“I’m sure. Please, Alpha. Make love to me.”
Pierce smiled, driving into me slow, inch by glorious inch as he played the game of surge and retreat with his dick. The burn wasn’t as bad as I expected, my slick easing the way. That surprised me. The suppressors should have halted any slick, something an omega usually only created when in heat. The alpha’s nose might have been right and the suppressors weren’t working properly. I was going into heat. I didn’t care. I had the alpha I wanted with me, driving into me.
Pleasure bloomed until I couldn’t think anymore. I could only feel as Pierce shifted his position, hitting my prostate with each stroke into my body. Fire ran through my veins. Electricity sparked down my spine. My balls drew up tight. My cock was rock-hard, precum pooling on my abs as Pierce pounded into me.
The alpha’s lips crashed onto mine, stealing my breath though I would have given it freely. Our tongues tangled in a wet, sloppy, welcome mess until Pierce pulled away, gasping for air.
“Max, I can’t hold back.”
“Don’t then. Don’t hold back.” Even as I gave him permission, his hand wrapped around my cock, gripping it, tugging on it in the most delicious way.
“Come for me, Max.” The passionate plea sent me over the edge, tumbling me into a whirlwind of emotions as I spewed rope after rope of cum all over my abs, my chest, my jaw.
When Pierce’s knot popped out, locking us into place, the pressure set me off into another orgasm almost as powerful as the first. Warm liquid filled my ass as my alpha released his load inside me. Soft whispers filled my ear as Pierce told me how beautiful I was.
“My omega, Max. You’re mine now. I don’t ever want to let you go.”
“I’m not going anywhere, Pierce. I promise.”
I hugged the alpha tight, giving him my warmth even as I promised him my future. Whatever his past, whatever grief he still needed to deal with, we’d do it together. He was mine now, too. I didn’t want to let him go. Not now. Not ever.
Chapter Fifteen
Pierce
Slipping from Max’s body when my knot deflated, I hugged Max tight when he moved as if to slide off me. I’d rolled onto my back so he didn’t have to bear my weight while we cuddled. I wasn’t ready for him to leave yet.
“I’m not going anywhere. I just thought you’d be more comfortable without me on top of you,” Max said.
“Nowhere I’d rather have you than on top of me, omega mine.” I felt his mouth move into a smile as he rested his head against my chest. It felt good to have an omega in my arms again. I waited for the guilt, something that said I was cheating on Grant. It never came. Instead, there was a sense of peace so profound I almost thought it was my husband giving me permission to live again.
“You have to be uncomfortable with your pants down around your thighs. Why don’t you get more comfortable and we can cuddle more.”
Looking down at the omega in my arms, I couldn’t resist smiling at the younger man. I wanted nothing more than to stay in bed with the omega all day. Unfortunately, that also meant revealing a part of myself I wasn’t sure he was ready for. I know I hadn’t been when it happened.
Helping Max off me so I could sit up, I pushed my jeans off my good leg. I sat there for a moment looking at the top of my prosthesis, wondering if I really wanted to do this. It might scare the omega off, something I didn’t want to do. But, it was better to find out now if seeing my residual limb would send him running.
Rolling the jeans down enough to disengage the leg, I eased the prosthesis off my thigh. A heartbeat later I rolled down the silicone liner, revealing what was left of my leg. It dawned on me I hadn’t prepared for an overnight visit. I didn’t have what I needed to put the leg back on again. “I might need a little help when I’m ready to put this back on. I didn’t bring my spray bottle of alcohol with me. You might have to go over to my house when you’re ready to get rid of me.”
“Hmmm. That might be a long time from now. Does that mean I’m stuck with you?”
“Could be. Would you mind?”
“No, I don’t mind at all.” Max came around to the side of the bed, still naked as he sank to his knees before me. My breath caught as he stared at my residual limb. “It’s really not as bad as I imagined.”
The omega’s gaze met mine, not showing any signs of the disgust I expected to see. The feelings welling up inside me, as Max accepted a part of myself I still couldn’t wrap my head around all these years later, were overwhelming. It was like the omega saw the real me and wanted me anyway.
“Can I ask why you don’t wear the prosthesis more often? You’ve only used your wheelchair the whole time I’ve known you.”
“I had to give my leg a break. I had a place that was in danger of developing a pressure sore. I need to make an appointment to go back to my prosthetist and get a new socket made. My residual limb has changed some since this one was made.”
“Sounds complicated. You’re okay now, though?”
“For short amounts of time. I’m not in a hurry to get back into my leg. I just wasn’t sure how wheelchair friendly your house was. I’ve had to make some adjustments to my house for when I was in the chair. I also have arm crutches, but I was vain enough not to want to show up using them. They probably would have been the better choice.”
“It must be tough, trying to remain independent after losing a leg like that. Can I ask what happened?”
Nodding, I pulled Max up into the bed with me. Once we were both settled, with the omega in my arms, I took a breath.
“We were out Christmas shopping. Just getting a few final gifts for relatives of Grant’s before the big day. We were finished and on our way home when it happened. Grant was in the passenger seat and our son was in the back on the passenger side. Christmas music was on the radio and the two of them were singing along. A truck blew through a red light as we were driving through an intersection. He smashed straight into the passenger side of the car. Grant and Craig were killed almost instantly.” I swallowed the lump in my throat as the memory of that night sank into me. “Seeing my husband and son lying there, bleeding out, and not a damn thing I could do about it because my fucking leg was pinned under the steering wheel which had buckled under impact with the light pole we’d been pushed into. In all, that truck took out my car and three others. When it was all over, the whole car was crushed so much it took the jaws of life to get us all out it. Grant and Craig were already gone by the time they got me out. I almost didn’t even care when they told me they weren’t going to be able to save my leg. I had nothing left by that point anyway. That was five years ago.”
“I’m sorry you lost your family. I can’t even imagine what you’ve been through. The only thing I can do is hold you, Pierce. I’ve got you now. I’m here and I’m not going anywhere.”
“That helps, Max. You have no idea how much that helps.”
Even though it was still early in the day, sleep came quickly. Comforted in the arms of the omega, I slept more peacefully than I had in a long time. This Christmas wasn’t the pain-filled day I’d been dreading as the month had crept closer to another holiday without my family. For the first time, I could see a day where I might even embrace the holiday again if Max was there to share it with me.
Chapter Sixteen
Max
Even though it was still early when I woke up, I gasped as I glanced at the clock. I barely had enough time to get the ham in the oven or my Christmas dinner was going to be seriously late. Extricating myself from Pierce’s arms was tricky. The alpha looked like he could use the sleep so I slipped under his arm and rolled out of the bed, landing in an undignified sprawl on the floor. Pierce remained asleep so mission accomplished.
After slipping on a pair of sleep pants, I rounded up an empty spray bottle and half a bottle of rubbing alcohol, leaving them on the bedside table where Pierce would see them when he woke up. I slipped from the room without making a sound and raced to the kitchen.
An hour later, th
e ham was in the oven. Hard-boiled eggs were cooling in a bowl of ice-cold water while I made the dressing for the potato salad. Soon the eggs were chopped and all the ingredients were mixed, chilling out in the fridge as I moved on to the next item on my list.
It was a long time later when a deliciously rumpled Pierce showed in the kitchen, kissing me until I lost track of anything except the alpha in my arms. The man was sexy as hell, his bedroom eyes eating me up as if he were hungry and I was the last cream puff on Earth.
“I missed you when I woke up. Thanks for leaving me the stuff I needed to get my prosthesis back on. It’s one of the hazards when using that type of socket. You have to think ahead. Of course, I’m not usually taking my leg off unexpectedly either.”
“My pleasure. Anything for my alpha.” I stopped talking, but refused to take back what I’d just said. Pierce felt like my alpha. He was the one my heart wanted. I only hoped he felt the same way. He was coming from such a different place, the grief he had to deal with something I couldn’t wrap my head around.
“Hey, none of that. I would love nothing more than to be your alpha, Max. Having you as my omega would make me very happy.”
“I don’t want you thinking I want to replace your husband. What I feel for you is amazing, but I know the two of you were together for a lot of years before I came along. I don’t want you to feel like you have to shove all those feelings to the side.”
“I appreciate that, Max. Really. I think Grant would have loved you just as much as I already do. If the two of you had met, I think he would have brought you into our family and it would have been something really special. But, no more special than what I’m feeling right now. Just in a different way.”
“I don’t know how I would have felt about being a third, but I’d like to share some of those memories you have of Grant and Craig. I don’t want you to forget them.”
I reached up to kiss Pierce, my lips caressing his with all the love I felt in that moment. It was Christmas, a magical time when anything could happen, even finding the love of my life right next door with my grumpy neighbor. Best Christmas ever.
Chapter Seventeen
Pierce
Max did as promised and fed me more food than I could eat on Christmas Day. We had leftovers the week following up until New Year. It was fun watching as Max got creative with each meal as he attempted to make each one unique with the same ingredients. I was amazed at how successful he was at it.
As each day went by after the holidays, Max settled in more as my omega, spending every evening in my arms. We were rarely apart, splitting our time together between our two homes. The sweet, young sexy omega was my omega. No matter how wrong that might be, I wanted to keep him. My connection was so visceral to this young man. It was different from what I had felt with Grant, but no less powerful. Was it possible for an alpha to have more than one fated omega? I wasn’t sure but I was beginning to think it was.
Knowing Grant, I was sure he’d be happy for me. Hell, if Grant had still been alive, I thought he might have opened his arms wide and accepted Max into our lives. I think Max would have loved Grant as well. I’d told Max as much though I’m not sure he believed me. Someday, I’d introduce Max to Grant, show him the videos Grant and I made together. Later.
My hand strayed to my pocket, where I felt the box I carried there. I hoped Max said yes. I needed the omega in my life. Now and forever. He was so damn young, but he’d told me over and over that age was just a number. If Max didn’t mind the difference, I had to believe him. I hoped that was true because I didn’t think I could go on without the younger omega. It was a scary thought, but I squared my shoulders, determined to forge on bravely.
As much as I missed Grant, Max was my future now. I’d never forget the man who had given me so much, but I knew he’d want me to live my life to its fullest. That fullest was with Max. Max and the baby he carried. He’d been too scared to tell me. I could almost see the fear each time he tried to work up the courage to say something. I was just as scared, had been since the day I stumbled on the pregnancy test Max had hidden away.
I’d had one son already, and he’d been taken away from me in a heartbeat. One moment he was here and then he was gone. I’d never even had the chance to whisper goodbye and tell him daddy loved him. So damn much.
This baby with Max could never replace Craig, but the image of my sweet boy in heaven looking down and being a guardian angel to his little sibling brought a smile to my lips. Craig would have been the best big brother.
“Pierce? Everything okay? We can head back if you’re getting tired.”
“No, I’m fine. Let’s walk over to the pond. There.”
I led Max to the grassy area I’d picked out to propose. It was picturesque. The perfect place to propose to my omega. A spot on my residual limb ached, but I ignored the pain. Max deserved to have his alpha down on bended knee, even if one of those knees was a mechanical marvel that still didn’t fit quite right.
It took some doing, I made it to the ground with a gasp from Max without killing myself. The pain was worth it when his eyes spied the box I pulled out of my pocket.
“Max. I love you. I’m an old fool, but if you agree to be my omega, it would make me the happiest man in Sugar Beach. Please say yes.”
With tears running down his face, Max was suddenly on his knee with me. Nodding his head, he whispered a trembling yes.
“Wait, there’s something I need to tell you before you slip that ring on my finger,” he said as the gold band went past the first knuckle.
“I’m pregnant. And the baby is yours.”
Smiling, I leaned forward to kiss Max’s trembling lips. “I know, Max. I know the baby is mine. I would never have thought anything else.”
“You knew I was pregnant? How?
“I saw the positive test tucked away in the medicine chest. It doesn’t matter, baby or no baby, I love you. I’ll love this baby. So much. Please, Max, say you’ll be mine.” The half a second it too before my omega spoke was too long.
“Yes! Yes, a million times yes!”
I hadn’t been looking forward to the holidays, but with Max by my side, I had learned to enjoy the season once more. It was what Grant would have wanted, of that I was sure. The New Year was looking brighter than I could have expected. I’d have Max by my side and the child he carried. Christmas next year would be a little bittersweet as I celebrated with a newborn while missing my oldest son. Life moves on and I couldn’t regret meeting Max or the life he carried inside him.
Chapter Eighteen
Max
There was something magical about conceiving a baby on Christmas. I know it was probably all in my head, but my whole pregnancy had been magical. As Pierce and I rang in the New Year, I’d known instinctively I’d conceived despite being on suppressors and hadn’t been in a full heat. It had been a scary time, knowing Pierce was still grieving for the family he’d lost and being unsure how he’d react to starting a new family. I shouldn’t have worried. He’d embraced the idea of being a father again.
I looked down at the ring I wore on a chain around my neck these days because my fingers swelled too much by the end of the day now that I was near the end of my second trimester. Swelling in my fingers and ankles was one of the few pregnancy symptoms I hadn’t been able to escape. Considering how much worse things could have gone, I’d happily take it.
Deciding which house to live in had been an easy decision. While our two houses were similar in size and layout, Pierce’s house had already been heavily renovated after his accident to accommodate a person who needed a wheelchair at times so I moved all my stuff for the second time in a year. Happily. We’d talked about the possibility of making renovations to my house, but in the end, decided not to for the moment. I hadn’t sold it, but it was something we were considering in the future.
Our wedding had been a quiet affair. We were married standing before the magistrate in a little office in downtown Sugar Beach. The small ceremony had
suited us. My family had all come in for a reception party a couple of weeks later. Settling into my new last name had been complicated. I hadn’t realized how many things I needed to update because of a change in name.
Movement in my baby bump made me jump. Feeling the little flutters was a new experience. They always brought a smile to my face. That’s how Pierce found me a few minutes later, with a dreamy smile on my face, looking off into the distance at nothing. It was a common occurrence lately. Soon, Pierce would be able to feel the baby kick. I was looking forward to the day I got to share that little milestone with him.
As his hand snaked around me to cradle my belly, I leaned into him. He had a new prosthesis which fit well, allowing him to be on his feet for long stretches of time. My alpha was fiercely independent, prosthesis or wheelchair, it didn’t matter. He used whichever tool was needed for the day and moved on. I admired him so much. He’d been through so much, but never once had I ever seen him lose his cool even when his frustration levels were through the roof. He’d be a wonderful father.
“The baby moving again?”
“Yep. He or she is very active today. I was thinking of getting a snack. I don’t suppose we have any of those anchovies left do we? A peanut butter sandwich with bananas and anchovies would really hit the spot.” I could feel Pierce shudder behind me. He hated the smell of the little fishes, but happily kept me stocked in cans of the salty food since my craving for the unusual combination first hit me.
“I just bought more while I was at the grocery store. Bananas, too. There was only one left so I figured I’d better get some. As well as two more jars of peanut butter and the sourdough bread you insist on using to make your awf… uh, unusual concoction.”
“Thank you. I know how hard it is for you to watch me eat that.” I turned in Pierce’s arms so I could kiss him. What was supposed to be a quick kiss turned into a raging inferno as other appetites rushed forth and pushed all thought of food out of my head. I wanted my alpha all the time. Pregnancy hormones made me crazy horny. Luckily, Pierce happily made love to me whenever the cravings for sex hit, making love to me often.
A Grumpy Christmas Page 5