“She’s so precious,” Avery cooed, staring down at his niece while Jade played with her blocks in the play pen across the room. They’d rented out a hotel an hour away from the Gray Hollow Pack for the first press conference Charles would be attending since leaving London. Jaspar and Tyr Amari were in attendance to take questions about the Alliance’s involvement in the Futurus Initiative’s new program to further awareness and research that would help the growing population of sigma wolves.

Now that the news was out about the once-presumed Alpha at the head of Futurus and his unconventional family, sigmas were all anyone was talking about in the shifter world. For the most part, the press was good, but there were still plenty of detractors who viewed it as a distraction from the “real issue” of the dwindling population. Charles knew there would always be naysayers, but the progress they had already made in advancing medical research that would help to both identify sigmas from an earlier age and connect them with the resources they needed to thrive kept him going.

So did Myron. While Charles had always admired his mate’s ability to come through at the last minute, Myron had become a different person over the last year. He worked tirelessly to care for their pack, and if it hadn’t been for his protection and his support, Charles knew he never even would have gotten the new laboratory up and running. He had once feared that Myron’s enthusiasm would wane over time, but every day, he seemed to grow more passionate about their joint mission and maintaining the peaceful world they had created in Gray Hollow.

Despite its dreary name, the pack had become every bit as much of a sanctuary as the Emerald Pack had once been for Charles. He took pride in knowing that they were now home to more than a hundred once-displaced sigmas who felt the very same way about Gray Hollow.

That day, Charles would take the stage alongside his mate to announce the progress they had made as well as all the plans for the future. For years, his work had been his life and his family. Now, it was only one part of a world that was more full of love and acceptance than he ever could have imagined, but he had accomplished more in the past year than he had all throughout his career.

“Are you nervous?” Avery asked, grinning.

“A bit. You know me, I’ve never gotten over my hatred of public speaking,” Charles admitted.

“Good thing you’ve got a smooth talker at your side,” the omega teased.

Charles blushed. Over the last few months, he and Myron had begun to repair their relationship. To Charles’ relief, the other sigma had made no attempt to jump in feet first. Since Avery was along for the conference, both as a part-time representative of Futurus and a babysitter, they had plans to go out that evening for their first official date since becoming parents.

Their first official date ever, Charles realized.

Myron entered the room, grinning like he had no qualms about stepping out in front of a room full of hundreds of hungry journalists at some point in the next ten minutes. He whistled low, making now secret of the fact that he was checking out his mate. “Look at you.”

Charles rolled his eyes, but Myron’s overt approval was not unappreciated. Myron had spent the better part of a year showing Charles that he and their family were his number-one priority. His constant devotion had finally broken through the walls around Charles’ heart and while it still required a leap of faith to trust that he would always stay that way, Charles had finally come to accept that he would have to start trusting Myron at some point if they were going to build something that lasted.

“I’m ready if you are.”

“Just let me get a good luck kiss first,” Myron said, leaning down to peck his daughter’s forehead. She giggled hysterically, reaching for his face.

Charles took Myron’s outstretched hand and as their fingers entwined, he felt calm. It had to be their bond, because he had never been able to go out on stage without feeling like he was having a heart attack.

The cameras flashed as the couple walked out onstage. Charles had never enjoyed the celebrity that came with his job, and there was more of it now than ever, but he felt it a bit easier to manage now that their daily life was so sheltered and removed from all the chaos. London was a lovely city to visit, but he wouldn’t have traded his quiet life in Gray Hollow for his city days.

“Good evening, and thank you all for coming,” Charles began. Myron kept his hand around Charles’ from behind the podium, looking calmly out into the crowd like he’d been made for the job. “As I’m sure you’ve heard by now, we have some very exciting changes to announce about the future of the company. That includes our partnership with the Alliance.”

Jaspar and Tyr were in the front row, smiling pleasantly as the conference began. At one point, Charles would have considered them political enemies rather than allies, but it was just one of the many ways in which his life had changed. It was all for the better.

“Project Renaissance will go on as planned, but I am proud and admittedly relieved to announce that from this point on, it will be headed by the brilliant Dr. Basra.” That announcement stirred a good deal of response. Once the room had quieted, Charles explained, “With my work overseeing the Sigma Research Division, my time has become unsustainably divided. Dr. Basra has been a great asset to the Alliance for the last five years, and I know that he will be able to take my original vision for this project and do it justice.”

Charles was also relieved that when Tyr got around telling his father, Angel, about his plans to fulfill his father’s message from the other side, he would have nothing to do with it.

“Of course, my stepping into a slightly different role within Futurus will cause some changes, but in time, I believe the company will benefit from it,” Charles continued. “Over the last several years, we have grown from a species in danger of extinction to one that is prepared to embrace the bright possibilities offered to us not only by advancement in technology but by the miracles nature provides us.” He squeezed Myron’s hand a little tighter, smiling as it was his mate’s turn to take over.

“And that begins with another important announcement,” Myron said, his tone somber even though Charles could tell he was going to eat up the disruption his words were about to cause. He had changed drastically during their time together, but he still delighted in starting shit. “Since this marks the first year where our replacement rates have exceeded our death rates, Futurus will begin dissolving its partnerships with any pack system that makes registration a requirement for its members.”

The uproar was immediate, and Charles would have been tempted to duck behind those curtains if Myron wasn’t clearly enjoying himself so much. Tyr was also grinning from the front row, proving that Charles’ mate wasn’t the only one who enjoyed chaos.

It hadn’t been easy to convince the board of the decision, but Myron had a silver tongue and had finally managed to persuade them on the grounds that the good PR would probably yield even more participation in the matchmaking program than before. Besides, with the emergence of the sigma population, there was more hope for the continuation of their species than there ever had been. Even if it meant changing their communal idea of what it meant to be a shifter.

Charles wasn’t sure he even truly counted as a shifter to begin with, since he’d yet to be able to take his wolf form. Despite knowing there was a strong possibility that he never would, he still felt more like he belonged in their world than he ever had.

Myron took a few questions from the press and Charles could feel him growing impatient. Wanting to leave on a high note, he announced, “I’d like to hand over the floor to our verum pair, Jaspar and Tyr Amari, who can tell you all more about the immediate changes that will be taking place in Project Renaissance. Please give them a warm welcome.”

As Tyr and Jaspar took the stage, the omega stopped to embrace Charles and smiled proudly at him. “We knew you could do it,” he whispered.

“I couldn’t have done anything without your help,” Charles admitted, grinning from ear to ear. It was a rare occasion that a press conference went well enough that he had reason to smile at all, but lately, he couldn’t stop. “And I’m ready to go back to doing what I love most and leaving you and your mate to deal with the headache that is Project Renaissance. Good luck.”

Tyr laughed, squeezing his hand before he went to take the stage with Jaspar. Charles listened from backstage as the verum pair handled the press like the professionals they were. He turned around only to find that Myron was watching him.

“You were good out there. Never would have known you were nervous, if I couldn’t feel it.”

Charles’ face warmed. Sometimes he wondered just how much Myron could sense. He certainly had to know that Charles’ efforts to hold his heart back from his mate were only marginally effective. He couldn’t so much as look at Myron without his head swimming. “I’m just glad this is the last one for a while. I won’t miss it.”

“Neither will I,” Myron said, taking his mate into his arms. “But the job had its perks.”

“Is that so?”

“The pay was decent, and the hours were hell, but they had this great coffee machine in the lobby,” Myron teased. “That and the boss was hot as hell.”

Charles laughed, reaching up to touch Myron’s face. “Spoken like a true cad.”

“Oh, I’m definitely a cad,” Myron said, leaning in to kiss Charles until he was breathless. “Just a cad who only has eyes for you.”

Charles’ heart fluttered. At one point, he would’ve called Myron a liar, even if it was only in his heart. After everything they’d been through, he believed him and it wasn’t just because he wanted to.

The fact that Charles couldn’t shift had kept Myron from completing their mating mark, but that didn’t stop Charles from feeling the connection that was always growing deeper between them.

“You ready to go on that date?” Myron asked, stroking Charles’ hair.

“Yeah,” he breathed, still a little unsteady from the kiss. Myron had that effect on him, and it just kept getting worse. Not that he was complaining.

* * *

While dinner and a movie certainly wasn’t the most unusual date idea, Charles had come to realize just how much he enjoyed the simple things in life ever since coming to Gray Hollow. When they got home, he was more than ready to spend a romantic evening alone with his mate for the first time in far too long.

He was tired of waiting, and he knew Myron was probably enduring his own version of hell since they’d been sharing a bed and nothing else for the last few months. While Charles appreciated his mate’s patience, now that his body and his heart were healed, he wanted nothing more than to be close to Myron the way he once had.

Myron had been silent on the drive home, and when Charles realized he wasn’t following him down the hall, he stopped and turned around to find his mate watching him nervously. “What’s wrong?” His heart faltered like it had that night when Myron had brought all his hopes to a halt.

“There’s something I want to ask you,” Myron said, taking a step closer to him. “It’s okay if you need some time to think about it. I don’t want you to feel pressured or anything.”

“Okay…?” Charles asked worriedly.

Myron pulled something out of his pocket. A small slip of paper that he offered to Charles. Charles’ eyes widened when he saw the beautiful scripted letter sigma printed on the paper. “What is this?”

“It’s a design. I know that I marked you,” he began. “I feel it in my heart, and I know there’s no way that you could be mine more than you already are. But since you can’t shift and you don’t bear a visible mark, I’ve always wondered if there was a way… Then, I got the idea that maybe you could get a tattoo where my mark would be, if we were… you know…”

“Normal?” Charles teased.

Myron grinned. “I was gonna say boring, but sure.”

Charles stared down at the design, his heart beating even faster. He’d been so afraid that after all the trust they’d built, Myron had changed his mind after all. Now he knew it was the exact opposite. Myron wanted him to wear his mark for the whole world to see. “Myron,” he whispered, throwing his arms around his mate’s neck. “Of course I will.”

“Good,” Myron murmured, breathing in Charles’ scent as he returned his embrace. “Had me worried for a second there.”

“Why sigma?” Charles asked.

“You’re kind of the spokesman now,” he said with a chuckle. “Besides, if you turn your head, it looks like the letter M and I’m still a prideful, possessive bastard. Just a reformed one.”

Charles couldn’t help but smile. “There is nothing that would make me prouder than to wear your mark. But you’re wrong about one thing.”

“Oh, yeah?” Myron challenged, his arms still wrapped around Charles’ waist as the other man led him backwards toward their bedroom. “And what might that be?”

“I could be yours in another way,” Charles whispered in a sultry voice.

“Oh, hell, yeah,” Myron growled, lifting Charles to carry him the rest of the way into the bedroom. Before Charles’ head hit the pillow, Myron was tearing his shirt off and he laughed.

“I’ve never seen someone go from zero to full throttle that fast.”

“Just been waiting on you, baby,” Myron purred, kissing his neck. Charles shivered, deciding that he wouldn’t mind a few practice rounds at marking before he got the ink.

“I’ll have to make it up to you, then,” Charles said huskily, reaching down to unzip his mate’s pants. He took Myron’s hot length into his hand and realized he was already hard.

“Trust me, it was worth the wait,” Myron said, peeling his shirt over his head. He parted Charles’ legs and came down between them, grinding up against his mate’s erection as his tongue delved into Charles’ mouth. “Have I ever told you that you taste like a dream?”

“What kinds of dreams are you having?” Charles teased, squirming out of his pants since Myron seemed to have forgotten that they both needed to be undressed for this to work.

“Good ones,” Myron answered, kissing his neck again as he reached for some lubricant. “Torturous, since I’m always holding you, but good.”

Charles moaned as Myron slipped a slick finger into him. He knew he needed the prep, since it had been a while, but part of him wanted to take Myron immediately. All of him, regardless of the pain. Then, the second finger Myron worked into him swept over his prostate and he decided a little foreplay wasn’t such a bad idea.

“I love that look on your face,” Myron breathed, gazing down at him with blazing flame in his green eyes, like he took as much pleasure from giving it as participating. “The way you part your lips, just like that…”

Charles gasped as Myron worked him to elicit the very response he was describing. Lust made his voice gravelly and by the time he finally pulled out to dip the head of his cock between Charles’ slick cheeks, Charles was begging for it.

“Fuck me,” he pleaded, kissing his way down Myron’s neck, licking over the vein beneath his skin.

Myron hesitated at his entrance, his cock pearling more lubricant to ease the invasion that Charles craved like a drug. “Are you saying that in a British way or a horny way?”

Charles wrapped his legs around his mate and growled in frustration, urging him to give him what he needed already. “Bastard.”

“Just clarifying,” Myron teased, kissing him until all was forgiven. He eased into Charles at long last and Myron moaned into their kiss as it surpassed every anticipation and fantasy. Myron went from taunting him to lavishing breathless attention on his neck as he thrust in slowly, giving Charles time to relax around him.

“Right there,” Charles purred, arching his hips for more. Myron began to thrust harder, giving him exactly what he wanted.

Before Myron, sex had always been an emotionally distant experience, no matter who it was with. Charles had always been too awkward to say what he wanted or needed, but in his mate’s arms, there were no reservations, and there was no need to hide. He knew that Myron loved him for what he was, and when he looked into the other man’s eyes, Charles couldn’t doubt that he was accepted fully. To Myron, he was neither a broken Alpha nor a failed omega. He was something else, something unique and rare and treasured. There was no reason to hold back when they were one and the same. In class, in life, in spirit.

“Like that, babe?” Myron asked in a voice that brought Charles even closer to climax. He was too breathless with delight to respond properly, so he drew his arms around Myron’s neck to pull him closer instead. He needed that closeness that only came when Myron’s knot was locked inside of him. Those moments where they were one in flesh and spirit and he felt so impossibly safe and loved and adored.

Every time, it just kept getting better. Myron’s knot filled him, and he moaned as he was stretched wider and filled with his mate’s seed. His own orgasm was soon to follow, hot pulses of pleasure shooting up between their chests. Myron’s kiss deepened as he explored Charles’ mouth with his tongue, as if the lovemaking that had left Charles’ toes curled and his body trembling with release was just the appetizer.

“It’s not fair,” Myron accused, nuzzling Charles’ neck over the spot he intended to mark.

“What isn’t?” Charles asked, trying to catch his breath.

“The sounds you make when you come just get me all worked up again.”

Charles laughed softly, wrapping his arms even tighter around Myron’s neck. “Now that, my love, is a problem I can solve.”