Ronan patted each boy on the head before giving Niall a long, drawn-out hug. “I wanted to be here when Teal got back,” he said, tapping the beta’s hip as he stepped back. “I was getting so antsy at work I had to take off early.”
“Understandable,” Niall said. “I don’t think I’ll be able to relax until he’s back and we can see for ourselves that he’s okay.”
“Everyone else here?”
“Uh-huh. Sorcha took Zayne upstairs to play because he was distracting Garin and Kino. Jax is in the office.”
Ronan smiled at Niall before walking into the living room. It'd felt so instinctual giving the nanny that hug. He’d simply reached out because he knew they both needed it. With everything going on, he hadn’t reflected on the times he’d slipped recently and called Niall “my beta.” He knew it was wrong to say it, to even think it, but his inner alpha insisted it was right. But at the same time, Ronan completely understood Niall belonged with Jax. Somehow, both of those things felt true.
Ronan chuffed. He was a greedy alpha, apparently. He had an amazing omega husband, and they had just solidified their commitment to another equally-amazing omega partner. Yet he was still thinking about the beta he and Teal once shared. Not to mention that beta’s boyfriend. Having everyone under the same roof definitely messed with his head.
The sound of fingers tapping on a keyboard broke Ronan’s reverie. He popped into the home office to say hello to Jax. The beta looked appealingly casual and scruffy today, with three days of beard growth highlighting his strong jaw, his colorful ink peeking out from the arms and V-neck of his plain white tee.
“No issues working from home?” Ronan asked from the doorway.
“Not really. But even if there were, I’m glad I stayed in town.” Jax narrowed his eyes at the TV near the desk chair. “Did you see those assholes being dicks to Teal when he walked in? All the garbage they shouted? I wanted to rush straight down to the courthouse and knock them out. I don’t know how you’ve handled it all these years.”
Ronan took satisfaction in seeing his own barely contained rage and indignation reflected in Jax.
“It’s been difficult,” Ronan admitted. “But it helps that I’m doing what Teal said he needs most. Letting him take center stage and defend himself, speak for himself. I would beat up a lot more alphas on my husband’s behalf if I thought for one second he’d appreciate it.”
Jax grinned. “You really are the state’s most enlightened alpha.”
“Thank you.” Ronan returned his grin with a wink. “I try.”
Straightening in his chair behind the desk, Jax grew serious. “As a kid, I always lived in the beta neighborhoods,” he said. “The isolationist betas who lived there tried to warn everyone else about alphas and omegas. They’d prepare long speeches about how the other genders were only capable of fucking or fighting, never really communicating. They believed being beta meant being above it all. Like, alphas might be the strongest, and omegas might bear the children, but betas are the only ones capable of self-control, and therefore true enlightenment. I know it isn’t true. But when I saw those men today shouting and spitting out their hatred on the court steps, I understood why lots of betas believe it is.”
Ronan walked into the room and sat halfway on the edge of the desk, crossing his ankles on the floor in front of Jax. “I’ve never really thought about it that way, from a beta perspective. I knew betas in college, and of course Niall, but you’re the first person I’ve been close to that grew up in the neighborhoods.”
Jax inhaled sharply. His lips pursed, and Ronan wondered if he’d somehow offended the man.
After a few beats, the beta took a deep breath and pushed his chair back, folding his hands in his lap. He took another pause before asking, “Is that what we are, Ronan? ‘Close?’”
Ronan didn’t know Jax well enough to read his neutral face, couldn’t tell if his question was seeking clarity or issuing a challenge.It sounded flirty, his inner alpha suggested, a sentiment Ronan’s rational mind brushed away as vanity. He realized then how much he wanted to be able to read Jax’s expression. To know his tells. To know him.
Ronan bent forward until their faces were a foot apart, feeling compelled toprovokethe other man. “I think so… You don’t?”
Jax’s throat worked as he swallowed. “No. I do. I just…don’t know if I expected to hear you say it.”
Ronan stilled. “And why is that?”
Jax stared hard at him for a few loaded seconds before answering. “All this High Court stuff going on. And you have a…history…with Niall. Plus, everything happening with Sorcha.” Jax hung his hands from the neck of his shirt, stretching the material. “I’m still figuring out where I fit, and if you saw me as…part of it.”
The mix of fierceness and vulnerability in Jax’s expression called to Ronan. The beta intrigued him for reasons no one else did. He wasn’t witty and charming like Niall, or elegant and polished like Teal, and he certainly wasn’t delicate and ethereal the way Sorcha was. No. Jax was like Ronan. Honest and earthy. Rough and solid. Dependable.
The two men’s chests rose and fell. Ronan leaned in, their noses inches away. Jax’s breath tickled his chin.
“You’re part of it,” Ronan’s alpha voice rasped.
The air thickened around them as Jax’s nostrils flared.
Ronan nodded and exhaled softly before pulling back. He straightened to a standing position against the desk.
Jax pushed out a lengthy breath.
The sofa on the other side of the room was still pulled out into a messy bed. On the desk, architectural drawings lay haphazardly.
“You’re living in my home, Jax,” Ronan stated. “You’re helping to protect my family. And I’m so grateful for that. Having you here makes this situation better for everyone. Me, my omegas, your boyfriend, three little boys. That’s where you fit.”
