Page 27 of Omega's Flight

Good point. "Offer them sanctuary." If they came to Mercy Hills, especially from a poorer pack, they wouldn't rock the boat if they knew it would mean they'd have to go back.

"Make them Mercy Hills?" Bax's brows drew down as if he was thinking and uncertain of what the results would be. "I don't know. I can talk to Quin and Holland, but I think they're still pretty nervous about it. It's one thing to open our doors to omegas who aren't happy where they are, another to open them to people who have no reason to throw their support behind us and who might end up stirring up trouble." He frowned and tapped his fingers on the countertop. "Let me think about it a little longer. But thanks." Bax turned to lean one hip against the countertop. "We should corral the pups and get them off to the park, then check in on Raleigh."

"You haven't had your coffee," Abel objected. "And I don't want you stressing yourself. You've got enough on your shoulders with that motley crew of hooligans we're related to."

"You mean Cas and Kaden?" Bax lowered his eyelids and peered up at his mate from beneath them.

"And others," Abel replied agreeably and handed him the coffee. "Drink up and then we'll all go down to check on him together."

C H A P T E R 2 0

I woke from my nap feeling like a new man. Likely because it was the first one I'd had since Pip was born, but I didn't care. Even that ominous pain in my belly had faded, though I could still feel it there waiting, and I let myself hope that it was just the stress and uncomfortable traveling that was the root of how long it had lasted.

So even when my stomach rebelled and I had to run to the bathroom, I was less concerned. Vomiting without pain was a normal part of some pregnancies and the ache beginning to grow in my back was likely just from the effort it took.

While Henry slept on, I wandered around the house again, just touching things as if I was trying to convince myself they were real. I knew they were, but it felt strange to know that I could put one of the movies on the shelf on the TV and watch it without worrying that Degan would come home and catch me. He never did like to see me—I wouldn't say enjoying myself, but he had definite ideas about what a good omega was. Ideas I'd bought into myself, and for the first years of our mating I'd driven myself to exhaustion to keep a clean home and squeeze every bit of benefit out of my housekeeping money that I could.

I'd read to our pups and taught them to write their names before they ever went to school, and made sure that, no matter what, they all had one nice outfit to be worn in company. But it had never been enough, and now, here, wandering through this house that I tentatively called mine, I wondered if I could have ever done enough, been enough. Maybe just being omega meant you were bound to fail.

I banged my head against the wall in frustration a couple of times, but carefully so I wouldn't bruise. This line of thought was pointless—I'd done what I'd done to give my pups a better chance. If I got one too, then that was extra. Fat on the meat, as my grandmother used to say. If an omega could come to Mercy Hills and be seen differently and treated differently, maybe the fault didn't lie in the omega, but in the packs that refused to really look at them.

Lysoonka, I was turning into a philosopher. Wouldn't Degan have a field day with that?

Stop it, you idiot.

Still his words. I sighed and wandered into the kitchen, opening and closing cupboards, exploring what I'd have to work with. The refrigerator was larger than what I'd had at home and it made a funny ringing noise when it came on, but everything inside was cold and it seemed to have no other difficulties. I had soap and towels and rags for wiping up spills, a broom and a bucket, and a mop, which I hadn't had back in Jackson-Jellystone. Too expensive, especially when I could wash the floors with a rag and bucket.

Okay, that hadn't been just Degan. It had been me too, trying to save some money out of the household budget. So when the old mop had finally soaked up its last puddle, I'd never replaced it, preferring to use the money for other things.

But I had one here and I touched the handle thoughtfully. For some reason, this, more than anything else, highlighted how different Mercy Hills was. That they had a mop available for a sudden arrival, that they just brought it and left it with me. It was a different mindset from the one I was used to.

But it was one I was certain I was going to like better.

Someone knocked on the door. "Hello?" Bax called, his voice low, as if he was worried I might be asleep.

"In the kitchen," I called back. I shoved the mop back into the closet and walked out to meet Bax in the living room. "I did sleep for a while, thank you."

"Good." He looked pleased. "Have you decided what you want to do tonight?"

"I thought I'd come to the fire," I told him. "If it's not too much trouble. I'd like to at least see where the pups will be going."

"Of course," Bax said in a surprised tone. "We usually swing by the puppy area and drop them off before we go to the adult activities."

"I just have to get Henry."

"Is he still asleep?"

I nodded. "They've all been sick. I figured he needed the rest but I should get him up, or he won't sleep at all tonight."

"Oh, I think we can tire him out."

I had a thought. “I have something for you.” I held up a hand and ran off to my bedroom to rummage in my bag until I found the picture I’d sketched of Bax. “Here, I wanted you to have this.” I handed him the now slightly-crumpled piece of paper and held my breath as he unrolled it. “I was waiting for the laundry one morning and felt like drawing.”

Bax’s jaw dropped and he took the picture over to the window to stare at it in the light. “Raleigh, this is gorgeous. You were always good, but I didn’t realize how good.”

“So, you like it?” I asked, suddenly shy.

“I’m going to get it framed,” he said, then carefully rolled it back up again before coming to hug me. “Thank you so very, very much.”