Myron had been dealing with the Tribunal all day. They had finally started taking the investigation seriously, once he reminded them that Futurus indirectly paid all their salaries and might conveniently cease the investments that secured their jobs if they didn’t get their shit together. The shooter was still in custody and insisted he was working alone, but Myron refused to believe that he’d gotten into a tightly secured conference room without press credentials on his own.

He was entertaining the idea of going back to London on his own and the only thing stopping him was knowing how much of a fight Charles would put up about it. There was still the matter of the unplanned mating mark he’d begun. They hadn’t talked much about it since, and Myron wasn’t sure how they were supposed to complete the mark when Charles couldn’t shift.

On his way back to the house, he’d decided to stop off and picked up a few things Avery had asked him to bring home for the baby. When he saw Inara in the formula aisle, he froze. Seeing a ghost wouldn’t have been as unsettling as seeing the woman who’d once been his everything. This past couple of months, he’d barely thought of her.

Just when he had decided his chances of being able to make a run for it were good, she’d turned around and spotted him. She was still the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen, even if her eyes were bloodshot from crying and she’d given up her usual three-hour grooming ritual to prioritize the demands of motherhood. Myron was used to her pretending like she hadn’t seen him whenever they met in town, but this time, her eyes widened in surprise. “Myron,” she said softly. “It’s been a long time.”

“Yeah,” he said stiffly. “I’ve been away.”

“I noticed.”

He wanted to laugh and ask if she’d only noticed when she started hearing his name on the news, but he kept his mouth shut. She’d moved on, and so had he. The realization was a shock, and he knew it had everything to do with Charles and nothing to do with him simply growing as a person to become less bitter.

“How’s the baby?” he asked out of politeness. Civility was harder than they made it look on TV.

“She’s good.” The way her voice broke triggered his old instincts, to reach out and comfort the woman he’d once been ready to share his life with.

She was with Brady now. He could be the one to hold her and wipe her tears, because it sure as hell wasn’t gonna be him.

“You look good,” she said with a forced smile. “I hear you took a bullet for your boss.”

“Yeah,” he said with a stiff laugh. He still wasn’t sure how much Charles was willing to share with his colleagues back home and he knew Inara well enough not to trust her with that sensitive information. “You know me, I bounce back quick.”

She drew her bottom lip into her mouth and stared up at him with those big brown eyes that had always been capable of casting spells on him like she thought she still had that power. Myron didn’t feel the butterflies like he had back then, but there were still a few and he hated himself for it. “Do you think we could go somewhere and talk? For old times’ sake?”

“I don’t really think that’s a good idea, Inara,” he said, hesitating. “I’m with someone now.”

“Oh.” The surprise on her face felt like a slam, even if she was being sweet again. “Of course. I didn’t mean anything by it. I’m still with Brady,” she said, holding up her hand to reveal the rock the Alpha had put there.

“Right.” Now he felt like a presumptuous idiot.

“I just… I’ve always felt bad about the way we left things. I thought maybe we could talk, for closure?”

Closure. That was what he’d wanted all this time, wasn’t it? Maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea. He was going to be running into the woman around town for the foreseeable future, until it was safe to bring Charles back to London. The less unresolved tension there was between them, the better. He didn’t want Charles getting the wrong idea—or the right one—if he couldn’t kill whatever feelings remained in his heart for her once and for all, and the only way to do that with Inara was to talk to her. She was being kind for the moment, but it was only a matter of time before she opened her mouth and reminded him of why he was better off without her.

Once they’d both checked out at the register, Myron found himself sitting across from Inara at the same booth they’d occupied on so many occasions. The place was empty and he couldn’t help but wonder if she’d chosen it on purpose.

“So,” she said with a charming smile. “How was London?”

“It’s good. Very… metropolitan.”

“And this omega you’re with now,” she said, making no attempt to hide the edge of jealousy in her voice. “Did you meet her there?”

“Him, actually,” he corrected, deciding it wasn’t worth correcting her assumption that Charles was an omega as well.

Her eyebrows raised. “You really have changed.”

“People do that. How’s Brady?”

“You don’t have to say his name like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like it’s a dirty word.”

Myron smirked. “I’m not the one who named him Brady.”

“Well, he lives up to it,” she muttered into her milkshake. She waited, as if she was expecting him to ask another follow-up question.

He wanted to, but he wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction. He knew what she wanted. It wasn’t enough that she had left him and chosen someone better. Now that he was back, he was a novelty and she wanted him spinning around her still, like a satellite always in orbit around her but never making contact. It was just who she was and he didn’t fault her for it. Hell, he’d loved her for it once. He just didn’t feel like playing into her constant need to be the center of attention.

And then she broke down. Shit. Crying always had been her last resort to get under his skin, and she knew it always worked, even if the tears dried up as soon as she got what she wanted. “Hey… it’s gonna be okay.”

“It’s not,” she choked, covering her mouth. “I made a mistake, Myron. I’ve regretted it ever since.”

“He doesn’t hurt you, does he?” Myron asked, ready to make the trip across town and kill the bastard if she even implied it.

“No,” she said quickly, sniffing. “No, it’s not that. He’s just so… God, I don’t know.” She picked up her napkin and wiped her eyes. “It’s like he’s perfectly fine working at his dad’s company forever, never doing anything more. And he never has time for me anymore. It’s all about the baby, like I don’t even exist.”

Myron hesitated. At a certain point in his life, he’d been down for shitting on Brady no matter what the guy did. Put his plastics in the metal recycling bin? Screw him. Breathed? Literally the devil. But the situation Inara was describing just sounded like the life of any responsible parent, and it was hard to be on her side, even if it meant being against a man he’d spent so much time and energy hating. “I mean, you’re new parents. I don’t have kids yet or anything, but I would assume it takes a while to settle into the groove.”

The couple’s “groove” was the last damn thing he ever wanted to think about, but he’d never been good at dealing with distraught omegas. Supposedly, he was gifted at emotions since he was one, but he was out of his depth when it came to Inara and she knew it.

“I don’t know.” Her sniffles were getting less believable, but the tears were real. “I just keep thinking about what we had and how different it is. I miss that connection, you know? Being with someone who understands what I’m feeling. Alphas are so… simple.”

“I’ve noticed,” he said, not overly sympathetic to her plight, since she’d chosen simple over sensitive and devoted.

Inara looked up under her thick lashes. “I chose wrong,” she said softly.

Myron’s heart ached. Those were the words he’d been waiting to hear for so long. The words he’d told himself would change everything. Words that would make him take her back and resume the course of the life they’d promised to each other.

All it did was make him think of Charles, of the man who was waiting for him, the mate who’d awakened instincts that were unknown to him. Feelings that made him whole. “I don’t know if that’s true. Brady seems like a nice guy,” he said, cringing in disbelief that he was actually saying those words.

“Nice, sure, but he isn’t you.” Her eyes shone with the stubbornness he knew well and she walked around the table to join him on the other side of the booth. He scooted over, wary of her. He didn’t want to make a scene, but he didn’t trust his own heart, either. Old feelings died hard, and while he wanted to believe that what he felt for Charles left no room for anything else, this meeting had forced him to accept that he still had feelings for Inara, too. Not sexual feelings—or even good ones, perhaps—but the need to protect her that had once encompassed everything was still there, however faint.

He didn’t trust it not to grow if he let it, and while he never would, it filled him with guilt that it was even a possibility. That he’d let himself get close to Charles to the point of marking him when there was still a part of his heart, however small, that belonged to another.

“I want you back, Myron,” she said, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I want what we had then, what I never should have thrown away.”

Myron swallowed hard. There was no part of him that was even considering what she was asking, even if it had once been all he’d ever wanted, but he knew the only reason was Charles and he hated himself for it. “I should have made this clearer from the beginning, Inara. I’m not just with someone. I found my destined mate.” The shock on her face turned to anger in a second. “I’m never going to leave him. Not for you, not for anyone.”

“Your destined mate?” she spat. “And what was I?”

“You’re the woman who cheated on me and threw me away,” he said with a shrug. “You were the woman I loved once, the woman I would have given everything to, but you decided to stop being that. Your choice, not mine.”

She looked like she was going to curse him out for a minute, but when she broke down in actual sobs and clung to his chest, he wished she had. He reluctantly put a hand on her head to stroke her hair, keeping their bodies as far apart as he could. “Inara, it’s gonna be okay. You’ll work things out with Brady. But he’s an Alpha, so you’re gonna actually have to talk to him instead of just assuming he can read your mind.”

“You always could,” she gasped.

He tilted her chin toward him and managed a stiff smile. “Trust me, dollface. I know what’s going on in there, and your best bet at happiness is being with a man who can’t see it.”

Her eyes narrowed and all her whimpering turned to fury. She stood from the booth and snatched up her purse. “I hope you enjoy the rest of your life with your ‘destined mate,’” she seethed. “And I hope you know that I’ll be in your head forever. Every time you fuck him, you’re going to think of me.” Her eyes glimmered, but not with tears. She always got that look when she thought she was causing him pain. “And when you’re tired of pretending like you’re over me, you can come crawling back to the one person who ever understood you.”

With that, she turned and left him to pay the tab. Of course. He was planning on it anyway, but while the diva routine had once been charming, now all it did was get on his nerves. His heartstrings were more of an issue, and as he walked home that night, he felt like he had failed somehow. Not only himself, but Charles, which was even worse.

The house was quiet, but when he passed the kitchen, Avery and Nicholas were both talking in somber tones at the table. Avery looked up at him like he’d just put a red sweater in with the whites. “Where have you been?”

“I was just out,” he said, bewildered by the usually pleasant omega’s tone. He and Avery hadn’t run in the same crowd at their boarding school, but he liked to think they’d become close since Avery and Nicholas had gotten together. “Why? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong with us,” Avery muttered. “Maybe you should spend more time at home and less time running around and you’d know what’s going on.”

Myron blinked. “Okay, I’m lost. Nick? Wanna explain why your mate suddenly has fangs?”

“It’s not my place to say, but you should go talk to yours,” his brother said pointedly. “Charles came home and he seemed upset. He’s been upstairs ever since.”

“Upset?” Myron’s heart plummeted. Had Charles seen him with Inara? It was the only explanation he could think of. Without waiting for them to answer, he ran upstairs. If Charles was upset enough to have gone back to his room, it wasn’t good.

The door was locked, and Charles didn’t answer when he knocked, but Myron knew where all the metal keys were above the doors and had it open in a second. Charles wasn’t in the room, but Myron spotted him leaning over the balcony and rushed out. If he’d thought the sound of Inara’s wailing and crocodile tears was heart-wrenching, it was nothing compared to the agony of hearing Charles’ soft gasps when he thought he was alone. Or the moisture in his eyes when he turned around and stared at Myron in both humiliation and pain.

“Myron!” He wiped his eyes, glaring as if it was unforgivable for him to show any human emotion even if he had every reason to be furious and upset. Myron already knew what it looked like and one look in his mate’s eyes told him the exact moment Charles had walked upon.

“Charles, please let me explain,” he pleaded, walking out to join him on the balcony. “I know what you saw, but—“

“But what?” Charles interrupted. “I saw you with her, Myron. Or are you going to tell me that wasn’t Inara?”

“It was,” he admitted, cursing the moment he’d taken the woman up on her invitation. It was so fucking dumb. Even if he hadn’t been able to foresee what her intentions were, they lived in a small town and everyone would assume that was exactly why they were together. Even if Charles hadn’t seen them, he would hear the gossip and be part of it. Myron had brought him to Southbend to shelter him so he could rest, not to expose him to even more drama than there was back in London. “But it’s not what it looked like.”

“I don’t care what it looked like.” Charles’ voice was all pain now. Myron wished he’d get angry, or scream and throw things in a jealous rage like Inara would have in his position. “I’m not going to stop you from talking to people you used to date, and I’m sure I’d have to keep you away from every omega in town if I wanted to. But I have the right to know where I stand. I saw the way you looked and her, and all I want to know is this. Do you still love her?”

“I—” Myron’s voice broke as he realized he was incapable of lying to Charles the way he always had so easily to everyone else. His family. His friends. Himself. Being honest with the other man meant more to him than keeping the peace, even if he resented himself for not being able to do both.

There wasn’t anything unfair about what Charles was asking of him. He just wanted the truth. The simple, ugly, honest truth.

All this time, he’d been struggling to come to terms with loving an Alpha. When Charles had discovered that he wasn’t one, Myron had been relieved. He felt guilty as hell for it, but it made it easier to accept that he’d fallen so hard for someone who didn’t match the standard of what he’d always sought out in a mate. Now he realized that he was the one who wasn’t good enough for Charles. Whatever class the unique shifter happened to be, even if it was one he belonged to all on his own, he was perfect the way he was and he deserved better than someone who was hung up on a woman he hated as much as he had ever loved her.

“I don’t know.” The truth was a weight off his shoulders, but the pain he could feel through their link was devastating. Knowing that he was hurting Charles was second only to the guilt of knowing that he would hurt him even more if they kept going at the rate they were—if he kept trying to pretend like he could focus fully on giving Charles everything he deserved while trying to get over Inara.

Charles deserved his whole heart. Not half. Not ninety-nine percent. Everything. And until Myron could give that to him, he knew it wasn’t fair to make him wait.

“I see.” Charles wiped the last of his own tears away. “Thank you for being honest with me.”

“Charles, I’m sorry,” Myron insisted, walking closer. “This thing has just been moving so fast.”

“And whose fault is that?” Charles snapped. “I was perfectly content to hide the fact that I’d imprinted on you forever. You’re the one who forced my hand. You’re the one who kissed me. You’re the one who fucked me, who brought me here and told me you loved me!”

“I know,” Myron said, knowing he deserved all of the blame and all of Charles’ anger. “And I meant it when I said I loved you. I love you more than I ever loved her, but if we’re going to have a future together, I just need time to figure this out.”

“Take as much time as you need,” Charles said through gritted teeth. “And while you’re at it, maybe you should go back to her, just to make sure you’re not missing out on anything.”

“Charles—“

The other man walked into the bedroom and opened the door. “I’m sorry. I don’t feel like discussing this any further tonight. Can you please leave?”

Myron stared at him, torn between not wanting to make him cry again and wanting to make him see how this was the best thing for both of them. Charles was always so logical. How could he not see that Myron was just trying to do right by him by making sure that their hearts were on an even playing field?

“Fine,” he said sadly, finally giving in to walk out of the room. “When you’re ready to talk, I’ll be downstairs.”

“Goodbye, Myron,” Charles said as he closed the door.

Myron stared at the door, frowning. He told himself that once Charles had cooled off, he would understand.

They had time to work this out, and if they didn’t take it, Myron knew there was a good chance that his relationship with Charles would just fall apart like everything always had. He destroyed every good thing in his life, even if it was by not being enough, and this time, it was too important to take that risk.