Page 85 of The Omega Lesson

We go back to the penthouse for the rest of Jackson’s heat. With all those needy pheromones in the air, Lexi quickly switches back, tending to my brother until he’s a sated, purring lump. But we still find the time to slip down to our oasis, and as promised, the water is fresh and warm, just waiting for us to dirty it up. I take more breaks than the others, since Lexi is my only focus, and manage to tie up a few loose ends while they work their way through the heat. But by the third day, Jackson is sleeping soundly, and I convince Lexi to leave the suite and stretch our legs.

“Clear our heads, more like,” she says as we take the elevator down to the mezzanine level. She’s a delicious combination of stubble rash, swollen lips, and giant bonding bites, but as she studies herself in the mirrored wall, she gives a squawk of dismay. Her attempts to pat down her wild pink curls just make her growl, and she throws her hands up in defeat. “I look like hell.”

I laugh, because until a few days ago, I would have agreed. Which would have been a fucking travesty.

But as we get off at the mezzanine level, the happy glow on her face fades as she recognises the man standing next to the aquarium. But then her gaze slides to the child pressed up to the glass and I can feel the shudder that goes through her body. “Bree.”

But in the next instant, she pins a huge smile to her face as her daughter turns and barrels towards her. “Mummy! There’s a shark! And a stingray! And a man in a rubber suit just fed them and didn’t get eat!”

“Eaten,” she gently corrects her. “And that’s because he was giving them yummy fish food.” She drops to a knee so she can hug her daughter tight. “It’s so good to see you, Sweetpea. Have you been to the touch pool? I’ve heard that’s where the little orange starfish live, and they’re so small, they can fit in the palm of your hand.”

“You cantouchthem?” Bree is almost hyperventilating at the idea, but then her bright eyes narrow in calculation. “If you catch one, can you keep it?”

“No,” Lexi laughs, “this is their home. But the next time you come tomyhome, there will be horses waiting to meet you.”

“Horses?” Her shriek is loud enough to echo off the walls. “You mean… seahorses?”

“No, real horses.” Lexi pulls her in for another hug. “There are stables at my house, and everything.”

“Mummy!” Lexi says in a serious voice. “You have a veggie patch and an old toilet. How did you fit a whole horse in your garden?”

Lexi’s lips quirk, but her eyes flit to mine. “I’m living in a new house now. With my pack. You’ve met Mattie and Noah, remember? Well, it’s where they live, so now I live there, too.”

I’m tempted to correct her and say wherewelive, but I suppose I should ask Noah before I book the removalists.

While Bree contemplates this new piece of information, Lexi looks at her father. “Are you going to make that a problem for me, Dad?”

“No,” he replies in his gruff voice. “I’ve spoken to Malcolm from the Family Court. He’s already received the motion to modify the custody order. Richard has agreed to equal shared parental responsibility. But I assume you want a legal obligation, yes?”

“Fair’s fair,” I say shortly, since it’s my new fucking motto. “Lexi’s been in need of legal support for a while, don’t you think?”

I make no attempt to hide the censure in my voice, and he ducks his head. We’ve already battled this out in person – with my stable of high-priced lawyers backing me up – and I think he’s starting to see the error of his ways.

But if not, I have the motive, means, and obsessive personality to remind him.

“What’s the catch?” Lexi asks quietly. “Why would Richard agree to this?”

His eyes slide my way for a moment, but then they drop. Probably because I’ve been stroking the giant bonding bite on my throat every chance I get.

“No catch, Alexa,” he murmurs, and I’m tempted to correct his slip of the tongue, but decide to let it go. You can’t expect to teach an old dog every new trick in a week. Although, he surprises me by saying, “Fair is fair, yes?”

As her father’s words sink in, I watch Lexi struggle to hold back the many things she no doubt wants to say. But she settles for putting a hand on her daughter’s shoulder. “I’ll wait to see the papers, Dad, but thanks for bringing her here today.”

He nods, and I look pointedly towards the exit. “We’ll drop Bree back in the morning,” I tell him. “But the new arrangements begin this weekend, no exceptions.”

It takes a moment for that to sink in too, Lexi’s eyes going wide as her dad departs without another word. “Did that just happen?” she asks dazedly. “Actually,howdid that happen?”

“I think they just needed a moment to step back and look at things from another angle.”

She tilts her head at me, her brown eyes alive with suspicion. “You mean a bossy billionaire’s angle?” She nudges me in the ribs, a smile lighting up her face. “What did you do? Promise them that Lyall Corp business they were so eager to land?”

Trust Lexi to think I’d stoop to promises instead of threats.

“My lawyers talked to their lawyers, gave them a nudge in the right direction… You know how it goes.”

Of course, the fact thatmylaw firm is in the process of acquiringtheirlaw firm helped smooth the wheels.

But Lexi just shakes her head and pulls me down for a soft, sweet kiss. I lap it up, and maybe it’s sweet enough to give her some ideas, because she turns to her daughter and asks, “Shall we go for ice cream? Or do you want to go around one more time?”

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