Page 87 of Packed Up In Vegas

Kai preened. “I’ll ask Diego where he suggests we take it. He was actually the one who thought of this, but I’m the only one with the legal pull to make it happen.”

“I keep forgetting about that.”

As convenient as it was that Kai could handle so many things for me, I still felt a little queasy that those laws were still on the books to begin with. If I had simply left without getting bonded, then Jerry might have been able to make some kind of legal claim against anything of mine, but Kai’s claim would supersede everything else. A lot had changed over the years to give omegas more authority and control over their lives, but a bonded alpha could slide right in there and take a controlling hand in any of it.

“I do really appreciate everything that you’ve done, and I know it was meant to be a surprise, but maybe a heads-up next time?”

“Absolutely. Shit, did I fuck up again?”

I shook my head and snuggled into his arms. “It was genuinely really helpful of you to do. I’m just a bit nervous about the legal aspect of the bond.”

“Oh yeah, that totally makes sense. What if we did up a contract or something? We could put a flag on anything in your name so whoever handles those accounts knows that they’re not to let any of us do anything without your consent.”

I brightened, some of the weight of my worries slipping off my shoulders. “You would do that?”

“Of course I would. I want you to feel comfortable and in control of things that belong to you.” He sighed. “I forget sometimes how biased the laws are toward alphas in these situations. I can’t change the politics of the world, but if you would feel better about it, I am more than happy to do whatever paperwork we need to give you exclusive control over as much as we can.”

I rose up on my toes and threw my arms around his neck, pulling him down to meet my mouth. He kissed me breathless until I was half tempted to drag him straight back inside instead of going out for lunch. “You’re a really good alpha, Kai.”

He smiled down at me, tucking my hair behind my ear and cradling my head. “I have to be so I can be worthy of the best omega. And in the interest of continuing to be a very good alpha, I need to make sure you get fed.”

“I like food.”

“Italian, tacos, or barbecue?”

“I love tacos.”

We took his vehicle to a food truck on the outskirts of downtown and ate the most delicious tacos in the blistering heat until I was sweating as much from the weather as from the spice in the food.

“This is so fucking good, but I think if I eat one more, I might pass out.”

“Let’s get you into the air-conditioning.”

Once I was back in the car, I shoved my face up against the vent and let the icy air ghost over my sweaty skin.

“Feeling better?”

“A million times better, thank you. I am a well-fed omega.”

“Perfect. Wait here just a couple minutes so I can pick up some tacos to go for the others.”

I closed my eyes and relaxed, comfortable as hell in the cool interior. Kai didn’t take long to return, passing me over a horchata I sipped happily all the way back to the pack house.

“Working for a living is really putting a damper on me dragging you into the nest,” I complained as we returned home.

“You are entirely too full of tacos for me to fuck you like I want to.”

Heat flushed through my body. “Give me a couple hours to digest and you can have me any way you want.”

Kai grinned. “I’m definitely going to take you up on that. Get some work done. I’m going to feed the others.”

We parted ways, me to my workstation and Kai to hunt down the others with our bounty. I was oddly peaceful as I settled into work for the afternoon. I still wasn’t one hundred percent certain what to do with anyone who was so dedicated to my well-being, but it was a welcome change nonetheless. All their grand gestures have been wonderful, but it was the little things I was looking for now, like getting my library card with Diego, and Kai being happy to take me out for tacos. Those were the moments that would build a life, and right now those little moments were looking really fucking good.

“You’d never fucking survive out there. Don’t even try to pretend.”

“I could survive out there better than the people walking in the river when it’s about to freeze overnight,” Callie defended.

She was snuggled up against my side while the two of us watched an adventure survival show. After flipping through countless options, she had perked up when I found it, so that was what we were watching.

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