39. Maisie
maisie
I gasp as Greer is suddenly on top of me, his mouth at my throat, but it isn’t teeth, just a gentle press of his lips.
I’m still so sore from my heat. There’s no way I could take his knot right now, but bondings can be however you want. As long as they’re consensual between both parties, then it’s anything goes. In the movies it’s usually some whirlwind seduction that happens during heat or while being intimate.
But what’s more intimate than saying I love you for the first time?
“Bonding you will make me the happiest I’ve ever been. You’re sure, though?” Greer checks in and I run my hands through his gorgeous hair.
Maybe it was his PowerPoint presentation about what to expect in becoming a pack and deciding to stay in Scotland, maybe it’s being scent matches, but mostly it’s just who Greer is.
No one has ever made me feel as taken care of and safe as he has and I know that feeling that constantly through the bond will help this transition.
I need his steadfastness, his reassurance, and, frankly, I just need him in every way he’ll let me have him.
“I’m so sure. Please, Greer,” I say, turning my face to the left, exposing my throat to him. His fingers trail against the skin and he presses gentle kisses against the spot he plans on marking.
He cradles the back of my head and for a sharp moment there’s pain, but just like Greer always does, a rush of pleasure follows the pain. It’s like a puzzle piece snapping into place as our bond connects and I can feel him.
Greer is like my north star when I've been lost at sea for so long. The warmth and love and happiness I feel down the bond is enough to bring tears to my eyes.
Thankfully, he can now feel me too and he knows that I’m not crying out of sadness or fear.
“I know. Shh, I got you,” he says, kissing the side of my face and holding me tight. “I love being able to feel you. Thank you so much for giving yourself to me.”
I wrap my arms around his neck and hold him tightly. He does his best to not crush me with his weight, but I kinda like the pressure of having him on top of me.
We lie like that a long while, just soaking it what it feels like to be bonded with someone.
“I can’t believe I never really cared if I bonded before or not,” I say out loud and Greer pulls back to look at me.
“Is it self-absorbed if I say it was because you were waiting for me?”
I grin at him and shake my head. “No, because I definitely was.”
Isn’t that the truth of it all? I never daydreamed about being bonded, was never someone who played with dolls and fantasized about having a pack.
I realize now it’s because I didn’t know what it would look like.
My mom was a single mother with no interest in romance, and I spent too much time denying every Omega instinct.
It took coming to Scotland and finding my scent matches to open my eyes to how happy I could be. I’m not changing who I am for men, but I am adjusting to some unhealthy lifestyle choices.
A sudden sense of worry floods over me and Greer holds me tight, able to sense it down the bond. “Will Lain be upset?” I ask.
“No. I think us bonding will help everyone settle a bit. Now that I can feel you, I can give you all the reassurance you need, just like you can feel me down the bond. It gives you time to plan with Lain…and Callum?”
“And Callum,” I whisper.
Greer kisses my head with his strong arms wrapped around me.
I feel safe, loved, and exhausted. I fall asleep in my Alpha’s arms and for the first time in a long time I’m not wrapped up in the future but the right now.
I don’t need to have all the answers, I don’t need to follow a plan to the letter.
With this pack at my side, I’ll be able to overcome anything.
As I’m drifting off my phone starts blaring from the other room.
Greer groans but gets up to get it. My brows furrow as I look at the number.
“Who is it?”
“My lawyer,” I confusedly swipe the call button. “Hello?”
“Maisie, it’s Tony, how are you?” His tone is jovial and I’m trying to gather my post-heat brain cells to think of why he might be calling me.
“Um, fine and you?”
“Fantastic. I reached out to Dermdes and had a great conversation about wrongful termination and how bad it would look for them to fire an Omega for an Omega skincare line.”
“Oh, yeah?” I say, wondering what bullshit they came up with in response.
“I threatened them with a lawsuit and they already are ready to settle, granted you’d sign an NDA.”
“A settlement? Outside of my severance pay?”
“Your severance pay was a fucking joke. Excuse my language. They’re offering you 2.5 million to keep your mouth shut and to not sue them.”
I blink over at Greer, whose eyebrows are furrowed as he tries to get pieces of the conversation.
“When will you be back in the country? I think we could sue for more, but it would be a long trial. You’d likely be in the public eye.”
When I look over at Greer, I already know what I want. If you would have asked me two weeks ago, I would probably want to drag those fuckers through the mud, but now I just want to live my life with all of this behind me.
“Take the settlement,” I say easily.
“You’re sure?” Tony asks.
“Positive.”
“Alright, I’ll send over the NDA and all the other fine details. If you need any other legal counsel, you know who to call.”
“Thanks, Tony.”
I hang up the phone, still so exhausted from my heat, and newly bonded…and now I’m a millionaire?
“What was that about?” Greer says, taking me out of my thoughts.
“I think I just became a millionaire,” I say, and he surprises me by barking out a laugh.
“Good job, sweet girl, wring those fuckers dry. Get some sleep and we can talk more about it later.”
I don’t even have the energy to reply as I pass right the hell out.
I’m not sure what time it is, all I know is that it’s not Greer’s scent next to me, it’s Lain’s.
“Sorry, go back to sleep,” he whispers, petting down my hair.
I blink awake, grabbing my glasses from the nightstand.
“What time is it?”
“Almost eight,” he says and I squint at him. “At night.”
“Oh.” I slept the day away, but my body needed it. My stomach hurts as I reach up to my neck, feeling Greer’s bond mark. “Um…Greer and I…”
“I know,” he says with a smile, his hand coming up, his thumb touching the skin around the bond mark. “It looks beautiful on you.”
“I’m sorry that we didn’t all talk about it before, we should have,” I say, feeling somewhat guilty about it.
“Hey. I’m not mad, jealous, sure, but who wouldn’t be,” he says, snuggling closer to me, and I find it somewhat precious that him and Greer are so close that he doesn’t care about Lain lying in this bed. “All that matters is how you feel though,” he tells me, his blue eyes searching mine.
“I feel less afraid, like it’s taken some of the pressure off me. Having him down the bond is soothing,” I say, watching his face the whole time to see if he doesn’t want to hear any of this.
I should have never doubted Lain, because he just gives me a wide smile. “Being around Greer is like that. Plus, I’m coming up with a ridiculously romantic way for us to bond, anyway. I mean, I need to keep my new sugar mama happy and all.”
“Is that so?” I ask, feeling a huge weight of relief off my shoulders that he isn’t upset or insistent that we bond immediately.
“Aye. It will be perfect, just like you.”
“I’m far from perfect, Lain.”
“Perfect for me then,” he corrects and I just sigh, giving in and cuddling up to him. “How are you feeling?”
“So sore. I don’t think I’ve ever felt this sore in my life. I need to do pilates or yoga or something if I’m going to have three boyfriends.” Lain makes a sound in the back of his throat. “What?”
“Pack mates, Alphas, bonded mates, lovers. Any of those are better than boyfriend.”
“Oh yeah? And what will I be to you?”
“My girl, my Omega, my everything,” he says and I full on swoon.
“You’re too smooth for your own good,” I say and a voice interrupts in the hallway.
“A smooth brain, maybe,” Callum says, and Lain just holds up a middle finger. “Don’t worry, I won’t be here long, just swinging by to drop off some food for Maisie, and you too, I guess.”
“Was it made with love?” I joke, not even thinking before I speak.
Callum goes still, clearing his throat, putting the bag of food on the counter. “It was.”
“Thank you for bringing food. I’m starving,” I say, sitting up on the bed as he takes food out. I’m not usually someone who eats in bed, but this seems like an appropriate occasion.
“You’re welcome. I gotta get back. There was just a small lull where I could run out and have my staff take over. I’ll be back later tonight. You’ll probably be asleep,” Callum says, awkwardly putting his hands in his pockets.
“Then a kiss goodnight now?”
It’s not my smoothest delivery, but it seems to work as Callum gives me a smile, leaning down to give me a quick kiss. It’s a bit awkward, but I feel the connection between us.
“Have a good rest of your shift.”
“I will. Eat and get some rest,” he says, giving a half-hearted wave to Lain.
I take a spoon and immediately start in on the soup he brought. It was definitely made with love, because it’s freaking delicious.
“You two seem to bicker a lot,” I mention to Lain and he laughs.
“Giving each other shit is our love language,” he says and then turns to me. “What’s yours?”
“My what?” I reply, getting another mouthful of soup.
“Your love language.”
Okay, how many times have we said love in this bed while not saying I love you?
“I kinda don’t buy into that,” I tell him and he mocks clutching his pearls. “I mean, yes, it all makes sense, but just choosing one? I like all of them. I suppose words of affirmation would be my highest tier, though.”
“Mine is—”
“Quality time,” I say, cutting him off and he gives me a smile, dimple and all.
“You’ll tell me if I’m ever too much? If you need space from me ever, I’ll give it to you. I know I can be a lot for some people.”
My brows furrow as I look at Lain. I have to put my soup down so I can turn and face him directly. He’s already got his utensil to his lips, like he wasn’t just talking so poorly about himself.
“Who said that?” I ask.
Lain shrugs. “I’d just get on Fiona’s nerves sometimes, and I just want to make sure that I don’t push you away.”
“You could never push me away. Part of me wants to say fuck Fiona, but then I’m also so grateful things ended with her or else I wouldn’t have found my scent matches. You’re never too much Lain, not ever. I want you just the way you are.”
He gets a little shy, but nods in agreement.
“Then you’ll have me just the way I am.”
My heart stills at that, because how in the hell did I get so lucky to not only find my scent matches but to find men who like me for me?
Part of me wants to say fuck it and bond with Lain right now, but I know I’m still coming down from the high of bonding with Greer. I also want this romantic bonding he has planned.
So, instead we eat the food Callum brought, before lying down and putting on a movie.
“Oh, was everything okay with the tours while you were gone?”
Lain lets out an incredulous sigh. “No, and if I see Rory on the street, I might just punch the bastard. I need to find an assistant so that I can take on more tours and have a back-up plan for your heats.”
My initial reaction is to feel guilty over my heats taking up time, and Greer must sense it, because my phone is buzzing on the bed.
I turn on my side and answer it. “Hello?”
“What’s wrong? Why do you feel like that down the bond?” he asks, and my cheeks heat as Lain looks at me inquisitively.
“Are you going to call me any time I have a negative emotion?” I ask.
“Maybe,” he says and I can tell he’s being completely serious.
I can hear the ruckus of the tavern in the background and it makes me wish I was there. That alone has my mood changing.
“Maisie,” Greer says to bring me back to the issue at hand.
I’ve been so good at hiding my feelings in the past. The grin and bear it policy wasn’t working for me. Greer might not know why I feel a certain way, but he can feel it and there isn’t a reason to lie.
“I was just feeling guilty,” I say, meeting Lain’s eyes, who seems completely thrown off by my confession. “Everyone has to pause their life to help me during my heat. It’s an inconvenience.”
“You’re never an inconvenience, Maisie. Never. It was sudden, and completely unexpected. We’ll make better plans for the next time it happens. There’s nothing to feel guilty about. Can I talk to Lain?”
I hand my phone to Lain, and watch as he nods his head to whatever Greer is saying and never breaks eye contact with me.
“I got everything covered,” Lain says, making a few noises of agreement before handing the phone back to me.
“Take as much rest as you need. I’ll be home late, but I’ll see you in the morning. Love you,” he says.
“Okay, see you tomorrow,” I say, not wanting to say I love you right in front of Lain, not when we haven’t had our own moment of discussing our feelings.
When I hang up the phone, Lain gives me a small smile before wrapping me up in a hug.
“No more fretting, Maisie.”
An irritated sigh is my only response to that and Lain laughs, squeezing me tighter.
“I’m always going to be a worrier,” I tell him and he inhales the scent of my hair.
“Well, the one thing you never have to worry about is your pack wanting to take care of you, alright? I’d drop everything happily to make sure you’re okay.”
“It’s just going to take me a while to get used to all this princess treatment.”
His scent is thicker, his chest rumbling with a purr as he holds me. “Just as much as we need to get used to having royalty in our home.”
A snort slips out of me and he kisses my head again.
“Now, finish your food or Callum will have a fit.”
Yeah, it’s definitely going to take some time to wrap my head around having three Alphas who want to take care of me, and things will only get more intense when they can all feel me.
My phone buzzes. It’s Greer again, and I promptly ignore it, finish my food, and snuggle next to Lain, letting this anxious feeling slowly drift away.