Chapter Sixteen

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Now Playing: Chokehold- Sleep Token

Callisto finds me in the gym finishing my morning workout. I noticed my beta seemed lost in thought all evening yesterday, so I’m not surprised to see the notebook in his hands.

“Good morning babyboy,” I greet him as I push to my feet from where I was stretching on the floor. Pressing a quick kiss to his lips, I pull back and glance down to get a better look at what he’s holding. “What’s this?”

“I have a plan, and I would like your help with it.”

Raising one eyebrow, curious to see what he’s come up with, I turn the paper around to see the rough sketch he’s created. It takes me a minute to realize it’s supposed to be the nest. Only he’s added little notes and a shopping list of things he wants to get to decorate the space.

“You don’t want to wait for Omen to design it herself?”

“I asked her what her perfect nest looked like yesterday,” he tells me with a shake of his head. “If something were to happen, like her going into heat unexpectedly, I want her to have the nest of her dreams instead of a blank canvas.”

“Sounds like we’re going shopping.”

Cal beams at me before ushering me upstairs to shower and get ready. I make sure I move quickly, not wanting to keep him waiting. I also want to get back to Omen as soon as possible. We are all hoping she will venture out of the guest room on her own today.

Climbing into the driver's seat of our car, I turn to my mate. “So where to?”

Almost an hour later we’re standing outside of one of the highest-rated nesting stores in New York. The building itself is pretty nondescript–white brick with black trim–but the bulky security guards at the entrance tell an entirely different story. Anyone of any designation can shop here, the extra precautions are to protect the staff as they often hire unbonded omegas to work here.

I grab one of the massive carts and follow Callisto inside. My beta mate seems to have done his research and knows exactly where to go to get what he’s looking for. Bedding, fluffy pillows, and buttery soft throw blankets, all in various shades of gray and black. He even chooses a few in a gorgeous midnight blue.

Beelining for a section of the store filled with different strands of twinkling fairy lights, I try to discreetly adjust myself behind the cart. Watching my mate work with such determination to make our omega happy is such a fucking turn-on. If we wouldn’t get banned from the store I would drag him into one of their dressing rooms and absolutely ruin him.

A pillow smacks me in the face before it falls back into the cart. “You’re incorrigible,” Callisto grins. “I can’t decide between these two types of lights, so I need you to pick.” He holds a box of golden curtain lights with little moons and stars built into the strands, and a reel of color-changing miniature stars strung together on a super thin braided cord.

“Both,” I suggest as I place them in the cart. He stares blankly at me for several seconds before he shrugs and walks away. Why would I pick one when it’s obvious Omen will love them both? Though I guess his reaction is more about realizing I’m willing to spend a literal fortune on our girl’s nest. Money doesn’t matter, only her happiness does.

Following behind him, I pause when I spy a section with hanging chairs. Omen loves to read, so why wouldn’t a cozy hanging chair be the perfect addition to her nest?

By the time I’ve picked one out, Callisto is headed back my way. He’s holding another light in his hands. “Nebula’s pick,” he explains when he drops it onto the pile.

“What about Nexus?” I ask when he starts to head toward the front.

“He is ordering his piece,” he comments, cursing when I nearly run into him as he suddenly stops. I can barely see him over the pile of stuff stacked inside the cart.

Stepping inside the house, I see Nebula in the living room staring out the window toward the back patio. He turns when he hears us coming. “She’s outside.”

I nod and step back into the garage to help Callisto with the bags and boxes from the nesting store. It only takes us twenty minutes to carry it all up to the third floor since Nexus appears halfway through and helps us with the rest.

“Where do you want me to start?” I ask Cal.

“I’ll help him,” Nexus interjects. “Maybe you will have better luck getting Omen to eat than Neb or I did.”

I find our girl sitting at the edge of the pool, her sweatpants rolled up so her calves dangle in the cool water. She looks exhausted. Like the small amount of contact she shared with us yesterday did nothing. She needs extended contact, but I know she isn’t ready to share a bed with any of us. Not even for a nap.

“Hey firefly,” I say as I crouch down beside her. “Can I show you somethin’?”

Ocean green eyes dart up to my dark brown ones before skating back to the water. She struggles to push to her feet, nearly falling into the water, so I grip her arm and help steady her. Pink tints her cheeks when she looks at me again, so I hold back my comments about her weak state of health.

Keeping my arm around her back, I guide her around the front of the house to the side garage where Nebula stores his car. This is also where one of my most prized possessions sits.

“You have a motorcycle?” Omen asks in surprise. She’s wide-eyed as she circles my ride, her finger trailing across the surface in a barely there touch. A shudder runs down my spine as I imagine the same touch trailing across my skin.

“I do. Would you like to go for a ride?”

Her head snaps up, those stunning eyes wide, and she starts to nod rapidly. A smile stretches across my lips as I head to the storage closet in the corner and pull out the leather jacket I bought for Callisto to wear when he rides with me. I’ll have to order one for her too, ‘cause I have a feeling my girl is going to love being out on the road.

After slipping the soft material over her arms, I grab a helmet and slip it over her head next. “Safety first,” I comment as I flip the visor down.

I drive south, away from Starburgh and all of the chaos of the Northeastern states. Once we reach the upper part of Pennsylvania, I take an exit off the highway and bring us down winding back roads. We ride for several hours, with her arms around my waist and her body snug against my back. It’s peaceful to be on the open road. Watching the world pass by makes your problems seem small.

Turning back toward Starburgh, I drive us through a small town an hour away. The cute little town square is packed with people. I quickly realize why when I spy a row of food trucks on the other side. Turning down the next road, I circle back and find a place for us to park.

Omen’s smiling like crazy as she slips her helmet off and passes it to me. “That was incredible!” she gushes. “So freeing, but also slightly terrifying. Especially when there were other cars on the road. Can we do this again?”

“We can go out any time you want, firefly. Only if you eat though. Can’t have you ridin’ on the back of my bike if you don’t have the strength to hold on.” She quickly agrees but is distracted by the chatter around us. “Come on, let’s see what we can find to fill your empty stomach.”

This must be some kind of fall festival. There are little stalls everywhere selling fall treats and decorations. They even have a pumpkin carving station filled with families hanging out.

I wrap my arm around Omen’s waist as we get into the thickest part of the crowd, unwilling to risk losing her for even a moment. The people around us watch her walking by, their faces filled with pity and concern. I have to grit my teeth to keep from barking at them all. They need to mind their own damn business and stop doing shit that could make my girl feel worse than she already does.

“Woah,” Omen exclaims when we break through the crowd and see the food trucks. I forgot how much my girl loves to eat.

I trail along, her hand in mine, as she inspects each menu. When she struggles to decide, I step in and order the thing she wants to try most from each of the three options.

“You don’t have to–”

“I do. You’re my omega and you’re hungry. If I want to spoil you with food, I absolutely will.”

Carrying all of our goodies, I find a piece of empty grass by my bike and sit. Omen devours a fall harvest stir fry and I’m captivated as I watch her eat. Her eyes light up with each bite and she makes the most sensual little groans. It’s hell on my already semi-hard cock but my heart enjoys every excruciating second of it.

“One of my favorite fall hobbies was riding four-wheelers with my dad,” I share. “Before everything happened with my Aunt and I realized what assholes my parents really were.”

Her eyes are on me, sadness filling them when I mention my Aunt. Maybe we’ll ride down one weekend for a visit. Abby and her pack would be thrilled to meet her.

“You know when I found out Abby was an alpha instead of a beta, it was easy to accept her secret. I think some part of me always knew. After my parents disowned her, I stopped doing those fun things with my dad. No more fall trail rides or fishing trips. I spent every day waiting for them to decide I’d done something wrong so they could send me away too.” Omen makes a small noise of protest, but I cut her off with a small smile. “It’s alright, firefly. I’ve made peace with my past. Their choices were their own, and I can’t change the minds of someone so unwilling to bend.”

“Still,” she argues, “you didn’t deserve to feel that pressure as a teenager. It’s difficult enough to process the changes in your body as you get close to presenting. They should have supported you better.”

“Maybe you’re right. Maybe they never had the capacity for the type of parenting I deserved. We’ll never know because they aren’t going to change. They are far too stubborn.” I lace my fingers with hers again, ignoring the stacks of empty food containers sitting between us. “I didn’t tell you this to make you feel bad for how I grew up. It isn’t about my childhood at all. This is me telling you I fucked up.”

She tenses, her eyes falling to her lap, but she doesn’t pull her hand away.

“I never should have doubted you darlin’. You may not have told us with words, but you showed us from the start exactly who you are to us. We all felt the pull, but we let our confusion and anger cloud our judgment. You. Deserve. Better .”

When she tries to stand I use my grip on her hand to pull her closer. She crashes against my chest, her face turned up toward mine. “I swear on every beat left in this heart of mine, Omen Powell, I will never doubt you again. I won’t be walking away from you this time, they’ll be carrying me out in a body bag. You’re mine, and Fates dammit I am yours too.”

I slam my lips to her, pouring all of my love and devotion into this kiss. This is how our first kiss should have gone. I never should have said that bullshit to her when my doubts crept in. No, I should have kissed her like the world was ending, because without this omega in my arms it certainly fucking seems like it might.