Chapter 37
Thirty-Seven
Max
I thought, of all the parts of “The Plan,” this was the phase that Polly was most excited for. You could tell, because she hadn’t sat still since we’d arrived at the nature reserve that was currently housing the Ferris wheel. When we’d done some research last night, I’d been kind of disappointed that Rio wouldn’t have to row to the middle of the lake. This was fortunate, though, and while I needed Polly for my part, I’d be able to bring her back to go on the Ferris wheel. Maybe we could pretend to be teenagers and get to second base right at the very top.
“There they are!”
She climbed out of the car and ran toward them. I grinned, her joy infectious. When she ran into August’s arms, he caught her easily, spinning her around. Her dress climbed up her thighs a little, and my breath froze in my lungs. Fuck, they were so beautiful together.
I dragged my phone out of my pocket and took a photo for Llew, then set it as my wallpaper. My two Omegas, bracketed by a Ferris wheel, my Alpha watching over them with so much love in his eyes, it made me feel emotional. It was perfect.
I didn’t think she realized it yet, but we were courting Polly too. Even though she was completely enamoured with us, and was already irreversibly part of our Pack, she deserved this. I’d just taken her to buy the bonding ring for August that we’d give him this afternoon, but while she was busy, I’d gotten her a necklace with a large drop emerald that was cut to look like a star had exploded inside it. It was beautiful, just like our Omega.
“Come on, you two. They’re waiting for us,” I called over to them.
Polly wiggled to her feet and dragged August along behind her. Rio shook his head. “Are they all ready?”
I nodded. We’d called ahead to Otillie-James and Lance, and we’d meet them at their rescue. I’d actually asked Otillie-James for more than that, but I had to keep that bit a secret until we got there.
My Omegas crawled into the back of the car, Polly scooting almost all the way onto August’s lap. Rio slapped the back of my head. “Concentrate on the road, and don’t get distracted. Because they will be so fucking distracting,” he groaned. “Thank god the top comes down on this; I can’t even imagine being trapped in all those heat pheromones.”
He wasn’t wrong. “Llew is waiting for you.”
Rio nodded and leaned into the back of the car, kissing August and then Polly. “Be good. Don’t distract the driver.”
“Yes, sir,” Polly quipped, making Rio groan again.
I took that as our cue to leave. I pulled back out onto the freeway, glancing briefly into the rearview mirror. The wind whipped away their scents and words, for which I was incredibly thankful, because they were kissing like they couldn’t get enough of each other.
Maybe doing this so close to August’s heat was a mistake, but so much of our courtship had been focused on Polly. Not that I felt bad about that—she deserved the attention. But I wanted August to know that we wanted him, not just what he could do for us.
After the longest twenty-minute drive of my life, I pulled off into the driveway of Lance’s house, and the dirt road left a cloud of dust behind us. OJ and Lance were on the front porch of their impressive-as-fuck house, two baskets at their feet as well as Doodles.
When we rolled to a stop, I adjusted my cock in my jeans before climbing out. Fuck, this was painful. Smiling at the Omegas in the back seat, I reached in to lift Polly out.
August jumped out of the convertible easily, giving me a cheeky smirk. “I’ve always wanted to do that.”
I wrapped my arm around his shoulders, and he smiled widely up at Lance. “You’re a sight for sore eyes. I was worried about you, until Rio and Max told me that you were in love. Congrats are in order, I hear?” He gripped Lance’s hand, shaking it heartily.
“The healing power of love, am I right?” Lance said lightly. “This is Otillie-James, my Omega.”
The Omega in question looked like a riot. That was the best way I could describe her, really. Her hair was crazy, and she had mud on her overalls and a smile on her face.
“Lance says I have you to thank for him still being here today,” she whispered to August, and then hugged him. She pulled back quickly, her nose twitching. “Woah, they weren’t kidding about you being close to heat. I wouldn’t fuck around, if I were you.” She looked at Polly and hugged her too, her face softening. “It’s good to see you, Polly.”
Polly threw herself into the hug, and I smiled. She’d come so far.
OJ looked misty-eyed as she pulled back. “Okay, here are your sweet treats. Let’s go, before your boy goes into heat on my front porch,” she joked, directing us to a path that ran down the side of the house. “They came in earlier in the week, and I thought they’d be perfect for you guys.”
August narrowed his eyes at me. We hadn’t told him a lot about Lance’s new Packmate, but maybe he was making some connections. I just grinned and held him tight to my body as Polly ran ahead.
Lance walked beside us. “She looks good. Happy.”
I smiled, because she was better than good. She was great. “My mission in life now is just to make her as happy as possible until the end of my days.” I looked at August. “Both of you.”
August reached down and laced his fingers with mine. “You already do.”
Lance made a gagging noise. “God, was I this disgustingly sweet?”
I gave him the finger. “Worse.”
We reached a large barn, where the noise was insane, an absolute cacophony. Polly looked so excited, I suspected she’d forgotten all about the impending heat, and the fact we were meant to be courting an Omega. It didn’t matter, though, because August watched her with such obvious heart eyes that I almost laughed.
“You’re already all in, aren’t you?”
He leaned over and kissed me. “From the very first day I stepped into your living room and saw her. I knew then that this was it for me. Nothing else would do.”
I buried my fingers in his hair and kissed him, with all the feelings in my soul. Someone cleared their throat, and I pulled away, flushed. “Then enjoy the day, and know I’m going to spoil you like this every day for the rest of our lives.”
“Here we are,” OJ said loudly, a grin on her face. “Polly, if you ever want a job, you’re more than welcome to come and help me out here. I can’t pay you a lot, but the work is rewarding.”
My Omega’s eyes got so wide, I thought they’d pop out of her head. “Seriously?”
OJ grinned. “Absolutely. Your Pack isn’t the only one with two Omegas getting taken out of action for a couple of days, every two or so months. If I had someone I knew who could take care of the animals while we’re, uh, otherwise indisposed, it would be a weight off my mind. Besides, the guys are sick of being unpaid labor, so I could use some help.”
Polly jumped into her arms once more. “Yes! Thank you!” She looked at me, her excitement dimming slightly. “I’ll have to ask the Pack first…”
I waved a hand. “Sweetheart, whatever you want is yours. We’ll make it work.”
She let out a hushed squeal and nodded. “Then I accept, thank you!”
August gave me a look, and I was beginning to think he was onto us making this a double courting. I hadn’t forgotten him, though.
“In here,” OJ told us. “I’ll leave you to it. This is the most we’ve ever had, and honestly, it’s nearly impossible to be down here giving them all the attention and handling they need. You’re doing me a solid favor.”
When we went in, there were fifteen kittens in a straw-filled horse stall. Some were curled up under a heating lamp, while others were wrestling around or climbing.
Polly melted into a puddle. Grabbing August’s hand, she pulled him down to his knees. Noticing their captive audience, the kittens bounded over, meowing loudly.
“There are cat treats in there too,” OJ called from outside the gate, indicating the picnic basket. “Have fun, kids. Just so you know, they’re all adoptable.” She cackled evilly as she left.
Kitten Picnic had been my idea, because August had told me that he’d had a cat growing up, and he missed him a lot. The idea was to show him that we were committed to being a Pack by adding another member to the family, a shared pet. But looking at Polly’s face, I was beginning to think maybe it wouldn’t be just a single member being added.
As August lay down in the straw, he was immediately attacked by tiny little floofballs. I lay down beside him, and a sleepy little white kitten with a gray nose crawled onto my lap and went to sleep.
God. I was in love.
I looked down at August, whose eyes were laughing at me. “I think this might have been an error in judgement,” I said resignedly. Polly was giggling as one of the kittens tried to attack her fingers like a fierce predator.
“You think?” August said lightly, a kitten was making biscuits on his chest. “Best bad idea ever.”
Yeah, there’d been a few of those in my life. Raiding that warehouse was undeniably a terrible idea, with the best outcome I could have ever hoped for.
“My favorite kind,” I murmured, leaning in to kiss him. I hoped it was one of many wonderfully terrible ideas we’d make together for the rest of our lives.