Brady’s personal statement:
As a recessive omega, I know my path to parenthood might be tough. I’m looking for a male alpha to start a family with, no matter what shape that takes. They have to be open-minded and sex positive.
I want to match with an alpha for a closed relationship where we will train together in the gymby day and spend time as a family at night. My alpha needs to have sparkling eyes with a wit to match, a generous spirit, and the ability to see more than a person’s biology.
Done with the statement, I clicked the box to post my profile to the Mate Match app for potential matches. Nerves churned in my gut. With a ding, it was done. My profile was in the system awaiting my background checks and approval. Within an hour, it was live. Now I just had to wait for my first Mate Match.
Ten
Xavier
BythetimeIwoke the morning after my birthday party, I was alone. I knew Brady would likely sneak out rather than risk a conversation about our relationship. Now that I was divorced, I wanted to ask him to date me. I wanted to end the friends with benefits in exchange for the boyfriend label. It was time for us to move things to the next level. Or so I thought.
The house felt empty without him there. I’d bought it in the hope we’d make it ours later, once Brady was sure I was in this with him for good. It was a promise of the life I thought we were building. We’d been through so much together. I’d waited for him patiently, done my healing, shown him I cared about him, but it wasn’t enough.
Brady ended things with me. I went over the call over and over in my mind in the weeks that followed. Nothing about it madesense to me. We were so compatible, it felt wrong to be without him. Why had he thrown it all away?
His comment about a ready-made family with Gio stuck with me. Why on earth would he think I would go back to the man who had betrayed me? Gio had broken my heart by starting a new life without me. Both of them were delusional if they thought I could ever trust Gio again. There was no way I’d walk into his family and expect a place.
Gio had left me a birthday gift along with a note, but it didn’t matter. My heart was closed to him now. It always would be with Brady in the picture.
Except he wasn’t. I hadn’t realized how much his designation was bothering him. Being recessive wasn’t an issue to me. There were other ways to be a family if biological kids were off the table. He had such a grim view of things. Yes, the fertility treatments were expensive, depending on what intervention was needed. We didn’t even know if there was a reason other than bad luck. Two heats weren’t enough to know anything for sure.
Unable to force him into speaking to me once he’d made his decision, I gave him space. It hurt like hell. Worse than when things ended with Gio. I think when it ended with my husband, I was somewhat prepared. His behavior had been throwing up red flags for a while. Deep down, I knew we were coming to the end. With Brady, though, I was completely unprepared.
His loss from my life was devastating. I felt it everywhere. Though he had only been in my bed once, it was empty without him. I hated being home in the evenings because I’d spent so much time having dinner with him and at his place. There was a hole where Brady used to be. Despite our supposed friends with benefits relationship, we had spent a lot of time together, especially on weekends.
In the weeks that followed our break up—part two, as Malik called it—I tried to fill it with working out harder, reading up on fertility, my work, seeing my family, anything to keep me busy.
Of course, my stubbornness was legendary in my family, so I didn’t let him go completely. I tried to be friends with him by sending him little updates about my life and asking what was going on with him. He rarely replied. A month after my birthday, I cracked and admitted I missed him.
Then he called me. If I thought our last call was bad, this was worse. To hear what Gio, the man I’d spent a decade married to, had said to Brady had me wanting to set Gio’s world on fire. How dare he call Brady worthless for being recessive! Any lingering feelings I had for Gio vanished at that moment. There was no way I could tolerate such a person in my life. Still, somehow, Brady thought I would go back to Gio.
I had to close that door, then work on the other bomb Brady had dropped. He and I were meant to be. I’d prove it to him, once I gave my ex a piece of my mind.
That night I barely slept. Rage kept me awake and playing out scenarios in my head all night long. Instead of stewing in bed, I paced my empty house, with each circuit adding another layer of anger.
By the time dawn rose, I was shaking with exhaustion and a cold, certain fury. I called my office to push back any meetings and contacted Gio.
The house Gio shared with Candice was smaller than the one I’d bought with the divorce settlement. We’d made a lot on the apartment, but Gio had racked up debt by paying all Candice’s living expenses before our separation. He also had medical bills for the twins and legal fees to pay when he drew out the divorce.
I had to admit there was a sick satisfaction in seeing I’d come out of the divorce better off than him. I even cracked and smiledwhen I saw how exhausted he was when he opened his front door.
“Hey, come in.” Gio stepped back to let me into the house.
“Is Candice here?” I asked in the hallway when he closed the door.
“Uh, no. She’s at work. Early shift. I’m working from home until—” His words were cut off when I caught him by the throat and slammed him against the wall. “What the—?”
“How dare you!” I roared in his face. “You’re the biggest piece of shit I’ve ever met.”
“Wha—?”
My fingers squeezed reflexively when I thought of Brady saying those words. “Brady,” I spat, “is worth a hundred of you! He is not worthless.”
Gio had the audacity to chuckle. “He can’t give you babies though. I can.”
I pushed away from him, disgusted. “No, Candice can. Does she even know you’re still hung up on me? How is this fair to her?” I fixed him with a glare. “There’s no going back for us, Gio. You need to fix things with Brady.”
