12. Lawson
When our parents died, Lucky and I sat through hours of upon hours of people offering their condolences after the funeral.
The event had such a large turnout the church couldn’t fit everyone that showed, so they spilled out onto the lawn in droves.
Every single person had a kind word to say or an apology to offer.
By the end of the first hour I wanted to crawl out of my skin, but that discomfort was nothing compared to the car ride home after telling Lainey my idea.
I didn’t even have a chance to explain before she outright laughed in my face.
And then she turned on her heel and left the damn mall.
Lucky and Wyatt scrambled after her so she wouldn’t be alone, but Rhys hung back, staring at me like I had three heads.
Eventually he reached the same conclusion I did: that I am currently committing insurance fraud because despite what I told the hospital in order to have Lainey’s care run through our insurance, we are in fact not bonded .
No matter how hard I tried, I could not find the words to accurately express how worried I am about Lainey.
About the baby. Lucky might not remember because he was probably only six at the time, but our mom was pregnant and lost the baby.
I don’t think she was very far along, but I remember her and our dads crying about it a lot for a while.
I was only ten, but I tried to shield my little brother the best I could.
And now Lainey is here, and she’s pregnant.
And she doesn’t have health insurance. I know she has already seen a doctor, because she told us, but will she stop going because she’s worried about the cost?
I saw the look on her face every time we checked out at a store.
These were things she needed desperately.
Basics like clothes, toiletries, nesting supplies.
She fought us on every single thing she didn’t see as absolute necessities, and yet still the look of guilt on her face with each new transaction gutted me.
From the moment I scented her on those panties, Lainey Ryan was mine.
Seeing her for the first time at the dorms, even sweaty and covered in soot, only solidified it.
Every single alpha instinct I possess drives me to care for her, protect her, satisfy her every need and want.
If it weren’t for the fact that I was positive she’d put an I.V.
needle through my eye, I would have bonded her in that goddamn hospital room.
So no, she might not be ready. And she might not like it all that much. But come hell or high water, that omega will be wearing my bite by the end of the evening.
“Hello! Earth to crazy alpha?” Lainey’s growl brings me back to the present, and it takes considerable effort to maintain my blank mask in the face of her wrath.
“I apologize. What were you saying?”
My pack mates groan, which almost makes me cringe. If they think I fucked up by spacing out, then I must have missed the majority of her angry explanation as to why we shouldn’t bond.
I shrug. “Listen, if you really think about it, you know I’m right.
The hospital already thinks we’re bonded, I listed myself as your bond mate in all of the insurance paperwork, and it will make things a hell of a lot easier when that tiny human comes along if you have at least one bonded alpha. The legal benefits alone are numerous.”
Her mouth pops open, and I pray she can’t read the crazy thoughts running through my head.
Because while everything I just said is technically true, what I really want to say is that my instincts are demanding I tie her down so she can’t get away, before giving her so many orgasms and snacks she won’t want to get away.
But that sounds a touch unhinged, so I lock it away.
“Lawson…” her voice is raspy, and it’s hard to tell if that is from the smoke, all the talking today, or if she’s fighting back tears.
God I hope it isn’t the latter. The thought that just the idea of bonding with me could make her cry is enough to make me want to puke and scream all at once.
“We barely know each other. We just met !”
I nod in agreement, as if I haven’t had my mind made up since the very first second I saw her.
“You’re right. But Lainey, you are pregnant with Lucky’s baby.
We’re already tied for life. And one day, when you’re ready, I am confident we will all want to bond you and make you part of this pack officially.
Maybe this is happening sooner than any of us are ready for,” I almost snort at the blatant lie, but choke it back.
“But frankly, none of us will allow you and our little one to go with anything but the best care. If there was another solution, I would be offering it. I truly believe this to be the best option, and it is something I am happy to do.”
That’s the understatement of the century, but the goal is to get her to agree to this bond, not scare her off.
After a few very tense moments of silence where it feels like every man in the room is holding his breath, she sighs. Her head hangs, dark blonde hair cascading down to cover her face until she finally looks up to meet my eyes. “How do we do this?”
My heart stutters to a stop in my chest. Did she just agree? I glance around to the rest of my pack to find them gawping at us like we’re a brand new exhibit at the zoo.
Clearing my throat, I sit forward, steepling my hands in front of me.
Lainey is sitting in a plush chair across from the couch I share with Wyatt and Rhys, while Lucky claimed the arm of her chair and has been absently twirling strands of her hair around his fingers.
“We can do it now,” I offer before thinking better of it.
I quickly backtrack. “Or we can go up to my room, or yours. The nest if you want it, though none of your new things are in there yet. I don’t know if you… ”
“Let’s just do it now. Bite the bullet and get the awkwardness out of the way fast, yeah?”
Ouch . I knew she wasn’t thrilled about bonding so soon, but I had hoped she would be even just a little bit excited by the idea of tying herself to our pack.
To me. I slide my professional expression back in place, the one I use at work so people can’t tell what I’m thinking, and pat the space next to me on the couch.
Wyatt scoots over to make space for her which isn’t necessary.
Despite being a little on the tall side for an omega, she’s teeny.
I can’t wait to see what she looks like a few months from now.
“Where do you want my bite?” I have never really given much thought to where I would want my bond mark on a partner before, so I’m content to let her decide.
She pulls her hair to the side, baring the left side of her neck and the smooth, soft skin there. “Here,” she whispers. “Then there won’t be any doubt.”
She might be thinking practically, but it sends a jolt of pride through me all the same.
She wants my bite front and center where everyone will be able to see it.
It doesn’t matter that I will have to go back to pulling double shifts tomorrow, or that people at her school won’t know she’s mine.
With one glance, they will be able to see this omega is claimed, and that’s enough to keep my alpha at bay. For now.
I don’t hesitate. Leaning in, I press the gentlest kiss against her neck and bite down to the sound of her quiet gasp.
Instantly, everything that is Lainey floods the center of my chest. At first she’s all fiery passion and righteous fury, but as I lap at the bond to soothe the angry skin, it begins to settle into something softer and more vulnerable.
Beneath all that sass and sarcasm there is a darling girl that aches to be loved as she is, to be understood in a way that doesn’t require explanation.
We lock eyes as I pull back, and I trace a finger down my neck, mirroring the spot her fresh bond now sits.
Her brown eyes are as dark as I’ve seen them yet, so brown they could almost be black.
She leans in, hesitating only slightly, and the moment her teeth pierce my skin it feels like a thousand lightning bolts have hit me, one from each point of connection in her mouth all the way down to my rigid cock.
Bonding is an intimate act that is typically done during a heat, or if not in heat then during a different moment of closeness between the alpha and their partner, so it’s no surprise my dick feels like it is about to bust through the seam of my jeans.
And when her tongue peeks out to tend to the bond?
Each lick feels like a hand on me, stroking.
If I don’t get out of here fast, I am going to come in my pants like a pathetic school boy.
As soon as Lainey pulls back, I grunt, placing a kiss on her cheek.
“Welcome to the pack, angel.” Then I haul ass upstairs, barely making it to my bathroom before my pants hit the floor.
I flick on the shower and step in, not giving a damn that it’s ice cold.
My knot is throbbing, demanding attention from the perfect little omega I just left downstairs with our pack.
One hand wraps around my shaft as the other hits the tiles to hold me up.
My legs are shaking, adrenaline coursing through me like I’ve never felt before.
Images of my omega run through my head like a highlight reel.
Things I haven’t seen in real life but would give absolutely anything to.
Lainey on her knees in front of me, arms crossed and pushing up those perky tits.
Lainey on her back, getting herself off exactly how she likes as I watch with rapt fascination.
My hand strokes over the head of my cock, using the dripping precum as lube so I can stroke faster, imagining it’s my omega’s hand, mouth, anything .
Lainey handcuffed to my headboard while I lick her through so many orgasms she cries.
Lainey laying naked next to me with our hands on her belly as she calls me daddy.
It’s the last thought that finally tips me over the edge as I come, covering my hand and the wall in pulse after pulse until I collapse backwards, completely spent and only feeling slightly guilty.
If Lainey truly doesn’t want this bond, it’s going to hurt like hell. But I would rather live a lifetime bonded to someone that doesn’t want me back than live a single moment without protecting her in any way I can.
I just hope eventually she feels the same way.