While I was musing, Jesse messaged.
Jesse:
Come to the outlet mall in an hour
Micah:
I’ll be there
Meet up at the nesting store?
Jesse:
You bet
I slipped away from Luke under the guise of picking up groceries, heading over early. When Jesse rolled up with Ava on his arm, my heart stopped. She looked at him so sweetly, a far cry from the tears and panic of the last time I had seen her face.
Ava’s smile turned shy when she noticed me and Jesse whispered something in her ear, getting a nod out of her before he nudged her closer and announced he was going to go get a soft pretzel before handing me Bryce’s credit card and walking away.
“Hi.” She looked up at me with mesmerizing hazel eyes and pink cheeks.
“Hi there. Ready to shop?”
I wasn’t sure if that beautiful blush was because she was nervous around me or embarrassed. My heart switched over to a gallop when she let me take her hand.
I was well aware that my alone time with her would probably be limited going forward, so I was determined to take advantage of this gift Jesse had given me. I asked her a million questions from her favorite foods (Cuban sandwich with extra pickles for her, meatball sub for me), to education (degree in community studies for her, marketing and communications diploma for me), to possible baby names (torn between too many to know for sure, but I did get a laugh when I suggested naming the baby after me). It was a relief that she seemed as curious about me as I was of her.
“How much do you think we should rack up on this card?” I asked, holding up Bryce’s sleek black credit card. “I kind of figured he had money, but the limit on this thing has to be more than I make in a year.”
Ava’s eyes widened.
“Did you not know your bondmate was rich?”
“I never asked.”
At least that meant she hadn’t jumped on bonding him first for his bank account. He’d have probably given it to her either way, but not even knowing he had money was an interesting highlight on her character.
“Did he give you a shopping limit?”
Ava shook her head.
“Would you feel better if you asked first before we bought anything?”
“Yes please.” She pulled out a phone that was definitely not hers, and that’s when I remembered Luke still had hers because her baby daddy had been losing his ever-loving shit.
We waited for Bryce’s response, completing a full loop of the store so Ava could see everything that was on offer.
“He says I can get anything I want and that money is no object.” Ava’s eyebrows pinched together. “Do people actually say that in real life?”
“Rich ones do.”
Ava pursed her lips. “Money has always been an object for me.”
“We’ll start small and get you the basics. For as long as we’re in the apartment, I assume you will be staying in Jesse’s room. It needs an omega’s touch.”
“What counts as the basics?”
“At least a half dozen pillows and enough blankets that I could lose you in the pile.”