Page 30 of Vegas Baby!

She looked at me from the corner of her eye and smiled as she ate. We polished off both bowls, sitting side by side like that. When she sipped up the last drop, I freed her sandy blonde locks to cascade down her back.

“That was really good. Thank you.”

“You’re more than welcome. I’m glad I could feed you something.” I sighed. “Ava, I don’t claim to deserve it, but I would love a chance to make things up to you.”

She chewed her lip. “I’ll think about it.”

Ifelt like an asshole not saying yes. I understood him better now, but the hurt of being left behind wasn’t going to go away because of one conversation. Teen Ava had fantasized about this moment a thousand times over. But I wasn’t a teenage girl panting over a crush anymore. Now I was fresh off a betrayal with a baby on the way and two bondmates. I had to figure outwhat I wanted my life to look like, and decide if Luke was meant to be a part of my future instead of just my past.

“I don’t know what the right answer is, Luke.”

“I don’t either,” he confessed. His shoulders were hunched with tension as he stared at the table.

My instincts urged me to soothe him.

“What can I do?” he asked.

“I need time to settle into things with Jesse and Bryce,” I said carefully. “In a couple of months it won’t be just me, and I’m already overwhelmed. Please don’t ask me to give any more of myself right now.”

Our eyes met, turmoil roiling behind his, but he nodded quickly and decisively. “I’m here whether you keep me or not.”

I wanted to believe it. I didn’t know if we were staying in Vegas. Bryce was already established in New York, and I had been planning to move anyway. What would Luke do if I made it inconvenient for him to be there? I hadn’t even gotten a phone call the last time and I didn’t want the scent match to be the reason he tried now. I knew that was why the others were trying, but it felt wrong for that to be why Luke wanted to be around. Strangers felt easier. They started at a brand-new baseline that Luke still needed to climb up to.

“What do you think I should do about Andrew?”

“My preference is that you never speak to him again.”

“What about the baby?”

“It’s not his according to pack law. You don’t owe him anything.”

“You don’t think my child should get to meet their father?”

“If you want them to, sure, but it sounds like everyone’s lives would only improve with less Andrew in them. Jesse will be a great dad. I don’t know anything about Bryce so I can’t comment on that, but it wouldn’t be hard to be better than the bullshit this guy has pulled.”

The words were true and sharp, cutting deep. It seemed cruel not to give Andrew the opportunity to meet his child, but maybe he had dished out enough cruelty to be served some himself? Who was to say if he would even care at this point?

“What do you want me to do, Luke?”

“I want you to be safe. That’s what I’ve always wanted.”

My throat tightened. If Luke had given me the slightest hint all those years ago that he wanted me, I would’ve made every effort to follow him. I could’ve graduated early, gone to school where he moved…I couldn’t even say that it was better that he hadn’t. I didn’t regret the little life I was going to bring into the world, but I sure as hell regretted who I had done it with.

“We should get back.”

“Do you want me to take you to the apartment or to the hotel?”

“That depends on if the apartment still smells like salmon.”

The tiniest smile tugged at his mouth. “We’ll start there. You can at least pick up some of your nesting supplies.”

He was quiet on the short trip back to the apartment. The silence was a relief. All my emotions were in a twisted knot that sat heavy in my chest.

Warmth rolled through me when he opened the car door for me again, not letting go of my hand once he’d helped me out. He’d held my hand many times when we were younger and that familiar excitement I always felt then was still present now, even if it was muted beneath my uncertainty.

The temptation to ask to sleep in his bed tonight, to fulfill the fantasy of falling asleep in his arms, was poised on my tongue.

“Thank you for dinner,” I said instead as we lingered in the hall.

---