As I finished my second beer, I thought about how Marcus would have turned his nose up at it. He was a wine and cocktail guy. Though he couldn't say the fucking word cocktail without turning it into an innuendo. Not that I minded; innuendos generally turned into more between us. I felt guilty, sometimes, for how often he was staying at my house, yet we never went over to his, but I had the furries, and I couldn't leave them alone overnight. Sure, he had Blubby and Whisper, but those two needed quite a lot less attention overall. And I still wasn't comfortable with that damn snake.
"If Mama catches you with that grin, she's gonna know about your new boyfriend," Coop said, handing me a newly opened bottle.
"He's not my boyfriend," I said automatically, the words tasting sour in my mouth. We were sleeping together regularly, exclusively; if that wasn't a boyfriend, what was it? The question had been weighing on me for a couple weeks now, and I was no closer to an answer now than then. I wanted to ask Marcus about it, but for some reason, I kept holding back. Why? It wasn't like I thought he was the flighty alpha chaser he'd appeared when I'd first been watching him at the club. He was absolutely devoted to all of our animals. And by "our," I meant his and mine. Separately. My animals, his animals, not ours together.
Fuck. Who was I kidding? They were all ours. Even that damn snake.
"Here she comes," Coop whispered.
Mama set the giant bowl of stroganoff on the table. "I hope you boys are hungry."
"When are we ever not?" I started by serving myself a big base layer of noodles and piling the beef and gravy mixture on top of it.
The meal passed as comfortably as always, laughing back and forth, poking fun at each other. I wondered what Marcus would think of it. From the sound of it, his family would have been nothing like this. I liked the idea of bringing him on family day and letting my Mama love on him. Mama was good at drawing out the best in people.
As we all sat back in post-meal bliss, too tired to start cleaning up yet, but not able to eat anymore, Mama turned to me. "So tell us about this boy."
I glared at Coop who raised his hands in protest. "I didn't say anything. I warned you. It's been all over your face."
"You have only yourself to blame," Mama said. "I've been watching you for over thirty years, Killian Everest Daye. I knew there was a new man in your life from the first dinner you had here afterward, but something's changed. This one is sticking to your ribs, like a good dinner. Tell us about him."
I sighed as if in frustration, but it was all part of the game. There were times my family's attention did frustrate the hell out of me, but it was all love. "His name is Marcus. He's tall, but not as tall as me. Skinny. Colorful. Sassy. I could probably just go on for days."
"Is he the reason you've suddenly got a menagerie?" Mama patted Mr. Jenkins's head. He'd taken a special liking to Mama, and barely let her out of his sight from the moment we walked in the door now.
I laughed, rubbing my neck. "Yeah, you could probably lay a lot of that at his feet."
"Don't lie, bro. He's just enabling your inner softie." Coop ducked as I swung a half-hearted slap at his head. "Wait—this isn't that twink you were crushing on at the club, is it?"
I blushed. I'd completely forgotten about telling Coop about Marcus sometime forever ago.
"Cooper Anderson Daye," Mama snapped.
"He's a little tall to be a twink," I said, "but yeah, it's the same guy." I didn't normally go for clubbers. It was too complicated, mixing work and pleasure. Marcus was the only one who'd drawn my attention for long.
Mr. Jenkins must have heard something, because he suddenly stood up and started nosing Mama's hand. "Hold on, boy. I'm interrogating your father." He continued to nudge her hand, getting bossier by the moment and she pulled her hand away to point it at me. "Well I think... I think..." Her eyes drifted, staring off in the distance.
"What, Mama?" I asked, to draw her attention back to the conversation. But her hand went limp and she slumped on the table, her body giving a little twitch.
I was on my feet in a moment, yelling at Coop, "Call 9-1-1." I'd never heard Mr. Jenkins bark before, but he set up a howl, jumping around Mama, getting in my way. "Move, Mr. Jenkins," I'm trying to help!" Strangely enough, he stopped barking and stepped back, letting me get close enough to check that Mama was still breathing and her heart was still pumping. I scooted her chair back and laid her on the floor, turning on her side. I remembered vaguely that was a thing with unconscious people, right? You didn't want them to swallow their tongues? Mr. Jenkins laid behind Mama's back, and I patted him on the head in thanks. The two of us watched over her until the paramedics arrived. Coop waited at the road, making sure they found us as fast as possible.
Mama started coming to a couple minutes before they arrived, but she was foggy, not really seeing me, and when she tried to get up, she didn't fight me when I gently pressed her back down.
I was shaking as I rode in the back of the ambulance with her, holding her hand, Coop staying back to look after the animals. Fuck. Mama was so young. I'd never really thought of losing her before. I couldn't lose her now. I hadn't finished telling her about Marcus. She had to meet Marcus. What if he was the one, and she...
I choked back a sob. I wasn't ready for my Mama to go.
30
Marcus
I was in a car before Killian had finished telling me what was going on. There was no way I’d be anywhere but by his side. Killian sounded awful. Not that I could blame him. He thought his mother hung the stars in the sky. I had yet to meet her, but felt like she was family the way Killian talked about her.
“I’ll be there in five,” I assured him as he told me she was officially being admitted. That was fast, almost too fast. Usually hospitals dragged their feet and got a diagnosis before admitting people, especially if they showed up after dinner time.
“No, I’m fine. I just… needed to hear your voice.” He sounded so damn broken.
“Bullshit, I’m mostly there. Did they give you a room number yet?” I wasn’t about to argue with him. He needed me. If he didn’t, he would have called me when it was all over, the way my grandparents had when my grandfather had a heart attack; we got a call saying he was fine and at home resting. Pissed my parents off, but good for Grandpa. Killian needed me, though, and I’d be damned if I wasn’t there for him.
“You don’t have to.”
“Yet, I am.”
The fight in his voice was gone. I was glad he could let me see him this way, although I wished he didn’t have to. Just the idea that a big, strong alpha, strong enough to be a Red Knight, would let me see him so broken twisted my heart right open and left my feelings bleeding everywhere. But I had to be strong for him. “Room number?”
“I don’t have one yet. They are currently arguing over whether she should go to infectious diseases or neuro.”
My heart fell. I had assumed it was a blood sugar issue, or nutrition, something easy to see and fix. Easy fixes were generally not infectious diseases and never, from my less than medical background, neurological.
“They think she’s infectious? Like a bug?”
“They have no idea. They are wearing head to toe shit, but didn’t ask me to suit up, so I think it’s more protocol than actual concern.”
The car stopped at yet another red light. The traffic fairies were not with us, and I wanted to scream. Killian needed me, and I was sitting at another fucking red light a hundred feet from the entrance.
“Where are you now?”
“In the ER waiting room.”
I pointed to the ER entrance sign.
“They wheeled her to some tests and said she’d go straight from there to the room. They’re going to give me the number once they stop fighting or whatever they’re doing now.”
We pulled up and I jumped out of the car, throwing cash at the guy for a tip because it was easier than using the app at the moment.
It only took me a moment to spot my alpha.
“They’re—�
�� He looked up to see me, and I stepped into his embrace as he wrapped his arms around me tightly. He was trembling. My big, strong alpha was trembling. I held on tight, wishing I could absorb his pain, but knowing this was the most I could offer him. “It’s so good to see you, Blondie.”
“There’s nowhere else I would be.”
We stood and I infused my comfort in him until someone called his name from the registration desk.
“I’m Killian Daye.” He walked over to the woman who had called his name, one hand fervently gripping mine, the other brushing away tears.
“Mr. Daye, it looks like your mother’s insurance is no longer valid. Do you have a new card for her?”
Was this woman fucking serious? The man was a disheveled mess, his mother’s condition completely unknown and she was giving him crap over paperwork?
“Not valid?”
I gave his hand a squeeze.
“That’s what the computer said. It says the group policy number is no longer current.” The woman’s tone was far bitchier than needed, especially given the situation. Sure, it was a pain she didn’t have the correct numbers, but there was no reason she had to be so rude about it.
“Shit, I don’t know.” He pulled out his phone and dialed. “Hold on… Coop, do you know if Mama got new insurance?” He listened for less than a minute. I tried to eavesdrop, but his phone was too damn quiet. “Thanks, Coop.” He hung up. “My brother said something happened at work and he thinks they are working on it.”
“Working on it isn’t insurance, sir.”
Fuck her.
“Is it possible your mother’s been lying to you about her insurance or job and possibly qualifies for state help?”
She did not just insult my boyfriend’s mother, calling her a freaking liar? That did not just happen. I was fit to be tied, the only thing helping me hold my composure was my need to stay strong and solid for Killian.
“She wouldn’t do that. She wouldn’t lie. But really, is this the time for this? My mother is who knows where suffering from god knows what, and you’re worried about fucking paperwork?”
You tell her, Killer.
“It’s my job… sir.” She added the “sir” pointedly. Malicious compliance at its finest.
“Mr. Daye,” a man called from behind.
“What?” I snapped, fearing it was security, because I could tell this bitch would consider “fucking” to be a threat.
“The doctors will meet you in Consult Room Three, please.” He pointed to the door labeled with the number.
“Can I go?” Killian snapped at the bitchy woman.
“Yes, sir, but I need you to come back when you are finished.”
“I’ll meet you in there.” I kissed Killian and then tilted my head to the restroom, knowing damn well it was a lie, but he kissed my cheek and headed on in.
I needed to make this quick so I could be there for Killian. No one should treat anyone in this place the way that bitch did. No one. I walked right up to her damn smug face and gave her my most poisonous smile. “I’m Marcus Frederick of the Frederick Foundation.”
Her face dropped at my pronouncement, giving me an up and down before deciding I must be telling the truth, or at least figuring it wasn’t worth the risk. I held out my ID just to let her know it wasn’t bullshit and to instill a bit more fear.
The foundation had been started by my godmothers, and had been near and dear to them. They had funded a lot of improvements in the hospital over the years, but their favorite part of running the foundation was randomly going in, personally, and clearing medical debts. They were firm believers that people shouldn’t go homeless because they got sick, and it was time for me to step up and truly follow their footsteps.
“I see you know me. When Mr. Daye comes out, you are going to apologize for this bullshit, or I will know why. Regardless, I will also be reporting you. And rest assured, Mrs. Daye’s bills will be paid, and if you grovel enough to Mr. Daye you might be lucky enough to keep your job.”
Because fuck her.
I walked away from her blabbering apologies. It wasn’t me she owed them to. I needed to be with my mate. No—not mate. But shit, that denial made me feel sick. He was my mate. I wondered if he felt the same.
We waited in the room together for nearly a half an hour before more doctors than I had ever seen together outside of a fundraising gala tumbled in. In a nut shell, they had not a fucking clue what was wrong with her and wanted to fly her to the Olive Clinic for further tests.
They gave Killian five minutes with her before asking him to leave, telling him to go home, and that he could see her again at the clinic.
I was on my phone immediately, booking him a flight and hotel room as we waited for our car. He was so completely out of it, he didn’t say a word. Not about the bitch who apologized, not when I told him I’d book his flight and hotel, not when I offered to stay at his place with the fur babies so he didn’t have to worry.
As we climbed into the car, he asked if we could stay at my place until his flight because it was closer.
“Anything you need, alpha,” I whispered in his ear, meaning every word.
31
Killian
I leaned into Marcus, just thankful he was here. I'd never had a lot of people in my life who I could count on—just Mama and Coop—but now I had Marcus. I could hardly believe that he had come to wrap me in his arms and pick up the pieces after me.
"I gotta tell Coop," I muttered into his shirt.
"Here, give me your phone."
I unlocked it and handed it over and listened to him tell my brother what had gone on. He kept his voice calm and soothing, and he made plans with Coop to exchange the animals in the morning. I would have been a fucking mess if I'd had to tell Coop that the doctors didn't fucking know what was wrong with Mama, and I'd barely had a minute with her.
Marcus had to tug me out of the car and up the stairs, and he pushed me down on his couch. Everything had been moved around to make room for Whisper's habitat, and at this point, I didn't even care there was probably a huge-ass snake lurking behind my head, thinking about how to swallow me up. I almost wished for it.
Marcus brought me a cup of water and forced me to drink it, then set it carefully aside and straddled my lap. He took my face in his hands and kissed me so gently, so tenderly, I nearly broke all over again. The tears I'd had to hold back earlier broke free, coursing down my cheeks, and Marcus kissed each one away until they were gone.
"Feel better?" he asked, snuggling into my neck.
"A little, yeah."
I listened to the rise and fall of his breath for a while.
"You know... right before my mama... right before..." I had to clear my throat. "She was asking about you."
"You told her about me?" Marcus leaned back to look at my face.
"Not until she asked. But she knew something about you before I told her. She said there was something different about me. About me with you. That something about you was sticking to my ribs like a good meal. And she was right." Hell, this was the wrong time to say it, the wrong time to tell him this, but tonight, with my mama, I had suddenly been forced to realize that everything is temporary. "Marcus, I fucking love you, and maybe it's too early and maybe I'm—"
Whatever I was going to say after that was lost in Marcus's kiss. It was brief, because he pulled back to say, "I love you, too, Killer."
"Say my name."
"I love you, too, Killian. I don't give a fuck if it's too early. I've seen what kind of man you are, rescuing Princess Buttercup, adopting Mr. Jenkins, integrating them with Sally. You've protected me since before we were ever a thing." He touched our noses together. "I want to make you mine and keep you forever."
My chest was so tight I could barely breathe. "Do you mean that?"
"I know I can be pretty flippant, and crass, and just all around goofy, but that's not something I could ever joke about, Killian." He rubbed his hands through my hair and I lifted my hands to set
tle on his waist.
"I didn't mean that. I meant are you really sure? It's not just a spur-of-the-moment high emotion thing?"
"I really fucking mean it." Marcus laughed, and it was clear it was at himself. "It's all I've been able to think about for weeks. I've been going crazy, hoping you felt the same, but too afraid to ask."
I pulled him close. I wanted to touch as much of him as physically possible, to feel him so present with me in the here and now.
"Killian?" Marcus's breath skated across my neck, sending goosebumps prickling up my arms.
"Yeah, Blondie?"
He snuggled deeper into me at my use of his nickname.
"Would you..." he hesitated, and I tried to think what could possibly be between us that could be more intimate than what we had just shared. Tentatively, I let my hands drift down to his ass—a question, not a request. But just that light touch made Marcus gasp and nod. I wanted it. I wanted that closeness with him. And yet I felt guilty.
"Is that okay?" I asked, feeling as though my entire world was falling down around me. "Is it okay to want that when... when..." I couldn't bring myself to say it. "That's not betraying her?"
Marcus pressed his lips lightly to my forehead, as if in benediction. "What we have between us is a celebration of life, babe. A celebration of love, and joy, and intimacy. Everything your mother taught you to embrace, everything she would want for you to have."
"I want her to meet you." I couldn't help the tears falling down my face. "I want her to meet you, and love on you the way a mom should. I want her to see our children and play with them and spoil them and make them absolute sugar demons right before handing them back to us to deal with the consequences. I want to live in a big house with tons of animals. I mean, we're practically parents already."
His Secret Billionaire Omega: M/M Non-Shifter Alpha/Omega MPREG (Cafe Om Book 6) Page 12
