Page 57 of For What It's Worth
Enzo continued wiping the tears as soon as they fell, like he couldn’t handle the sight of them.
“Koda bear? Are you crying?” Aidan’s voice added to the fray, the sharp inhale his first response when I looked over at him through blurry eyes. “Why the hell is our beta crying?”
“We don’t know,” Enzo growled out, his hands rapidly, but gently, touching every part of my body. “Are you sure she isn’t injured?”
“I think she’s upset Aidan was on the phone,” Jen said slowly, like he was waiting for confirmation.
“Is that true, Koda bear?” The pain in Aidan’s voice was enough to make me want to deny the words except they were true. Aidan took Enzo’s place right in front of me, the despair in his scent breaking my heart for a whole new reason. “I was thinking you might be on the phone with someone who could please you better.”
I barely got the words out. I was an equal mix of worried he might confirm my fears and guilt for blaming Aidan for something he might not have done.
“Please me?”
“You know. Sexually.”
I didn’t know what I expected. Laughter that the idea was ridiculous, maybe? Nope. I got anger. Pure unfiltered alpha anger pouring off Aidan forcing me to submit so quickly I was surprised he wasn’t the lead alpha in this pack. If Jen had more dominance than Aidan, I was going to be so screwed—and not in the good way. Aidan picked me up, setting me back down on top of the kitchen island, momentarily separating us from the other males. It was obvious I’d overreacted to a fake scenario I’d created, but my hormones were crazy right now.
Really, it was their fault for affecting my hormones so aggressively.
“Let’s iron out these creases and then donate the shirt, Koda bear.” I looked down at the shirt Jen put me in, wondering what the hell Aidan was talking about, before realizing he was talking about a metaphorical shirt. “You are the only omega for me, Koda. You are the only beta for me. However you define yourself, you can add ‘Aidan’s mate’ to your list. There’s not a body I would go to for pleasure besides yours. Understand me?”
“Yes, alpha.”
“We might not have a bond right now, but we will. And that doesn’t mean there isn’t some form of relationship between us, because there is. The four of us are in a relationship, a pack. Jenson is simply the first four-leafed clover—lucky. But we will get there, Koda bear, don’t you worry.”
“All of us will get there,” Enzo said in agreement.
Jen came to my side, kissing his claiming mark. My bonded alpha’s feelings on the matter were plain to see when he wasn’t glaring at Aidan for having moved me away from him.
“Okay,” I agreed, the tears stopping as quickly as turning off the faucet.
“Now get back to cooking, Enzo. Our mate is starving.” Aidan pulled back his dominance and gave me a kiss on the cheek that had my heart beating louder than a woodpecker on a metal chimney. “Now, about the phone call. I spoke with my mother, and she intends to come visit us.”
Enzo chuckled slightly, but with his back turned to Aidan, he missed the glare shot in his direction.
“That should be fun,” Jen muttered.
“Koda bear, this means you have a decision to make,” Aidan said. He and Jen took a seat on the bar stools, giving Enzo space, so I scooted farther back on the island toward the two alphas. The new space sent goose bumps down my arms and legs from the cold temperature, even with the new clothing. Of course, Jen’s eyes didn’t notice the raised hairs on my body but seemed to focus directly on the peaked nipples showing through the thin t-shirt.
“About what?” I asked.
Aidan rubbed a hand across the back of his neck before placing it over mine, playing with each individual finger. “Well, my mother has made her displeasure known about the fact the female I am going to bond is a beta.”
Ah, the problem was starting to become clearer.
Whatever showed on my face had Aidan wincing, but he didn’t let go of my fingers, either needing the connection, or realizing I did. “I don’t know how she’ll react around you, but I don’t think it’s going to be welcoming. And if you do decide you want to tell her about your … omega potential, then there’s a chance the secret won’t remain a secret.”
“How does she know about me?”
Aidan finally looked away from me to glance at Jenson. “It seems that RA has already contacted Chancellor Kelly. I’d bet you have a few missed calls and emails from him already.”
“Chancellor Kelly told your mom?” I asked.
“Aidan’s family owns Braker Academy,” Jenson said, putting the information out in the open like it wasn’t the equivalent to a two-headed giraffe—you want it to be cool, but it was actually terrifying.
“Your family, what, has stock in the academy?” I asked Aidan.
“No. Stock-style ownership would only work with a university that’s owned by a private corporation. It would have to pay dividends to stockholders and really be beholden to those stockholders. The Academy is private which means my family very much owns it.”