by Emma Knox
That was precisely why I’d had the courage to leave when Dad helped me, though. If I stayed at the pack, I would be under Whit’s thumb. What would happen to my baby after I gave birth? A young shifter will learn to shift long before they present, and what would happen if we found out down the line that my baby was an Omega? Would he or she be treated the same as me? Or, worse, if he or she was an Alpha, would they be suppressed by the other Alphas in the main house? Most of them were my relatives, but they were also Alphas, and I knew the biggest reason why they ignored me, was because I was an Omega and thus incapable of becoming a threat.
Another Alpha in the family would mean another possible successor, though. Whit had aspirations to be part of the Alaskan Shifter Council, so they wouldn’t even have to wait until he stepped down before fighting for the position.
Max wanted to do this, though, so I wouldn’t stand in his way, even if it made me uneasy. Besides, I did understand the position he was in. The plan had always been to tell my parents, and have Max come and talk to them after, and the two of us would leave. Max would have to appear in front of my pack at least once if we didn’t want trouble from Whit down the line.
As I allowed him to lead me to the bathroom, my mind was filled with these troubling thoughts. I kept the sheet the whole way, though I didn’t realize it until Max sat on the side of the tab and dragged me into his lap. He pressed a kiss on my neck that woke my attention a little, and I wondered if I had another mark there by the possessive look that suddenly entered his eyes.
He held me close as he turned on the taps and let the tub slowly fill up. He would occasionally put his hand under the taps, or in the water, then he would adjust them, looking for the best temperature.
“I talked to my dad about you,” he said suddenly. “My Omega dad, I mean. He told me a lot of warmth will be good for your pregnancy.”
“I can't keep taking baths, though. Wouldn’t that be wasteful?”
He hummed, running his hand in the water again. “You don’t have to take baths every day. We’ll try for once every two weeks or so. The rest of the time, there’s me to keep you warm.”
Max wiggled his eyebrows at me, and once again my face flushed. He chuckled at me.
Don’t worry, I mean it in a completely innocent way. You see, I’ve been a little swamped with work recently, so I’ve been sleeping in the study. But I’ll be sleeping holding you close every night. Would you like that?”
My mood lifting a little, I nodded. Waking up to Max every day sounded just amazing to me. I would be back on cloud nine if I could completely ignore the whole thing with Whit.
Once Max was satisfied with the water, and the level had risen until just above half, he held me by the waist and pushed me to stand up.
“It should be fine if you just soak in this for a while. I’ll get you some breakfast in the kitchen and bring it up for you to eat. So, just come out when I’m back, all right?”
“Okay,” I said obediently.
He pressed a quick peck on my forehead, then down to my lips, and left the bathroom. I let go of the sheet, and carefully slid into the tub. The water was a little too hot for my taste, but after a minute of soaking in it, I sighed and leaned back, closing my eyes as the aches and tension in my body slowly disappeared. I wondered if Max had any bath salts I could use. I could probably just get my own from home once we went, though… I was still conflicted about it, but I figured I would have to face Whit at some point. It would be simpler if we just went in person instead of waiting for him to come to us.
I soaked in the tub, occasionally massaging the hot water into my skin, for about half an hour when I heard a knock on the bathroom door. I sighed, feeling a bit regretful that I had to get out, but the water was cooling down anyway. There was a robe in the bathroom. It was big on me—probably Max’s—but I put it on and walked into the bedroom.
“There you are,” Max said, smiling at me. “Come and eat. I hope you’ll like it.”
I went over to the bed and sat down. He’d brought a stool in where the food was set, and he took a seat beside me, just watching me as I tucked into the food.
“Would you like some?” I asked politely while scarfing it all down. After last night’s work out, and considering I was eating for two currently, I felt really hungry.
“No,” Max said, sounding amused. “I had something earlier already, I was just waiting for you.”
I nodded, though I hadn't even paused. I did slow down after several bites, mostly because I was feeling a bit embarrassed with Max watching me so closely. I tried to think of a topic to distract him as I licked bacon juice off my fingers. When I noticed his eyes lingering on my mouth and fingers, growing a little heated, I stopped doing that, too.
“You know,” I said quickly. “I’ve never been attracted to another Alpha like I have been when it comes to you.”
I watched him from the corner of my eye and I noticed the slow growing smile on his lips.
“Really?”
I nodded firmly. “Definitely. I mean, I’d heard of you before, and meeting you was totally unexpected, not to mention the circumstances…” I frowned just thinking about it, but waved the bad parts of it aside. “But the point is, I’m attracted to you. Like, a whole lot.”
Pausing, I pursed my lips as I tried to arrange my thoughts. I wanted to tell Max just what I felt, and what he meant to me.
“You could say…that in my whole life I’ve never really had anything interesting happen to me. Well, besides when I got my first teaching job, and the unforgettable night of the gala. But, no matter how bad that night was, it was the night I got to meet you. My whole life I’ve wanted someone like you, you could say to act as prince charming to get me away from my overbearing family. But I never thought I would get it.”
By that point, I was pretty much speaking on automatic, narrating my thoughts as I got lost in them. I remembered all the things I’d ever wanted that I couldn’t get, all because of the family I was born into, and the fact that I was born an Omega.
So in the end, I could only wish to leave, and of course it had to be the perfect person that would love me unconditionally and shower me in affection. I hadn't thought that was possible until I met Max, who was showering me in affection right then, tugging me into a side hug and nuzzling my hair, startling me out of my daze.
“The instant I laid eye on you,” he murmured, squeezing me close, “I was intrigued. Of course, you know the situation, so I kept pushing those thoughts away, but I definitely wanted you. That hasn’t changed now, and it’s not going to change, ever.”
My eyes blurred with tears at Max’s words, but I blinked them away. We stayed that way, with Max holding me, and me leaning into him, for a while. Until he reminded me to finish.
After I was done eating, the two of us left Max’s pack, to head over to my parents’ house.
Chapter 13
Max
We were completely dependent on Evan to get us there, because I’d never been around Whit Barrington’s side of the country before, and it was a lot easier to get lost than my home. At least where we lived was remote, with trees all over the place, so as long as you got off in the general area, all you had to do was jump into the woods and shift, then follow some scent trails, because there was bound to be some no matter the day you went.
Evan, however, lived about an hour out of the city, and the forest included in their territory was bordered by settlements, both shifter and human. I didn’t really understand how they could stand to live so closely with humans. Even the forest wasn’t necessarily safe, humans could go in for hiking or running or whatever, and what would happen if the shifters were caught? They’d end up in a sticky situation.
They probably learned how to cope, though, seeing as many packs had been dealing with the same issue, and the only time possible exposure ever rocked the shifter world, was from one tiny pack and that was a few decades ago. It was taken care of swiftly and mostly forgotten.
“We�
�re here,” Evan murmured.
I was looking out the window at all the passing people on the streets, and the houses. At Evan’s words, I turned to him, then directed my eyes to where he was staring. A large house bordered by large hedges and framed by trees behind it in all white.
“You can just pull over at the curb,” he said. “They don’t really let anyone foreign beyond the fence, unless it’s a special occasion and by special invitation. The distance to the house isn’t that far, we can just make it on foot.”
I did as he’d asked, pulling the car into park, then I got out, and Evan followed.
“Wow,” I muttered. “This is your Alpha’s house?”
He nodded. “Yeah. Though it’s more the family’s wealth than the pack’s. Whit makes sure everyone is clear on that little detail. There’s a bit of a distance between our house and the others’ houses, and the fences are huge so we don’t have to worry about people finding anything strange going on.”
We walked past the fence just fine, though I could scent the shifters even before we got that far. We were definitely at the right place.
Evan and I made out way up to the building. I could already see, on the wide front porch, two figures sitting at a table set out. Evan obviously saw them, too, and recognized his parents, because his steps stumbled a bit. I was about to grab onto him so he wouldn’t fall, but he managed to right himself.
“You nervous?” I murmured, keeping my voice low so the shifters not that far ahead of us wouldn’t hear.
“How could I not be?” Evan muttered.
“I’ll protect you,” I said solemnly.
Evan’s lips twitched up at the corners, like they always did when he wanted to smile. Only this time, he stopped the movement and set his lips in a straight line. I frowned, not liking how guarded he was when we were technically at him home.
As we got closer, Whit stood up, though he didn’t try to come any closer to us, just waiting for us to get closer. At this distance, I realized Whit was practically growling at me, the closer I got, the deeper the rumbles in his chest were. I wasn’t sure how to react to the situation, but I figured Evan was worse off than me, and made sure to be as close as possible without stretching the boundaries of politeness.
“Alpha,” I called out respectfully once we were close enough. Though being an Alpha of a pack myself now, I could have addressed him by name instead, but I was trying to be super polite. “I’m sorry for hesitating to visit you before now, I’ve been a bit busy being an Alpha for the past few weeks after… my Alpha perished at the time of the Beta attack.”
“Oh, you poor dear,” the other man on the porch said.
He was slighter than Whit, with pale skin, blond hair, and blue eyes that reminded me of a certain someone. I could also scent him from where I stood, and I knew he was an Omega. So, Evan’s other dad, then?
“So? What the fuck have you come to do here?” Whit asked, his voice aggressive and rude. “I didn’t ask you to come visit me, though I should thank you for bringing my son back to me. I thought I was going to have to come looking for him.”
I pressed my lips in a flat line. Sure enough, I’d guessed what he would have done. He was too proud an Alpha not to do anything, and his choices would have been to either come to us directly, or go through the council first, and that could have only created troubles.
“Whit,” the Omega beside him said, also standing up. “They’ve both probably had a long trip. Why don’t we invite them inside and get them some food, then we can talk?”
“There won’t be any talking happening,” Whit growled back. “Evan is staying, Max is leaving, and that’s it. I’m not in the mood to receive visitors today.”
I wanted to curl my fingers into my palms, but I knew I couldn’t make any outward show of aggression. Whit would definitely take it the wrong way just to cause trouble, so I had to completely control myself. I didn’t want to, though. The conversation had barely started, and already it had grown in tension. I could feel Evan standing beside me, growing distressed, and his Omega father was looking between the three of us with a look of worry.
How could I possibly turn this around?
I had come knowing it wouldn’t be easy, but I had been optimistic that we could at least reach some form of agreement. While I wanted Evan to move in with me and my pack, I wouldn’t just cut him off from his family, if he very wanted to see them again. At least when it came to his Omega father. I was pretty sure he would be glad to see the last of Whit, and honestly, I was starting to feel the same.
There was no way I was just going to back down from this, though, since giving into Whit meant never getting to see Evan again. He might not even let me see my own child once he or she was born. No. there was absolutely no way I was letting Evan remain with his pack or his Alpha.
Former Alpha, something possessive in me corrected.
“Mr. Barrington,” I said, barely keeping up my polite tone. “I didn’t come here to bring Evan back, I just thought this meeting would be best if we were all present for it. Rest assured, that once we’re done talking, I will be taking Evan back with me.”
“Like hell you will,” Whit roared.
I was pretty sure he would have come after me to attack me, if Evan’s dad hadn't moved to his side to try and calm him down. I knew I was making things harder, but it wasn’t like I was trying to deliberately provoke him. He just wanted things done his way and I was going for the exact opposite, so I could imagine he was frustrated. I didn’t give a damn.
“I came here to speak to you out of respect, Mr. Barrington. And for your blessing. Evan will bear my child and I am currently the Alpha of my pack. There is no way I would let my mate and my child go.”
“My son is not your mate yet, so keep that in mind. And if I have anything to say about it, it’s never going to happen.”
“Am I not good enough for your son?” I probed. “Or is there another reason why you think I’m not suitable?”
I wanted to know his reasoning, if it was even something that made sense. Depending on whatever was driving his decision, I could manage to leave with Evan and Whit won’t be able to make trouble for us later on. It would be pointless if we just walked away when there was the off chance that it might come back to bite us in the future.
His answer was a little disappointing, though.
“You do not need to know my reasoning, I don’t need to explain myself to you. Evan is my son, and he is part of my pack. I can chose to not let him go.”
“So you would raise the Alpha successor of a different pack within your own?” I retorted. “Would that be a wise idea?”
His face distorted in rage, but for a moment, he couldn’t speak. I knew all about the hard road to becoming an Alpha of any pack. Sure, as long as you were an Alpha, you could have a shot at it, but shifters tended to value strength. So in the case an Alpha had several children, and there were other relatives that also shared the blood line, anyone of them, as long as they presented as an Alpha, could fight to be the pack Alpha. The genes of my family were strong, I was positive of this, and an Alpha and Omega match up had a higher chance of having an Alpha off spring than an Omega young. Which would mean my child fighting for supremacy with his own kids and grandkids. It was the kind of thought that would give anyone pause.
Whit couldn’t possibly allow an outsider to have a possibility of succeeding his position, when it had been held by his family for a while. A lot of packs liked to stay pure, at least when it came to the line of succession. The child of another pack Alpha thrown into the mix would only create chaos.
“What do you want?” Whit growled at me after a long while through gritted teeth.
I arched an eyebrow at him. “I’ve already told you what I wanted. I came in good faith, and I hope we can leave things that way. But I am Alpha enough and I don’t need your blessing if you won’t give it. I definitely won’t be groveling for it, and I won’t leave Evan to you, either.”
Whit’s face was fl
ushed a dark, angry red that spread down his neck. He had his fists clenched, and his whole body displayed aggression. He looked like he was about to leap at me at any moment. I kept my body loose, but I was just as ready to fight back if he actually attacked me. Evan had moved so he was standing closer to me, and I could feel his body trembling in distress.
I gritted my teeth, tempted to just attack Whit and get all this tension over with.
“Now, now, let’s all just calm down, please,” Evan’s Omega father spoke up, trying to calm the situation.
“You be quiet!” Whit snapped back at him.
I sucked in a harsh breath as everything seemed to go still. Even Evan had stiffened beside me. His Omega father was staring at Whit with his jaw dropped and eyes widened in a stunned expression. Then, his eyes narrowed into slits, pressing his lips flat.
With my fists clenched, I turned to Evan. We had stayed way longer than we should have.
“Evan,” I said, not bothering to keep my voice quiet. “Go inside and collect your things. Everything you think you can't live without, and leave everything else behind. You’re moving in with me.”
“Evan, don’t you dare,” Whit growled. “I absolutely forbid it.”
My whole body stiffened, and I scowled at him, losing control of my temper. He was no longer Evan’s Alpha from today, so he had no right to tell Evan what to do. When Evan made a soft sound beside me, my eyes shot to him in alarm.
Evan had begun crying, and he didn’t look at anyone as he went inside without saying a word. As soon as he was out of sight, I glared at Whit again. He just bared his teeth at me.
Evan is going to get his things and come back out…right?
It was what I hoped, but I couldn’t be sure. It wasn’t like I’d never realized before, but I really didn’t know much about Evan. The total number of times we’d been around each other face to face counted on one of my hands, and that was it. I was hoping for more, but this was clearly distressing him more. Aside from being worried, though, I was unsure. Would Evan chose to listen to me, or was he going to listen to Whit, his Alpha and father.
