He still kissed like an angel, even if his new curves made it impossible for our hips to get close together. Cupping his chin, I tilted his face for a better angle and urged his lips apart, my tongue darting inside as soon as they opened, to meet his and dance together like the old days.
Old day. It was only once. But it was like this. Or this might be better. It wasn’t worse… For that moment, while my lips ground together, and Pierce’s big belly pressed against my flat abs, in my twisted, delusional brain, they were mine. Pierce and that baby both. My omega. My child.
My family.
Chapter Four
Pierce
The cool water splashing on my face hadn’t helped remove the blush I was still sporting thanks to the unexpected kiss from Rhone. For a brief moment, it was as if I’d never left and we were our own little version of Karyn and Tom, living the dream life. But that wasn’t our reality. He was Rhone, complete with his own business, according to Grams and her gossip network, and had so much to offer an omega. I was only Pierce, a guy carrying someone else’s baby.
When the crash of something breaking against the hard tile floor snapped our lips apart, I’d fled. True, I had to pee, making my excuse plausible, but that wasn’t why I ran. Fear was. I was scared that once the headiness of the kiss wore away, he’d make an excuse for why it could never happen again and reject me. Which, to be fair, was probably for the best, but I just couldn’t—not now. Maybe not ever. I wanted to think of that kiss as meaning something.
One more splash of cold water and I gave up, patting my face with a paper towel and steeling myself for what I needed to do next—chicken out.
As I exited the bathroom, Rhone was back in his seat, his eyes already on me. If only I could’ve seen them well enough to figure out what they were telling me. He’d always had expressive eyes. But between the distance and the steamy haze that was the diner, I couldn’t tell if he was sad, scared, or possibly happy. His face didn’t give anything away, not that it ever had. It had always been his eyes.
“I need to be going,” I mumbled as I grabbed my almost-clownish coat from my seat. “Thank you so much for lunch. I was hungrier than I realized.”
“You could stay for the rest of the cake.” He gestured to the half-eaten piece surrounded by melted ice cream.
“I need to get back. Grams.” I said her name as if she were the reason I needed to leave instead of my insecurity and panic over tasting his lips again, lips that still held power over me even after all these years.
“Tell her I said hello. Are you guys staying there?” He was far less than subtle, asking once again about my alpha, for who wouldn’t have an alpha when they were “about to pop” as Grams so subtly put it?
“I don’t have an alpha,” I mumbled as I headed away from the table.
Out the door and to my car, which picked the worst time ever imaginable to not want to start. I turned the key over and over again. Nothing.
My heart raced, knowing Rhone was still in there, probably thinking awful things about me. Omegas had come a long way, but an alphaless omega was still frowned upon by far too many layers of society. And, yet, my choices were to stay in the car or go back in and ask to use the phone. Banging my head on the steering wheel, once again kicking myself for the washing machine/phone fiasco, I steadied myself as I prepared to face Rhone.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
I picked my head up long enough to see Rhone’s face, looking less than pleased, through my window. I tried to roll it down, which failed miserably before giving up and getting out of the car.
“What are you doing?” Oh, he was pissed all right. I should never have kissed him. Not when it couldn’t be anything more, although, to be fair, he started it, which was as pathetic an excuse as there ever was.
“Going home.” I caught myself wringing my hands before slamming them into my pockets, which, due to the enormousness of my coat, fell by my thighs, forcing me to hunch over slightly. I was officially a mess in all ways.
“No. Your car didn’t start.” He must have seen me about to deny what he had so accurately described because he gave me the don’t-even look before continuing his rant. “I saw you. And don’t pretend you called for a tow because I would have noticed that. What were you doing?”
“Getting ready to come back into the diner to borrow a phone.” It was technically the truth.
“Sitting there in the cold? With no heat running? While pregnant?”
“Putting it that way sounds awful.” Because it was awful. It was one thing to be a big chicken head when it came to my heart. A complete other thing to do so while carrying a baby.
“It was awful. Can you honestly say there is a way it wouldn’t sound awful?”
There was no sense even pretending to try and think of a way. Heck, the White House press secretary couldn’t talk their way out of that one, and that was their paid gig.
“No. I should have come right in. I just didn’t want you to think worse of me.” There was some relief letting it all out, which shocked me. What was it about Rhone? “Failed big time at that, didn’t I?” I kicked a pebble and watched it tumble away, not wanting to meet his eyes.
“Why would I think poorly of you? Because I spooked you with a kiss?”
That had my head snapping back up to attention. Was he serious? He thought he messed up by kissing me, a more than willing participant.
“No. Of course not. That’s not—” I closed my eyes, inhaling deeply before opening them and beginning again, trying to keep myself from telling him how I’d missed his lips all those years, which, of course, was insane, given we’d only had one true night, but what a night it was. That was the one night everything made sense in the world. At least until I got home to a packed car and a crying Grams.
“Because I was in there very pregnant, alphaless, scarfing down your food like I hadn’t eaten in a year, and then freaked out and ran off to hide in the bathroom after you kissed me breathless. Oh, and let’s not forget running away as fast as I could after said freak-out in the bathroom.” Strung together like that, it became clear the people in the diner sure got their money’s worth of entertainment thanks to me.
“I kissed you breathless?” Rhone took a step closer, brushing a stray hair off of my forehead.
“That’s what you got out of that?” I scoffed, trying to figure out what world I had woken up in, for it surely had to be an alternative reality. There was no way in my world that the literal man of my dreams would see me all destitute and pregnant and be trying to woo me or whatever this was he was trying to do.
“It’s the only part that matters.”
A horn honked lightly, and Rhone waved back to the waving driver. He was popular. Of course he was. Always had been. There was just something about Rhone that drew people to him. I should know. I was one of those very people.
“Now, back to the issue of your car—do you think it is a battery problem or something more?” Always practical. I remembered that, too.
I wish it were only a jump I needed, but given I had run through three batteries already this year, it had to be more.
“I got a new battery only a couple of months ago, so my guess is more.” I left out the part about the other two before that and another three before that.
Before asking anything else, he whipped his phone out and hit one of his contacts then brought it to his ear. “Hey, Brent. Yeah, I’m here with a buddy, and his car died outside the diner.”
A buddy. Yeah, that was about right. I was an old high school buddy. But why did it hurt so much to hear him call me that. It wasn’t as if I was his omega or even his date. I was his buddy. Done. “Any chance you could tow it in and give it a once-over ?
“Excellent. Yeah. That was my thought, too. Perfect.”
He hung up the phone, slid it into his pocket, and I instantly wished I’d paid more attention to all the conversation had entailed, and possibly even attempted to hear the Brent guy. Shit. What if Brent was his boyfriend? Or, worse, his o
mega, and I let him kiss me. No, Rhone wouldn’t do that, except he thought I might so maybe he—
“All taken care of.” He pulled me out of my head with his words, which was freakin’ fantastic, given I headed down a path that could lead nowhere good. “Let’s go back inside the diner and wait where it’s warm. He’s going to be here with his truck in ten minutes.”
“I don’t have money for a tow.” Or for the repair, but the transport was the first thing to deal with. Who knew? Maybe Grams had one of those car towing services I could use. It sounded like something she would have.
“That’s good because the tow didn’t cost money.” Rhone held his hand out to me and, like a fool, I took it. I knew better. Allowing myself to feel as though things hadn’t changed was never a wise idea. But his hand felt perfect, the way it ensconced mine and sent warmth up my arm, so I not only let it stay there, but found my body leaning into his as well.
“It was free?” I asked for clarification, assuming he had a towing service card.
“Not exactly.” I stopped in my tracks.
“What was it, exactly?”
“Brent had some flooding thanks to a broken pipe. Insurance didn’t cover what was inside, only what they thought the damage was worth to the building.”
This, I was familiar with. It was exactly what happened to us when we owned our one and only house when I was a young boy. Dad bitched about it till his dying day.
“I restored it for the cost of the materials so he could replace some of his necessities for the shop.”
And, somehow, Rhone got more perfect. He so deserved the complete package with an omega, and that was so very much not me. Not before the surrogacy thing, and certainly not afterward.
“He wasn’t keen on that, likes to pay his way and all, so he does work on my vehicles for the cost of parts.”
“I’m not you.” I meant it on so many levels, but he took it as just about the car repairs, which was fine at the moment because it meant he never let go of my hand.
“That didn’t seem to faze Brent any when he offered, so worry not at all about it while we go back in.”
He started to walk toward the diner, taking me with him. What was a little more time with him? He might not be someone I could have forever, but, for this afternoon, maybe I could pretend a little.
“Fine, but I’m paying for parts.” Or I’d decline the repair if the parts in question were too expensive, but I was holding onto that bit, not wanting to ruin what little time we had left together.
“If it takes any. Now, get inside.” He pulled open the door we had finally reached. “You’re pregnant, for goodness’ sake. What kind of alpha makes a baby and then leaves like this?”
He meant it as funny, or possibly rhetorical and pointed. I couldn’t tell which because my body went into full-on fix-it mode.
“It’s not what you think,” I mumbled as I wedged myself back into our booth.
“What is it, then?” He slid in next to me, his body pressed against mine, his voice low, the intimacy of it all close to overwhelming.
“Not in the diner.” This was a story meant for private only. Sure people would see how very much unlike me the baby looked, but that wasn’t the same as announcing to the world the baby wasn’t biologically mine via the diner regulars’ gossip line.
“But you will tell me while I drive you home.” He wasn’t asking. It was a statement both that he was making sure I got home and that I was going to tell him all things. Or most, anyway.
“Yes. I will tell you.” If I didn’t chicken out.
Rhone
I stood beside Pierce while the tow truck hauled away the little sedan. The thing was more rust than paint, and I only hoped Brent could manage to put it together in a safe way for Pierce and his child. He’d avoided my comments and questions about the pregnancy, so far, except for admitting he had no alpha in his life, and offered that info begrudgingly. But he’d agreed to open up on the way home, so I led him to my truck and opened the passenger door.
“Need a hand climbing in?” The cab was a good step up even for me, and I was quite a bit taller and not at all pregnant.
“No. I can do it.” He released my hand and grabbed for a hold to boost himself while I stepped back and let him do it. My every instinct said I should help, but I sensed a need to maintain some dignity here, and every man deserved that. Closing the door behind him, I strolled to the driver’s side and swung on up. When I turned the key, the engine roared to life and, in less than a minute, heat poured into the cab. Along with Wham’s version of “Last Christmas” from the all-holiday satellite station. “Well, I’m out of that game,” I muttered, turning it down a little.
Pierce barked out a startled laugh. “You are playing that social media game…the first time you hear this song…”
“Or anything by the Beach Boys,” we chorused, and the ensuing laughter broke the tension. Some, anyway.
I took advantage of his more relaxed posture, I began the interrogation. “Staying with your grams, you said?”
“Yeah,” he muttered. “It’s on—”
“I know where your grandmother lives. Same place as when we were kids.” I fixed him with a stern look before pulling onto the street. “What I do want to know is how you got yourself into this fix. Some alpha knocked you up and then couldn’t take the responsibility of a family?” I wanted to kill the guy, whoever he might be. Oh, not that I’d rather Pierce have someone else in his life, but as the windshield wipers flicked away the light snowfall that had just begun, I wanted to go beat the crap out of the jerk then warn him away. I’d take it from here.
Except, that was crazy. Sure, Pierce had let me kiss him. He’d even kissed me back, with, I liked to imagine, enthusiasm, but that didn’t mean he was looking for a new alpha. Hell, I didn’t know what he wanted.
But I was darn well going to find out.
“Okay, Pierce. It’s about five minutes to anywhere in this town including your grandmother’s place, so if you’re going to fill me in on the story behind that baby who is probably about fifteen minutes from arriving—”
“Over a month.”
“What?” I turned off Main Street. “You’re that big a month out? How tall was your alpha anyway? Was he a professional basketball player?”
Pierce pressed a palm to his belly and flushed. “I don’t know.”
“What do you mean you don’t know? You didn’t have a one-night stand, did you?”
“No!” he blurted. “That’s not what happened.”
I felt for him, he seemed so ill at ease, so I tried to remedy that. “I’m glad to hear it. I like to think you only one-night standed for me. It was our thing.”
My attempt at levity backfired, and a big tear fell down his cheek. “I didn’t want it to be one night. I had no idea my dad needed us to leave town so suddenly. And when I found out why, I was too ashamed to come back to visit or call anyone, or anything.”
Now I did feel bad because his dad hadn’t been the solid citizen his grandmother was, and everyone knew why they’d had to bail. His old man had owed nearly everyone in town for something or other—a situation his grams had remedied a dollar at a time until the debts were cleared. Even his bookie. I wondered if he knew but decided to take things back to the subject at hand. The elephant in the truck cab.
“I know you didn’t. And that’s ancient history. I’d really like to hear what you’ve been up to since we last saw each other. Especially recently.”
“Especially eight or so months ago?” His voice cracked along with my heart. “It’s not a great romantic story or anything. You’d probably be bored.”
Somehow, I doubted that. Making a decision, I turned left instead of right. We weren’t going to have any time alone at his grams’, sweet lady though she was.
“Listen, Pierce, instead of going to your grams’, what would you say to coming back to my place for cocoa and cookies and conversation.”
“I don’t know. Grams is expecting me…�
��
“You can call her, and I’ll take you home anytime you want, but I really want to hear your story. Okay?” Since I was headed for my house with no intention of turning around, I hoped he’d agree.
And he did. “I-I guess that will be okay.” I hoped his hesitation wasn’t out of reluctance to spend time with me, but I’d take my chances. “What kind of cookies?”
I zipped up my driveway, inwardly cheering. “Chocolate chip.”
“Okay...wait, we’re here already. This is your house, I assume?” He leaned his head back and watched me out of the corner of his eye as I nodded and switched off the engine. “What if I had said no?”
“You didn’t.”
I kept the house pretty cool when I wasn’t there, so as soon as I’d ushered Pierce inside, I hit the thermostat. “We’ll be warm in a few. Can I take that coat from you?” It was a ridiculous thing, way too big for him but a little tight over his swollen belly. He wrapped his arms around that bump for a moment before shrugging free of the enveloping fabric.
“Thanks.”
I hung it on a hook next to mine in the foyer and waved him toward the living room. “Make yourself at home, and I’ll be right back with the snacks.” I’d probably have to feed him on the hour if what I’d seen so far held true. Not that I minded, and once we were settled on the couch with the tray of steaming cocoa and both chocolate chip cookies and fudge brownies in front of us—a real chocolate feast—I picked his hand up and held it between mine. “Story time.”
“We could start with yours…?” he suggested hopefully.
“Sure. I finished high school, went to college, got an engineering degree, came back here, and went into building. I’m single and own my own home. Have good friends but nobody significant on the horizon until now.” Squeezing his hand, I arched a brow. “Now, what have you been up to?”
His grin still made my heart beat harder, even now when it was more subdued than I remembered from way back when. With a tug, I pulled him against my side and laid an arm over his shoulders, feeling protective and more turned-on than I liked to admit.
Christmas with His Omega Page 4
