“Ah, no.” Ally rubs the back of her head. “I do my heats alone.”
“Why?” I ask, brows furrowed. I look at Liam, then back to her. “Why would you do them alone?”
I did mine alone for years before I started using the pack program at Calling Wood, then met the guys. So it’s not odd to do them alone. But why would she if she didn’t have to?
“I wasn’t really into hiring temp packs. I don’t trust easily, and I didn’t want to go through something like that with strangers. And it’s kind of the same thing with heat clinics. It’s okay. I have like, every toy you can imagine. I’ve survived.” She smiles, trying to reassure me that it’s not a big deal. But it is.
“Why the fuck haven’t you helped her through them?” Brady growls at Liam, taking the question right out of my brain.
“That‘s none of your fucking business.” Liam snaps back.
“Hey, it’s okay,” Ally says, placing her hand on Brady’s shoulder. I watch him relax at her touch, but it doesn’t do much more. He’s fuming at Liam.
And I’m kind of pissed, too. How could he let her go through something like that alone? It’s not fun. Not at all.
“It wasn’t his job to,” Ally continues.
“The fuck it wasn’t!” Brady snarls, getting to his feet. “You just let her suffer alone?”
“Don’t!” Liam jumps to his feet. “Don’t you fucking start with me. I never wanted her to do it alone. I wanted to help her every fucking time, and it killed me that I couldn’t.”
“Why the fuck couldn’t you?! Is your dick fucking broken?” Brady sneers.
“No,” Liam scoffs, then looks down at me with torn eyes.
My lips part, and pain fills me. “Because of me,” I whisper.
“How the hell could it be because of you?” Brady asks.
“Because...” I start seeing the guilt in his eyes. “He was afraid of getting too close to Ally, or biting her, only for it to cause potential problems in the future. Weren’t you?” I ask Liam.
“It’s okay. Really.” Ally tries to help, but I want to hear it from Liam.
“You wouldn’t give your heart what it wanted, because you didn’t want to get attached in fear that your future scent match would make you give Ally up or if she found her scent match, they would ask for her to let you go.”
“Yeah,” Liam rasps. I don’t know his story, but from the bits and pieces I do know, this makes sense.
Tears fill my eyes in equal parts of frustration and anger. “No more,” I demand. “She is not going to go through another heat alone, do you hear me? I’m not holding you back, do you understand me? I’m giving you my full permission to have Ally any way you want her. You’re going to be there for her heat andevery other part of her life. That goes for me and Brady, too.” Tears spill down my face as I look at Ally.
She’s biting her lip, tears slipping down her own cheeks. “You don’t have to do this alone anymore.”
She closes her eyes, more tears spilling as she tilts her head down, hand placed over her mouth.
I look at Liam, who looks stricken. His eyes meet mine, and I give him a look that sayshug that fucking Omega before I kick your ass.
He must get the message because he pulls Ally into his arms.
“I’m so fucking sorry,” he murmurs into the top of her head as she breaks apart in his arms. “I never wanted to see you hurt. I’ve wanted to be there for every single heat. You shouldn’t have had to do them alone. I shouldn’t have let my past fuck with my head.”
“No,” I say. “Don’t make your trauma less than it is. You had your reasons. You did what you had to do to protect yourself. Ally understands that.” I look at Ally, who looks back at me with wonder and sorrow. “She knew you were hurting. And she understood why you were the way you were. But you know what else?” I look up at Liam, whose eyes look red-rimmed. “She didn’t give up on you. She loves you so much that she was willing to wait a lifetime for you to be ready. Even with the possibility that she would get hurt ten times worse in the end. She’s this amazing, selfless woman who just wants what is best for the people in her life.” I wipe away the tears, sniffling before pulling her against me and putting my forehead against hers. “She never gave up on you. And she never gave up on me.”
“Never,” she whispers, lower lip wobbling.
“The past is in the past. And while I’m not dismissing what you’ve been through or your reasoning, I’m saying now things will change. They are no longer an issue. You don’t have to choose. No one has to get hurt. Everyone can get what theywant if we work together to make it happen. That starts with not letting Ally go through her heats alone anymore. Understand?"
“Yes,” Liam grunts.
We stand there like this for a little bit, the room filling with this comfortable understanding and agreement of how things will be moving forward.
