The Omega's Heart (Wilde Creek Four) Read online

  Jeremiah said, “Honey will put you on the calendar so we can pick you up for your appointment. I’ll bring some firewood back later on this afternoon. Dade is organizing some of the younger pack members to handle the sidewalk and driveway shoveling. They’re supposed to show up any time there’s more than two inches of snow on the ground. I’m going to check on the furnace filter, and then we need to get on our way.” Jeremiah pecked Honey on the cheek and strode out of the kitchen.

  “Can I offer you a cup of coffee?”

  “No, thank you. How long have you lived in Wilde Creek?”

  He folded his arms with a smile. “My great-grandfather founded the town, and my grandfather, dad, and older brother were pack leaders. When my nephew was overthrown for alpha, I decided to stay here. My mate is buried in the town cemetery, and when it’s my time to go, I want to be buried next to her. I’ve lived here my whole life; I don’t want to live anywhere else.”

  She thought that was amazingly sweet.

  Jeremiah joined them in the kitchen, holding a dirty furnace filter. “We should get going on to the next house. Thanks for letting us stop by, Joel.”

  He pushed away from the counter and walked with them to the front door. “I’m always happy to see you, Jeremiah. You and your mate are welcome anytime.”

  He opened the door for them and Honey smiled warmly. “It was a pleasure to meet you.”

  “You, too.” He looked at Jeremiah with a smirk. “Next time, remember the rum.”

  Jeremiah chuckled and took Honey’s hand, leading her down the sidewalk. At the curb, he threw the filter in the trash and said, “What did you think of Joel?”

  “I think he’s adorable.”

  He raised a brow with a small snarl.

  She laughed and slapped his shoulder. “Not that kind of adorable, you nut. He’s sweet, but not as sweet as you.”

  He snorted and pulled her close, gazing down at her with heat in his eyes. “Mine.”

  She stroked her fingers along his jaw, feeling the light scrape of stubble. “Yours.”

  They turned down the sidewalk, their fingers linked, and walked to the next house. The morning passed quickly as Jeremiah introduced her to all of the retirees on their street. Everyone welcomed her warmly and made her feel less like a newbie, and more like someone who’d lived in Wilde Creek her entire life.

  They made their way back to Jeremiah’s truck and visited the handful of other retirees who lived on different streets. Jeremiah gave her a tour of town on their way home, and they stopped for a late lunch at Luna’s.

  “So what do you think of being a steward so far?” he asked as he pushed a thick french fry through ketchup.

  “It’s neat. I got the feeling that the retirees are just happy to have someone care what they’re up to and that they’re doing okay. But you were already watching out for them.”

  “Not like I could have been. I was really bogged down with other duties.”

  “I don’t get why the males don’t do more. Why do only the omegas shovel the walks and chop wood?”

  He snorted. “Yeah, right.”

  “No, I’m serious. You have the alpha, the beta, and the theto, and then what? A bunch of ranked males who sit around with their thumbs up their asses while a few of the omegas carry all the burden.”

  “The protectors also have jobs within the pack.”

  She made a face. “I know what protectors do. I know that they guard the alphas and patrol around town. But not every ranked male is really useful as a protector, are they? Surely there are protectors who could be doing other things. If you had taken Acksel up on his offer to fight for rank on the full moon, you would have been assigned a patrol route and then… what?”

  He shrugged. “It’s the way it is, Honey.”

  “I thought I told you not to say that so often.”

  He chuckled. “You’re adorable. I love when you get all feisty about my place in the pack. No one’s ever stood up for me like you do.”

  “I feel the same way. What made you want to look after the retirees in the first place?”

  He popped the french fry in his mouth and chewed thoughtfully. “My mom’s parents were older when she was born, and they died when I was in elementary school. I remember listening to my parents argue about all the time my mom was spending taking care of them. My dad wanted her home, taking care of him. I always thought that was unfair. There was a kid at school — a human — who had grandparents who lived with him and his folks, and I thought, why can’t we do that? But there was no way my dad would let the in-laws come live with us.”

  “Why?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe because he didn’t want to share my mom with them, or he didn’t really like them well enough to open his home to them. When they died, my mom was really despondent for a long while, because she felt like she wasn’t there for them like she could have been. I didn’t want to see that happen to anyone else. I thought that if there were wolves who were too weak or old or injured to be part of the pack, they deserved someone watching over them if their families couldn’t, or wouldn’t, do it. Even before I became a non, I helped out a few of the retirees.”

  She reached her hand across the table and squeezed his. “You’re so sweet. Have I told you how crazy I am about you?”

  His smile made her heart clench. “I’m crazy about you, too, Honey. From the bottom of your cute feet to the top of your gorgeous head, and every inch between.”

  He lifted her hand and kissed the top of it. She thought she might just go up in flames right there because he was so awesome. His wicked grin told her that he knew exactly what she was thinking.

  After spending the afternoon working on a calendar for those wolves who needed rides to appointments, she and Jeremiah tumbled into bed, happy and exhausted. Her whole life she’d never felt like she belonged or that she had any real purpose outside of being the daughter of the alpha. Her life as she’d known it had been built on a lie, and many people had suffered because of that.

  But here in Wilde Creek, she’d found the place where she belonged.

  * * * * *

  The next evening, she found herself nervously waiting at Luna’s with Jeremiah, to meet his mom for dinner. Her mate sat stiffly next to her. His face was blank, as if he didn’t have a thought in his head, but she could tell that he was wary.

  “I spoke to Trixie and Heidi this afternoon,” she said after taking a drink of soda.

  His brows rose. “I’m glad you were finally able to get in touch with them.”

  “Me too.” She’d been trying to connect with them since things had settled down after her and Jeremiah’s kidnapping. She’d known they would be worried about her, and she was right. “They’re happy that I’ve found you and that things are done with… the guy who wasn’t really my dad.”

  “What did you tell them about him?” He reached for her hand and squeezed it.

  “That I wasn’t actually his daughter and we weren’t part of each other’s lives anymore. I didn’t want to tell them the whole truth. They’re human, and they don’t really understand.”

  “Do you want me to take you to visit them?”

  Before she could tell him that her friends wanted to come to Wilde Creek to see her at some point in the summer, Jeremiah’s gaze darted over her head and he tensed, squeezing her hand.

  A pretty woman with short dark hair stopped at their table. Jeremiah stood and Honey did, too.

  “Hello, Jeremiah.”

  “Mom.”

  Everything froze for a moment, and Honey felt an uncomfortable silence settle over them. She elbowed Jeremiah, and he cleared his throat. “Mom, this is my mate, Honey Williams. Honey, this is my mom, Yolanda Kincaid.”

  Honey didn’t know if she should just wave or shake her hand or hug her. Jeremiah had a tight hold on Honey’s hand, as if he wouldn’t let go even if the world ended. Before she could extract her hand, Yolanda hugged her. Honey reached her other hand around and gave her a one-armed hug.
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  Yolanda squeezed her gently and then stepped away. “I’m so happy for you both. Thank you for agreeing to meet with me. I know it’s not an easy situation to be in.”

  Jeremiah snorted, but said nothing as they all sat down.

  A young woman came to the table and took Yolanda’s drink order. “I heard about your new pack job. That’s really wonderful,” Yolanda said.

  “How did you hear?” Jeremiah asked.

  “My friend, Olive, told me last night. You’ll be so good at that.”

  Jeremiah’s thumb stroked the top of Honey’s hand, but he didn’t say anything further. The waitress returned with Yolanda’s iced tea and then took their dinner orders. Honey decided to break the tension, and shared about their steward duties and their new home.

  “Oh, I have something for you,” Yolanda said, unzipping her purse and extracting a square yellow envelope. “It’s not much, but I hope you find something for your house.”

  Honey opened the envelope and pulled out a fifty-dollar gift card to a home goods store. “Thank you so much, I’m sure we will.”

  When the food came, Jeremiah relaxed enough to participate in the conversation, but he still seemed like he was waiting for something bad to happen. When the meal was over and the bill paid, they walked outside together and stopped at Yolanda’s sedan.

  “I know I’ve made a lot of mistakes. I don’t expect you to forgive me, but I’m still sorry.” Her eyes glistened, and she sniffled. “I’m sorry for not sticking around, for leaving you floundering when you needed support the most. Even though he’s a jackass, your father’s still my mate, and our marks tie us together forever. If I was human, I could just get a divorce, but it’s not so easy with wolves. I want to be part of your lives, however you’ll let me be. I can’t bring you back to our home, but I will be here for you if you want, in any way that I can.”

  Jeremiah looked at Honey and she smiled in encouragement. “Do you really want to be part of our lives, Mom?”

  “Of course I do.”

  He kept hold of Honey’s hand, but leaned down and hugged his mom, folding her into his embrace as she started to cry. Honey’s own eyes stung with tears at the sweet sight.

  “I forgive you, Mom,” he said with a low voice.

  “Thank you,” she whispered back.

  Honey brushed a tear from her cheek and smiled at Yolanda as Jeremiah straightened. They hugged briefly and Yolanda said, “When you’re ready for visitors, I’d love to see your house.”

  “Okay, Mom. I’ll talk to you next week,” Jeremiah said. He opened her car door for her and shut it after she got in. They watched her pull out of the parking lot and then they walked to his truck.

  “How are you doing?” she asked, leaning against his shoulder as he started the engine.

  “Good. It went better than I thought.”

  “I’m glad. Without her, our kids wouldn’t have a grandma. That would be a shame. Grandmas are wonderful for spoiling their grandkids.”

  Laughing, he kissed the top of her head, and they headed back to their street to get back to their job. She was happy for him. She would have understood if he’d wanted to cut his mom out of his life entirely because of what the past years had been like between them. He had a big heart, though, and Yolanda had been sincere.

  “I guess sometimes fate isn’t so nice with finding mates,” she mused.

  “I’m thankful that fate gave me such an amazing mate.”

  “No matter what happens with our kids, we’ll never leave them to fend for themselves,” she promised.

  “Damn straight,” he said, his knuckles tightening on the wheel for a moment before he relaxed.

  She didn’t know what the future held for them. When her heat cycle started in September, if she and Jeremiah chose to have a child then, nine months later they would be bringing a pup into the world. Maybe their pup would shift into a wolf someday, or maybe not, but in her mind it really didn’t matter. She vowed right then that regardless of the outcome of their combined DNA, her kids would grow up proud and confident in themselves, knowing that their parents always had their backs.

  Chapter 14

  *Two Weeks Later*

  Jeremiah spread grape jelly on toast and arranged the triangles on a plate on either side of a ham and cheese omelet and a pile of home fries. He’d been careful to get up early without waking Honey. It was Valentine’s Day, and although Brynn and Acksel were getting married that night, it was still a day that Jeremiah wanted to celebrate with his mate before they had to go help get things set up.

  He put Honey’s plate on a tray along with a cup of coffee fixed the way she liked and a glass of orange juice. He pulled open the bottom drawer and lifted a stack of dish towels, extracting a small velvet-covered box. His heart began to hammer in his chest as he squeezed the box and straightened. This was it. He was going to walk into the bedroom where his mate was sleeping and ask her to marry him. They were mated – they wore each other’s marks and were living together – but the legal marriage was as important to him as the wolf side of his heritage. He wanted her to have his last name, to be the woman he could introduce to people as his wife.

  He took a deep breath, shoved the box into the back pocket of his jeans, and picked up the tray with her breakfast. As he walked to the bedroom, he thought over what he was going to say, because he wasn’t just asking her to marry him, he was going to tell her the truth of his feelings. He was going to lay it all on the line out there. He was pretty sure that she loved him, but they hadn’t said it to each other yet, and he couldn’t ask her to marry him before he told her he loved her. He didn’t want her to think that he was asking her for any reason other than the way he felt about her.

  He set the tray on the dresser and climbed into bed, curving around her back and snuggling against her neck.

  “I smell ham.”

  He chuckled softly into her neck. “I couldn’t pass up the chance to make breakfast in bed for you on our first Valentine’s Day.”

  She wiggled onto her back and cupped his cheek. “You’re the best mate.”

  “You haven’t even tasted breakfast yet.”

  “I know it’ll be great.”

  He reluctantly got up and picked the tray up from the dresser. He knew if he stayed there in bed with her, he’d never get on with the most important question he’d ever asked anyone.

  She wiggled to a seated position, pushing a pillow behind her and tucking the blanket under her arms to cover herself. He put the tray on her lap and leaned over to kiss her.

  “Where’s your breakfast?”

  He sat down on the edge of the bed and picked up the fork. “I made enough for both of us.”

  “Did you?” She eyed the plate speculatively. “I’m pretty hungry. There was this horny wolf in bed with me last night. Kept me up late.”

  He grinned and cut a wedge of omelet, lifting it to her lips. She took the bite and made a satisfied sound that traveled down his spine like an electric shock and straight to his cock. She affected him like no other.

  She took the fork from his hand and fed him a bite. “I know you. If I don’t take the fork from you, you’ll never eat.”

  “Know me so well, do you?” he teased, taking the fork back.

  “I think so.” Her brows wiggled in jest.

  They bantered as they took turns feeding each other, and when the plate was empty and she patted her stomach with a sweet smile and thanked him for breakfast, he carried the tray over to the dresser and set it down.

  He strode to the bed and sat down, picking up her hand and lacing their fingers together. “Honey, I can’t tell you what these last three weeks have meant to me. I never thought I’d be lucky enough not only to have a mate, but to be blessed with having the sweetest, most beautiful and selfless female ever. You’ve got me, Honey, heart and soul. Everything I have, everything I am or ever will be, is yours. I love you.”

  Her eyes widened slightly and she rose slowly to her knees and cupped his face
. Her eyes were shining with unshed tears. “Jeremiah Kincaid, I love you, too. You saved me. You gave me my life back, and I don’t want to be anywhere but where you are, forever.”

  Their lips met and his blood heated as he felt her warm, bare skin under his palms as the blanket fell away between them. Although his wolf howled in protest, and his body wasn’t too keen on it either, he pushed her away gently and reached for the box in his back pocket.

  She gasped, the quick intake of breath telling him she wasn’t expecting him to propose. He opened the box and showed her the eternity band covered with tiny diamonds. Taking out the ring, he picked up her left hand and asked, “Will you marry me, Honey?”

  “Oh, Jer, I will. I so totally will,” she gushed, tears slipping over her cheeks as he pushed the ring onto her finger and then pulled her into his arms.

  “Mine,” he said, smiling down at her as she wiggled her fingers and looked at the ring.

  “Yours.”

  * * * * *

  Jeremiah stood at the back of the family room in Acksel and Brynn’s home and watched the ceremony between his alphas. The room was full of their closest friends and the highly ranked males and elders. Along the back, the omegas who had helped to decorate the room stood silently, except for Kammie, who sniffled quietly as she stood next to Honey.

  He glanced down at his mate as she stood by his side. The dress she had picked out was mint green and strapless, hugging her curves and making him wish they hadn’t needed to leave the house. She peeked up at him, her brown eyes dancing with happiness. He wanted to kiss her and find the tiny zipper at the back of the dress and see how quietly he could pull it down. Her brow arched and she smiled in that secret way he loved, when he could tell that she knew exactly what sort of dirty thought was traipsing through his mind. She mouthed, “Love you,” and he did the same back to her.

  When the ceremony was over, they clapped and then ducked quietly out of the room with the other omegas, grabbing their coats and walking swiftly out the back door. They drove to Luna’s, where the reception was being held. They’d already spent time there making sure the other omegas were on track with the decorating.