I smile, despite my still rocky mood. “Marnie, I’m really glad you called. I appreciate it. Tell the crystals I said thanks.”
Chapter Nineteen
Ava
The second Ron opens the door to his and Shelby’s brownstone, I fall apart. I burst into tears before I can even form a word. His eyes widen and he glances over my shoulder at Tony, some silent exchange passing between them that I can’t see. Whatever it is, Ron decides fast, ushering me inside with his hand at my back.
“Shelby, get down here,” he yells, guiding me toward the living room.
Cillian and Rory are on the couch, staring at me like I’ve sprouted a second head. Ron waves them off with one hand. “Boys, go find something to do.”
Rory, the more sensitive of the two, looks at his brother and then back at me. “Is Aunt Ava okay?” he asks, his voice small and worried. The concern in it breaks whatever thin control I had left, and I start crying harder. I want to tell him I’m fine, to apologize for showing up like this, but my brain feels completely short-circuited.
“She’s just sad,” Shelby says gently as she comes into the room, Aisling perched on her hip. My goddaughter’s hair is still damp from a bath, dark curls clinging to her unicorn pajamas, like Shelby rushed straight down without drying her properly. Shelby passes her to Ron without breaking stride. “Take her upstairs, get her settled with Bun-Bun and her story, then start some tea.”
She turns her attention to the boys. “Upstairs. Showers and bed. You’ve got school tomorrow.”
“Aw, come on, Mom,” Cillian whines.
“Don’t sass your mother. I already told you to get out of here, so get to steppin’,” Ron says, dad-voice activated as he leads everyone from the room.
Shelby turns to me, opening her arms wide. I press myself between them, sobbing into her shoulder. She rubs long, slow, soothing circles on my back. “This feels like a full omega breakdown,” she says softly, her hand never slowing down, “and it has Mark Taylor written all over it, am I right?”
I nod, still unable to speak.
She doesn’t rush me, just lets me cry until it burns itself out, until the sobs turn into shaky breaths and sniffles. When I finally pull back, I swipe at my face and manage a weak laugh. “I got snot on your shirt.”
She snorts. “I have six kids. This is not the first time someone’s bodily fluids have ended up on me.” She guides me toward the couch and gives my shoulder a gentle squeeze. “Sit. Breathe. Now tell me what happened.”
I sink down into the couch and stare at my hands. “He sent this bogus plea deal for Katie, and I lost it. Went straight to his office to tell him exactly what I thought.”
“Right, right, as you do,” she says, settling beside me.
“At first, we were fighting,” I continue. “Like, real fighting.”
“Because of who you two fundamentally are as people,” she supplies.
I shoot her a look. “Anyway. We were fighting, and then he just stopped. He told me Harvey had someone in his office send the deal without his approval. That he’d been fighting with him about it for hours.”
Shelby’s expression softens, but she stays quiet, letting me keep going.
“And then he told me that he’s been thinking a lot about the omega laws, and he offered me a real plea deal. No jail time, community service with us. He’s going to go to battle with Harvey over it, and it sounds like he doesn’t care how it affects his campaign chances.”
“Okay,” she says slowly. “So how does that land with you here, falling apart on my couch? That sounds like progress. You’ve been holding back because you didn’t trust where he stood.”
I swallow. “Well, then we—” I pause, looking to make sure there weren’t any small ears listening “—you know. After, he wanted to talk. About us. And he told me he loves me.”
Understanding crosses her face, and she gives me a sad, sad smile. “And you panicked.”
I nod, fresh tears sliding down my cheeks. “I panicked. And when I got to the door, he told me he couldn’t keep doing this. That if I walked out without talking to him, it was over.”
“Oh, Ava…” she says, voice thick with pity.
I cover my face with my hands. “I didn’t know what else to do! I’ve neverdoneany of this before. I’ve never had a real relationship or actually said what I’m feeling out loud to a man.”
I blow out a breath, which turns into a shaky laugh. “Plus, I think I’m about to have a breakthrough heat. It felt… wrong to be like, ‘surprise! I’m actually an omega! Also, I’m going to need you to ride out my heat with me, and I’ll probably get knocked up because there’s a decent chance my suppressants are failing.’”
She winces and agrees, “I can see how that’s not exactly a low-pressure conversation starter.”
