Chapter 38
“ S o what do you think?” Micah asked as I was nestled between him and Luke. The video of our pack that Micah had edited over the last couple of days was on the laptop balanced on my bump. I was flushed head to toe, desire thrumming through me like a heartbeat.
I wasn’t feeling up to doing anything about it at the moment, but I was enjoying being steeped in the sensation anyway.
“We look really good,” I whispered, watching my pack unravel me.
“It’s extremely home video compared to what we’re usually in,” said Luke. “One camera limits a lot of the good angles.”
“I still have to see yours to know how it compares,” I said, daring to glance at Luke. “For science.”
“For science? Is that what we’re calling it now? Pretty misleading name for you being pervy on your boyfriend.”
Inner teen Ava was preening like a peacock at Luke calling himself my boyfriend.
“If that’s how we’re doing things, I’m pretty sure you’ve got your PhD in ‘science’ when it comes to me,” I snarked.
“You two really bring out unique qualities in each other,” said Micah. “It’s cute. We can do a side-by-side so you can see what kind of difference being in the studio makes.”
He briefly stole the laptop and opened up one of the videos of him and Luke sharing an omega, muting both and letting them play next to each other on the screen. As hot as ours was, the studio one looked ten times more professional and captured angles that were simply lost in the video we had made.
“This just makes me want to do a studio one now.” I felt both of them staring at me, but I couldn’t look at them at the same time so I kept my gaze fixed on the screen, unmuting the studio one, both alphas tensing as I tilted my head to examine it.
Luke and Micah moved so seamlessly, almost like they could read each other’s minds. The omega was definitely lost in the sauce, deep in her heat while my alphas took care of her.
“Damn,” I whispered as Micah rearranged her into a position I could never hope to achieve. “I’m definitely not that flexible.”
“This is so weird,” Luke mumbled.
I turned it to him. “What is?”
“You’re not territorial at all about seeing us with someone.”
I focused on his face, lacing my fingers with his. “Are you here with me or with her right now?”
“You.”
“And which of us do you love? Me or her?”
“You.” He swallowed hard when I clutched his hand.
“Which of us is the only one who gets to do that with you for the rest of time?”
“Definitely you.”
“Exactly.” I patted his hand. “I know omegas don’t have a reputation for being rational about this kind of thing, and maybe I wouldn’t be if she were right here in front of me, but I’m not going to act territorial when I don’t feel the compulsion. You’re mine , not hers.”
It was a bit strange to say that after I had unknowingly been competing with Charlotte for Andrew, but Luke wasn’t Andrew, and neither was Micah. My alphas made no secret of whom they wanted, or that they were willing to upend their entire lives to support me. Maybe I should’ve been more wary after my experiences, but every second with my pack was so radically different from my relationship with Andrew. I wasn’t scared that they didn’t want me anymore.
“While we’re sort of on the subject,” said Micah, “would it freak you out if I said a very particular three-word phrase?”
His smile was sweet and easy, but a touch of nerves was visible in his gaze. I cupped his cheek and drew him in for a kiss, pouring all my affection into it. “I can’t be freaked out to hear it when you make me feel it every day.”
“My omega,” he said softly against my lips, “ I love you. More and faster than I thought would be possible.”
I shivered, falling right back into the kiss. “I love you too,” I said when we pulled apart to breathe. “I’m really glad we’re pack.”
“Me too, angel. I know it’s still months away, but if you’re ready when your heat comes, I’d like us to bond.”
“Really? It’s not too fast?”
“If you’re comfortable with that timeline, so am I,” said Micah.
“I’d love for us to be a full pack.”
Luke nestled up against my back, kissing my cheek. “I was gonna give you a little bit longer of a timeline, but I’m not being the odd one out. And before you get that twisted in that beautiful little brain of yours, I was just trying to be gallant and shit, not waiting because I don’t want to bond you.”
I giggled, locking my arm behind his head and pulling Micah close, squeezing the two of them. “Why are you both so fucking cute?”
“Pretty sure we’re obligated to be cute,” muttered Luke as he nipped my earlobe. “Wouldn’t be fair if our omega hogged all of the adorable and was stuck with a pack of uggos.”
That spurred me into a new batch of giggles. “I promise I would love you even if you were unfortunate-looking.”
The laptop nearly took a tumble, but Micah caught it and set it safely on the bedside table.
“So,” I said carefully, “Callie said there’s a huge market for pregnant omegas.”
Both of my alphas froze.
“She’s not wrong,” said Micah.
“Do you want to clarify for us why you’re bringing this up?” Luke asked.
“Is there a way I could do that without people knowing it was me?”
“Definitely,” replied Micah. “Add in a wig, maybe a mask, or some glasses.”
“Glasses would get super gross if you guys are coming on my face.”
“Fucking Christ,” Luke murmured against my skin. “I don’t know if I’m ever going to get used to you saying things like that.”
“You’ll have so much practice because I’m not gonna stop.”
Micah barked a laugh. “I’ll reach out to Callie. We’ll see if there’s a time that crosses over between her feeling up to getting in the studio and before you have the baby. You absolutely don’t have to let them sell it just because we’re using the studio. If you want to, we can do that, but there’s no pressure one way or the other.”
“Part of me is super curious about the actual numbers if we did sell it.”
Luke nodded. “I’d like to know that myself.”
“Does she watch the whole time?”
“Pretty much,” replied Micah. “She does all the cinematography. Are you worried about people watching?”
“I don’t know. Is it not weird that your boss has seen your bits?”
Luke shrugged. “I’ve seen all of theirs when I monitored her last live heat. Modesty doesn’t really exist in this industry.”
I chewed my lip, considering. I couldn’t quite tell where the balance of nerves or anticipation fell at the idea of people seeing me like that. “How does she do the cinematography for her own videos?”
“She gets it all set up,” said Luke, “and then whoever is monitoring, usually Micah or me, adjusts as needed.”
“And who does the editing?”
“Her pack. She does a lot of it herself, but she’s been training all of them on how to do it to the same level.”
“I guess a good test to see if you’re comfortable with it being sold is to see how you do with knowing someone besides us is going to see and edit.” Micah shrugged. “I’ve gotten pretty good at video editing, not quite the wizardry that Callie does, but I could always ask them for the files and put something together for you, if you’d prefer.”
Andrew had never wanted anyone to see me in any capacity; it felt like a small reclamation to consider putting something so intimate on display. He hadn’t even liked me wearing a bikini at the pool, insisting on a one piece. If he knew what we were discussing right now, he’d probably have an aneurysm.
“I want to do it. I can be nervous and brave at the same time.”
Luke kissed my cheek. “You absolutely can. I’d say it doesn’t even count as bravery if you’re not a little scared.”
“Luke does have a point. Plus, I’m sure Callie would let you be involved in the production if you wanted, and she’s going to let us see the final product before you decide if it’s going to market or not.”
“We have to do it before Charlotte gets here, though. I’m pretty sure I’ll lose all my nerve once she arrives.”
“I’ll get it scheduled,” said Micah, already pulling out his phone.
Time was going entirely too quickly. I needed something to focus on, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity. This would be a good distraction to prepare for instead of Charlotte’s imminent arrival and the implosion of her life.