Page 127 of One Winter Knight
The door opened and Fiona came in, her lower lip quivering slightly. She came straight to us and squished in the middle.
“Why are you both so sad? Don’t you want to be with me?” Her voice shook.
I flooded the bond with the affection I felt for her.
“More like we’re afraid of your fathers,” I told her truthfully. “They’re not going to let us be together.”
“That’s not for them to say.” She pouted.
“Good.” Carlos gave her a kiss. “Just think, now you can decorate our new place for everybody.”
She beamed. “I can’t wait.”
Yeah, those four could create a happy pack and a good life without me. They’d be much better off that way.
Chapter Thirty-One
Fiona
We got the mattresses back where they belonged, changed the sheets, cleaned up all the chip crumbs, moved the snowmobile and the car, and put all of the dirty linens and blankets outside for housekeeping.
Much better.We didn’t need Dusty to get a reputation of beingthatsort of rockstar.
I definitely felt better after a shower, too. But the guys being sad concerned me. Did they not want me? But then, I wasn’t a stereotypical omega.
Wait, Carlos loved me. I knew that. He could be sad about other things. Like missing his game.
But Hale? He definitely wanted that stereotypical omega, didn’t he?
Bonding with Saoirse made me incredibly happy. No matter what, she’d love me.
I finished arranging the pillows on the bed in my room. Who would sleep in here with me tonight?
Saoirse came in and pinned me to the mattress, curling me to her tightly.
“I love you,” she said. “Are you alright with this? It’s perfectly fine to not be.”
“I have a pack of my own choosing. Of course I’m fine. I’m excited about having bonded with you and I’m serious about a party. It doesn’t have to be in a castle in Greece, but that sounds really fun. Maybe we could have it at a castle in Ireland?” I could see it now.
“Whatever you want. But your fathers will probably want it to be in Boston, so they can invite all their friends. Or not.” She chuckled derisively. “Also, I’m sorry for bonding with you without your permission.”
“Um, you know I wanted it,” I replied. We were just taking our time.
“How do you feel about the guys? That was… unplanned,” she said.
“Carlos already told me that he loves me and wants us to move in with him, so that’s not really a surprise. It feels right to start a pack with you and him.” I gave her an imploring look. “You like him well enough to be in a pack with him, don’t you? It’s not like you have to fuck him, you just have to put up with him.”
“I can put up with him.” A smile played on her lips. “I don’t know about Hale.”
“Hale’s regret is pretty strong,” I admitted softly. “He says it’s not me. But it is, isn't it?” I knew he took me being an assassin too well.
“No. Of course not. He’s in his last year of university. Hale has all these complicated plans for his future. I’m sure it has more to do with his life being disrupted,” she corrected.
“Okay. We could make this work. Right? Plenty of people mate while they’re still at university.” Anxiousness grew inside of me. But I’d had mated classmates at the academy.
Wehadto make it work. Mostly, so I could show my dads that I could manage my own life.
She gave me a kiss. “I think so. But if Hale wants you to let him go, you probably should. Not to mention, your dads could try to make you. Carlos, you can probably fight for. Me, as well. Before you tell me that your fathers don’t have a say, you know that to some extent they do. I know it’s not all about money, but there are a lot of advantages to being on their good side. While I’m happy to burn it to the ground and fight for your choices, I’m just offering the practical perspective here.”
