Page 137 of Vegas Baby!

“Yes, you. You’ve been perfect since the first moment we met.” Affection rose up, threatening to close my throat as tears formed, but I swallowed it back so I could keep speaking. “I feel selfish sometimes, over how much I want to keep you.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” he assured me, cupping my face. “What’s going on in your head?”

“We’re already mates, but that was by accident. I want you to know that I’d choose you without that. You were my first bit of peace in all of the chaos and at first I loved you for that, but I loveallof you, just for who you are. I want to be yours in every way I can be.”

His warm hazel eyes shone. “I love you, Ava, my perfect omega.”

“Marry me, Jesse.”

“I’d love nothing more.” His kiss was soft, warming me through. “I love you and the family we’ve built together. Be my bride and let us show the whole world that we all belong together.”

I was full-on sobbing by the time he finished and fell into his kiss, a chant ofyes, yes, yessliding out between each breathless one.

“I wasn’t supposed to cry today,” I said, half laughing and wiping my tears.

“We can make an exception for happy tears, though.” Jesse kissed me again. “Take your time before we go downstairs.”

Once I had collected myself, I diverted to the bathroom to wash my face and reapply the few bits of makeup I had bothered with. Satisfied that no one would be able to tell I had been crying, I got Lucy’s bottle from the warmer and followed Jesse back downstairs, my fingers laced with Jesse’s.

Unable to contain myself when we rejoined the party, I threw our hand hands in the air and yelled out, “We’re engaged!”

Cheers broke out from those attending, and Mama Sol raised a glass. “To my beautiful daughter and her pack. You have all been family from the first moment my son decided you were, but we are always ready to celebrate your love.”

I soaked up her hug, and many others before I finally made it back over to Lucy. I didn’t even have to worry about feeding her. Micah gathered her up from my mother and gave her the bottle himself while I settled next to him, overwhelmed as I always was by how much love was in his eyes when he looked at her. I still woke up sometimes from nightmares that I had never found out about Andrew in time and had missed my chance with these wonderful men, but they were always there. The second I made a peep, one of them, or sometimes more, were cuddling me close, reminding me that I was safe and would stay that way.

Fate really knew what it was doing when it blew up my life and dropped me into their laps. Every day was filled with more love than I knew what to do with. My daughter was growing up with fathers who adored her, and we had extended family who were more than happy to be involved and give her everything she deserved. They welcomed me as a daughter, sister, and friend, and sometimes that set me off, too. I had so much more than I’d ever expected.

Jesse sat down next to me, scooping me onto his lap and scooting closer to Micah, his purr rumbling like distant thunder.

“You two are going to give Lucy cavities being that sweet,” Micah said with a laugh. “She doesn’t even have teeth yet, so that’s quite a feat.”

I didn’t mind one bit. We could all use a little more sweetness in our lives.

“Is that really how much we made? We could buy a second pack house.”

Callie beamed. “Yep. They wentferalover you actually getting sent into labor on camera.”

“Holy shit.” I had waffled for a while on whether or not we would actually release the video I had made with Micah and Luke. Callie had never pressured me one way or the other,and the pack had varying opinions, but ultimately they left the decision to me. In the end, Callie and her pack had suggested a limited release where recipients could bid for the video and an accompanying scent-marked fabric swatch. I genuinely hadn’t expected anyone to be that interested, but it quickly became clear it was something the audience they had built wasveryinto.

“The money can be pretty fabulous if you know how to market it to the right group.” Callie grinned and sipped her hot chocolate from the fancy cafe we’d met up at for some omega time. “It’ll be in your account as soon as it finishes processing. I just wanted to be able to tell you in person how well it did. If you want, we can open it up for general viewing in the paid tiers with no scent-marked accessories available. Or we can keep it as a limited edition.”

“How’s the money with a general release?” We didn’tneedthe money, but now that I saw the numbers…Being able to contribute financially to the household felt pretty fucking awesome after having to rely on my alphas. They were insistent about providing for me, but it was so nice to be able to do that in return now.

“About the same overall since the auctions are such a short span. General release should make about the same after six months or so.”

“I’d be cool with that. No one can tell that it’s me, and it’s kind of fun being sneaky like that.”

“I can get all the paperwork done up for you,” Callie promised, bouncing excitedly in her seat. “I’m really glad you had a fun time with it even though it was chaotic.”

“Definitely a memorable day.” I laughed and pulled her into a hug. “Would I be able to get some advice from you while I’m here?”

“Of course. What’s up?”

“Was your first heat after the twins weird?”

Callie shrugged, her dark eyes examining me. “Not more so than any other heat. Is there something specific you’re worried about?”

“Only everything. I’ve been taking a low-dose suppressant to delay it, but I’m supposed to go off them this coming weekend.”

---