Karter hated leaving Jax and Karson behind the next morning, but he had a promise to keep to Sloan, and he’d rather get it done now than put it off until tomorrow. Then he’d have the rest of the weekend with is bondmate.

His family lived in a nice home on the south side of the province, the third they’d lived in since Karter could remember. Moving up as Father got promoted and earned more money to support them. Four bedrooms in this one, which meant that once Karter moved out, his three brothers finally each had their own rooms, instead of someone always sharing. And the house had a big backyard, so Omegin could indulge in his love of gardening. He’d needed something to keep him busy once all the boys were grown, and the yard was full of colorful plants and flowers.

He parked on the street in front of the house, because the driveway was full of other cars, which meant everyone was probably home. They were five blocks from the nearest bus stop, but his brothers rarely used it.

Eron and Sloan were both in the living room playing a video game. Eron waved, while Sloan tossed him a nervous smile. Karter said hello, then tracked down Omegin in the kitchen. Argo Jenks was rolling out some sort of dough, so Karter kissed his cheek and avoided a floury hug.

“Something’s changed since I last saw you,” Omegin said with a cheeky grin. “You smell different, too.”

Karter hadn’t wanted to bring this up until he’d talked to Father about Sloan, and he should have remembered his scent had changed since bonding with Jax. But now that the topic had been raised, he couldn’t help puffing a bit with pride. “I met my omega.”

Omegin squealed and dropped his rolling pin to give him that hug anyway. “That’s amazing news! You’re the perfect age to finally mate. Oh my goddess, tell me all about him.”

“I’d rather tell you and Father together.”

“He’s in the garage with Dain. Go get him so I can find out everything there is to know about your omega.”

Omegin was so excited that Karter couldn’t help but jump to it. He went through the kitchen’s side door to the attached garage, where Father and Dain were examining the engine of an old car. One of Father’s hobbies was fixing up what he considered ‘classic’ cars and re-selling them. Trouble was, he only managed to fix one every couple of years. Now that he was retired, though, he kept saying he’d be able to fix them faster.

“Hey, dude,” Dain said.

Father straightened, then smiled. “Good to see you, Karter.”

“Sir,” Karter replied. “Got a new rust bucket to play with, I see.”

“We’ll get her running sooner or later. Always do.”

“It’s that old Jenks tenacity.”

Father nodded as he wiped his hands on a grease rag. “That it is. It’s what makes us good constables. What brings you by so early?”

“I had some good news to share, and I wanted to tell you and Omegin together.” Karter’s heart thumped nervously. “I met my omega.”

“Dude, really?” Dain asked. “Cool.”

“Yes, really,” Karter replied. To Father, he asked, “Come inside for a few minutes?”

“Of course,” Father replied. He clapped Karter on the shoulder, hard. “You finally met him. Bondmate?”

“Absolutely.”

They returned to the kitchen with Dain in tow, and Karter wasn’t completely surprised to see his other brothers there, too. Karter hadn’t expected to tell his entire family at once, but why not? He wasn’t ashamed of Jax, or of Jax’s past.

“Your omega, seriously?” Sloan asked. “Is that why you got me off the phone so fast yesterday?”

“Yes,” Karter replied. “I was with him. We spent the afternoon touring the Sansbury Botanical Gardens. He loved it.”

“It is a magical place,” Omegin said. “So tell us everything. Name first.”

“Jax Orris. I’ve never met anyone like him.” His heart squeezed with joy. “His family is from Buckman Province, but he’s been in Sansbury for about four years. He’s a wonderful caregiver and so handsome.” He swallowed hard and met Father’s eyes. “He’s also a widowed omegin with a six-week-old son.”

Those steely eyes narrowed. “He’s a what?”

“Six weeks?” Omegin echoed. “Goddess, that’s young. What happened to his sire?”

“Never mind that,” Father snapped. “What do you mean, your bondmate is a widowed omegin with a child?”

“Exactly what I said.” Karter was proud of his calm tone of voice in the face of his father’s obvious disapproval. “Jax is my bondmate. We met two days ago, and he’s the strongest, most incredible person I’ve ever met. And he named his baby after me. Karson. They’re mine, Father, I won’t give them up.”

“No one is asking you to,” Omegin said. “Are we, Lem?”

“We’re gathering information,” Father replied, his cold gaze never wavering from Karter’s. Karter felt like he’d been caught with his hand in the sweets jar, but he wasn’t backing down. “But your omegin asks a very good question. What happened to the baby’s sire? Assuming, of course, this omega had a previous alpha?”

Karter bristled at the intimation. “Yes, he was previously mated. His former alpha died in a tragic work accident before Jax even knew he was pregnant.”

“The poor thing,” Omegin said. “He must have been devastated to be widowed so young.”

“Actually, he’s twenty-five. He and his late alpha had trouble conceiving. Karson was a bit of a surprise.”

Father scoffed. “You want to mate a practically infertile omegin with an infant?”

“Yes.” Karter struggled not to bristle. “And Jax doesn’t know who was at fault for the infertility. Apparently, Eroch refused to get tested. And even if it is Jax, I don’t care. We have a son, and if Karson is the only child the goddess blesses us with, he’s enough.”

“The Jenks line cannot be carried by another sire’s child.”

“He’ll carry our name, Father. He already has mine.”

“But not our bloodline.”

“So what?” Karter modulated his tone, well-aware of how close he was to yelling at his own sire. “It’s DNA. Isn’t it more important to pass along love, charity, and respect? To teach a child how to be compassionate and contribute to society?” He couldn’t help thinking of Senior Iverson and that some lines deserved to die off before they infected the rest of the world. He did not, however, share that with his fuming father.

“As the alpha heir, you have a duty to this family,” Father snarled, his face going red. His other three sons had retreated to the opposite side of the kitchen from their father’s anger, but Omegin stood close by Father’s shoulder, watching them both with open distress.

“I have a duty to my bondmate. He’s already been through hell this past year, and I will not abandon him. Not even for you.”

Father rarely struck his children, but when he did, they felt it to their bones, and as Karter’s head snapped to the side, pain flared in his left cheekbone. The kitchen went completely silent. Karter’s rage fought with his inner child’s instincts to cower before his angry sire, and his own rage won. He slowly turned his head back, ignoring the throbbing in his face and the horror in Omegin’s eyes. His shocked siblings in the background.

He met Father’s blazing eyes. “I didn’t come over to fight with you. But I’ve made my decision. I gave Jax my word, and I won’t take it back.”

Father didn’t react for a long time, and Karter didn’t back down or even blink. Omegin put his hand on Father’s shoulder. The touch jumpstarted the man, because Father turned and stormed back into the garage. The door slammed shut and rattled glasses in the cabinets. Dain yelped.

“I’m sorry,” Karter said.

“You stood up for your omega,” Omegin said with awe on his voice. “I’m so proud of you. Sloan, get your brother an ice pack before that bruises.”

Sloan bolted into action, while his other brothers hung out by the windows. The ice made his cheek throb, but the last thing Karter needed was to show up at Tarek’s house later with a black eye. “I’m so sorry, Sloan, I didn’t mean to screw this up,” Karter said. “I didn’t want to mention Jax yet, but Omegin knew.”

“You didn’t want to tell us because of your father’s reaction?” Omegin asked.

“No, I wanted to try and speak to Father on Sloan’s behalf about university. I think he should be allowed to go, but now there’s no chance Father will listen to me. He’s furious.”

“Your father is a passionate man, but he’s also reasonable. He’ll calm down and realize you’re right. You gave this Jax your word, and once he lets go of his anger, he’ll understand that you’re right to stand by him. He’s your omega, Karter. Your bonded omega.”

“Alpha and omega stuff is so weird,” Eron said, then left the kitchen.

Omegin chuckled. “It can be weird, but when we meet our bondmate, we know.”

“It’s cool you found yours,” Sloan said. “Guess you won’t be an old, unmated alpha after all.”

“Brat.” Karter swiped lightly at Sloan’s head.

“I’m never going to university, am I? The acceptance deadline for the fall semester is in a month.”

“I’ll try talking to your father,” Omegin said. “Hundreds of betas attend university every year, there’s no good reason you can’t, too.”

Sloan whooped and flung his arms around Omegin’s shoulders. “Thank you! You’re the best.”

“I want my boys happy. If university makes you happy, and if Jax makes your brother happy, then that makes me happy.” He squeezed Sloan tight, then let go.

Dain cleared his throat and joined their group. “So is now a good time to mention I’m seeing someone?”

“What?” Karter poked him in the shoulder. “Details. Now.”

“He’s a barista at that coffee shop I like down on Woodrow Avenue.” Dain chattered on proudly, while Omegin put on a fresh pot of coffee.

Karter listened to his brother while his ice pack slowly warmed, and for a little while, pretended everything was completely normal.

* * *

Jax had only known Braun and Kell for two days, but he absolutely adored the omega brothers. While Karter visited his family, Jax and Dex went over to Braun and Tarek’s house for brunch. Kell and Ronin were there, too, and of course little Branson.

Tarek cooked up a broccoli and cheddar quiche, homemade biscuits, and a plate of sausage links, and Jax ate his fill, especially the greasy sausage. It sat a bit heavily in his stomach, but he had no regrets, and he washed it down with coffee loaded with cream and sugar. The only person who didn’t pack it away was Braun; he seemed a bit pale, but Jax didn’t want to draw attention to him by slipping a note at the table. And Tarek seemed aware, watching his mate with a careful eye.

Jax well-remembered the nausea and fatigue that had plagued him the first few weeks after his last heat. Was Braun pregnant? Someone had mentioned the pair had recently mated.

The group of friends kept up light conversation, with Branson adding the occasional squeal of laughter from the blanket he was laying on. Jax had Karson in his sling, still too nervous to be far from his son, or to let anyone besides Karter hold him. He’d also brought the signal language booklet and hoped to teach his new friends a few of the simple words so Jax didn’t have to write every single thing down.

Near the end of the meal, Karson got fussy so Jax silently excused himself to attend to the diaper change. He put a mat down on the other side of the couch, so he didn’t accidentally flash Karson’s birthmark. Even though he trusted these people, he couldn’t make himself reveal Karson’s gender, and so far, the two alphas in the room didn’t seem to have scented him.

Maybe it was a stupid thing to hide, but he needed something for himself, while the rest of his life was on display. He needed this one small secret.

Karson, of course, decided to pee the moment the diaper was off, catching Jax square in the forehead. He instinctively tried to curse, but only managed a weird rasp and redirected the rest of the stream with the palm of his hand, making a mess of the baby and the mat.

“Oh, no.” Kell approached with a kitchen towel in his hand. “I’ve had that happen. Here.” He held the towel out for Jax.

Jax wiped his face, then draped the towel over Karson’s naked bottom half.

“I think the little man needs a bath and a new onesie,” Kell said.

Jax signaled his agreement, and Kell seemed to understand the hand gesture. Kell grabbed the diaper bag, while Jax collected his pee-covered son, and they went into the bathroom together. He didn’t know how to tell Kell he didn’t want help, so Jax resigned himself to Kell’s assistance. Together, they got Karson out of the soiled onesie and washed him off in the sink. Kell was so natural with him and made no remark if he spotted the omega birthmark, which helped Jax relax.

Kell was an omegin himself, and a caregiver. Jax trusted him with Karson. Enough to allow Kell to change Karson into a fresh diaper and onesie, while Jax washed his face of urine. Never the most pleasant thing, but at least he didn’t have to live with the smell like he had while living as a vagrant. Once everyone was clean and dry, they returned to the main room.

Tarek and Braun were cleaning up the table, while the others had retired to the living room. Dex was reading the signal language booklet, and he looked up when Jax and Kell joined them. Ronin had Branson on his lap.

“Have you and Karter been practicing?” Dex asked.

Jax nod-blinked, then used the actual hand signal.

“That’s awesome. Can you teach me?”

“I’d like to learn, too,” Kell said.

After everyone else in the house agreed, the rest of their morning and early afternoon turned into signal language practice. Braun and Ronin picked it up the fastest, and Dex promised to stop by the nearest province library branch and see if they had any instructional videos he could borrow. Jax’s throat tightened with emotion, so overwhelmed by the generous spirit of his new friends.

Thankfully, Karson screamed for a bottle, so Jax had time to collect himself by fixing it, and then settling at the kitchen table to feed him. Kell joined him a moment later, his back to the others in the living room who all were practicing signal language.

“You protect your son like the fiercest alpha,” Kell whispered. “I understand the impulse. When Branson was ten days old, my late mate Krause secretly adopted him out, and I was devastated.”

Jax startled, nearly upsetting the bottle. He gaped at Kell, horrified at the idea of a baby being ripped from his omegin’s arms. He couldn’t sign with his hands full of Karson, so he mouthed, “Why?”

“Because Branson is beta, not the alpha heir Krause wanted. But by a twist of fate last month, Branson was found. Those first few weeks, I didn’t want to let him out of my sight, so I understand. But you can trust us, Jax, I promise. No one here is going to take Karson away from you. We’re here to fight for you, not against you.”

More emotion burned in his eyes, and Jax carefully mouthed, “I know. Thank you.”

Karter arrived a few minutes later. He said polite greetings to the others, but his gaze zeroed in on Jax. The instant their eyes met, a thrill shot through Jax. His alpha had come for him. Karter walked directly to Jax and leaned down to kiss both his mouth and Karson’s forehead. A bright red mark covered Karter’s left cheek. Jax frowned and gestured at it with his head.

“It’s nothing,” Karter said. “We can talk about it later.”

Jax blew a raspberry, not happy about waiting, but he understood it was private. And probably had to do with Karter’s father, which worried Jax. Had they gotten into an altercation? Karter had gone over to talk to his father about Sloan, not Jax, but what if he’d come up anyway?

If Karter’s sire had disapproved so strongly that he’d struck Karter, what did that mean for Karter’s choice of taking Jax as his mate? Would he change his mind to please his father? Would he take back his promises to protect Jax and Karson?

I can’t let that happen.

“We’re all learning signal language,” Kell said. “Jax has been teaching us for hours.”

“Really? That’s awesome.”

“We all want to be able to communicate with him more easily. Plus, we omegas have to stick together.”

Jax grinned at Kell, then nodded. Karson finished the bottle, and Karter dutifully took it to the sink to wash, while Jax burped his baby.

Our baby. Karter wants us. Karson is ours.

He hoped Karter still wanted them. Maybe he needed proof that Jax was accepting Karter’s help and that of his friends. That he appreciated it and wasn’t taking it for granted. Surrounded by people intent on proving they were his allies, Jax took a calculated risk. He offered Karson to Kell.

“Really?” Kell’s entire face lit up. “Goddess, I didn’t get to hold Branson at this age. Thank you.” He carefully accepted Karson into his arms, his smile so bright and genuine that it made Jax grin, too.

Jax pulled some scrap from his pocket and passed Kell a note. “I know I’m overprotective. Thank you for understanding. I’d die for Karson.”

“I’d die for Branson,” Kell replied. “Without hesitation. And that’s not just the instinct of an omegin. It’s the instinct of any loving parent.”

“They don’t have to be biologically ours for us to love them,” Ronin said as he came up to stand behind Kell, Branson balanced on his hip. The big man looked perfectly at ease holding the small child, and he looked down at Kell with so much love in his eyes that Jax couldn’t stop a pang of jealousy.

Will Karter ever look at me like that?

Not likely, not if his father was the one who put that red mark on Karter’s cheek. Did they really have a chance at being mates?

Kell made faces and goo-goo noises at Karson, and the infant reacted with face scrunches and bubbles. The pair was adorable, but Jax was more than happy to take Karson back when Kell said he had to use the bathroom. Karter packed the clean bottle into the diaper bag, then returned to stand by Jax’s chair. His fresh spring scent wrapped around Jax, relaxing some of his anxiety from being separated from his bondmate, despite being surrounded by allies.

Jax’s lower belly tightened, an instinctive reaction to his alpha’s scent and pheromones, and he leaned back in his chair to rest his head against Karter’s stomach. Karter combed his fingers through Jax’s long hair in a soothing pattern that made Jax want to purr in contentment. His skin prickled with warmth, and he could have easily fallen asleep from the gentle massage if Karson hadn’t picked that moment to vomit up half his bottle.

“First you get peed on, then you get spit up on,” Ronin said with a soft chuckle. “It’s not been your day.”

“You got peed on, too?” Karter asked, already reaching for the nearest dish towel.

Jax sighed, signaled “yes,” then traded Karson for the towel so he could clean himself up.

Oh, the joys of parenting.