
Nathan barked a laugh and punched me hard on the thigh, pain shooting through me before the spot went numb.
“Motherfucker!”
“That was a bold-ass move, making a joke about it this soon. You’re lucky I like you.”
I groaned, pressing my palm protectively to the tender spot. How would he have reacted if he didn’t like me? We used to roughhouse as kids, but it had started tapering off in our teen years. Apparently that was back now.
“I’m serious,” he said. “If you’re not going to take care of her, I’m going to take care of you, if you catch my drift.”
“Pretty impossible not to catch it.” I took a chance on a few more fries, chewing to give myself a moment to think. “I always took care of her before I left, didn’t I?”
Nathan’s features softened. “You did. It’s been a long time, though.”
“You think I’m gonna care for her less now that I know she’s my scent matched omega?”
“She’s knocked up with an asshole’s baby,” Nathan pointed out. “A lot of alphas wouldn’t be so understanding. I don’t think I’m out of line in checking if the match still matters in that case.”
“You’re not,” I agreed. “Nathan…I fucking love her, man. I swear I’m going to take care of her, and not just because of you—she got really fucking mad at that concept—but because she’s Ava. She’s…everything.”
“Glad to know I won’t have to drive you into any cliffsides. Dealing with that insurance on a rental would be a bitch.”
“Really appreciate not getting murdered.”
Once we hit the edge of the city, the landscape morphed into the expansive red cliffs, and we drove straight into Red Rock Canyon on its twisting roads.
Nathan sighed deeply and pulled off at one of the overlooks. “Pretty fucked up of you to stop talking to me when you left.”
“I know.”
“Why?”
“A lot of reasons, but mostly I just thought restarting my life would be easier if I left everything in the old one behind. It was a dick move. I own it, and I regret it.”
“Glad to see you’ve gotten smarter in your old age.”
“We’re the same age.”
We sat with the radio on low, Nathan diverting us to some actual catching up on how our lives have gone the last few years.
“So, what do you do for work now? How are you planning on supporting a bondmate and baby?”
“Do you want the honest answer?”
“Obviously.”
“I work in porn.”
Nathan choked on his drink. “Are you serious or fucking with me?”
“Serious. I’ve done it for years. Not sure what the plan for it is now, but that’s how I’ve been making money.”
“Huh. Well, as long as you liked it, that’s the important part.”
I answered more of his questions while I worked my way through my food, telling him about my pack and how things had been since Ava came on the scene.
“You think you’re going to be around more often?” I asked. “Not long until you’re going to be an uncle.”
“Fuck, man, I don’t know. Guess it depends on if she wants me around after this fuckup.”
I shrugged. “She still wants me around, so I’d say your odds are good.”
“You think so?”
“Of course. Ava loves you. As long as you prove you’re going to show up for her, I think you’ll be fine to be part of her life going forward.”
“I fucking hope so. Better late than never?”
“That’s the approach I’m taking. You can start by getting your mom to actually listen to what Ava wants.”
“That’s like trying to talk to a brick wall, but I can give it a go.”
We talked for about an hour, staring at the sun playing over the canyon stones. Nathan wasn’t wholly in it, remaining distracted. I told him everything I knew about Ava’s situation with Andrew in between telling him all about my pack and my life since I’d left.
“I have an idea,” Nathan eventually said. “I don’t think Ava’s going to like it, though.”
“Do I get to hear it?”
“Might as well tell me if you think it’s stupid or not.”
In fairness, the plan he spilled out to me was stupid. Reckless, even. But , if we could execute it properly, it could solve a lot of our problems. I wasn’t at all convinced Ava would be chill about it. Didn’t hurt to bring up the option to her.
“I don’t hate it,” I said slowly. “It could probably work, but Ava would have to be like a thousand percent on board with it for it to go down like you’re imagining.”
“Well, let’s head back and ask her.” Nathan started up the car.
“You think we should ask so quickly?”
“She’s kinda on a time limit. It’ll take time to enact if she wants to do it, so no time like the present.”
“Fair enough.” I mused the whole way back. Ava wasn’t really an actress, and I was pretty sure deception wasn’t her forte, but she’d have to get good at both for this to work. We’d find a way to give her peace even if she didn’t want to go along with Nathan’s idea. No matter what, Andrew wasn’t getting our baby. This would just be a bonus for ruining his life the way he’d done his best to ruin Ava’s.
We pulled to a stop at the pack house. It still felt surreal that I lived there now.
Nathan marched up the door alongside me and swung it open once I unlocked it, yelling into the house, “All right, motherfuckers, get down here. I’ve got a plan to protect my sister.”