Page 60 of His Gentle Omega
Which was how I found myself telling her about Edward and the first wild weeks we spent together. How after just a few weeks together, he had told me we were pregnant, and we needed to be mated. Saying it all out loud, facing my feelings about it all had me feeling like I was barely holding it together.
Chapter Twenty
Shay
The sun’s heat warmed my face as I tilted my head towards it. Eyes closed, I leaned back on the hard park bench. The scent of fresh cut grass tickled my nose. The sound of water trickling from a circular fountain not far from me filled my ears. Kids playing on the playground equipment a small distance away brought a smile to my lips.
This would be a great place to bring Lucas. I hadn’t planned to stop here, but when I had driven past, it had looked so inviting. So peaceful, and I had just needed a minute of quiet, to myself. To think.
The day had been endless. Exhausting, but also incredibly good in many ways. Eye opening, in fact. Which was why I was dreading going home. Not home. To Bennett’s. Dreading it, but I knew I couldn’t avoid it. I needed to make some hard choices.
And it was going to hurt like hell.
Adulting sucked so bad sometimes.
My tiger chuffed but kept his thoughts to himself.
Stretching my arms out, I shook my fingers, trying to sense a shift. Not that I was going to shift here, in the park. But it had been so long, and now that my tiger had decided to resurface, a shift had to be soon. Didn’t it?
But no, there was nothing. No tell-tale stretching of skin, no tingling of cells. Nothing.
Damn stubborn cat.
Silence. He had nothing to say to that.
Blinking my eyes open, my brow knitted, and I blinked again, sure I was seeing things.
Asher strode towards me, his long legs eating up the distance quickly. His shirt sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, his tie loosened.
Sitting up straighter as he neared, I called, “What are you doing here?”
He frowned, stopping in front of me, so I had to shield my eyes to look up at him. My brother was tall for an omega, only about an inch shorter than me. “I could ask you the same thing. You weren’t answering your phone, and I got worried.”
Glancing down at the phone in my hand I frowned, for the first time noticing a few missed texts and calls from him. “Oh, I put it on silent and I forgot. Sorry.”
Double checking I hadn’t missed a message from Bennett, I slid it in my pocket. “How did you find me?”
Asher ran a hand through his blond hair, ruffling the stylish cut, before he shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his dress pants. “You’re on our plan. I might have tracked you.”
Scowling, I grumbled, “You tracked me? I’m not a child, Asher.” Anger welled inside me, defensiveness flaring hotly. I was sure it stemmed from years of having my moves tracked by Edward, but it annoyed me that my brother had a way to do the very same thing to me.
Rolling on the balls of his feet, he defended. “And I’m not going to lose track of my brother again. Twelve years was quite enough, thank you very much.”
We glared at each other, before he huffed out a breath, rolling his dark eyes in annoyance. “I thought it was a good idea, in case something happens. I’m worried about you, okay? I’m worried about Edward coming after you. I’m not going to apologize for trying to keep you safe. I don’t know exactly what happened, but I know you were hurt, and it’s my job to protect you any way I can.”
“I’m not a kid anymore, Ash. You can’t just wave your big brother magic wand around and make the monsters go away. I’m an adult now.”
Asher’s nostrils flared. “I don’t give a fuck if you are. You’re my little brother, doesn’t matter how old you are or how big you get, it will always be my job to protect you. So, suck it up, buttercup. It is what it is.”
“Stop trying to be the boss of everything!” I growled, slumping down and crossing my arms over my chest in a great imitation of a sulky teenager. So much for acting like an adult.
Asher’s shoulders slumped. “I’m not gonna fight with you, Shay. That’s not why I came looking for you.”
Spreading my arms wide, I demanded, “Why did you come looking for me?”
How did I begin to explain to Asher the feelings that had bubbled up to the surface when he had said he found me by usingmy phone? That it felt very much like when Edward had tracked everywhere I went, who I spoke to, who I looked at. I knew I had sounded defensive and angry.
Asher rolled his eyes at my sarcasm and met me with his own. “I was worried about you, dumbass.”
