Page 166 of Toxic

I smiled warmly. "We can increase those chances in a very enjoyable way. Sex with me stimulates your hormones."

Soren opened his eyes and bit his lip slightly. "Yeah, we should definitely increase those chances, as often as we can."

Our eyes met. I whispered, "Soren, it really can happen. It can! We can have a baby."

Something flickered across his face. I knew what he was feeling—anxiety, excitement, hope, and fear. A powerful mix. Slowly, he nodded.

"It's pretty early in our lives, but… honestly, nothing is more important. I'm not like the typical career-driven betas. I—I want to be a parent."

"Maybe it's your omega soul, hidden beneath your beta design?" I smiled. "You'll never hear me object to having a baby. I'm an alpha—it’s in my genes to want to reproduce. And I've got the money and a family that can help us. My omega dad has eight kids; he loves babies. He'll be thrilled with any grandchild! We'll get all the support we need, so don’t worry."

He smiled sadly. "I'm not worried about support; I know we'll have it. I'm just really scared to start believing in this. In all of it. In the baby, in… us."

Silence fell, but I leaned closer, taking his hand in mine.

"Try to believe it. I bought the suppressants that block Allure. And I promise… I won’t even shake hands with omegas. I’ll adopt that rule to minimize any risk, though I'm becoming more convinced that it's not necessary. That you and I… are indeed a rare case of True Mates."

"Stop." He looked away, fixing his gaze on the wall, avoiding mine. "That's still hard for me to believe. Too many miracles at once. But I appreciate that you want to take the suppressants and avoid touch. It’ll definitely lower the risk."

Now it was time to ask him the question.

"So, are we in an official relationship, Soren? I told Dr. Jim that you're my boyfriend, but is that how you feel? Are you on board?"

Soren looked back at me, his lips trembling slightly. "Yes. We are." It sounded almost shy.

"Can I tell my family? They’re kinda waiting for the news from me since some good things happened with my other brothers lately, and with my cousin. They found their TMs."

"Sure, you can, about the relationship, but… with the baby, please wait, just to be sure," he muttered, reddening a bit.

"Of course."

A moment of silence.

"So… are we also exclusive now and all?"

He huffed in irritation. "Of course. Since I met you, I haven't been able to bring myself to do anything… sexual with anyone else!"

I hesitated before asking, not wanting to upset him, but it had been on my mind for some time.

"You know, it's hard to believe Liam didn’t try anything." Even saying it made me feel uncomfortable.

Soren flinched slightly. "He tried. But nothing happened."

I cleared my throat, "So, what did you plan for your heat while you were in a relationship with Liam?"

Soren huffed. "It was an awkward scenario to think about. The thought of him fucking me… I just couldn’t imagine it."

"You really never… even gave him a handjob?"

"No! I didn’t want to. Even after he got a tattoo of my name on his back, I couldn’t. He had to take care of it himself."

"Wait a sec. Liam got a tattoo of your name on his skin?"

"Yeah, it’s pretty big. Two-thirds of his back."

I cursed under my breath. "That’s crazy. The guy’s clearly unstable!"

Soren pouted slightly. "Why? You wouldn’t get one with my name?"

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