Chapter 13
Grayson
Grayson Miller regretted being born. Nausea churned in his stomach with each pound of pain in his skull.
“Fuck.” He held a hand to his eyes, blocking out the sunlight.
Bits and pieces of the previous night littered his thoughts, but were largely overshadowed by the yawning void of memory.
On his bedside table, there was a massive tumbler of water, a bottle of painkillers, and his heat suppressants. Grayson was pretty sure he could recall Jenna setting them there right before he passed out. He owed her a massive coffee with extra whipped cream.
How did she even get me home… God I was such a wreck.
Grayson sipped at the water, wincing as it hit his hollow stomach.
He needed to eat something. With no small amount of effort, Grayson hauled himself out of bed and shuffled to the kitchen.
He set his water on the island and went digging through the fridge.
After a few moments, he emerged triumphant—leftover fried rice.
The whir of the microwave was only minimally grating on the pain in his head. Grayson reached for the water then paused. There was a note written on his memo pad.
Grayson,
I’ve never experienced a hangover, but I’ve heard enough to know you probably feel like shit and don’t remember much. You were pretty out of it. Jenna force-fed you some water, but I doubt water can beat out ten (?) glasses of wine. Have more water once you’re up and try not to die.
–Keld
P.S. If you wanted to spend the night in my arms, you could have just said so. Getting drunk was a little excessive ;)
Grayson’s face burned with utter humiliation. More of his memories were coming back now—him, cradled in Keld’s arms. Lying in the back seat of a car that smelled like a rainforest floor. Keld tucking him into bed—
Oh. My. God.
Grayson buried his face in his hands. He was never going to live this down.
Not only did he get completely blackout drunk in front of all his friends, but he had also done it in front of the Alpha who’d taken him on a horrible date before proceeding to kiss him senseless in an alleyway.
Then, that same Alpha somehow convinced Grayson’s friends to let him drive them home, before carrying Grayson up to his bed.
At least he knew Jenna had stayed with him and not left him alone with Keld. Maybe he owed her more than just a coffee. A custom cake, that might be enough. One that said, “Sorry I got shitfaced.”
The microwave beeped, and the scent of fried rice sparked a fresh wave of nausea. Grayson groaned, but forced himself to take a few bites. Miraculously, his phone was still in his pocket. A message buzzed against his thigh.
Jenna Uehara: You alive?
Grayson Miller: Barely
Jenna Uehara: Food and water, now.
Grayson Miller: I am, I am. Hey, thanks for getting me home…
Jenna Uehara: No problem, babe. You can do it for me next time <3
Grayson Miller: If you’re as dumb as me and drink like two bottles of prosecco, sure.
Jenna Uehara: Lol. Let me know when you feel good enough for me to come over. I have to fill you in on last night.
Grayson grimaced.
Grayson Miller: Do I even want to know?
Jenna Uehara: It’s not that bad, and it’s not even all about you. Chill
Grayson Miller: Give me like an hour
The rap of impatient knuckles on his door arrived precisely fifty-nine minutes later. The headache had subsided somewhat, with the help of medication, but he still felt like at least some of his blood had been replaced with battery acid.
“Hey, Jenna,” he said, swinging the door wide.
“You look awful.”
“Thanks.”
Jenna kicked her shoes off and launched herself at the sofa. “I was going to tell you, the color scheme in here is great. Very ocean-y.”
“Yeah, I like it.” He eased himself onto the couch beside her. “Good thing, too, because I wouldn’t have even known where to start with decorating.”
Jenna sniffed. “Men.”
“So…” Grayson prompted. “Last night?”
Jenna spun to face him fully, eyes dancing with gossip-kindled delight. “Aureli went home with someone.”
Grayson raised his brows. “Damn. Good for him. Human or Alpha?”
“Alpha. Female Alpha.”
Grayson’s jaw dropped. “Female? I thought… I mean I assumed…”
“Me too!” Jenna’s hand fell on his shoulder. She was one of those people that touched with utter ease and comfort. Grayson, on the other hand, never knew how to react when people got too close.
“I guess he never came out and said he was only interested in men… or male Alphas,” he muttered. Heat from Jenna’s hand radiated through his t-shirt.
To his relief, she sat back thoughtfully, severing contact. “That’s true… I wonder if he’s bi. Or straight? What would you call a male Omega that likes female Alphas? They have dicks, it’s not exactly the same…” Jenna pressed a palm to her forehead. “This should not be this complicated.”
Grayson frowned slightly. “Omega straight? Likes women—female Mer—but sticks to Alphas like Mer Omegas do.”
Jenna laughed. “Okay, sure, Omega straight. Man, we’re going to need a bigger rainbow.” She eyed him. “What would you call yourself?”
Grayson shrugged. “Gay. I’ve been with human men and I’m not opposed to male Alphas.”
“What about male Mer Omegas?” Jenna hummed. “They’re still male, but… Jesus, this is giving me a headache.”
“I don’t think we need to invent labels for every configuration of sexuality right this moment.” Grayson’s mouth twitched into a smile. “Maybe you can make a spreadsheet later.”
“Hey!” Jenna smacked his arm. “Wait, you might be onto something…”
Grayson resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “Was that all the gossip you had for me? Aureli and the female Alpha?”
“Oh. No.” Jenna scowled. “I don’t know how much you remember, but we got strongarmed into letting Bad Date Guy drive us all home.”
Grayson winced. “I remember bits and pieces, but not much. I only knew he was here because he left a note.”
“He did?” Jenna sat bolt upright. “What did it say?”
“It’s still on the island,” Grayson said, gesturing toward the kitchen.
Seemingly through teleportation, Jenna snatched up the note and scanned it. She pressed her lips together, trying to suppress laughter.
“Okay, I don’t like him on principle, but this is funny.”
“Shut up, no it’s not.” Grayson buried his face in his hands. “God, so embarrassing.”
“Listen, we were going to try to get you onto the bus, but Keld showed up before we even left the bar.” Jenna returned to her place on the couch. “I told him no at first, but we were having a hard time even keeping you standing. Maybe if Aureli was there…”
“It’s fine,” Grayson interrupted. “It all worked out in the end, right?”
“Well, it was the most awkward ten minutes of my life, but yeah. He carried you up here, but I went with him. I didn’t trust him alone with you.”
Grayson hesitated, then reached out to pat Jenna’s leg. “I appreciate that.”
“You’d do the same,” she said dismissively. “Anyway, I needed the door code, and you just said,” she put on an exaggerated slur, “ ‘M’birthday.’ You’re lucky I’m good with dates or you would have woken up on my floor.”
Grayson cringed. “Sorry.”
“It’s fine. It was actually kind of funny.” Jenna grinned, her teeth shining white against the tan of her skin. “Keld put you to bed, I got you water, then I kicked him out. I stayed until you refused to drink any more liquid. Seems like it didn’t help much.”
“I’d hate to imagine what I’d feel like if you hadn’t done that.” Grayson shuddered. “Thank you. For taking such good care of me. You’re the best drunk babysitter ever.”
“Yeah, well, let me be the drunk baby next time, deal?”
Grayson laughed. “Deal.”
∞∞∞
“Congratulations, Braydon,” Grayson said with a smile. “It’s an Omega boy.”
The man accepted the squawling bundle in shaky arms. His Alpha, an ill-tempered, rust scaled behemoth, groaned.
“I was so sure it’d be an Alpha.”
“Well, it’s not,” Braydon sniped back.
Grayson sighed. The couple had been bickering on and off since they arrived. He could only hope it was the result of sleeplessness, pain, and stress.
At least I might win the Big Ass Baby Award this week.
The thirteen pound, seven ounce hybrid child was an unfortunate combination of his human father’s peach-toned skin and a dulled down hue of his Mer father’s reddish orange, resulting in monochromatic, peachy skin and scales to match. Even his fins were a color one could easily find on a human face.
Grayson sidled out of the room as the argument shifted to baby names. He nearly ran headlong into Rorith, who was lurking outside the door.
“They’re still fighting?” the Mer whispered. His satin brown scales refracted a faint rainbow from the overhead LEDs.
“Yeah,” Grayson murmured back. “About names now.”
Rorith shook his head. “No wonder they’re not mated. Proof that the Mermate program doesn’t always work.”
“How do you know?” Grayson’s voice returned to a normal volume as the two nurses meandered back toward their station.
“Smell,” the Omega Mer answered, tapping his nose. “Mated Alphas and Omegas have a much weaker scent to outsiders.”
Grayson’s eyes widened. “I thought mating was like the Mer version of marriage.”
Rorith made a sound of derision. “If you want to simplify it, sure. But it’s an irreversible, biological process.”
Irreversible?
“How does it work? I mean, obviously it’s more than just sleeping with each other, if those two managed to have a baby.” Grayson jerked his thumb back at the occupied birthing suite.
Rorith blew out a slow breath. “If I had a nickel for every time I’ve had to explain this to a human… Basically, both parties bite each other during intercourse, usually at the same time. It has to break skin, and it has to happen roughly around the same time as climax.”
Grayson’s face heated. “Oh.”
“Yeah.” Rorith shuffled some paperwork around on the desk. “So don’t go around biting any Mer.”