I run my fingers through his dark blond hair, so similar to Kai’s. “Did you now?”
“He did fifty push-ups,” Oliver says, his hand still warm in mine.
“Twenty,” Asher corrects, grabbing a shirt from the porch railing. “And most of them were on his knees.”
“They were not!” Jagger pouts, his little face scrunching up.
I crouch down to his level, tapping his nose. “Twenty is amazing. I can barely do five.”
His eyes light up. “I can teach you! We can work out together every day when you live here.”
Live here?
My heart squeezes. I glance up at the three alphas watching us, their expressions soft.
“Want to see my room?” Jagger tugs my hand. “Uncle Kai got me new space sheets and there’s glow-in-the-dark stars and planets on the ceiling.”
“I’d love to.”
“And then I’ll show you your room.” He bounces on his toes excitedly. “It’s next to mine because Uncle Kai says omegas need to be close to their babies.”
Heat floods my cheeks when I glance at Kai, but Jagger’s already pulling me toward the house. His small hand fits perfectly in mine, his excitement infectious as he chatters about constellations and planets.
“And when you’re my mommy, we can have sleepovers in your nest and you can read me stories every night.”
Something in my chest cracks open, it's warm but terrifying.
I could have this.
But do they want me, or is this just for Jagger to have someone to call his mom?
“Will you?” he asks, those big gray eyes so much like his uncle’s staring up at me.
I squeeze his hand, unable to deny him anything. “I can stay sometimes.”
Chapter 18
Asher
Harlow brought cookies - the scent of vanilla and butter fills the air as she hands them to him from a paper bag.
“Freya made these for you,” she tells him. Not answering his question.
His face lights up. “Can I have one now?”
“After dinner,” I say, and he pouts but doesn’t argue.
Harlow shrugs. “You have to listen to the alphas in the house. They are the bossy ones.”
“Are you bossy?” Jagger asks.
Harlow’s fingers thread through his hair. It's so natural, she doesn't even realize as she glances at me, wondering how to react to hisquestion.
She lowers, kneeling in front of him. She touches his face with such tenderness that her omega nature shines through. The gesture is so maternal it makes my chest tight.
Damn her resistance.
“I can be,” she says, but she tilts her head to me and smiles. “Are you going to show me your home?”