“Twinsies. I get wanting the best for people, but I swear my life is pretty good.”
“You’re not answering the question.”
I shrugged. “Lots of stuff, but it’s not important.”
“Like what?”
“I want to learn how to ride horses and how to do aerial silks.”
“So why can’t you do them?”
“Tyler would be the one paying. I’ve been considering poking him again about letting me take horseback riding lessons. I’m pretty sure he’d cave with the condition that Charlotte be the one to teach me.”
“Who else would?”
“A couple of the men that work at Night of Knights teach lessons, too.”
“I gotta say, you’re not selling me on this guy. Is he really so insecure that only an omega woman is allowed to teach you?”
“In his defense, one of the teachers isreallycute.”
Nathan barked a laugh. “And why aren’t you allowed to do silks?”
“Because it’s sexy as hell when you get good at it.”
“And that’s bad?” Nathan tilted his head, examining me carefully.
“Idon’t think so, but I can see how an alpha might not want his omega performing for people.”
“Is this like a dance class, where you have end of year recitals?” he asked.
Lucy parked herself on the grass and we paused to let her fuss with the greenery that wasn’t being baked into oblivion now that it was winter.
“Honestly, I have no idea. I haven’t looked into it that much.”
“You should,” Nathan insisted. “There have to be classes that don’t make you perform. Do the lessons for fun.”
I mused. Why couldn’t Tyler be this flexible? No, that wasn’t fair. Nathan didn’t know me and he had no investment in my life or relationship. He could say whatever he wanted without a single consequence. Still, the idea of skirting the rules to do what I wanted without Tyler having a reason to get mad was tempting. I had gotten good at that over the years. There was always a loophole, and Tyler was relatively easy to distract from any rage I accidentally drummed up. Sex usually worked off a lot of his aggression, and then we could go right back to normal.
Lucy flopped back onto the grass.
“Tired of our walk already?” Nathan asked her. “Ready to go home?”
She lifted her little arms and he scooped her up with an exaggerated groan, as if she weighed a thousand pounds.
“You’re getting sooo big, Luce. Gonna be taller than me soon.” He hoisted her into the air while she shrieked with laughter, tossing her just high enough to give me a spike of anxiety, then catching her again to pepper her face with kisses.
Tylerhatedkids. And not in the sense of never wanting to have them. If they were in his space, he was complaining. Anytime I had Charlotte bring the boys over for a swim, I made sure Tyler would be gone for the day.
“I should get her back if she’s done with outside time,” said Nathan. He popped Lucy into the stroller and we turned back. When we paused in front of my house, Nathan turned to me. “It was nice to meet you.”
“Samesies.”
“Don’t be a stranger.”
“Basically impossible, since you know where I live,” I said with a laugh.
He waved and set off to cover the short distance to Ava’s house, but not before calling back, “Sign up for those lessons. Fuck that guy.”
