I nibble at my thumbnail. “So that’s okay? If I was with him, and then with you?”
Luc’s face softens in understanding as he finally understands my dilemma. “Ava…yes, love. You can be with whoever you want to be,” he says gently. My frown only deepens.
“And you can be with whoever you want to be too?” I ask hesitatingly. He flinches.
“No.” His voice is absolute, and I try to hide the way my whole body shrivels in relief. “I only want you,” he promises in a low voice. “Only you, Ava.”
My eyes drop to his hand resting on my belly. “Them, too,” he adds softly. My eyes fill up, and I try to turn away from him, but he doesn’t let me. He kisses the tears from my face, his soft, quiet, careful words wrapping promises around my heart until I eventually drift off in his arms.
ChapterForty-One
Max
My fist taps against Ava’s door before I lean down to pick up the tray that’s been left outside. I frown at the discarded food. She’s not eating properly, and it’s getting to the point where I’m going to have to say something.
As a knot forms in my stomach, the door swings open and I lock eyes with a shirtless Lucien, who at least has the decency to look a little sheepish. The scents spilling out of the room explainveryclearly what happened. He edges outside, closing the door softly behind him.
“She’s sleeping,” he explains quietly. Nodding, I follow his lead and take a seat on the couch. Their entwined scent hits me like a freight train, vanilla and sandalwood tangled together.
“How is she?” I ask directly. Luc winces, and when my hackles rise, he waves his hand at me. The tips of his ears have gone pink.
“Don’t panic. She’s…good,” he says, blowing out a breath. “Really good.”
He turns to me. “I wanted to talk to you, actually.”
Ignoring the creeping envy sitting like a ball in my chest, I listen as he runs me through his conversation with Nik.
“You want to give her a bitemark?”
I didn’t expect Nikolai to come up with the idea. But the more I think on it, the more a bitemark feels like a natural step for us, if Ava wants it. She calls to all of us in a way I didn’t expect when I brought her here. To have our full pack, together, all of us connected through an unbreakable bond… it’s a beautiful image.
“I want that,” I admit. “As long as Ava wants it too.”
Luc grins at me. It’s a carefree smile, one I haven’t seen for a long time, and my answering grin feels a lot more natural.
Oh, Ava. Fixing us all, one broken alpha at a time.
There’s a noise from inside Ava’s room, and Luc and I turn to the door. When she doesn’t appear, I turn back to him.
“I came to talk to Ava. I want to tell her about what Devlin said.”
Luc’s face twists. “Are you sure?” he asks.
Nodding, I stand up. I spent hours thinking about this last night. “If Ava really does know their omega, we don’t have any right to keep this from her.”
At that moment, the door edges open, and Luc springs up beside me as Ava pokes her head out. Her caramel curls fall riotously around her face, her hazel eyes soft and sleepy as she catches Luc’s eye and blushes. When her eyes move across to mine, the red flush spreads down her neck and arms, disappearing into her white shirt.
She shifts from side to side. “Morning, Max,” she whispers, darting her eyes back up to me.
My chest aches. I don’t want Ava to feel any sort of hesitancy around me. I stroll up to her, cupping her cheek and kissing the other one. She inhales sharply, but she doesn’t pull back. “Morning, sweetheart. Will you come and talk to us in the kitchen?”
I pull back, noting the glint in her eyes as she watches me, before a small smile curves her lips. Luc holds out his arm dramatically, making her laugh as she accepts the gesture and he escorts her into the kitchen, forcing her to sit at the table while he makes coffee. As I take my own seat, I note the way her eyes follow him, the scent of vanilla rising from her skin until Luc turns to stare at her, brows raised pointedly and making her huff.
“Brat,” he teases. She waves a hand at him grumpily and sniffs. “Alpha… something. I don’t know. I’m still half asleep and I can’t be bothered to come up with insults.”
I stifle a laugh, and Ava turns to look at me, her cheeks tinging pink as Luc sets some fruit in front of her. “Eat,” he demands.
“Bossy alpha,” she mutters, but she does as he says and starts picking at the strawberries he’s set out. I try not to stare at her, but she catches me anyway. Leaning forward, I swipe a piece of strawberry from her lips with my finger, sucking it into my mouth.
