Hired to Breed (The Hired Series Book 3)

by Leann Ryans

  The cracked defenses around her heart crumbled as she held her rounded belly. Rolling into the center of her bed, she pulled the blanket over her head and cried.

  It felt like the world had dealt a cruel blow by taking what she wanted and twisting it to make life harder. She knew she’d find a way to make it work, but she cried for the loss of the way she’d dreamed it would be.

  ***

  She woke to the scent of something burning.

  Gut clenching and wondering what more life could throw at her, she jumped from the bed and raced down the hall. She wasn’t expecting the sight that met her when her eyes hit the kitchen.

  It was a disaster.

  If a mini tornado rolled in flour, hailed eggshells, and scattered utensils as it tore through her kitchen, it would make less mess. She skidded to a halt, her mind going blank as her mouth hung open.

  In the middle of it all was Liam, flour streaked on his jeans where he’d wiped his hands. He was shirtless since he was in the process of using his top as a towel to soak up what looked like milk spilled across the counter, and Fifi stood beneath him lapping up the stream pouring over the side to the floor.

  Annalise’s strangled cry caught his attention, wide eyes turning toward her before darting around the kitchen.

  “I, uh, thought I’d cook dinner for once so you could rest.”

  The pink on his cheeks as he leaned to try and hide the plate of burnt food behind him had her biting her lip to keep from laughing. Covering her eyes, she took a deep breath before going into motion.

  Taking the trashcan from beneath the sink, she held it under the edge of the counter as she reached for the shirt. Using it to sweep the puddle into the bag, she turned and tossed the sopping cloth into the sink before pointing at the kitchen towel hanging on the front of the oven.

  “Grab that and use it to sweep everything into the trash.”

  Reaching for the plate beside him, she dumped it, watching his chest deflate as he turned to do what she ordered. Putting the plate in the sink, she turned back to him and placed a hand on his arm after he’d cleared the island counter.

  “Thank you, but next time, how about you just order dinner?”

  His eyes narrowed but she could see the smile playing at the edge of his lips. Glancing around the kitchen, he shrugged and let out a huff.

  “Yeah, that sounds better. You make it look so easy.”

  She chuckled, turning back to the mess. Liam collected the scattered dishes while she began cleaning the counters. She usually hated other people in her kitchen because she worried they’d create a mess, but despite Liam doing exactly that, she found herself not minding. He’d tried to do something sweet, he’d just failed in the execution. It wasn’t the end of the world.

  That realization made her freeze.

  Her plan for the future may not be working out the way she expected it to, but that didn’t mean it wouldn’t work out. She wasn’t doomed to fail, and if accidents happened along the way, that didn’t mean she wasn’t able to clean up and try again.

  The fist around her heart loosened, letting her body relax so she could breathe easier.

  Twins meant twice the work. Twice the heartache. Twice the exhaustion.

  But they also meant twice the hope. Twice the joy.

  Twice the love.

  She wouldn’t fail because she loved the babies enough to keep trying until she got it right, whatever that meant.

  37. Liam

  Annalise gasped and his head jerked to where she stood in the kitchen. He’d jokingly, he hoped, been banned from trying to cook since his accident two months earlier, so she was once again making their dinner while he sat on the couch and sketched.

  More and more she’d taken center stage in his pictures, each one cataloguing moments of her pregnancy and the growth of the babies inside her. Many of them were done with her right there in the kitchen, although she wasn’t aware of it.

  “Are you okay? Did you cut yourself?” he asked, setting the sketchbook aside and moving toward her.

  Annalise was looking down, the hand he could see resting on her protruding belly. He loved how rounded she looked, the extra weight she’d finally put on fleshing out her curves further and making her more irresistible. Despite Annalise relenting on her twice-a-week rule, he still couldn’t get enough of her.

  She looked up as he came around the island, eyes wide. Tears shimmered in her gaze and her lips were parted. He couldn’t read the expression on her face, but she didn’t seem hurt and he couldn’t scent blood.

  “Annalise?”

  “I can feel them.”

  A tear spilled over, running down her cheek as his heart stopped. His gaze dropped to her belly where her hand pressed into her side.

  He swallowed hard, wanting nothing more than to be able to feel it for himself but he’d done his own research. He knew it would be a few weeks yet before anyone could feel the babies through her skin. What she felt was on the inside, their little bodies not strong enough to push through the protective layers surrounding them yet.

  Still, the sight of her standing in front of him, happy tears on her cheeks as she reveled in the sensation, made him ache to take her in his arms. He had to clench his hands against his legs to resist.

  Sniffling, she looked up at him again. The smile slowly dropped off her face, the joy bleeding away into something too close to pity.

  “Sorry. Dinner’s almost done.”

  Pain pierced his chest. He reached for her as she turned away and moved back to the stove but forced himself to stop. He hated that he ruined the moment for her.

  Chest aching, he returned to the couch. He ignored the sketchpad, the urge to draw drowning in the bile churning his gut. No matter how often it happened, it was still a slap in the face each time he was reminded that she wasn’t his.

  This wasn’t his family. He was only a necessity until her babies were born.

  Swallowing the urge to wallow in his self-pity, he forced the feelings away. He knew what he was getting into when he agreed to do this. This was the price for the freedom he’d enjoyed the past few months, and the time he’d spent with his family.

  He saw Annalise plating the food, so he rose and moved to her side. Taking the plates, he nodded to the table.

  “Go sit. I’ve got this.”

  It wasn’t much, but he felt bad for ruining her moment. He tried to bring back some of her joy, knowing the babies were the best way to do that.

  “Did you want to go shopping tomorrow after your appointment?”

  Confused eyes raised to his as he sat her plate in front of her before taking his seat. He quirked a brow, lips tipping up.

  “You’ll know the gender tomorrow, so I figured you’d want to go buy things for them. I can see the stacks and stacks of pink, frilly dresses now.”

  He rolled his eyes playfully, bringing a smile to her lips that eased the tightness in his chest. He’d found it a bit odd that she hadn’t bought any baby stuff yet, but he guessed she was either waiting to know the gender or until the time got closer since there wasn’t much extra space in the apartment.

  She gave him a sly look as she took a bite of her food, chewing and swallowing before she answered.

  “I might stop and get a thing or two. I’m trying to resist the urge since it only means more to move back.”

  Blood rushed in his ears as his body went still. He kept his head down, not willing to let her see what her announcement did to him.

  She wasn’t staying in Eden.

  He didn’t know why he’d assumed she would. Her sister was back in the city she came from, and she had no ties in Eden to stop her from leaving once she no longer needed his services.

  He tried to breathe through the sudden panic that filled his chest. It was bad enough that he’d be sent away as soon as they were born, likely without ever seeing them, but he’d thought his brother Sean would be able to check on them. Even if Annalise didn’t allow any contact, Eden was small enough Sean cou
ld have kept an eye on her to be sure everything was okay.

  He forced his fingers to loosen their grip on the fork before it bent. Sitting it down, he reached for his drink to clear the bile that surged up the back of his throat.

  Everything with this situation was wrong.

  Annalise shouldn’t be pregnant without being bound to him. She shouldn’t be planning to raise the babies alone. He shouldn’t be forced to leave them when she was going to need him the most. When she was tired and vulnerable. They would all need his protection, and without her here, he couldn’t even pretend to help them from afar.

  He sucked in another deep breath, trying to ignore the alluring scent of her. His instincts demanded that he take the omega and fuck her into submission. Show her who was in charge and demand she never leave.

  He had to be smarter than his instincts.

  “I thought you would be staying in Eden.”

  It was a fight to get the words out without a growl, but he managed.

  “No, this is temporary. I let my flat in the city go, but I’ll be buying a house near my sister.”

  Another even breath and then he pushed out more words that tried to stick in his throat.

  “You don’t like it here?”

  Her eyes lifted to him, but he ducked his head back to his plate. Annalise was too observant, and he didn’t want her to realize he was upset.

  “I do. I’m going to miss the quiet and the fresh air. But I should be closer to my sister, and there’s no reason to stay after…”

  She trailed off so he forced a smile on his face and looked up to give her a nod.

  “Makes sense. But what are you going to do if they’re Alphas?”

  The skin around her eyes and mouth tightened though she didn’t give any other sign of displeasure. It didn’t hit him until then what she likely wanted, and he honestly couldn’t blame her.

  “I have plenty of time before then to figure things out, but I’d likely move back to Eden if they presented as Alphas.”

  “You are hoping for girls then?”

  She shot him a look that confused him for a moment until she explained with a huff.

  “I’m hoping for betas. Alphas have a bad lot in life, and omegas are looked down on as weak and useless. I want them to have the best life.”

  Her hands resting on the table clenched, knuckles turning white. He realized she was just as worried as he was, and he couldn’t stop himself from reaching out to cover her hand with his.

  “I’m sure they will.”

  38. Annalise

  She tried to tamp down the irritation, knowing Liam wasn’t trying to upset her. The sting of tears was ignored as well as he released her hand and took the plates to the sink.

  It was odd how familiar the routine had become over the past few months. She cooked, he cleaned, and then she either went to his room, or went to hers and imagined herself in his.

  The cravings never ended.

  She’d given up her twice a week schedule at the doctor’s insistence, but she couldn’t admit how often she felt like she needed Liam. She tried to restrain herself, because if she listened to her body, she’d never leave his bed. Maybe it was because she carried twins, but the end of the first trimester came and went with no lessening of her desires.

  Glancing between the Alpha with his arms buried in the sink, and the hallway to their rooms, she fought with her traitorous body. She’d spent most of the previous night in his room, and with the excitement of the coming appointment she knew she should get some rest, but her stomach still cramped and claimed to need more.

  Shaking her head at herself, she straightened her shoulders and moved toward the hallway.

  “I’m heading to bed. Goodnight, Liam.”

  His eyes turned to hers, and though he kept his expression neutral, she could see the disappointment in his gaze. Her bulging stomach had yet to affect the way he took her, his desire seeming to grow along with her waist.

  “Goodnight, Annalise.”

  She suppressed the shiver that rolled through her when he said her name, striding to her room to put a door between them before her control caved. Stripping, she climbed into the growing pile of blankets and pillows on her bed.

  She laid still until she heard his footsteps come down the hall. When they paused outside her door she held her breath, hoping he’d open it and enter despite the fact that he’d never stepped foot in her room. It was one of the things she appreciated about Liam. He’d never invaded her personal space.

  Annalise couldn’t avoid the disappointment that flooded her when his footsteps moved on and she heard the click of his bedroom door. Her thighs were already wet with slick, her body having no issue declaring what it wanted no matter what her mind had decided.

  Sighing, she rolled to her side and fluffed a pillow into the space meant to hold a large warm body. Tugging another behind her she tried to pretend it was Liam, but it didn’t help. She tossed and turned until a peek at the time told her it was midnight.

  Tired and tired of fighting herself, she caved. The hunger gnawing inside her wasn’t going to let her sleep until it was sated.

  Rising from her nest, she didn’t bother grabbing clothes. They’d be coming off again in moments anyway.

  The thought of waking Liam sent a stab of guilt through her, but she pushed it aside. If she didn’t she wasn’t going to get any rest.

  She found his door cracked open when she took the few steps to his room. Pushing it wider she could see his silhouette on the chair by the window, outlined by the moonlight pouring in.

  “Annalise?”

  His voice was low but held no signs of being roughened by sleep. He stood, taking a step toward her, the light at his back leaving his face in shadows.

  “Are you okay?”

  He froze when she stepped into the room, the sharp intake of air audible from where she stood. Even with the low light, her skin was pale enough to glow and allow him to see everything.

  “No. I need you, Liam. Make me feel better?”

  The words were plaintive, her hand pressed to her stomach where the ache festered. She was tired of denying herself. Her babies needed her to accept her nature and give them what they needed.

  The idea of them being omegas was almost as terrifying as them being alphas. The things her mother called her when she was younger, the shame that has been fostered on her for what she was… How could she raise little omegas if she still struggled to accept she was one?

  Liam’s hands were on her in an instant as he seemed to teleport across the room. Sliding from her belly around her back, they slipped lower to grip her ass, lifting her so she had to wrap her arms and legs around his body. He was careful not to squeeze too tight as he moved her to the bed, capturing her lips with his as he laid her down.

  The fabric of his shorts chafed her thighs and she whimpered as she pushed at the waistband. She was already wet and in no mood for anything separating them. Adding a growl to her tone when he didn’t lift himself to remove the material, she raked her nails along his back.

  Rumbling back at her, he nipped her lip before giving in to her demands and raising his hips. She shoved the fabric as far as she could reach before he took over to take them the rest of the way off.

  Annalise moved her hand to his hard shaft, the flesh smooth and hot within her grip. Moisture beaded at the tip when she stroked him, and she circled her thumb through it to smear it around his head. Unwilling to wait, she aimed it at her entrance, impatient to feel him stretching her.

  “Please.”

  The desperate plea left her without conscious thought. Tossing his clothing somewhere in the room, Liam’s hips moved closer, pressing the tip of him to her opening. Hand moving to cup the back of her neck as the other smoothed hair from her face, he pushed inside.

  Her hips lifted to take him deeper as her hands moved to grip his back. He curled around her belly, giving her the nearness she wanted without putting pressure on her stomach.

  Draggi
ng his length back out, Liam ran his lips down her neck before sliding into her again. The slow pace allowed her to feel every bump and ridge along his shaft but left her writhing in his hold for more.

  Digging her nails into his biceps, she pressed her heels to the back of his thighs, trying to pull him in faster. She could feel his cock twitching in excitement, but he kept to his slow pace, tormenting her clit each time he ground his pelvis into her before repeating the motions.

  Tension coiled tighter in her belly, her whole body going stiff as it balanced on the edge. His blooming knot tugged at her lower lips, teasing her with the promise of the stretch she knew was coming. She just needed a little more…

  Rough fingers moved to her nipple, pinching it before twisting and pulling away from her body. When her back arched from the bed, teeth blunted by guards dug into the fleshy mound, shattering the cliff she’d stood on.

  Annalise fell into her release, each pulse of Liam’s cock inside her sending another wave of sensation to swamp her body. Ripples worked from her core out to her fingertips. Even her scalp tingled, leaving her shivering in the wake of the rush.

  Liam rolled them to the side, pulling her knee up to rest on his hip as he supported her head on his arm. Tugging a pillow into place at her back, he covered them with his blanket as another shiver wracked her frame when his knot shifted.

  She groaned, knowing it wasn’t enough even though sleep tugged at the edges of her consciousness. Her stomach desperately called for the essence trapped inside her, claiming a hunger that the food earlier hadn’t sated.

  Locked on his knot, she had no option but to wait.

  39. Liam

  Annalise rolled in his arms, waking him as she rubbed sleep from her eyes. He was still tired, but he knew she would be feeling even worse after staying up through the early hours of the morning. She’d demanded every drop he could give her last night, going until his knot inflated and refused to subside since it had nothing left to give.