14. Marley
MARLEY
“Is that a bite mark?” Tracy rips down the collar of my shirt, her eyes as wide as saucers. “I told that boy to chase you, not lock you down.”
I shrug out of her hold with a smile. “Maaaaaybeee…that’s what I needed though.”
She lets out a long whistle before shaking her head. “You and your brother, just jump in feet first.”
“Well, when you grow up the way we did, you’re either so cautious that it ruins you or you’re reckless. I think I’m tired of being cautious.”
Tracy smiles at me, a twinkle in her eyes. “About damn time, girl. When can I start stocking up for the wedding? This whole town is going to get wasted.”
“Oh god. Don’t. We’re taking it slow.” I almost take the words back, the last thing I want to be with Jax is slow. So much time was wasted being cautious last time, and all the time wasted being apart, but I’m not sure if that means public marriage just yet.
She snorts. “Because a biting mark is taking it slow.”
A blush works over my chest and neck. I feel a flicker of warmth in my chest from Jax. “It is. Kind of. It wasn’t planned, okay? We were trying something new, and it got out of hand.”
Her eyebrows raise. “Something new like what?”
“It’s personal.” I’ve grown closer to Tracy, but no way am I talking to my boss about a knotted dildo.
“He fuck you up the ass? Loosen you up a bit?”
I choke on my spit and then glare at her. “No.”
“Hmm. So you took his knot. You need an ice pack for your hoo-ha? Us betas aren’t built to just snap right back, ya know?”
Blinking, I stare at her, a little confused and stunned. “You knew that betas could take alpha knots?”
Some of the humor leaves Tracy’s face, and she looks at me with a hint of sadness. “Sometimes I forget how much your momma didn’t teach ya. I forget because you’re so capable, smart, and strong.”
It’s hard to swallow her words, and I look away, grabbing the towel to keep drying the dishes.
“Marley, it’s not something to be ashamed of. We can all learn new things at every point in our lives. It doesn’t help that the general public tries to feed into that ‘alpha and omegas are better pairings’ nonsense. It doesn’t surprise me that you would think that.”
I shake my head. “A doctor told us that it would be nearly impossible to get pregnant.”
Tracy scowls. “Sounds like the doctor was prejudiced. And you should have reported him to the board.”
My nose tingles with the urge to cry. “I feel so dumb. So many years wasted.”
She walks closer, her hand touching my arm.
She’s learned I’m not one for hugs. “Hey. You’re not dumb.
You were young, and you trusted people who you should have been able to trust. They failed you, okay?
You made a decision with bad information.
That’s not stupidity. Especially when you’ve been given a second chance to try again, and now you have everything you need to make a better choice this time. ”
I clear my throat. “Still feels like it was all for nothing.”
She shrugs. “You don’t know that. You guys could have had another argument down the line and broken up as well. We can’t dwell on the what-ifs. Just maybe, talk things through this time.”
“Thanks,” I deadpan, trying to smother my giggles.
She winks, pulling away from me to nod back at where we need to finish setting up. “Come on. Gather yourself. We wouldn’t want the rest of the others thinking I have a soft spot for you.”
I snort. “Of course not. Then they might not be afraid to piss me off.”
Tracy smiles. “Exactly. And it makes my life easier when they are all kept in line.” She nudges me with her shoulder. “You know if you want to get back into school and finish your degree, you’ll always have a spot here.”
It means more than I could ever tell her.
When I broke up with Jax, I lost my job at the university in the next town over when I didn’t show up for two weeks.
I could barely get up to eat or shower. I’m glad that Cooper was on the road for the rodeo so he couldn’t see me like that.
I finally mustered the energy to go to the grocery store and ran into Tracy, who told me to come work for her or she was going to lock me in a psych ward.
I think a part of her felt compelled because a long time ago, she and my dad were friends.
At least that’s what I assumed when she told me they went to the same school, but she never really talked to my mom, who moved here right after they graduated.
Whatever divine intervention led her there that day, I’ll always be thankful for it.
She gave me and Jax a place to land when we came back home.