Page 43 of The Beta: Part One

“Do you want to fuck her, Devon? I absolutely do,” Jasper barks, “I made that clear several times when you were fucking me. I remember begging you specifically to go get her so I could fuck her while you fucked me. I begged Kaleb to go get her so I could watch him fuck her while you fucked me. I even begged Trent to go get her and just bring her in to be in the nest with me, whether anybody fucked her or not. And you all refused.”

“Jasper, baby, I couldn’t come in. I had to stay out so I could watch over you and your pack. I couldn’t have joined you anyway, keeping you safe is the most important thing.” Talia is telling the truth. She never would have abandoned guard duty to come join his heat.

If the break-in hadn’t happened she may have been more inclined to be persuaded to join us. Maybe. Her words do break through to him and he cups her cheek in his hand with the sweetest fucking look in his eyes, just for her. I think Jasper is a little hurt because we didn’t do something he asked for. We so rarely refuse him anything. If I’m honest, I would have dragged her into the room by her hair and tied her to the bed for him, which might make me a bastard, but it really was important that she remain on guard.

“And,” she continues, “It doesn’t matter who else wants to fuck me, all that matters to me is what you want. If you want me like that, we’ll work something out so it doesn’t cause any trouble between you and your alphas. You need them way more than you need me.”

His eyes go hard again. “No, Talia, that’s not true. Not anymore. I need you. I don’t know what it is, but I need you. And I want you. I’ll figure something out so it isn’t such a difficult thing.”

The way he’s looking at her makes me feel like I’m intruding. I want this for him, but I’m afraid of how it might impact our pack dynamic. In the course of a few weeks, we’ve moved from vehemently not wanting her here to trying to find a way for Jasper to have her in his bed without it becoming an issue for us. That's a lot of change. I’m also not sure some of us won’t be jealous about one thing or another.

Devon looks like he’s been punched in the gut. He’s a good alpha and I respect the hell out of him. We grew up together. I knew the moment he saw Jasper and caught his scent that he was gone for him, that Jasper was his omega and that made him my omega, too. And it was fine.

Jasper is beautiful and sweet and perfect, I have never felt like I was missing something because he's male. Our parents, mine and Devon’s, probably Trent’s and Nathan’s, too, have often lamented that fact because they want grandchildren. They want our lines to continue, but Jasper is it for us. Devon and I are still suspicious that Talia was placed here to wriggle into our fold and start cranking out babies, regardless of the obvious disinterest she shows in any of us but Jasper.

Devon kneels on the floor in front of Jasper and pulls his face toward him to get his full attention, “If this, she, is something you need, then I’ll find a way to make it okay for you, so long as it is something she wants, as well,” he gives her a pointed look, “But I can’t lose you, Jasper. I can’t. We can’t. I need you. I love you too much to let you go.”

Jasper takes a trembling breath and leans into Devon, butting their foreheads together and kissing him, “I love you, Devon. Nothing could take me away from you. Or from this pack. Not ever.”

I expect to see hurt or disappointment on Talia’s face, but all I see is something that looks so much like love and adoration that it makes my breath catch in my chest. She’s not going to come between us. I know it in my heart. If anything, she’s going to level us up, as a pack and as a family. I know it, and I think Trent and Nathan might see it, too. We just have to wait for Devon to realize what’s happening, how we’re about to grow if he’ll let us.

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