Page 31 of His Pretty Omega
“Seth not drinking wine?” Gilly joked. “What, are you pregnant?”
We were saved from answering, and Rachel’s scrutiny, by the pounding of little feet running down the stairs.
“Walk!” a deep voice commanded, though it didn’t slow the descent of the running children in the slightest.
“Why do I bother?” the alpha lamented.
“No clue,” a redheaded omega, following him down the stairs, responded.
“Uncle Seth! Uncle Seth!” Two little equally redheaded girls hurled themselves at Seth and I winced when they both jumped into his arms at once, and he caught them. They had to be way too heavy for him to be holding in his condition.
“Demon spawns!” Seth greeted them, smacking kisses on each of their cheeks, while they both giggled, talking to him at once.
“Please don’t call my kids such names,” the redhead sighed, though he was smiling. He was cute, with a smattering of freckles across his nose. “Though they’ve been extra demoney today. Must get that from your brother.”
I assessed the tall alpha who had his arm wrapped around the omega’s waist, and knew this had to be Kyle, and his mate Toby. Kyle and Gilly looked so much alike there was no denying they were related.
A door banged, and then the smell of grilled steaks permeated the air, and my wolf sighed happily. The man that had yelled at us earlier put the platter down in themiddle of the long, already set dining table. “Food’s on, let’s eat.”
“Nate,” Rachel nodded her head towards me, “this is Alex…I’m sorry, I didn’t ask your last name.”
“Ortega,” I supplied, catching Seth’s indrawn breath. Leaning down, I whispered, “Okay?”
He nodded, “Yeah. Just…yeah, I’ll be fine.”
“Good to meet you, Alex,” Nate vigorously shook my hand, while Rachel disappeared into the kitchen, returning with my beer and a bottle of water for Seth.
“Sit, sit,” she waved towards the table. “I’ll grab the salad. Girls, Grandpa has hot dogs for you since you’re both having an I-don’t-eat-steak moment in your lives.”
Seth gulped, and I saw he looked pale and a bit sweaty. His morning sickness had been getting better the last week, so I wasn’t sure if he was queasy or just having a case of nerves about telling his family about the baby.
Helping him to a vacant chair, the noise and chaos of a family getting settled put me at ease. My family was much the same, though bigger and noisier. Everyone took a few minutes to pass the bowls of sides around and fill their plates, while Kyle and Toby got the girls settled.
Frowning, I saw Seth only taking small portions of the mashed potatoes and salad. He took a sip of water, before sitting back, his nose wrinkling the tiniest bit. Seeing the platter of rare steaks in front of him, I surmised it might bethe scent of the meat that was turning him that particular shade of green.
Still, he took a steak and put it on his plate after everyone else had helped themselves. Slicing into the red meat, he asked me quietly, “Do you want half?”
“Sure.” Taking the larger half, I slid it to my plate.
“Dieting?” Gilly popped a piece of meat in her mouth and chewed. “You do look like you’ve put on a few pounds. The seat of your scrub pants is working double time.”
Seth slowly chewed and swallowed the tiny bite he had cut off, while my hackles rose. My lips thinned, as I bit back a retort. My need to protect my mate was warring with knowing how siblings sometimes spoke to each other. I knew Seth was more than capable of speaking up for himself, but it was like he had shrunk into himself as soon as we walked through the door. Like he was trying to make himself smaller, less colorful, lesshim. I didn’t like it one bit.
“Really, Gils?” Kyle hissed.
“What?” She shrugged. “He has. You can’t miss his ass, Kyle.”
“Seth,” I whispered, placing my hand on his thigh in a small measure of comfort. He shook his head, but his eyes were blinking rapidly. If Gilly made my mate cry, all the manners mymadreandabuelahad drilled into me were going to fly right out the window. As it was, I was barely hangingonto my tongue.
“Don’t,” Seth whispered, his hand covering mine on his thigh. “It’s not worth it, believe me. They always side with her."
Rachel frowned at her daughter, but instead of reprimanding her bad behavior, she turned the conversation to me, asking what I did for a living and how long I had lived in town. I learned that the Browns owned a lawn care service, and everyone in the family worked there, except for Toby and Regina. Even Rachel took care of the books and payroll. Seth was the exception to the immediate Brown family, having no interest in joining the family business.
Seth pushed his steak around his plate, taking careful bites of the rest of his food. The tension was back in his shoulders, and he hadn’t joined in the conversation at all.
Nate clapped a hand on Seth’s shoulder so forcefully he moved him forward in his chair, gruffly ordering, “Eat up. You love my steak. Don’t let your sister’s teasing about a few extra pounds worry you. You know she’s just trying to get under your skin.”
Seth stopped pushing his food around, laying his fork down next to his barely touched plate.
