Page 106 of Laurels and Liquor

Then it hits me. If Lydia won’t go into heat naturally, then it would have to be forced. And the only way to force an omega into heat is with an alpha bark.

“We couldn’t try without Lydia going into heat?” Lucas asks, sounding almost frantic.

“An omega only produces the hormones that bonds need to form when they’re in heat,” Lydia says flatly.

I gather her close, kissing the top of her head as my heart twists painfully in my chest. Of all the things that I thought we’d need to do, forcing Lydia into heat never once crossed my mind. And after everything she’s been through, both tonight and in her life up to this point, this wound shouldn’t need to be torn open. Rhett has his arms around both of us, trying to shield us from reality with his body, but it’s no use. Lydia feels so small and fragile like this, shaking and scared in the dark with no one but us to protect her. But what if helping only hurts her more?

Lucas makes a noise of frustration from the front seat, and I look up to find him ruffling his hair.

“We can’t go to the hospital? Maybe a doctor—”

“How would we explain everything that happened, Lucas? She just tripped and fell onto three doses of illegal bond breakers?” Lex says, nearly shouting.

“I’m trying to think of ways to fix this that don’t involve Lydia having to relive her trauma, Lex!” Lucas returns, getting heated himself now.

I look down at Lydia, and find her staring off into space, lost in her thoughts or memories, I can’t tell which. I stroke her cheekbone with my thumb, and she jumps a little, coming back to the present and looking up at me.

“If you don’t want to do it, I’ll take the risk,” I say softly.

“But what if we can’t bond ever again?” Lydia asks, a low, terrified squeak.

I swallow and close my eyes, the idea of losing the thing I’d worked so long to gain spiking through my chest like a spear. But no, it doesn’t matter.

“Then I’ll have to spend the rest of my life telling you how much I love you in other ways. I’m yours, bond or no bond,” I declare, softly but not weakly.

“You are our omega, Lydia. We’re in this together, and we don’t need bonds or pieces of paper or a judge’s signature to prove anything,” Rhett adds, leaning in to rest his forehead against Lydia’s uninjured shoulder.

“But… I…” Lydia says, trailing off and swallowing a sob.

“We’ll keep looking for other ways. This can’t be the first time someone got a wrong dosage,” Lucas says, sounding more relaxed now.

“But what if I want you to do it?” Lydia exclaims, words tumbling out fast, like she’s afraid she won’t get them out in time.

We’re all silent for several heartbeats, long enough for us to get through the Bristol Point security gate. I stare in awe, waiting for her to take it back. We’ve made it clear that this doesn’t have to happen, that we can try to find another way. This has been her hard limit for as long as I’ve known her, and if forcing her heat is going to do more harm than good to her mental health, then I want no part of it.

“We don’t have to,” Lex says, sounding almost defeated.

“I know. And I can’t tell you how much it means to me that you, all of you, are trying to find another way. But… I trust you. I love you. And I don’t want to lose these bonds, not after everything. I want to try,” Lydia says, the conviction in her voice making the backs of my eyes burn.

“We should sleep on it, not make any hasty decisions—”

“But Lex said we don’t have time, Rhett!” Lydia snaps, speaking over my best friend’s reasonable suggestion.

“It’s not worth it,” Rhett grumbles.

“What isn’t worth it? Saving our bonds?” Lydia demands, hackles rising.

Lex pulls into the garage, but none of us move to exit the car. Not while Lydia’s question hangs in the air like a penny. He’s put down the ice pack, and I can see that a bruise is forming on Rhett’s cheek, and the cut above his eyebrow has scabbed over, but it only makes the bright blue of his irises that much more intense. And the look he’s leveling at our omega speaks volumes to his fear and worry.

“I won’t be likehim,Lydia. It wouldn’t be right, and I can’t—I won’t do that to you, not when there’s another choice,” Rhett says.

Lydia shifts to face Rhett more fully, putting a hand to his cheek. The cuts on her forearms make my stomach flip, but I push the lingering rage to the side. Rhett’s eyes soften, and I can see the tears forming at the edges of his lashes.

“You will never be him, Rhett Cooper. If I could do this myself, I would, but I need you, need all of you. Being your bond mate has made me the happiest person in the world, and I don’t want to lose that tonight. You’ve done so much to help me heal from what he did to me; help me with this last thing. Please,” Lydia begs, speaking first to Rhett, and then to the rest of us.

Lucas doesn’t look at her, but then she reaches out over the center console and takes his hand, drawing his attention. There’s a darkness in his blue-gray eyes I don’t like, but without my connection through Lydia, I can’t tell where it’s coming from. I reach over the back of the seat and grip his shoulder, looking around. Slowly, Lex reaches out and clasps her hand around Lydia’s and Lucas’s entwined fingers.

“I want this, and want all of you,” Lydia presses, looking at Lucas.

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