Page 27 of A Baby for the Beast
"And masturbate," I add in, winking at him as his eyes fly open just to glare at me.
There's a snort from nearby, but I ignore the alpha because there's a good chance Remus hurts him if I pay attention to anyone other than my alpha right now.
"Go," I shoo him away. "We can pick this conversation up at home."
It isn't until he's back in the locker room that I realize I called his apartment home, and how it came so naturally. Maybe two good things have come out of sleeping with the world's biggest douche. I'll have my daughter, and if things work out, I'll have my alpha too.
***
Phil lets Lucas and me take the elevator down alone. The meeting with the PR firm they hired went differently than I expected. Well, not even different since I wasn't sure what I expected. It's not like a twenty-eight-year-old bartender is ever in need of a public relations team. But the suggestions they gave us have left Lucas and me with some things we need to discuss.
"We don't do anything that will make you uncomfortable," he tells me when the elevator has gone down a few floors and I still haven't said anything. "They're paid to give us the advice that will have public opinion even more in our favor. Like they said, we're already good for the most part and just have to ride this out until something else happens to catch people's attention."
"How do you feel about what they suggested?" I ask, peeking at him in the elevator mirrors.
His brows shoot up, and he swallows down the grin that tries to spread across his lips. Okay, good to know he's interested in their idea.
"Hayley, I feel like I've made it abundantly clear how I feel about marking you up," Lucas says, grabbing me and turning me so I'm looking directly at him instead of sneaking peeks in the mirrors. "I would be honored to mate you. But like I said this morning, we only do this when you're ready, not because it'll look better from a PR standpoint."
"When do we have to meet with Kyle's lawyers?" I ask.
Lucas snarls at the mention of Kyle, but he replaces it quickly with a look of neutrality. Bringing up Kyle in the same conversation we're talking about mating probably isn't the best idea, but I have my reasons for asking.
"Next Tuesday. He's been advised to bring all of the paperwork to sign over his rights."
"Do you think he's going to try to make it hard?" I ask, leaning into Lucas, who wraps his arms around me without hesitation and cradles me gently to him.
The elevator door dings and slides open, but Lucas doesn't make any move to get off. When I look up at him, he gives me a small smile.
"We can ride a little longer," he says as the doors slide closed. He cups the back of my head and holds me to him again. "And after the way you chewed him out earlier, no, I don't think he's going to cause more trouble than he already has."
I cuddle harder against Lucas, wishing that I could be even closer, but my baby is keeping a nice little distance from us. Not that Lucas minds. No, his arm wrapped around me is so tight he can reach my abdomen and press his fingertips into it, almost like he's ready to embrace my daughter. I sniffle at the thought of how much Lucas already loves my little girl when he has no reason to. Before I know it, the sniffles turn into tears.
"Shh," Lucas murmurs as he rocks us back and forth, his purr coming to life, mixing with the elevator music to make a worse concoction than the sound of my sobbing and his purr. "I won't let him hurt her. She's safe. So safe."
And those words have me crying harder because it's not just me that Lucas and Remus care about. They do, obviously, but they care about Tessie, too. They care about her like she's their own, and I want so badly for Lucas to be the one to help me raise her. The thought is like a firework going off in my head, and it's like everything clicks into place.
"Bite me," I whisper against Lucas's shirt. My hands fist in the material, trying to keep him close even as my words have him trying to step back. He and Remus are flickering back and forth between who's in control, and when Remus stays in control, I think I'm about to get my way.
"Devilish little omega," he growls at me, snapping his teeth loudly as he presses the open door on the elevator that still hasn't left the ground floor.
It opens, and before I can ask him why he seems upset, he has me wrapped in his arms, lifting me off my feet so he can take long, purposeful steps toward the exit. He growls low and soft, but no one approaches us. They'd be foolish to approach Remus when he's not worked up. I've finally pushed my alpha too far because he does not seem pleased at all.
For as upset as he seems, though, he sets me in the car gently, buckling me in, and pressing his palm to the swell of my abdomen before glaring at me.
"I'm sorry," I whisper, biting my lip.
"No, you're not," Remus tells me, tilting my head to the side so I'm giving him my neck.
He snarls at me as I flutter my lashes, because he's not wrong, I'm not sorry. Whatever comes from this, I know it's the right thing. As messy as us finding one another has been, being with him will be the best thing I've ever done for myself and for my daughter.
"No, I'm not."
He kisses me, sloppy, hard, more teeth and tongue than loving touches, but Remus takes what he wants from it before pulling away, snarling at me once more. I finally realize it's not because he's mad at me, but because he's mad he can't have me yet. I keep that thought in my head as he gets in the car. As soon as he starts it, I slide my hand into his lap and earn myself a vicious growl.
"Omega," Remus growls like he wants me to stop, but he thrusts up into my hand like he wants more.
"What is it, Remus?" I ask, fluttering my lashes at him as I play coy.
