The doorbell rang.

Wyatt groaned, pulling the covers over his head. It was far too early; he’d just dropped Hazel off at school and returned to bed. He hadn’t even been asleep for an hour.

The bed smelled like magnolia and honey, and faintly like teak. Wyatt burrowed into the spot where Raph used to sleep, pressing his nose into the pillow. Everything was fine. Raph would be here soon, and they’d snuggle in bed, Raph spooning him, stroking his belly.

It wasn’t as though he’d broken up with Raph, or anything like that.

Wyatt whimpered, huddling into himself. He still regretted that. Regretted telling Raph that the baby wasn’t his. Of course it was Raph’s, but it would also chain Raph down, make him believe he needed to stay with Wyatt.

He’ll move on and find someone better for him.

It had only been four days. Wyatt still hadn’t gotten over him. Last night, Hazel had come into his room, frowning. I asked Uncle Raph why you and him broke up, she’d said. Wyatt had almost tripped over himself, trying to see what Raph’s reply was.

Except Raph had said, I think your dad will have a better answer, and the conversation had ended at that.

The doorbell rang again, twice this time.

Wyatt groaned. It couldn’t be Penny or Max, or even Hazel—all of them had keys to this place. And Raph was probably at work in Highton, an hour’s drive away.

What if it’s Max?

Wyatt stopped breathing. Max couldn’t have found him here. His address wasn’t publicly listed. Or was it a delivery of some sort, or...

The bell rang, and Wyatt slid out of bed, his limbs trembling. He was fully alert now, his veins coursing with adrenaline. If it was Max... he’d hide. Pretend he wasn’t home.

Silently, he tiptoed down the hallway to the front door, looking through the peephole.

The person behind the door was tanned, with sea-blue eyes and dark hair, his face so familiar that Wyatt would recognize him with his eyes closed. His heart leaped. Why are you here? You should be at work.

Raph was no longer his alpha. But the sight of him had Wyatt sagging into the door, relief washing through his bones.

His hand found the doorknob. He needed to step away, pretend he wasn’t home.

Somehow, his grip tightened. There was an empty spot in his bed, and in his heart.

Wyatt turned the doorknob. Opened the door a crack. Beyond, Raph was broad and tall, his eyes warm, his jaw dark with stubble. Wyatt stared at his strong shoulders, his full lips.

“My hand slipped,” he said. “The door opened itself.”

Raph’s gaze raked over him, hot, yearning. He pressed his fingertips to the door, nudged it open with the barest of pressure. Wyatt let him. Raph pushed at the door again, until the gap was wide enough that he could slip through.

Then he stepped in. Shut the door. Locked it. And they were completely alone, sealed in the privacy of Wyatt’s apartment.

Wyatt couldn’t breathe. He’d thought he’d lost Raph, breaking their bond in front of their family like that. And yet Raph was here, his gaze intent, heat radiating off his body. Wyatt’s mouth went dry.

“How’s the baby?” Raph asked, his eyes locking onto Wyatt.

Then he reached out, his fingertips skimming over Wyatt’s shirt. Except it was that extra-large Jaguar T-shirt Raph had left behind, that Wyatt hadn’t returned yet. He’d pulled it on, thinking he could keep his longing a secret. Raph’s fingers cupped his belly, stroked down his side.

“The baby’s fine,” Wyatt croaked. He needed to step forward, lean into Raph’s chest.

“What about you?”

“I’m—I’m fine.”

No, he wasn’t fine. He’d needed Raph for days. For weeks. He’d wanted to be held and told he was loved. Not wait by his phone, wishing his alpha was closer to home.

Raph’s hands slipped around Wyatt’s face. He leaned in, brushing their lips together. His breath soughed against Wyatt’s skin, and his tongue flicked over Wyatt’s lip. Gods, they hadn’t kissed properly in forever. Wyatt arched toward him, his body humming, his nerves strung too tight. “Raph—”

Raph slid into his mouth, seeking, cautious, and Wyatt opened for him with a groan. Raph tasted like bitter coffee, like sleep, but he was so familiar, that Wyatt sank against him, clutching at his hips, at his shirt, needing him closer.

Instead, Raph pressed him up against a wall, his hands stroking down Wyatt’s sides, cradling his belly. He was so damn careful, like he always was.

“We broke up,” Wyatt whispered. “We shouldn’t be doing this.”

Raph paused for a heartbeat, his teeth dragging along Wyatt’s lip. “Tell me to stop, and I will.”

Then he kissed down Wyatt’s jaw, nipping at his earlobe. Wyatt trembled, his blood rushing south. He didn’t want Raph to stop. He’d thought he’d never have Raph this close again, and Raph... was touching him like he cared. Like he wanted Wyatt.

Raph smoothed his palm over Wyatt’s belly, and down between his legs. Wyatt gasped, his hips rocking forward, his blood surging down.

Raph knelt at his feet.

For a moment, Wyatt stared, his mouth falling open. They weren’t alpha and omega, not anymore. But Raph’s thighs were splayed by Wyatt’s ankles, his gaze dark as he looked up. He was vulnerable then, strong and beautiful and everything Wyatt had ever wanted.

And Wyatt had complete control over him.

“You aren’t my alpha,” Wyatt whispered, his heart aching. “Why—why are you doing this?”

Raph glanced at Wyatt’s belly, his fingers slipping under Wyatt’s shirt. Then he eased the fabric up, exposing the expanse of skin, the silvery tiger stripes of Wyatt’s stretch marks. Raph pressed soft kisses to them, his hands drifting to Wyatt’s waist, holding him.

“Let me touch you,” Raph murmured. “Just for now.”

A whine slipped out of Wyatt’s throat. They shouldn’t. Wyatt had told him the baby wasn’t his. And here Raph was, his stubble scraping over Wyatt’s skin, his breath heavy on Wyatt’s hip.

Wyatt’s throat grew tight. He loved Raph. And Raph nuzzled his belly, trailed kisses down the dark line of his abdomen, to the waistband of his shorts. He looked up, met Wyatt’s eyes past the bump of his belly. Then he pressed his face into the front of Wyatt’s shorts, breathing in deep.

Gods, this was beyond intimate. Wyatt groaned, rocking up at him, his covered cock dragging against Raph’s lips.

Raph pressed his mouth to the base of Wyatt’s cock and blew, a warm puff of air filtering through soft fabric, lighting Wyatt’s nerves. Then he eased Wyatt’s shorts down, freeing his cock. Wyatt squirmed.

Raph caught him by the hips, pressed him against the wall, and trailed kisses down the underside of Wyatt’s cock, his tongue flicking soft and damp against Wyatt’s skin.

Wyatt trusted him. He’d trust Raph with anything, period. Raph cupped Wyatt’s balls, rolled them between his fingers. Stroked the back of his balls, then underneath them, and took one ball into his mouth, his tongue silky against it. Wyatt’s limbs shook. He was so hard for Raph, and Raph was taking his time, catching Wyatt’s other ball, sucking it into his mouth.

He groaned, winding his fingers into Raph’s hair, his cock leaking. He couldn’t see past his belly, but maybe he was leaking onto Raph’s face, with the way Raph made him squirm, his fingers rubbing slow, firm circles into Wyatt’s ass.

The shorts pooled at his ankles with a rustle. Raph’s soft lips dragged up Wyatt’s cock, and he caught Wyatt’s foreskin, dragged it down to expose his tip. Raph blew over his sensitive skin, trailed the points of his teeth over it, sending a jolt of pleasure up Wyatt’s spine.

Wyatt jerked and hissed, and Raph took him into his hot, wet mouth, sucking him deep.

He shuddered. Pressure built between his legs, his cock throbbing against Raph’s tongue.

“Raph,” he gasped. And Raph swallowed him down, his throat tight, his face hidden. Wyatt was almost afraid to find out how he looked. Whether he was hurt. Because Wyatt had hurt him—Raph had a debt, and Wyatt had cut their ties, instead of promising he’d help. Fuck, he was a terrible omega.

More so when his alpha was on his knees for him, pleasuring him, with no expectation of a favor in return.

“Why—why even this?” Wyatt gasped, his fingers tightening in Raph’s hair. His limbs shook.

Raph sucked on him, a sharp pressure that made Wyatt’s knees buckle. Raph held him up, his wet mouth sliding off Wyatt’s cock. Then he licked his lips, leaning back far enough to meet Wyatt’s eyes. “I missed you.”

Wyatt’s chest squeezed. “You’re not my alpha anymore.”

Raph breathed out, pressing his forehead to Wyatt’s belly. “I still think of you as my omega.”

“You shouldn’t.”

“Damn it, Wy.” Raph kissed his abdomen. “Just—just let me taste you. I’ll leave after this.”

So Raph would leave. Wyatt’s cheeks prickled with shame. Warmth swept down his body, made him wet.“Oh.”

Raph sighed, licking up Wyatt’s cock, his tongue flat against Wyatt’s skin. Then he caught Wyatt’s tip in his mouth, his hands slipping up between Wyatt’s legs, his fingers dipping between Wyatt’s cheeks. He found Wyatt’s hole easily, and pushed inside.

After all these months, Raph knew his body. He found Wyatt’s prostate, pressed down on it hard. Wyatt jerked, gasping for air. “Raph—”

Raph sucked harder on him. The pressure on his cock increased. Raph slipped his finger out, massaged Wyatt’s hole. Then he pushed back inside, fucking him slow and intimate.

Wyatt came hard, gasping, his spine arching as pleasure crashed through his body and he spilled into Raph’s mouth. His cock pulsed so hard he couldn’t breathe; his limbs spasmed. Raph’s hand stayed firm on him, his mouth so warm.

When he caught his breath and blinked himself back to the present, Wyatt found that he was sitting on the floor of his living room, his legs splayed over Raph’s thighs, Raph’s lips red and gleaming.

Raph swallowed, watching him. “Feel better?”

Wyatt couldn’t help chuckling, then. “I’m not sure how I’m supposed to answer that. You’re leaving, aren’t you?”

“If you ask me to leave a second time, yeah.” Raph stroked his fingers over Wyatt’s knee, squeezing him lightly. “I... I know I should.”

But there was something in his eyes, something dark and reluctant, that gave Wyatt pause. Because none of this was supposed to happen. They should have broken up four days ago, and that was all they should’ve seen of each other.

Raph wasn’t supposed to be here, Wyatt half-naked on him. He wasn’t supposed to caress Wyatt’s legs, kiss his belly. Wyatt’s heart thudded slowly, like it didn’t want Raph to leave.

“I’m sorry,” Raph said.

“You’re not supposed to be here,” Wyatt said.

“Where am I supposed to be?”

“In the movies, we’re supposed to have a huge breakup. Then you’re supposed to fight the big bad guys and declare your undying love. Not apologize by giving me a blowjob.”

Raph’s lips quirked in a tiny smile. “Does that mean I’m forgiven?”

Wyatt hesitated, and Raph’s smile fell. “You were hardly here the whole of last month, Raph. I just—You said you’d be here. You said you were going to transfer to Meadowfall.”

Raph sighed, looking away. “My application fell through. Grandma said I’d have to pay the loan in three months if I quit. So I got a couple jobs to try and earn myself out of that debt. Looking back on it, maybe gambling would’ve been easier.”

Wyatt’s chest squeezed. Two extra jobs? Gods, it explained why Raph had sounded so tired over the phone. Why Raph had fallen asleep trying to talk to him. And there he’d doubted Raph, broken their bond. Wyatt’s cheeks burned. “I should be the one sorry. I thought... I thought you might’ve found someone else.”

Raph snorted. “If I had time to find someone else, I’d have spent it sleeping.”

A tiny laugh bubbled up in Wyatt’s chest. “So... are you... are we...”

Raph slipped his arms around Wyatt’s back, pulling him close. Wyatt buried his face in Raph’s shoulder, breathing in his teak scent. Raph smelled like home. “You know the stakes now, Wy. I lost my investments, too. If I quit my job, I’ll need to average fifty grand a month. Not sure how to do that.”

“I could take out a loan.”

“I looked. Grandma’s put a hold on your credit, too.”

“What the hell?” How did she have that power? “Is that even legal?”

Raph shrugged, pulling Wyatt closer, his strong arms wrapping around Wyatt’s back. “I’m not surprised anymore. Just wondering what the best course of action is. If... if you still want me as your alpha, with a debt like that. I can’t solve it anytime soon.”

Wyatt’s heart skipped. This was happening too fast, too easily. Raph... cared for him. And their baby. He’d skipped work, probably, and they were sitting in Wyatt’s apartment like delinquents, like when they’d skipped classes in middle school to rescue a baby bird on the ground.

“I don’t see how you’d want me, Raph. There are so many omegas out there. Someone who isn’t going to drag you down with a family.”

Raph met his eyes, his hands cupping Wyatt’s jaw. “I don’t care about the other omegas. Do you... want to be my omega?”

He said it with such trepidation, that Wyatt knew he couldn’t hold Raph’s absence against him. Raph had lied, and Raph had kept secrets from him. He had a debt neither of them could pay off. But he cared for Wyatt, he accepted Wyatt and his babies, and Wyatt needed to belong to him.

So he nodded, burying his face in Raph’s shoulder. “I don’t see how you could want me, Raph. We saw Max on Saturday—”

Raph stiffened against him. “You saw Max?”

“In the grocery store. Hazel saw him. I... I froze up. She pulled me into the employee’s bathroom. He followed us.”

“Fuck that bastard,” Raph growled, his arms tensing.

“I just... I’m so broken, Raph.” Wyatt looked down at his hands, ashamed. “I can’t... I can’t even care for myself. I wish I could stand up to Max, but I just... freeze up when I think about trying. Hazel has to do so much because I can’t.”

Raph narrowed his eyes. “That’s not your damn fault.”

“I knew what Max would do to me, and I moved in with him.”

“If anyone says you deserve it, I’ll punch their heads in.” Raph bared his teeth, eyes flashing. “What happened in the piano room was something we did by choice. It wasn’t wrong. Don’t believe that bitch, damn it. You didn’t deserve the shit Max did to you.”

Wyatt thought about Max, and Grandma, and trembled.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there,” Raph muttered. “They hurt you, Wy. I should’ve stopped it, and I never did. It’s... it’s why I never showed up for so long. I just... couldn’t face you as an alpha.”

Wyatt shook his head, slipping his arms around Raph’s back. “You’ve done plenty, Raph. Thanks for just being here.”

Raph pressed a kiss to his temple, his forehead crinkled. “I promise I’ll be better about staying around. I promise I’m not gonna fail you again.”

“I believe you,” Wyatt said. This, finally, felt right again.

“Does that mean... you’re my omega? For real?” Raph leaned back, looking hopefully into his eyes.

Wyatt’s heart thudded. There was no answer that would truly show how he felt, except one. He reached down, circling Raph’s wrist with his fingers. Then he brought Raph’s forearm up to his lips, pressed kisses along his skin.

Raph froze, his eyes growing wide. “Wy—”

Wyatt nuzzled the scent gland at his wrist. “You asked if I wanted to be your omega. Will this prove it?”

“Gods, I love you,” Raph whispered. Wyatt’s heart swelled. He loved this man. They might be stepbrothers, and they might have believed their relationship was wrong. But Raph had stayed, comforted Wyatt, had returned after Wyatt tried to send him away.

His skin was smooth against Wyatt’s tongue, soft against his teeth. Wyatt bit down lightly on Raph’s scent gland, meeting his gaze. Raph watched with disbelieving eyes, his breath shallow.

“Okay?” Wyatt said.

“You don’t have to ask.”

“I want to,” he said. “Someone gave me that choice once.”

Raph smiled, his eyes warm. “Yeah, I want this.”

Wyatt bit down, hard enough to break skin. Raph jerked beneath him, hissing, his chest heaving. “Fuck!”

He watched Raph, slowly releasing Raph’s wrist. Where he’d bitten, there was now a line of pink teeth marks where the skin had torn, and tiny droplets of blood starting to well up.

“Mine,” Wyatt whispered, dragging his own wrist down Raph’s forearm, marking his alpha with his scent.

Raph groaned, leaning in to kiss him. Musk coiled from his skin. Wyatt met him halfway, opened for Raph, and Raph slid into his mouth.

“Gods, I swear I’ll never leave you again,” Raph whispered, claiming him. He dragged his own wrists down Wyatt’s jaw, his throat, down his arms and his sides, to his belly. Then Raph paused, his palms on Wyatt’s abdomen. “Is the baby mine?”

Wyatt held his breath. Raph had kissed his belly, without even knowing for sure whose child it was. And that was generous of him. “If it isn’t yours... would you mind?”

“I’d love it all the same,” Raph said, pressing their foreheads together. “And I’d treat it as my own.”

Wyatt brushed a slow, sweet kiss to his lips. “It’s yours, Raph. I slept with no one else but you.” His face burned. “I said it so you wouldn’t feel obliged to stay—”

Raph kissed him harder, hot and hungry. “Don’t ever—” Raph kissed him again “—think I’m gonna—” another kiss “—leave you. Not over whose baby it is, and not ever.”

Wyatt sagged into his embrace, his heart pattering. Raph’s teak scent enveloped him, and this was good, this little bubble they were in. “Does this... also mean we’re getting married? Are you going to be Hazel’s dad? She’s... not happy that we fought.”

Raph grimaced. “About Hazel—I’ll make it up to her. Sorry. I don’t even know what I can do.”

“We’ll figure it out,” Wyatt said. “Take her out to dinner, or something. You’ll need to prove yourself.”

“That works.” Raph gathered Wyatt in his arms, tipping him backward. There was a hard line in his pants where their hips met; Raph had been hard ever since Wyatt left his bonding mark. “This isn’t much of a proposal,” he whispered against Wyatt’s throat. “I’ll get a ring soon. Will you marry me?”

Wyatt chuckled, his heart warming. Things weren’t fixed yet. But Raph was promising to stay by his side, and despite the difficulties ahead, Wyatt knew where he belonged. “Yes, Raph. Yes.”

Raph smiled slowly, the corners of his mouth lifting. Musk rolled off his skin. He pressed a kiss to Wyatt’s scent gland, right over the bonding mark. “Good,” he whispered, his breath hot. “Wanna mark you again. “Think we have time for that?”

Raph sucked on Wyatt’s scent gland, long and slow. A jolt sparked down Wyatt’s spine, made him arch. “Yes,” he hissed. “We have time for a little more.”

“Good,” Raph murmured, scooping Wyatt up into his arms. “Gonna make you mine again.”

In that moment, everything was right with the world again.