And, when they did, the first thing I noticed washer.
Violet sat cross-legged on a blanket in the middle of the yard, a pile of wildflowers next to her hip. Her dress clung to her in the heat and her hair was pinned back and out of her face.
Skye sat beside her, his bump resting against his thighs, fingers moving in slow, careful loops as he worked on some kind of finger-knit blanket. His dark eyeliner was a little smudged, and he looked miserable in the heat. Which wasto be expected, because I couldn’t remember the last time he willingly went outside. Someone had tucked a bright yellow flower behind his ear, and he didn’t dare move it.
Neither one of them acknowledged me at first, which was just fine. Something in my heart yearned to just watch them for a moment. Unfortunately for me, my omegas weren’t alone.
“Quit looking at my sister,” the unwanted alpha growled.
My head turned toward the grating sound to see Reed perched on a patio chair, sketchbook in his lap, colored pencils and oil pastels to his side.
Reed didn’t even bother to glance up at me. He just kept working on whatever sketch had his attention.
“I’mnotlooking at your sister,” I said evenly, despite the fact I wanted to hit him. “I’m looking atmyomega.”
He snorted out a laugh.
“What?” I snarled, clutching the tray so tightly the cups rattled against the wood.
“Yeah, he’s yours–” Reed nodded toward Skye. “Violet’s not.”
I took a slow breath, trying to keep my temper in check. But I didn’t like the way Reed said her name.
“She’s in my house,” I said carefully. “Eating my food. Sleeping in my bed. Pregnant with my kid. I take care of her. So, yeah. She’s mine.”
Reed’s pencil paused. He looked up then, and for the first time, his eyes really met mine. The expression he gave me was nearly identical to the one Violet made when she was irritated.
“She was my omegafirst, and I’m not letting another fuck ass alpha take her from me,” he warned.
My face pinched. “Look, I’m glad you love your little–”
“She’s older than me,” Reed interjected. “By like fifteen minutes. You’d know that if you cared about her.”
“You wanna say that again?” I challenged.
Reed glared head-on, the pencil in his fingers creaked, and I wondered how close he was to snapping it. If he did snap it, could I use that as a reason to hit him? Did I evenneeda reason to hit him?
“She’s not a piece of property,” Reed said calmly, “notyours.Notmine. But if you think for one second I’m gonna let her get marked by some mobbed-up alpha who wants herjustbecause she’s soft and sweet and broken–”
I was in front of him in two strides, tray still in my hands because I was a model of self restraint. “Say another word about her being broken, and I swear—”
“Swear what?” he scoffed. “You hit me, she’s gonna take my side like that–” Reed snapped his fingers. “I already told you, I’m not letting another alpha take my sister away from me just to hurt her.”
There was the slightest hint of pain in his voice, and all the anger in his system left him deflated, and I paused.
I’d already figured Violet’s background was complicated, thanks to all the miscarriages and how she carried herself, but Reed spoke like a man who’d already lost her once, and whatever happened to her happened on his watch.
So, what the hell actually happened?
I didn’t have an answer, but Reed might.
“You stay there,” I ordered. “I’m going to give them lunch, and then you and I need to talk.”
Reed rolled his eyes and went back to sketching, and I carried the tray of goodies to my omegas.
Skye was the first to notice, and immediately, his face lit up.
“Oh thank God,” he groaned.