Page 66 of His Bonded Omega Mate
It felt like the world stopped. My former mate. A beta that was now an omega was pregnant. I couldn’t even imagine how he was feeling. Over the last few days, I’d gotten the impression he didn’t enjoy being an omega.
Still, this changed everything. What if he wasn’t the only one that could change? What had caused it? That had lingered in my mind since the morning they both woke as different designations. Was this because of me and Hiroshi? Was The Luna punishing them, turning them into something they hated for playing with fated bonds?
Roan? Tate’s scent has changed. They are just about to do the scan. Asher says you can come closer. He can handle it.Hiroshi beckoned me closer.
I moved inside the door, using my paw to open it like Hiroshi had. Such a useful feature, I distantly thought, everything feeling disconnected from reality. I followed the scent of my mate down the hallway and waited outside a room, the open door allowing me a glimpse inside.
Tate was stretched out on a bed in a gown open to his groin, a blanket over his lap. He looked pale and worried. Asher stood by his side calmly, just holding his hand as if he was the most precious thing in the world.
Hiroshi moved further into the room and asked Asher if he could touch Tate before laying a hand on his shoulder. I watched Hiroshi reach up to kiss Asher’s cheek. “I’ve missed you, my friend.”
Asher wrapped his other arm around Hiroshi. “I’ve missed you, too.”
“Are you feeling okay?” Hiroshi asked Tate.
Tate didn’t answer, panic lining his features. The poor omega looked terrified. My alpha instinct surged, making me take a step closer. A step too close for Asher to bear.
A snarl ripped through the air. I retreated a step. “Stay there, please, Roan,” Asher begged. The fear in his voice stalling me more than his words could. He hated this as much as I did.
I had talked about it to Hiroshi, how losing my other mates had shredded my heart. That month with them had been difficult, yet I’d held onto hope that we could make it work. That because the bond had worked, then we were meant to be.
Part of it was the failure. A feeling that I wasn’t used to feeling since I’d made my new home in Sweetwater.
The rest was my bonds with them. I missed the easy affection with Tate. The banter with Asher. I missed their friendships, the closeness that we had tried building.
I missed not having to be in charge all the time. Asher controlled a lot of our interactions, his personality much more in line with a natural alpha than my own. Ceding control to him was easy.
Things at home were strained without Asher. Hiroshi was Tate’s Sunshine, keeping their spirits up, but I knew he felt a lot of guilt over not missing Asher as he should.
Why hadn’t they been more open before they’d dragged me into this? Maybe it would have saved us a lot of pain.
I watched from the edge of the room as Tate was scanned.
“There it is. That’s your baby. Just one, luckily,” James said with a cheerful smile. I caught the pinch of his mouth, causing a spike of anxiety to rush through the bond, before Hiroshi relaxed. He’d clearly seen the same thing as me. “Now, we will have to do a lot of tests on you. I’m really sorry Tate. You must be sick of being poked and prodded by now. We just need to know what caused this.”
“Why, though?”
It was Aldrin that answered. “To see if we can replicate it.” He was frowning.
“But why?” Tate was getting worked up. Hiroshi’s delight slipped from his face, a trickle of fear working through him and over the bond. Asher became tense. He looked a second away from snapping.
Almost without thinking, my wolf prepared to step in, to be a barrier between Asher and the omegas.
“I don’t think you understand what this means for betas everywhere.” Aldrin spoke gently, clearly seeing Tate on the verge of a breakdown. “So many betas would love to be in your position right now.”
“I wish it was literally any other beta than me.” Tears slid down Tate’s cheeks. “I don’t want this.”
Asher tensed, and I watched his claws break free in a partial shift. He seemed to fight for control of his lion before my eyes.
With him distracted, I slunk closer, nosing Hiroshi’s thigh to get him to move. He gave up his hold on Tate’s hand and moved behind me, fingers in my fur.
“Do you —“ Asher swallowed, then tried to speak again. “Does this mean you don’t want the baby?”
There was a protracted silence. I backed up, pushing Hiroshi out of the room, sensing the coming explosion.
Protect Tate. I sent down the pack bond to Aldrin.
He was already shifting, his gigantic brown bear breaking loose of his clothes as Tate said the words I feared he would.
