Page 59 of Perfectly Yours
“I’m ready. When are we cussing out your mother?” I ask around the food in my mouth. Macon doesn’t answer me and for a moment, I think I’ve overstepped but his expression doesn’t convey anger. It’s akin to confusion and a little bit of hurt. “Alpha, I’m sorry-”
“No. You’re right. It’s just hard to separate the woman who raised me and this awful person who keeps trying to derail my life. She hasn’t been the woman who raised me for a while but I keep hoping she will be. And as much as I want to cuss her out, truly tell her to shove it, it’s not that easy. No, Ellie, you’re misunderstanding.” He pushes off the counter and comes to stand beside me, twisting me away from the fruit. His hands cup my cheeks, tipping my head up so that our eyes meet. “Sweetheart, it’s not that easy to just cuss someone out in the entertainment industry. That just further exacerbates the situation. It’s a process. Talk is all it is—just talk. But if we show my mother that we’re in love, that her accusations don’t hold any weight? That’s what saves us.”
Which means that something like a bond or a marriage would silence the public, neither of which I am ready for. Marriage isn’t even viable since Macon is married to Savin. “You’re still going to cuss her out, though, right? She tried to ruin your life so it’s only fair you return the favor.”
“Yes, sweetheart. Goddess, I’m going to let her hear the few words I’ve had saved for her. Now, eat. Jace and one of his staff on payroll should be here within the next hour or so if Savin’s up for it. The sooner we make a statement, the sooner the public leaves you two alone, and things can go back to normal.” A grin splits across his face as he drops a hand to my belly. “Well, our normal.”
His thumb brushes across my lips, my mouth parting to suck in the tip. Macon’s eyes darken when I lick the edge of this thumb.
“Baby girl, as much as I would enjoy another round, I don’t think any of us are up for that.”
“Is that all Savin ever gets? One round?”
“Correction, I don’t think you are ready for what opening that closet truly means. I know you want to play, Ellie, but slowly. You wanted me to prove to you that this relationship was more than bonds. I need you to trust me when I say that throwing you in the deep end when it comes to that dynamic might add further confusion to your decision.”
My brows furrow as I lean back. “I’m not on the fence anymore, Alpha. I’m sorry it took me this long. I just…”
“Ellie, look at me. I know you aren’t. I also don’t want to overwhelm you. There are a lot of new things happening for you. Let’s get through this situation with my mother first and then we’ll talk. Truly talk. About everything.”
Everything means our future together. Our living situation. The babies. Goddess, the babies. I gulp nervously and twist away to finish my fruit, almost getting away with not downing the bottle of water. Macon is insistent on it though as I chug the entire thing.
“Happy?” I ask, knowing that I’ll hate myself later when I’m peeing all that water out.
“Marginally.”
Savin is more than ready for the interview when he enters the kitchen an hour later. Or so he says. I can see the faint gleam of sweat on his forehead and the way he keeps shaking his head as if to keep himself awake. His scent is like pure sugar at this point, Macon telling me that having all three of us together is pushing him toward a full-blown heat. I don’t understand all the specifics of his health diagnosis but it seems to be dragging Savin across a spectrum of pleasure and pain.
I also can’t fathom how an Omega could allow other people in his space during his heat but Savin isn’t exactly a normal Omega. Macon doesn’t seem to mind as long as no one walks down the hallway. However, I’m not okay with it.
Which is why I’m currently shoved into a pair of leggings and one of the dresses that Macon had delivered, glaring at where Jace and the journalist are setting up by the couch. I’ve been wandering around in a mixture of their clothes the past few days, not even realizing I haven’t had my own. And now I’m a little uncomfortable in this silk material, not because it isn’t pretty, but because it doesn’t smell like my mates.
I deliberately pulled Savin back into the nest when they arrived and I haven’t let him go since, grumbling at their presence. He dons a patch that dims his scent, something he wears in public when he’s close to his heat to stave off any unwanted experiences. I hate that I can’t smell him though.
When we reemerge, Macon is looking at me, confused but Savin is enjoying my possessive ass. It isn’t until the journalist looks up to wave and I bare my teeth that Macon catches on. He steps in front of me, blocking my view of the living room.
“Hey, sweetheart. It’s okay.”
“It’s not okay! They’re in Savin’s space so close to his heat. How can you two be okay with this?”
Savin shrugs. “As long as they don’t take over my nest, I’m used to it. We have staff in and out of here all the time.”
“That’s…”
Macon smiles down at me as he places a hand on my shoulder, his thumb fingering Savin’s shallow bite. I do well not to moan with company but I visibly relax between them. “Ellie, it’s not about Savin or his nest, is it? It’s about having them in your space.” I don’t want to admit to that. “Why didn’t you say something? This house is just as much yours as it is ours.”
But that’s the problem, isn’t it? It’s not my house. I’ve been living here, more out of fear that the public will latch onto more lies. I’ve loved every moment inside though with Savin and Macon, even if I’m a little on edge, needing a spark of the outside in my life. This isn’t the time for this conversation “We haven’t had that talk yet on where we divide things, on what’s ours and what’s yours. I didn’t know that I could say something since Savin was okay with it.”
“I’ll ask them to leave,” Macon says, searching my expression for my true emotions.
“No. They’re already here and I want this over with.” My discomfort with them in this home isn’t about them personally but the fact that there are others in a place that I’ve deemed safe. My apartment is safe. Here is safe. Safe from a world of entertainment that I don’t understand and is currently trying to vilify me and my mate. They aren’t really the problem. With that realization, I lean into my Alpha’s chest, Savin pressing up against my back. “So, the reporter is just going to record us and then ask questions?”
“Not a reporter. I would never let one of them into the house. Jace has some connections with a few news outlets and brought someone who knows how to work a camera and ask questions.” He chuckles when my face contorts, my nose scrunching up as my gaze narrows at him. “What I meant to say is that he occasionally asks his cousin, Camila, to gather information because she has a much gentler touch than he does.”
Our Alpha guides us to the couch, greeting Jace and then his cousin—Camila. Macon wasn’t joking about the gentler touch. The Beta seems sweet with her bubbly personality and bright smile, long black hair pulled back into a tight ponytail. She radiates this kind of pure happiness with a thinly laced deviance, an odd combination. Her eyes light up when they land on me, the Beta reaching out to shake my hand while my mates sit down. I frown at the gesture and then comply, not wanting to seem rude.
“It’s an honor to meet you, Ellie.”
“Why?”