A Bundle of Mannies

by Lorelei M. Hart

  “How was your final?” I’d no doubt he aced it. I’d always put my best effort into school, but Beck put me to shame. If he didn’t ace the final, the entire thing was rigged.

  “I did well I think.” He took a bite of toast. “You’re home early,” he noted after he swallowed.

  “Yeah, the grading was far easier than normal. I think the new test preparation packet I gave them helped a lot.” Which, given the multitude of hours spent creating it, meant a lot to me. I still needed to tell him about the hacking, but Stan had managed to contain the damage, so it could wait.

  “Unc.” Hannah’s voice came through the door before she did. “Unc, why didn’t you wake me?” She rubbed her eyes and yawned as she padded over to me.

  “Big girls need their sleep,” I reminded her.

  “But I slept through dinner, and now I’m starving.” She climbed her way up onto the empty seat beside me, one far too tall for her. “Can I have your toast?”

  I handed it to her and contained my giggle. The poor little thing thought she had slept through the night because of the breakfast laid out before us.

  “Your uncle told me that if you took a nap, we could go to Jack’s House,” Beck told her. “Would you like that?”

  She nodded up and down and dropped her toast back on my plate. “I can take my nap right now. I’m really tired.”

  I saw the dawning in Beck’s eyes. Adorable. Of course, everything about him was either adorable or sexy or adorably sexy.

  “Hannah, your uncle and I were eating while you napped. We are having breakfast for snack. How silly is that?”

  “You are both silly uncles. How are you going to have room for the pizza?”

  She called Beck her uncle. That. Was. Everything.

  “I think we’ll have room.” He took a huge forkful of egg.

  If only he knew how truly awful the “pizza” was.

  ***

  “Is it always so...this?” Beck asked as the puppets started their show and confetti flew from somewhere on stage, kids running around in all directions and so much screaming.

  “Yeah, pretty much. Fun, huh?” I settled my head on his shoulder to be closer to his ear, the sounds of the room deafening. Not that I was complaining about it. No, sitting there with him, my head on his shoulders, and the girls on our laps as Jase sat in front of us eating “best pizza ever” was pretty much the best feeling in the world even if Jase was beyond wrong.

  The pizza was worse than I remembered, and my memory had been awful.

  “Best night of my life.”

  I froze. Surely he was being sarcastic except everything about him said otherwise. He felt it, too. We were a family, and it was wonderful even in its weirdness and the horrible circumstances that led to it.

  We watched as the show went on, the confetti thankfully a one-and-done part of the performance.

  “Ready to go home?” I asked Hannah who looked beyond tired. It was only seven, but since that was their bedtime, her exhaustion made sense. I probably should’ve considered that earlier.

  “Not tired.” She bounded off Beck’s lap and took her brother’s hand. “Let’s slide.”

  I glanced at Beck, who shrugged then got up and followed them to said slide.

  “How about you, Chelsea? You want to slide?” She never did at the park, so when she shook her head no it was no surprise. “Bounce?” I pointed to an inflatable designed for her age and was again met with her shaking her head in the negative. “Hmmm, let’s see...the ball pit?” She giggled.

  We spent the next hour, the five of us rotating between activities sometimes as a fivesome and sometimes one or two on one. It was by far the best date I’d ever been on even though it was by far the most nontraditional. By the time we wrapped up our playtime and caved on the cotton candy, it was pushing nine. Far too late for the littles to be out, but the next day was Saturday and, while I had an inkling I’d pay for it then, it was much needed.

  The kids settled into bed far quicker than I feared, leaving Beck and I for our alone time. Alone time that turned into falling asleep in each other’s arms long before we could have a conversation, much less anything more adult fun in nature. Jack’s House had officially zapped all of my energy. Thankfully, I had strong, warm arms to settle into while I recovered from it.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Beck

  Saturday morning, everyone slept in. The kids coming off their sugar high had stayed up until nearly nine thirty and then all crashed at once like dominoes.

  “Good morning, omega mine,” Carter said sleepily.

  “Good morning,” I said and quickly kissed his temple, intending to bolt before the kids woke up. The clock read it was already past nine.

  “No, not yet. They’re still sleeping.” He tugged me back into the warmth that was him and rubbed his hands up and down my back.

  “Last night…”

  He chuckled and it shook me. “Last night the kids got all hopped up on sugar and rides and then had the nerve to ask for cotton candy?”

  I laughed and tried to muffle it in the pillow. “Yes, but people said things to us.”

  “Like what?” He sat up, the look on his face apparent that he thought something was wrong.

  “One man said we were the cutest dads he’d ever seen. He complimented us on how lovely our children were. I…”

  His brow furrowed and he stroked my face. “What?”

  “I didn’t correct them. It was so easy to fall into the lie, not to tell him that he was mistaken. I love them so much and…”

  “And what, Beckham.” Full name again. I was in trouble.

  “And I love you so much and want all those things. I want us to be a family.”

  He leaned forward and kissed my forehead. “We already are. And there’s nothing to be ashamed about. Hannah called you her uncle yesterday. They love you just as much as you love them.”

  My eyes flicked to his chest. “I heard her call me that.”

  The fact that Carter hadn’t told me he loved me back hadn’t escaped my attention, but I let it slide. I’d said it too soon maybe. It didn’t matter to me, though. I meant it—every word.

  I’d intended to just stay there and make out with my alpha until I heard the kids up and about, but my stomach sounds interrupted along with the fact that no matter how much I pretended it didn’t bother me, Carter not saying he loved me back gnawed at my insides.

  I was a mess.

  “I’m gonna go down and make breakfast while you shower.”

  He sniffed himself. “Do I stink?”

  “You smell like fake cheese and weird fruit punch. French toast okay?”

  “Sounds good.”

  I shut the door to his room and took each step slowly, one by one, to give myself time to chill the fuck out.

  By the time the last piece of French toast was on the griddle, the kids were down and playing with toys on the table while Carter made his coffee. He wore a pair of burgundy pajama pants and a plain white V-neck T-shirt and now smelled like himself—close to heaven.

  “Good morning, Beck,” he said and winked at me.

  I cut up the French toast for the little ones and let Hannah do her own thing with hers. Jase wanted blueberry syrup, but we were all out, so he settled for real honey instead.

  “What’s on the agenda today?” I asked as I sat down with my plate and cup.

  “I need to call Frank. This whole thing is beyond ridiculous.”

  Chelsea clanged her fork on the table. “Ridikoowus.”

  “What she said. I’ll go call him now. How about the museum today? They opened up that new kids’ museum in the city where you can touch and play with the displays.”

  I beamed. “That sounds wonderful. And I have zero studying to do.”

  Carter chuckled. “And I have zero grading to do. Welcome to summer.”

  We didn’t tell the kids, but for after the museum, we packed their swimsuits and towels and intended to bring them to the splash pad. They
would get a kick out of that.

  At the museum, I noticed Carter was a little distant, seemed to be caught up in his own thoughts, but I ignored it for the most part. I didn’t really have a choice anyway—the kids had me chasing them with my gaze over and over making sure they didn’t get lost.

  “We have a surprise for you!” Carter announced as we got back into the car, but Chelsea had already tuckered out, and it looked like Jase was trying for second place with his droopy eyes.

  “Let’s get some lunch and then we can see if that energizes them,” I suggested.

  “Good idea.”

  I wanted to reach across the console and take his hand in mine, but it felt awkward for some reason. I debated with myself for another ten minutes before becoming determined to clear the air. “Carter, are we okay? Did I freak you out this morning?”

  He looked at me. “Why are you asking me that?”

  Now I felt like shit—or an idiot—definitely a tossup.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Carter

  Family night had been so perfect even in its loud crappy food, over-sugared way to late mess that it was. As I dozed off in Beck’s arms, I felt on top of the world and then when I got up to pee, the high I was on came crashing down all because I checked the time on my stupid phone.

  Stan had left a message and said it looked like the computer thing was not only not a coincidence, but that it was a strategic strike against me. Some task force or something was meeting with us at the college on Monday and while this was need-to-know information for Beck, I hadn’t quite figured out how to bring it up. We’d had such a perfect night even if the reason for it was significantly less so, and there was nothing either of us could do about it until Monday anyway, which I verified with Stan while I was getting ready. It still hung heavy on me.

  And so I did what any nonfunctioning adult did and went for operation distract away. After our morning when he’d told me he loved me and I told him we were a family, the lie by omission started becoming my main focus to the point that after what should’ve been a wonderful morning, my omega was feeling it so deeply he asked me the one question no one building a new relationship or anywhere on the relationship journey wants to hear, “Carter, are we okay? Did I freak you out this morning?”

  So like a loser I answered, “Why are you asking me that?” I didn’t mean it accusatory, although that was exactly how it sounded, and seeing him flinch towards his door at my words was like a kick in the groin.

  I reached out and grabbed his hand. “No. Not like that.” Not making it any better.

  “Forget I said anything about it.” I felt the force of his soft words deeply. We were only a few miles from home and instead of trying to get the kids to sit through a lunch on good behavior when they were so tired, I changed directions, heading back to our place.

  “I understand,” he mumbled. No, he didn’t. He didn’t understand at all.

  “Beck, we should go home. The kids are exhausted. My idea to have a huge day of family fun is all connected to this.” I squeezed his hand in an attempt to soothe him. I was failing miserably.

  “I don’t even know what this is.” He spoke low and my guess was it was to be mindful of the children who were mostly if not fully asleep in the back. Kids don’t need to deal with adult shit. He was right. “Is it because I said I loved you?”

  Fuck. No. No. No.

  “I love you, too, Beck.” I took a deep breath glad that the distance between us and the house was decreasing rapidly. “This has nothing to do with that. It...let’s wait until we are sure no little ears are listening, but it is 100 percent work related and nothing at all to do with you. I promise.”

  He agreed with hesitation in his voice. I didn’t blame him. I sounded like a liar and felt like one, too. I should’ve told him everything that morning instead of protecting him until I figured all things out. I was an idiot.

  Please don’t let me fuck this up just as I found him.

  We pulled in the drive, the splash pad forgotten, and brought the kids in, their sleepy eyes giving us pause to question if we should feed them first or put them down for a nap. Naps won out when Hannah swatted at me when I tried to right her so she could walk.

  We had them settled in within five minutes and headed back to the living room to talk. Talk. Such an ominous-sounding word in the context.

  “They will wake early out of hunger.” Beck spoke low and went immediately into straightening mode. The room looked fine. It was his coping mechanism. Wow, I really fucking things up.

  I walked behind him and wrapped my arms around him. “I messed up, Beck. Yesterday at work a thing happened. It sucked but Stan fixed it, so I didn’t tell you not wanting to ruin our night.”

  “What kind of thing?” He didn’t pull away, but he didn’t lean into my touch, either.

  “I’m getting to that.” I settled my chin on his shoulder, accepting the comfort his scent gave me. “This morning I got up to use the bathroom and I had a message from Stan. It turned out the thing that happened at work was worse than I thought. I have to deal with it Monday.”

  “Thing? Not a good explanation.”

  “I am messing all of this up.” Please let me fix it. “Can we sit down so I can see your face?”

  He shook his head and rotated in my arms until we were face-to-face, his hands settling on my hips.

  “That better?” He gave a half smile.

  “Much.” I hugged him a little tighter. “My computer was hacked. No more than that all of my internal university data was breached.” I still didn’t understand the severity or depth of what had happened, but when Stan was frazzled it wasn’t good.

  “That’s awful. But it doesn’t explain why you didn’t tell me.”

  Because I’m a dumb ass. “The message this morning said it was a direct attack on me and not just a breach at random.”

  “Why would someone do that?”

  “I don’t know.” I had an idea. Many, as a matter of fact, but offered up only the most probable. No sense biting off more trouble than we could chew. “My curriculum makes me a target for political groups so maybe that.”

  His hands slid around my hips and settled into my jean back pockets. I took that as a sign I still had a shot at fixing the mess I’d created.

  “And instead of telling me, you decided family fun day was the way to go?” His words highlighted the sheer stupidity of what I’d done.

  “Something like that.”

  “How’d that work out for you?” He chuckled.

  “I don’t know, I ended up with the man I love in my arms.” I gave a half smile.

  “You love me.” It wasn’t a question. Thank fuck, he felt the truth in my words. I needed to get better at this communication stuff because losing Beck wasn’t an option, and I had a feeling I’d come far closer than even I realized.

  “How could I not?” And before he could come up with a retort, I covered his lips with my own.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Beck

  We made out on the couch like a couple of teenagers until the sounds from upstairs cued us in that our little ones were awake and raring to go.

  Carter had brought me to the brink of orgasm more than once and we still had our clothes on. Damn it, I needed him more than I needed my next breath.

  “We’re having date night tonight,” I whispered in his ear as I watched the kids come down the stairs.

  “Should I call Janice?” he asked and was still watching my lips. Damn him.

  “Nope. I have an idea. We won’t even have to leave the house.”

  Carter’s cheeks rose in a smile. “I can’t wait. Should I dress up or just take everything off?”

  I chuckled. “So incredibly naughty. That dirty talk will serve you well—later.”

  He winked at me. “I hope so.”

  The kids were hungry, of course, and I made some quick fried rice from leftovers we had in the fridge. They ate it like it was their first and last meal. They coul
d say teenagers ate you out of house and home all they wanted, but toddlers had teenagers beat, at least ours did.

  The afternoon was spent watching The Lion King and playing with the jumbo Legos. Jase and Hannah built them up and Chelsea got the giggles knocking them down. Carter even videoed the whole thing since she was so cute. Her little belly jiggled when she laughed.

  Carter was extra flirtatious through dinner. Every time he passed behind me, he let his hand graze over my ass or between my thighs, the lightest tough, but just enough to keep my flame ignited throughout the night.

  “Can you handle baths and bedtime? I have some things to set up.”

  “I can handle it, omega mine.” He kissed the tip of my nose and then with great finesse led them all upstairs for their bedtime routines. I went to work right away. In my room I changed into jeans and a nice shirt and went to work. I cleared off the dining room table and spread out a tablecloth across it I’d seen in the china cabinet along with two candle sticks and candles. I cooked a few pieces of stuffed chicken breast bought frozen from the store and made a salad along with some garlic bread. While I waited, I got out the ice cream topping and checked for ice cream. Thank the gods, we had some. With my Bluetooth speaker connected to my phone, I turned on some soft music and waited for everything to get done.

  Upstairs, I heard the trampling of the kids from the bathroom to their bedrooms.

  This was it. I was so making this date happen so that I could make the after-date action happen.

  I couldn’t wait another second for Carter to make me his in every way possible.

  With the ding of the oven I sprang to action, making the table look pretty yet casual, and by the time I lined up the forks and knives by their plates, Carter entered.

  He looked like he’d wrestled alligators instead of bathing children.

  “If you’re too tired…” I said as a blush crept up my neck.

  “No, I need this and you, omega. I need this night for the both of us.”

  We ate together, and I made him the biggest banana split I could and we ended up sharing it.