“Yes, Pierce!” Theo muttered. “Geez, you are so dense sometimes…”
I ignored my brother, turning instead to Benji and grasping his hand firmly. “Benji, does that mean you’re agreeing to the conditions?”
He shrugged. He glanced away as a light dust of pink appeared across his cheeks. “I guess so, huh?”
By now my heart would have been leaping out of my chest, so perhaps it was a good thing I didn’t have a heartbeat any longer.
“Do you understand what this entails?” I asked urgently. “Maybe we should go over the details one more time - ”
“Theo kind of filled me in, and I understood more of it since I didn’t have the same initial freak out,” Benji said. “Basically, you need a human omega to bear your child?”
“Yes, that’s right,” I replied, feeling slow relief crawling across my skin.
“And if I do that… You’re gonna pay me a lot?” He winced, realizing it sounded like a callous question. But it wasn’t at all.
“Yes, absolutely.”
Theo leaned in to whisper loudly to Benji, “We have a few million stashed away in a vault. That’s one of the perks of being a vampire. You get to hoard a lot of stuff. Kind of like a dragon?”
“I have enough issues with vampires right now. Please do not bringdragonsinto this,” Benji muttered, holding up a hand to Theo and his antics. He turned back to me with a heavy sigh. “Do I get paid upfront?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
Benji swallowed. It was hard not to notice the beautiful bob of his throat. My eyes flickered back to his, and I noticed his gaze was tinged with fear. He placed his open palm on his throat, right where I’d been looking a moment ago.
“And you swear none of you are going to suck my blood?” Benji asked, half teasing and half completely serious.
“Dude, no one says that, it’s just a stereotype,” Theo objected. “That’s borderline offensive.”
We both ignored him this time.
“I can promise that nobody in this home will attempt to harm you, Benji Foster,” I swore. “I would put my hand over my heart, but I doubt that means anything if it’s not beating.”
Benji shone a lopsided grin. “No, it’s okay. I trust you more than a lot of peoplewithbeating hearts.” He paused. “Is that weird?”
“No way. A lot of humans are straight up freaky,” Theo added. “They make us look like pink glitter fairies.”
“You’re not wrong about that,” Benji said. His smile faded, and he stared at the table. Neither Theo or I broke the silence. Finally Benji sighed. “I want to do it.” He met my gaze, and his eyes glittered with determination. “I’ll be the omega to produce your heir.”
A smile spread on my lips. Then Benji blushed deeply and groaned. “Sorry. That sounded so damn cheesy.”
“Not at all,” I reassured him.
“I do mean it, though.” He looked shy. “And, not to be pushy or anything, but the money thing is kind of urgent.”
“Of course,” I said seriously. “I know about your brother’s situation.”
“Yeah,” Benji murmured.
“Is he sick?” Theo asked cautiously.
Benji nodded. “He’s been sick for months now. This surgery’s the only thing that will make him get better, but we couldn’t afford it before…” He shook his head. “Anyway, I’m not dwelling on it for one more second. Doing this will pay for Caleb’s surgery, and hewillget better.”
“That’s the spirit!” Theo cried. “And - wow, geez, I just realized I’m gonna be an uncle!”
“Yeah. I’m gonna be a parent,” Benji murmured, as if to himself. I watched him sympathetically. Did he really understand what he was getting into? None of us wished him harm, of course, but like any pregnancy, it had its risks - especially since the child was going to be only half human.
“It’s gonna be so much fun!” Theo paused. “Oh, ew, does that mean you’re gonna want to eat a lot of weird food? Gross.”
