Not Many Options

by Jillian West

The omega thirst trap is real.

I get it, not every relationship lasts long term. People break up and move on every damn day. What you don't fucking walk away from? Your goddamn kids.

Absolutely

I can't help but wonder if I fell into a Hallmark movie... Am I in a coma? Did I fall into an alternate dimension? Land in a place where random guys help out with kids that aren't theirs? Where genuinely good human beings do nice things without expecting anything in return?

I'm totally losing my shit. It's been coming for a while. No matter how flexible the material, if you bend it enough it'll break. Okay, I don't actually know that for sure, but I'm pretty sure.

Men are handy to lift shit and kill spiders, but they aren't necessary to be happy. Finding my independence, taking care of my girls, and standing on my own two feet are far more likely to give me true happiness than any man ever could.

Except you're an omega. Biology will eventually force the issue. You'll have a hellacious heat and no respite without alphas.

"Don't leave me," she whispers. Her small hand finds mine and I realize I'm in real trouble. Is it possible to lose your heart to more than one person at a time? It absolutely has to be.

Awwww

He said if people show you who they are, believe them.

The man is vile. He deserves to be doxed every day for the rest of his miserable life. Or he can sign all rights away to Cove and Lily. All rights to Riley too. Then maybe I'd feel less murdery.

That went downhill fast.

Lol

She needs someone to look out for her. I need someone to love and protect… It's a win-win. Now to convince her she can never leave.

on. None of them can judge me as harshly as I judge myself, but it's scary. It'll become a whole debate about biology and impulses. At the end of the day I just want to protect my girls. To love them and raise them in a way they'll never end up like me. They'll know their worth and they won't seek validation from a man who only wants to use them for his pleasure.

They won't settle for scraps of attention and convince themselves it's love.

"Gonna go check on Cleary and the girls." I nod back to the girls room. "Make

sure they aren't getting sugared up on Mountain Dew or Red Bull." Riley snorts. "He's not that bad," she whispers, slapping my chest playfully. She cocks her head, reconsidering. "Okay, but if he did something that ridiculous make sure he's not holding one of my kids before you get him."

Finnegan Sunderland might be right. This is absolutely my favorite winter of all the winters.

Aw, I love this.

I didn't realize how much fun kids were until I started hanging out with Cove. Lily is cool too, but she still craps herself, so I think we'll bond more when she gets older. Though I do find it incredibly precious when she's so hungry she tries to eat your face off. The other morning I was nuzzling my cheek to hers and the little beast tried to feed from my cheek.

Lol!

"She won't stop begging and my teeth are aching," Kills says, scrambling away. Riley sits up jabbing a finger at him. "I'm not foggy, you're just scared."

Seeing her take care of her girls? Watching her light up at one of Sunderland's cheesy jokes? Knowing she trusts Kills despite his massive size? Or the way she gives Jasper the benefit of the doubt when so many of us have warned her away? All of it draws me to her and makes me yearn for her in a way I can't explain.

My dads used to tell me and my brothers that you'll know you've found the one when their happiness becomes more important than your own.

See? I'm forming coherent sentences. That alone proves I'm not lost to the fog.

"Riley, I love you. I'm going to bite you." I perk up. "One day. I don't think it should be like this." I frown. Things were looking up and it went downhill fast.

"You'll never be rid of me now," he says, tilting my mouth to his. "Never wanna be," I whisper against his lips.