Page 52 of Nanny Omega

“And he’s a good little boy,” Kora cooed, waving to the cub, her face lighting up as Benjn giggled again.

“We should get going before it gets dark,” Xander said, his hand settling on Ersa’s lower back in that possessive, comforting way he always did.

Ersa climbed into the pod and settled into the seat by the window, waving as Kora grew smaller in the distance. A quiet ache settled in his chest—he hadn’t realized how much he’d grown to love her company.

“I think they miss you already,” Ersa said softly, his fingers brushing against Xander’s.

“Don’t you meanyoumiss them?” Xander teased, his tone warm and amused.

Ersa smiled. “I do. Maybe we should consider moving here. It’s a nice place—the air is fresh, and your mother’s garden is amazing.”

Xander groaned, leaning his head back against the seat. “What about your family?”

Ersa shrugged. “They can visit.”

Xander snorted. “My family can visit too.”

“I guess,” Ersa murmured, resting his head on Xander’s shoulder as the pod sped down the airway.

Benjn, thankfully, seemed more at ease with the pod this time. He didn’t cry or fuss, just stared wide-eyed at the landscape rushing past them. By the time the sun dipped below the horizon, casting the sky in shades of deep violet and gold, they turned onto the residential airway leading home.

But something was wrong.

As they neared the massive gates of the estate, the flashing lights of an authority hover pod filled the dusk, yellow and green spiraling in frantic, dizzying whirls. The sight of them made Ersa’s stomach twist, a cold, familiar fear clawing its way up his throat.

“What’s going on?” Hicks asked from the front, slowing the pod to a stop.

Before anyone could answer, Xander was already climbing out, his jaw tight as he strode toward the waiting officers. Ersa’s eyes tracked him, his heart pounding. When the doors of the hover pod opened, his breath caught in his throat.

A figure stepped out—thin, fragile, and worn down in a way that made Ersa’s chest ache. The omega looked like he’d been through hell and barely crawled back from it. His clothes hung off his frame, his eyes sunken and shadowed, but there was still a spark of something fierce in them.

“Oh, shit,” Hicks muttered under his breath, and Ersa didn’t even need to ask. He knew.

Nath.

Xander’s ex-bond mate. The one who had abandoned them.

Ersa’s body went rigid as Nath’s eyes locked onto the pod—and then on him. There was a wildness there, a desperation that made the hair on the back of Ersa’s neck rise.

Before anyone could react, Nath was moving, his frail form marching toward the pod with alarming speed. In a flash, he yanked the door open and reached inside, snatching Benjn out of Ersa’s arms.

“He’smine!” Nath’s voice cracked with rage and desperation, his arms clutching the wailing cub so tightly that Benjn’s cries grew more frantic.

“No! Give him back!” Ersa’s voice broke as he surged forward, reaching for Benjn—but the firm grip of an officer held him back.

“I’m sorry,” the officer said, his tone regretful but firm. “But he’s the biological father. He has a right to his cub.”

Ersa’s world tilted. His heart slammed against his ribs as Benjn’s screams filled the night, and the sight of Nath—pale, trembling, and clutching his son with such desperate possessiveness—made his blood run cold.

“No,” he whispered, his voice shaking. “No, you don’t understand—”

But no one was listening. And the nightmare was only just beginning.

Chapter 15

Ersa

“He’sthefather.Hehas a right to his cub.”

---