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“Fine. What about Jaspy's heat? When are we talking to her about that?”
“That’ll be up to Jasper,” I said. “If he wants her there, he has to ask.”
“Well, he better get a move on, then. Isn’t he due to start in a couple weeks?
I nodded. “Yep, he is.”
“You’re his alpha,” Billie said. “Can’t you encourage him a little harder?”
“I know that you don’t like to wait for things, but this is not something for either of us to handle. The circumstances of Jasper's heat are up to him. You have to give him the space to have that conversation on his own.”
Billie huffed.
“Okay, but then you have to distract me. Tell me about your meeting with the evil councillor.”
“It was with the mayor, but I can do that.” I updated them as we walked.
“Ugh. You haveproof. They should hurry the fuck up and yeet her into the sun. Nothing moves fast enough for me.” Billie shoved their hands into their pockets. “I should just finance a private facility so the government can’t say a damn thing about how long it's open.”
“You know, if you actually did want to, that's something you could do. A lot of the pack could certainly make use of the space.”
Billie looked like I had flipped on a lightbulb in their brain. “You’resoright. How did I not think of this?”
“Just don’t run too fast with it. There's a lot of permits you have to get for a project like that.”
“But how cool would thatbe?! I have enough money for it.”
I pulled them off the path of a pothole. “If you still want to pursue it after Jasper's heat, then I’ll help you with your business plan, okay?”
Billie squeed and threw their arms around me. “Fuck yeah! You’re the best.”
“I know.” I laughed.
Billie kept me out in the sunlight for a solid hour before they finally allowed me to take them back home. The rest of the pack was up and about when we returned, and since I knew Billie was unlikely to hold their tongue for very long, I pulled Jasper aside to talk to him.
“Billie's been asking me when you’re going to talk to Nicky. I have to admit I’m a little curious about that answer as well.”
“I haven’t figured things out that far yet,” Jasper said. “She's already arranged to not stay with us full-time, and I just worry how she might react if I ask her to be part of a heat that would require her to be hereallthe time. I don’t want to be too needy and freak her out.”
My poor omega.
I pulled Jasper into an embrace. He needed a lot of care, but so did every omega. I couldn’t imagine Nicky shying away from doing everything she could to make sure that Jasper felt safe and loved.
“You’ll never know if you don’t talk to her,” I pointed out. “Nicky likes you. That's blatantly obvious.”
Jasper melted in my arms. “I know. It's just been so long since I’ve had to invite anyone to be a part of my heat.”
“If you’re worried, you can always tell her that she doesn’t have to stay in the nest the entire time, right? Every part of the house will be unoccupied, so if she needs a break, she can walk out the door.”
Jasper sniffled. “I’m worried that, if she walks out during the heat, I’ll freak out. Like she's rejecting me even though I know right now that's not what it is. I don’t know how well my brain will handle it during.”
I held him tighter. “You’re a tender heart. I’m sure the last thing Nicky wants is to hurt you, but in any case, you still have to talk to her, because if she's not going to be part of your heat, then we have to tell her that none of us are going to be available, and she’ll have to make other arrangements.”
Jasper stiffened in my grasp. “I don’twanther to make other arrangements. I want her to stay with us. The closer I get to my heat, the harder it is to ignore.”
I could only sigh. Our pack had thrived because of our ability to talk to one another, and while I thought we had been pretty clear on wanting her with us, I couldn’t be sure that any of us had specifically said so. That would have to change. I didn’t personally anticipate any issues. If theydidarise, I knew that they would be painful given how attached we had all gotten, but I still maintained that it was better to know early than when it was too late. I couldn’t push anyone to move faster or slower than they were willing to go, no matter how much easier life would be.
I held Jasper, soothing him as best as I was able, though Nicky's acceptance was the only thing that would truly assuage his worries.
