The way Lincoln had gone on about getting back to campus quickly, while muttering about not having enough money, had only added to his irritation.Then he’d been made to wait at the side while he dealt with some shady guy in a back alley, only to be told to stand farther away but in sight.
“You put a baseball cap on, after I was sent away,” he recalled, surprised that made Ford blink in surprise.
“You remember that?”
“You were just another one of Lincoln’s shady druggie friends, but the cap definitely made you look suspicious.”
Ford laughed like he didn’t actually care.“Good.You were right not to trust me.I wanted to snog you, even back then,” he said with a wink that only made Chase laugh, though he quickly covered with a cough.
Lucky tutted, beginning to see that Ford would be trouble.He was playful, teasing, enjoyed banter and being sneaky.Lucky imagined they’d have a lot of fun together, and he was a perfect counter to Chase’s naturally serious nature.
He couldn’t help but wonder how he was fortunate enough to have Ford in his life.Wasn’t there an omega out there who would be without a true mate?Or was Ford one of those unfortunate alphas to suffer no true mate, because of the uneven distribution of alphas and omegas?
“I guess it’s a moot point now, but…do you have a true mate?”
Chapter Eleven
Chase
Ford cocked his head like he was more curious about why Lucky asked than bothered by the question itself, though his voice came out ice cold and professional, absent of all emotion.“Everyone has a true mate, except betas.They’re more of a biological off-shoot of omegas than an original, and they usually bond one of the alphas fucked by the outnumbering of alphas versus omega.”
“He’s asking whether you’ve met yours,” Chase complained, refusing to let Ford beat around the bush when he was just as interested in the answer.
Chase couldn’t imagine why Lucky had risked asking when he might not like the answer.Did Lucky want to know if Fordhada true mate?Or was he asking in the vain hope that Ford would say he’d never met them, and Lucky could feel more secure in this three-way bond?
“You should say what you mean.”Ford raised an eyebrow at Lucky, being more of an ass that he needed to be.If Lucky had been more fragile, less feisty, he might have crumbled under the stark but unspoken criticism.
Never one to back down, Lucky huffed.“If you don’t want to answer then don’t.”
Ford heaved a sigh and looked Lucky dead in the eye.“Yes, I’ve met my true mate.He died.”He slipped a packet of cigarettes from his shirt pocket and lit a smoke.“We were barely teenagers and he got involved with a local gang.He fell head over arse for the leader and became their fuck toy.”
Lucky hiccupped as though he wanted to speak but didn’t have the words.
“To be honest, he was an asshole and he deserved what he got.”Something about Ford softened, practically melting into tenderness as he nudged Lucky’s chin to make eye contact.“Believe me, I dodged a bullet.”
“I’m sorry.”Lucky clasped Ford’s wrist, full of empathy.
Chase took the smoke, amazed that Lucky spoke with more emotion than Ford had shown while talking about his dead mate.
“Did you feel his loss, when he died?”
Ford tutted and caressed Lucky’s ankle, like he didn’t care about the question, more worried about Lucky’s compassion.“He was two years older and treated me like shit.I’m glad he’s gone.”
That was probably more true than Ford intended.His mate’s death had freed him of a bond, of obligation, of the restriction of knowing that a true mate might be waiting.Ford was a free man who could do whatever he wanted with his life, his future.That might just include being with them, if Chase could wrap his head around what that looked like.
With two alphas to every omega, maybe the solution was obvious—let those two alphassharethe omega.That could risk the omega being put under more pressure, with two alpha flares to fight, more intense heats and potentially more pregnancies.But their current situation had Chase curious about how much sense it made.
“To answer your question, there was a sharp pain in my chest, then I felt weightless, like I was flying.”
Lucky smiled sadly.“Because his death freed you from a mating you never wanted.”
Ford nodded, then his tongue dipped out to trace his bottom lip as a sly smile emerged.“I like noodles, but prefer pizza.I’ve never been to a live concert or a funfair, but I’d be happy to take you.We can share a first time.”
Lucky laughed at his gloating.“You’re an asshole for spying on us.”
Ford took his cigarette from Chase.“This were my last official job before my year’s break,” he admitted, which was a new revelation.“I ain’t got nowhere else to be and we can take as long as we need to figure this bonding shit out.”
Chase wrapped an arm around Lucky, then rested his chin on Lucky’s shoulder.“Agreed.I’m ready to trust in the bond.”He ran his hand up Lucky’s arm in reassurance that he wasn’t just saying what he wanted to hear.
