Sam gives me a discerning look. “Will your sperm donor come looking for us once word gets out that you’ve ‘escaped’?”
“Whitmore might have tried to fake my death, if they were able to get a body that looks like me.” I shake my head. “But Mikhail Vasilievis not easily fooled. If Whitmore is smart, he will leave my name out of it. The last thing he wants is the Russian Mafia on his back.”
Jo’s sleepy voice has me turning back around. “...Mabel, no…” She frowns in her sleep, shaking her head.
Hayden’s eyes peek open, and he blinks at her. “Shhh, Fireball…” He gathers her in his arms and leans back against his side of the van, holding her to his chest. She wraps her arms around his waist in her sleep, burying her face in his shirt.
West gives them an incredulous look. “It appears I’ve had the omega stolen from me.”
Sam snorts a laugh. “Yeah…pack life.”
“Bratishkawill learn to share,” I chuckle, looking out the window again.
“So…what’sthatdynamic like, then?” Sam sounds almost afraid to ask. “I thought Hayden might be a bit submissive, but after these last few days…”
West laughs and shakes his head.
“What?” Sam asks defensively. “Don’t act like you haven’t wondered.”
“He is submissive to Jo,” I concede. “Not if it puts her in danger, as you saw earlier, but if it doesn’t? Well, he is just as happy to let her walk all over him as he is to lick her sweet pussy.”
“Shit, Kole.” Sam chokes on a cough and gives me a look. “Just come right out and say it, why don’t you?”
I shrug. “The pyromaniac thrives on structure and taking direction. Jo provides that for him. I provide that for him.”
“Sexually?” West sounds surprised.
“Only in relation to our omega.” I check the GPS. We still have two hours until we reach the safe house. “I can direct him to please her, but we do not cross that line with each other.”
“Mmmm,” Hayden hums, his eyes still closed as he tightens his hold on Jo. “Don’t act like you haven’t thought about it, Big Guy. Unfortunately for you, I’m all about pussy. Jo’s pussy, specifically. And her tits. Mouth. That little soft patch of skin right under her ear—”
“Alright, we get it,” Sam grunts as he adjusts his pants.
“Are we not going to talk about how Jo took down two full-grown men in a hospital gown with nothing but a knife?” West whispers suddenly.
The memory hasmeadjustingmypants. I have never seen a more glorious sight than my omega serving justice on the edge of a blade.
“What is there to talk about?” Sam asks, shrugging. “We knew what we were getting into. We helped her with Banesworth. You can’t act surprised now.”
“It’s not that, it’s just…” He sighs, running a hand over his head as he eyes Jo softly. “Didn’t you hear what her sister said? That she actually did kill her alphas? I know Jo thought she was innocent, and having that belief ripped out from under her…well, as much as it seems like she’s holding it together, she could be a mess on the inside.”
“What does that have to do with how she killed the guards?” I frown, crossing my arms.
“She was reckless and impulsive. We had weapons, we could have taken them out. Instead, she put herself in danger to avenge her sister. I’m worried that she might blame herself for what’s happened to Mabel and spiral into a cycle of self-destructive behavior.”
“Sometimes you have to destroy those who have hurt the ones you love,” I say evenly, turning to face the front of the car again. “I do not think it is as deep as all that.”
“I suppose time will tell.” West sighs, and then the car is quiet again as we continue our drive.
nineteen
Jo
“Rise and shine, Fireball,” a soft, sweet voice purrs in my ear, and I peek my eyes open. I’m being carried—strong arms tighten around me when I lift my head, and I see Hayden’s adoring expression looking at me. Glancing forward, I see that we’re in the doorway of a log cabin.
“Darlin’,” I sigh, snuggling back into him. His t-shirt is soft, and I wish I could scent him. “Did we already get to the safe house?”
“Yeah. Sam said something about checking the perimeter, and West is doing something to a keypad on the wall.”
