C&C

The Beauty of Experience - Chapter 27

Added 2022-12-01 09:30:01 +0000 UTC

Two things happened when Kara locked herself away in the bathroom. Lena’s anxiety went through the roof, and she crept closer to hear the shower running. Kara would be in there for at least five minutes and that was an extraordinarily long time for Lena to concoct a bunch of worst case scenarios. In a blind panic, she texted Sam and begged her friend to make sense of it before her paranoia and past worked in tandem to unravel her.

The irrational side of her brain wanted to entertain thoughts of an affair, but she trusted Kara would never betray her like that. Logically, she knew they had an above average sex life, and ever since her pregnancy, Kara was practically glued to her side except when she was at work. They weren’t lacking intimacy or physical affection, and Kara didn’t seem bored in their relationship.

Lena was startled out of her tumultuous thoughts by the shrill sound of her phone. She picked up with terse, “Hello?”

Sam’s voice filtered through the phone and her tone offered sympathy. “Hey, I’m with Alex. She wants to know if there was a name on the screen or just a number?”

“No name,” Lena whispered down the line and stared at the bathroom door like she expected Kara to burst through it and catch her on the call.

“Okay, don’t spiral from this. Alex says she thinks she knows who it is. Her advice is to talk to Kara but not to confront her. She might shut down.”

“Why? Who is it?” Lena pressed and tightened her hand on the cell phone as she waited for an answer. She heard mumbling from Sam and Alex, and then the phone must have changed hands, because her friend was no longer on the line.

“Lena, hey, I can’t tell you that,” Alex candidly stated. “This is something Kara needs to share on her own.”

Lena hung up as the bathroom door opened and Kara walked out in a towel. Like many other times after sex, Kara’s priority was to kiss her and nuzzle into her neck. Going through their normal routine both comforted and baffled Lena. Her go-to approach was to ask a ton of questions, except Alex warned her about the need for delicacy.

“Hey, we could go for a walk while we wait for the girls to get back,” Kara suggested, oblivious to the fear in Lena’s heart.

“Why don’t we stay here and discuss what just happened instead?” Lena countered, barely able to keep her tone or the tremble of her bottom lip in check. “I know you don’t care to discuss it, but I’m worried. It’s not like you to withdraw from me.”

Kara shook her head and clamped her mouth shut for an instant before clarifying, “I’m not withdrawing from you, Lena. I just don’t want to bring any negativity into our relationship. We have a good life together – the best life – and I don’t like to think about the past.”

The pucker of Lena’s lips was the only outward sign of her discomfort, and she fought her own desires to interrogate Kara the way she would have Andrea. She couldn’t force Kara into communication, and if she wanted to maintain a respectful relationship with her alpha, then she had to at least appear approachable. There weren’t many options if she went down that route, and though Kara clearly didn’t mean to cause her any distress, Lena experienced it all the same.

She tracked Kara with her eyes while Kara dried off and dressed, and she tried to quiet the countless questions that went through her mind. Only one really mattered, and Lena rolled it over her tongue as she worked up the courage to finally say it.

“Do I have any reason to be concerned here?” Lena whispered with a critical squint as she assessed Kara’s body language.

The direct question stalled Kara’s movements, and she turned with a crinkle between her brows to stare at Lena in surprise. “Heck no. If this mattered at all, I would tell you in an instant, but this has no effect on us.”

Lena wanted to believe it, and the sincerity in Kara’s mannerisms damn near sold her on it. She inhaled a slow breath as her mate tugged on a shirt and made a beeline towards her with soft eyes.

Hard though it was, Lena kept her composure and stood up with the blanket wrapped around her toga-style. She avoided Kara’s embrace in case it swayed her to be held in those strong arms and stood her ground.

“It does if your first instinct is to shut me out,” Lena muttered.

“Some things are better left forgotten, that’s all,” Kara reasoned with a peculiar and vulnerable warble. It disappeared with a clench of her jaw and Kara forced a smile onto her lips. It seemed strangely sad, and she faltered with her hand outstretched, only to cross her arms and avert her eyes.

“Some thing, or some one?” Lena pressed, in spite of the advice she had received from Alex. She pulled fresh clothes out of her suitcase to make herself presentable and threw a glance over her shoulder to find Kara staring at her ass.

“In this case, both,” Kara responded honestly and snapped her eyes up to Lena’s face.

The depth of emotion in Kara’s eyes was difficult to sift through, and Lena moderately relaxed due to it.

“Kara–”

“I don’t want to talk about it, Lena!” Kara rasped in frustration and swung her arms out to the side as she paced the length of the room restlessly. “I want to enjoy our vacation and see this beautiful city without dragging up things that mean nothing to me. Can’t we just do that? Please.”

The sudden harshness and desperation went against Kara’s insistence that this was nothing. Lena felt her eyes begin to shimmer and clenched her brows together to stop herself from reacting. She set her chin into a sterner line and realized that she would have to excavate these issues slowly, or risk crumbling Kara’s emotional state in the process.

“I hoped you could confide in me, but whatever this is must be painful.” Lena dropped her voice to a gentler whisper and touched Kara’s shoulder. “Maybe you can tell me one day. Not to-day. I won’t push.”

Kara didn’t shy from the warm brush of her fingertips, and Lena took a deep breath that she hoped would calm her down. She had never been in a situation where Kara became agitated or closed off. For their entire relationship, Kara openly communicated with her and handled conflict with grace.

Kara nodded and eased out of her strained posture, which Lena interpreted to mean that they might one day discuss it.

“Thank you,” Kara exhaled and reverted straight back to her normal, composed self as if nothing had transpired between them. The only evidence of her change in mood was the lingering sadness in her eyes, but she blinked rapidly to disguise it. “So, we can’t really leave the resort until the kid’s get back, but I don’t want us to stay holed up in here either. What else does this place have to offer besides delicious food?”

Lena sucked on her teeth and swallowed back the urge to ask if Kara was alright. For better or worse, she had expressed that she would drop it and now she had to stand by that decision. It took her a moment to trust that her voice wouldn’t betray her true feelings and she shrugged with a slow smile to coax one into forming on Kara’s lips. “I’ll assume you don’t want to take a dip in the pool, so that leaves a phenomenal spa and sauna area, the private beach, water polo and archery. Unless you would prefer the fitness room.”

“Who comes here to work out?” Kara asked, utterly aghast by the prospect of someone wasting their time pumping iron when they could be having fun. “The archery sounds like something we should do with the girls, and we just got all hot and sweaty, so we should leave the sauna for later. I guess that leaves the beach. Join me for an afternoon stroll?”

Kara offered her arm to Lena like they were headed out for a date, and the pensive crinkle between her brows only softened after Lena linked their fingers together.

Despite the tension back at their room, Kara still doted on her under the blazing sun. She brought mocktails to Lena with fruit skewers sticking out of them, and then collected the pretty umbrellas that decorated the drinks so Natty could use them in her sand castles later.

They walked along the surf hand in hand, and let the quiet rush of water soothe their frayed nerves until Lena forgot all about the blip in their communication. She leaned into her alpha and smirked at Kara cupping her backside to grope her gently.

“You know what would make this beach better?” Kara murmured under her breath as they passed another couple. She side-eyed Lena flirtatiously and allowed the playful scent of her alpha to drift in the breeze.

Lena used her tongue to draw the straw in her drink to her puckered lips and bit back a laugh as Kara lost her footing in the sand and stumbled.

“If nobody else was here?” Lena asked innocently and lowered her shades to peer at her mate with a suggestive raised brow.

“I mean, right? How dare they be out here enjoying themselves when I want to be enjoying you on one of the sun loungers.” Kara motioned up the beach where a group of people relaxed and sunbathed.

“Oh, I can still make that happen,” Lena offhandedly remarked and blinked up at her alpha curiously. “I don’t suppose you brought any sunscreen with you?”

Kara floundered as she slapped at her pockets like some might mysteriously materialize there for her use. She craned her neck to see how far away the hotel was in the distance, and looked ready to dash off towards it.

Lena caught her by the wrist and dragged her over to an unoccupied lounge. With a flick of her lashes, she delved into her little bag that hung off her shoulder and pulled out a small, travel size sun lotion. “I have about twenty of these stashed in everyone’s luggage. I learned long ago never to leave without it.”

She was prepared to strip down to her panties and bra and let Kara rub her all over, but she got no further than popping the button on her jeans when an apparition appeared in her peripheral vision.

Lena squinted through her shades and lowered them down the bridge of her nose as Andrea stalked across the sandy beach. She looked out of place in her business attire and heads turned to follow her as she marched across the sand.

There was a high chance of Andrea breaking an ankle, and Lena gawked at her ex’s disgruntled face as it came closer. To everyone else, Andrea probably looked drunk, but it was a side-effect of wearing four-inch heels on the beach.

“Usually monsters come out of the sea, not run towards it,” Kara stated with an amused twitch of her lips as Andrea finally reached them, red faced and out of breath.

Andrea clutched a tablet in her hand and furiously swiped across it before straightening up and wheezing, “And I thought trash wasn’t allowed on this beach, but here you are.”

Lena was poised to get between them, but Kara’s laughter defused the situation. She regarded her mate with surprise when Kara raised her chin to level Andrea with a look. Kara didn’t have to resort to posturing or causing a scene.

“What is it, Andrea? I doubt you would get sand in your Louboutins for the hell of it,” Kara drawled, ever ready to act as a buffer between them.

“Finally a sign of intelligence,” Andrea grunted and shifted to ignore Kara as she zeroed in on Lena with an irritated glower. “Over half of your employees are omegas. Now while I don’t understand why you’d hire so many, I am interested in what you pay them and how it affects your profit margins.”

“Are you finding it difficult to research equal opportunity businesses, Andrea?” Lena snarked unhelpfully and refused to share any information with her ex.

Andrea firmed her jaw at getting called out, though for once she didn’t launch into a verbal attack. She did, however, posture and huff like a toddler until she finally snapped, “I’m researching a few things and the least you could do is take it seriously.”

“I pay all my staff the same regardless of how they present to the world,” Kara uttered with a lazy lift of her shoulders. She draped her arm around Lena’s waist and slid her thumb beneath the hem of her shirt to lightly stroke across her hip.

The contact helped to keep Lena calm and she chewed her lip while Andrea’s eye twitched. She could have offered up her own information, but that was a conversation she would rather have with Sophia herself.

“Having 30 employees is hardly a business,” Andrea bitterly hissed.

“45,” Kara corrected. “I’ve been expanding it.”

Hatred tightened Andrea’s lips into a stern white line, and she inhaled sharply like she might eviscerate Kara where she stood. She only just managed to open her mouth when Lena chose to interject, “Consider this a unique opportunity to educate yourself, Andrea. If you think it’s frustrating and time consuming to find what you’re looking for, imagine how every omega over the age of eighteen feels.”

“It’s not as bad as you make it out to be. There are plenty of places that hire omegas with fair starting wages,” Andrea argued, though she didn’t freely reference any and she looked unnaturally perturbed.

Lena didn’t gloat because there was nothing remotely funny about the disparity between the way alpha and omegas were treated in the workplace. The only victory to be had was in Andrea coming to that realization.

It disgusted Lena that it took Sophia presenting as an omega to make her ex consider their biased social norms. She sneered resentfully at Andrea and curled into Kara’s side for comfort. “Then you’ll have no trouble proving me wrong, and we both know you love doing that.”

The friction between them could have started a fire, and the acrid stench of animosity drifted in the spring air. Lena didn’t want to consider what might have happened if Kara’s cell phone didn’t start ringing when it did. Her stomach twisted as she fought the urge to look at Kara’s screen, but the alpha put her mind at ease as she answered with a grin.

“Hey Andy, what’s up?”

“Are my moms with you?” Andy asked, loud enough for Andrea and Lena to immediately crowd Kara with concern.

“They sure are. You want me to put you on speaker so you can say hi?” Kara asked and waited for confirmation before changing the setting.

“Hey. Abuelo let Sophia pick the restaurant where we’re having dinner, and we figured it would be easier for you guys to just meet us there in about an hour since Natty refuses to leave the aquarium.”

Lena could hazard a guess as to why, and fondly imagined their little one excitedly pointing to the fish as they swam by. “Is she looking for mermaids again?”

“Yeah, and she cried when Sophia told her the diver in the tank wasn’t one. I gotta go wrangle her away from the glass. I’ll text you the details.”

Andy hung up faster than Andrea could say anything, and for an awkward moment the three of them stood shoulder to shoulder. Lena extracted herself first, by taking a step back to fit her dainty hand into Kara’s pocket and cup her ass out of sight.

Andrea’s lips parted in revulsion and Kara brushed past her as she led Lena down the beach to the hotel. “Well, it was fun feeling the sand between my toes, but I doubt sandals will be welcome in the restaurant.”

They all returned to their rooms to change, and Lena received a text with directions to a seafood place close to the aquarium. She wondered if Sophia chose it for the convenience or because she liked the vegetarian options on the menu. Either way, Lena worried it would traumatize Natty to go from visiting the fish to eating them so soon afterward.

By some unfortunate luck, Andrea was waiting on the elevator at the same time Lena emerged from her suite, but that didn’t make Kara refrain from touching her on the ride downstairs. Kara spent the better part of descent with her arm around Lena’s waist, and Andrea threw her a peeved glare as they left the hotel.

Andrea stepped through the rotating door and nearly trapped Kara to prevent her from getting in alongside her. “I believe I was here first. Then again, that didn’t stop you when it came to Lena.”

“I’d be careful turning this situation into a metaphor, Andrea,” Lena quipped, taking Kara’s arm and staring at her ex. “You’re in an actual rotating door – just like you were with other omegas during our marriage.”

Andrea laughed coldly at her joke and headed to a vacant taxi. Lena scooted in next to her and contemplated the chances of the family dinner going terribly wrong. She hoped that they would have the chance to squabble before arriving and that this time alone wouldn’t lead to bigger arguments in front of the children.

Andrea’s affronted stench preceded her grunt of frustration, and she glowered at Lena as Kara squeezed into the backseat to join them.

The move wedged Andrea into the passenger door, and the driver watched them curiously in the rear view mirror for the odd behavior.

Lena hadn’t considered the consequences of being sandwiched between her ex and her mate, and she hurriedly gave their destination before Andrea tried to bail.

The engine roared to life, and Andrea snarled in discontent as she stubbornly angled her shoulder into Lena’s to vie for more room.

“I always assumed Kara would be cheap, but I didn’t realize she was incapable of getting you a taxi,” Andrea spat and pressed herself heavily into Lena’s side to attempt to make herself comfortable.

“If we showed up separately the girls would think something is wrong, but I forgot you never learned to share, unless it pertained to your dick,” Lena retorted with a venom that would keep the driver’s eyes on the road.

She huffed at the childish battle for arm room and elbowed Andrea in the ribs when her ex’s hand landed on her thigh.

Kara was all too happy to rectify the situation by looping her arm around Lena’s lower back to lift her partially onto her lap. If Lena had been an inch taller, she would have bumped her head, but the only one she grazed was in Kara’s pants.

The grind of her backside as she shifted to get comfortable was anything but innocent and she enjoyed the subtle buck of Kara’s hips. It boosted Lena’s ego to feel Kara harden beneath her weight, and she slyly placed her hand behind herself under the guise of staying steady.

Only Kara knew she wasn’t holding onto the door, and her fingers curled around the bulge of her contained shaft. Lena couldn’t touch her the way she might have wanted, but the simple act of palming Kara’s cock was enough to arouse them both.

Andrea mistook their sudden silence for amenity and claimed the extra leg space by spreading her knees arrogantly to take up two thirds of the backseat. She postured like she had won something, and the foul reek of her arrogance filled the cab. “I can’t help if I’m a hot commodity and you're not. There’s a reason the only alpha that’s willing to be with you isn’t smart enough to see it’s a bad investment.”

The driver coughed and wiped the sneer off Andrea’s face by cracking her window open. The flurry of wind sucked the pheromones out of the taxi and whipped Andrea’s hair into her face.

While Andrea sputtered and tried to finger comb her hair out of the way, Lena rubbed her ass into Kara and grinned as the alpha gripped her hips.

“It must sting to know everyone can see how desperate you are for Lena’s attention,” Kara grunted, though the gravel of her tone was less to do with anger. She fished her phone out of her pocket and angled her hips up so Lena could feel the throb of her cock.

The text vibrated through Lena’s clutch purse, and she opened it to read the salacious message Kara sent her with a private smile.

If only you were wearing a dress. I’d be inside you right now.

Lena’s cunt gave a short spasm and she bore down on Kara’s lap to convey the desires of her omega. Having sex every time Andrea annoyed them might not have been the healthiest way to cope with her constant interference, but it certainly was the funniest.

The idea of taking Kara’s cock while Andrea was none the wiser and right there ticked all of Lena’s sordid little boxes. Though she would never wish to do it in reality, the fantasy of sinking down on Kara’s superior girth brought Lena’s thighs together.

Can you tell how wet I am even in jeans?

There were risks involved when aroused in confined spaces, and Lena blushed at Kara’s sharp inhalation to catch a whiff of her amorous scent. They were saved from themselves in the nick of time, and Andrea practically flung herself out of the taxi before it rolled to a stop at their destination.

It was petty on Andrea’s part to leave them to pay for the ride, but Kara handled it with grace and escorted Lena into the restaurant. Lillian and Bernardo were already waiting at a large table with the girls, and Natty waved at them in excitement.

“I heard you had a big day looking for mermaids. Did you find any?” Kara asked their youngest and took a seat right beside her.

Lena sank into the one beside Kara, and eyed Andrea warily as she situated herself next to Sophia with a tense nod of acknowledgement.

Natalia sighed dramatically and slumped in her booster seat. “No. They didn’t want to play with me.”

The sadness of that statement tugged at Lena’s heart, and she caught Kara’s hand on top of the table as her alpha immediately found a reason as to why they were missing.

“Maybe they were busy looking for sunken treasure.” Kara reasoned and smiled softly to encourage Natty into a better mood.

“Is this the kind of nonsense you fill her with?” Andrea griped and set the menu aside to stare at Kara in clear disapproval. It took Andrea a delayed second to realize everyone at the table now directed their ire towards her, and she blinked at the confusion on Natty’s face.

“What do you mean, momma?” Natty asked in a small voice, oblivious to the oppressive tension her sire had created.

If pheromones could apply pressure, then Kara’s and Bernardo’s would have flattened Andrea where she sat. She took the hint and backtracked with a few sputtered words that finally formed a real sentence. “Well Natalia, everyone knows that mermaids-they, well– They only hunt for treasure in summer when the sun is out for longer. Spring is when they collect pretty shells along the coast. They wouldn’t be in the deeper waters right now.”

Lena mouthed “idiot” at her ex just as Natty’s eyes widened and she began attentively looking out the window in search of the mermaids.

“Can we go see them?” Natty requested in excitement and snatched up a few of the appetizers Bernardo must have pre-ordered. She shoved a baked clam into the small pocket on her shorts, no doubt as a gift she would give to a mermaid.

“I’ll take you to see them,” Sophia blandly offered, surprising everyone with her well timed save. “A few mermaid princesses are coming out of the water to give a special performance at the aquarium on Friday. I saw it on a flier earlier.”

Andrea went from clutching her wine glass in terror to taking a long drink. “We’ll all go. I’ll get tickets.”

Kara grabbed a napkin to wipe Natty’s messy little hands, and gently probed the little one’s uses for the clams she put in her pocket. “I assume you want to give the mermaids a present. Why don’t we go down to the beach tomorrow and I’ll help you find some pretty shells?”

Lena wondered how many times Andrea would make parenting blunders, even with years of practice. She smirked and lifted a piece of bread to tear apart and nibble. The waiter delivered their menus, and they all spent a few quiet moments reading the options.

Kara was the first to make conversation after they ordered, and she smartly picked a neutral topic. “So, did you guys have a fun day?”

“We visited a lot of local attractions and shops and then spent most of the afternoon at the aquarium.” Andy loaded up her plate with seafood appetizers and finished her soda with a loud slurp.

“I brought an octagon home,” Natty reported and flailed to reach the gift bag hanging on Lillian’s chair.

Lillian grabbed the bag before her granddaughter fell off the booster seat and pulled out an octopus that Natty immediately cuddled into her arms.

“Natty was fascinated by the intelligence of the octopus, and all of the stories of how it can outwit its keepers,” Bernardo explained garrulously, and his moustache twitched into a grin.

“Have you seen that documentary on Alphlix?” Andrea asked, too deep into her wine and appetizers to realize she was moving the conversation in yet another problematic direction. “I had no idea that octopuses die after they mate. They guard their young until they’re born, and they don’t even stop to eat, let alone find other mates.”

That jab was tossed at Lena, and all she could manage to do in return was pinch her eyebrows together and pull a look on her face.

“They die?” Natty whispered, aghast by those facts of nature. She hugged her octopus to her chest and hunched over in her booster seat.

“No, no they don’t,” Andy cut in and glanced to Kara to be the authority on the issue. “Right?”

Natalia turned her big trusting eyes to Kara and Lena saw the hesitancy in the quiver of her mate’s throat. A hush fell across the table, and even her own mother curiously set her cutlery down to observe how Kara would handle the delicate situation.

The real trouble when it came to parenting was figuring out how to navigate the harsh truths that always cropped up at the worst times. To say no would be a lie, and while it would protect Natalia’s feelings, it wouldn’t prepare her at all for growing up. Andy meant well by trying to shield her little sister, but it wasn’t fair to place the weight of that conversation on Kara’s shoulders.

It spoke volumes of the trust Andy had formed with Kara to seek her out over her own sire, and Lena anticipated the fight that would no doubt erupt because of Andrea’s hurt feelings. She braced herself to take over the discussion, and got so far as to lean into Kara’s personal space before the alpha hunched forward to speak to their youngest.

“You know what’s cool about octopuses?” Kara asked softly and reached out to pet the squishy one Natty clutched. “There are so many different kinds in the ocean. There’s a teeny tiny one that scientists think could live forever.”

Kara pinched her fingers together to signify how small and Natty giggled at her over the top expression. “The bigger ones aren’t so lucky. They only get to be here for a little while, kind of like the flowers we planted in the garden together.”

It was smart of Kara to shift the narrative to something less heart wrenching and tangible for Natty to grasp the general concept of death.

Lena stared at her mate in awe and admired the way she wove a compassionate explanation into the tragedy of life expectancy for everything on Earth. She dropped her hand to Kara’s knee out of sight, and hoped the alpha understood how proud she was for tackling the hard topic without laughing it off or delegating it to Andrea, who would have made it worse.

“We knew those flowers would only bloom once before they wilted in winter, right?” Kara asked, keeping Natty engaged with the information and waiting for the little one to nod, albeit with a pouty lip that looked ready to tremble. “But by planting them we were able to gather all the seeds for next year, so they’re never really gone. Octopuses are sort of the same, because they have hundreds of little babies that will go on to have hundreds more of their own one day.”

Nobody uttered a word while Natty processed, and her serious little face softened as she blinked up at Kara. “Why?”

“Because life has to continue,” Sophia stated and scooped up some black truffle hummus with a chunk of bread. She popped it into her mouth and wiped her fingers on her napkin, then used her chin to direct Natty’s gaze onto Lena. “It’s why mom had us, and why we’ll probably have our own pups one day.”

Andrea’s eyebrows lifted to her hairline and she set her wine down to look at Sophia. Andy squinted thoughtfully at her sister, and Lillian tensed in her seat. Lena accidentally dug her nails into Kara’s thigh at the sight of Bernardo comforting her mother with a light pat to her hand, and the table fell silent once again as Andrea croaked, “Is that something you want?”

Sophia shrugged and stared down at her plate in embarrassment. She tore up some bread to keep her hands busy and mumbled under her breath, “How would I know? I don’t even know what to expect yet with heats or job prospects. I might never want a mate, or even if I do, maybe I’ll put my career first. There’s a lot of unknown variables.”

“You're right,” Andrea informed Sophia, and stunned everyone by dropping her ego with a contrite glance at her hands. “There’s no easy answer to any of it, but that shouldn’t stop you from collecting data on all of your options and doing what matters the most to you.”

Andy swung her gaze towards Lena in disbelief and Kara casually plated some crab meat onto crackers for Natty to munch on while the grownups held their breath as the conversation went in new directions.

“This morning I didn’t have all the facts to answer your questions honestly. I’d like to rectify that,” Andrea confided and pulled a neat stack of folded documents out of her pocket. She began to spread them out on the table like she was passing important notes to a board member and ignored Lena harshly clearing out her throat.

“I’ve spent the afternoon gathering information,” Andrea continued and picked up a handwritten list.

“Is this really the place for such a personal conversation?” Lena hissed and
indicated the waiter who faltered three steps from their table with some of their mains precariously balanced on his arms.

Sophia stacked the papers into a neat pile so Andrea couldn’t take them back and pursed her lips as she glanced them over. “93 percent of omegas enter their first heat when they’re eighteen?”

The waiter nearly upended the lobster he tried to place in front of Bernardo, and one of the claws swung at his face. Natty laughed as it caught the side of her abuelo’s moustache and Lillian offered him a napkin quietly.

“The rest fall a little later than that, but those are rare instances.” Andrea burned from the ears down and she avoided Sophia’s piercing stare in favor of swallowing over her wine to signal for the waiter to bring another bottle.

“As you can see, over 85 percent of omegas are paid significantly less than alphas, and it’s estimated that only 11 percent are promoted within the first five years of employment.” Andrea stuck to cold hard facts and pointed to the charts she managed to print out back at the hotel. “That number significantly drops for claimed omegas. Under 6 percent say they were given the same opportunities to progress in the workforce if they have pups.”

“That’s abysmal,” Sophia raged and flipped through a bunch of documents to scan the information. “What am I supposed to do if I decide to go into business like you?”

“Just take over mom’s company,” Andy proposed while digging into her fried seafood platter. “I never will.”

Andrea turned wooden in her seat at that announcement and looked ready to argue with Andy.

For better or worse, Sophia cut her off with a hopeful shine in her eyes. “Do you think I could run your company some day?”

Bernardo brushed his finger over his moustache and widened his eyes at his daughter in a silent message not to botch up this important interaction.

Lena considered jumping in and talking up the benefits of running L-Corp, but she knew Sophia set her heart on Obsidian Tech ever since she was tall enough to sit in Andrea’s chair and just about see over the desk.

So much of Sophia’s joy hinged on Andrea giving the right answer, and Lena felt sick with anticipation.

“What good is a legacy if I don't hand it down to my children? Of course you could run Obsidian. Apart from me, I would say you know the most about it.” Andrea forced her lips into a smile that became more genuine when Sophia lunged forward to hug her.

With that relieving outcome, Lena pushed her fork into her seafood paella and took a big mouthful. Her stomach growled for food, and she realized too late that she hadn’t eaten enough all day.

“Now you just need to worry about selecting the right mate,” Andrea added, oblivious to how she re-awakened Lena’s anxieties all at once by dragging out the conversation. “I recommend waiting until you’re in your twenties to decide. Your late twenties. You can never be too careful.”

“Is that right?” Lena flicked her eyelashes down Andrea in annoyance, warning her not to offer sexist advice.

“If you’d waited until your late twenties, we wouldn’t be here right now,” Andy smugly announced for Sophia’s benefit and flashed a wry smile at her youngest sister. “Well, maybe Natty, but that would depend on you dating someone your own age.”

Andrea’s spine turned to stone, and she glared at Andy’s audacity to drag her at a restaurant in front of everyone. She inhaled slowly as her tongue danced behind her teeth and splayed her hand on the table like she might just lean over it to berate her daughter. “Do you think this makes you look smart?”

“Do you think I care either way?” Andy murmured with a defiant lift of her chin. She moodily crossed her arms and deflected expertly to put the heat back on Andrea. “Why don’t you tell Sophia how much you pay your omega employees, or were you hoping a few print-offs would cover that conversation?”

“Mom pays them fairly,” Sophia argued in defense of her sire, and then picked up on Andrea’s grimace. “Don’t you?”

“They make .70 cents for every dollar an alpha gets,” Andy rattled off in judgment, like she personally blamed Andrea for the skewed labor cost. “Unless you changed that in the past year when you were trying to persuade me into touring the company?”

Andrea’s outraged silence horrified Sophia, and she gaped at her sire with panic in her eyes. “Are there any companies that have equal pay for their employees, or does everyone suck?”

The satisfaction Lena experienced was euphoric when Andrea had to eat crow and admit she only knew one off the top of her head. She stared her ex down with a Cheshire-like smirk and helped herself to the lobster on Kara’s plate like she was catching dinner and a show.

“Kara’s pool cleaning company,” Andrea gritted out in disgust and flung her napkin onto her plate as if in acknowledgement of her ruined appetite. “Though I wouldn’t classify it as a real business.”

“I would,” Bernardo remarked and settled his keen gaze on Andrea, willing her not to make a scene in front of his grandchildren. “You can also add L-Corp, your mother’s company, and my company to the list of businesses that pay omegas fairly.”

Sophia beamed at her grandfather and jotted down the name of his company.

“Your Grandma Guillermina also has several cousins who hire omegas and compensate them just as well.” Bernardo snapped his fingers together in thought and slipped his hand into his suit jacket. “Speaking of your abuela, I almost forgot. I have something special here to give you.”

From within a carved box, Bernardo produced several pieces of jewelry, many of them silver and turquoise. He slipped a bracelet onto Sophia’s wrist and smiled at the perfect fit.

“It was your grandmother’s wish to pass this on to the next omega in the family line,” Bernardo explained and closed the lid of the case to pass it into Sophia’s hands. “I have other pieces to give you when we return home after our trip here. Your grandmother would be so happy to see you wearing this bracelet. She inherited it from her aunt and it was her favorite.”

“I’ll never take it off,” Sophia declared and admired the gleam of the flattering silver cuff. She moved her wrist to watch it shine in the light of the restaurant and showed it off to Andrea with a smile.

An uncharacteristic softness gleamed in Andrea’s eyes, and she cupped Sophia by the chin in a rare display of affection that wasn’t tethered to winning a competition. Lena teared up at how happy Sophia appeared to be and hoped this was a true sign that her ex was starting to evolve as a person and a parent.

Lillian praised her granddaughter by cooing, “It looks beautiful on you, darling. Shall we take some pictures to remember the moment?”

The suggestion caused everyone to pull out their phones, and even Andy snapped a few pictures when she thought nobody was paying attention. Andrea used her tablet to get some of her own, and for a good ten minutes the atmosphere between them reflected joy and frivolity.

The impromptu photo shoot brought them all together, and Sophia preened at being the center of attention. The uncanny resemblance to a real family holiday had Lena wistful, and it must have shown, because Kara laced their fingers together and shared a slow and hopeful smile that Lena couldn’t help but return.

Tensions only resumed after dinner, when Bernardo asked what they should do for the rest of the night and Andy decided on the in-house entertainment at the resort. Lillian and Bernardo were quick to say the kids would travel back with them, and Andrea was affronted by the assumption that she would have to share a taxi with Lena and Kara again.

“Find another ride,” Andrea tersely stated through a fake smile as she waved the kids off and stepped forward to get the next cab.

“I already did, and she’s the best I’ve ever had,” Lena sarcastically announced, and rubbed their love in Andrea’s face by catching the front of Kara’s shirt to tug her down for a kiss.

It was petty and ever so slightly mean, but Kara went along with it by cupping Lena’s ass and slipping her tongue between her lips.

Lena didn’t intend to moan any more than Andrea’s alpha intended to react. The flustered musk of her ex coincided with how fast Andrea moved her tablet in front of her face and then she climbed into the cab like she couldn’t wait to put space between them.

“For someone who tries to tear your self worth apart, she sure still holds a flame for you.” Kara’s mirth crinkled the corners of her eyes, and she swept the hair away from Lena’s neck to admire the claims on her throat.

Lena grinned up at her mate and mused salaciously, “Oh I get the feeling she’ll be holding something tonight, but I couldn’t care less when I have you all to myself.”

Kara cocked her head to the side playfully and raised her brows. She lifted one hand to her ear as if it deceived her. “Are you saying we’re skipping the family friendly entertainment to have some of the x-rated kind?”

Lena bit her lip flirtatiously and fluttered her lashes to get what she wanted. “Uh huh, and it might start right now if you take your shirt off.”

Kara came close to ruining a few buttons with how fast she ripped the shirt off her back. She postured in the tight-fitting t-shirt she wore beneath it and flexed without an ounce of subtly.

“Get in,” Lena breathlessly whispered, and practically shoved her mate into the back seat of a taxi. She gave their destination to the driver and draped Kara’s shirt over her lap.

“I don’t feel like going back to our room yet, do you?” Lena inquired conversationally and secretly pulled down the zipper on her jeans.

The sound was lost to the noise of traffic, and she covered Kara’s hand with her own to slide it under the shirt in her lap and straight into her panties.

“Gosh, me neither,” Kara rasped and crooked her finger into the wet parting of Lena’s pussy lips. She swirled her fingertip through Lena’s warm nectar and circled the stiffened pearl of her clit. “I’m having such fun with you.”

Lena reclined in the seat and allowed her thighs to open. Kara’s hand was restricted by the parted denim, yet she managed to create space for her fingers by inserting two into the tight clutch of Lena’s entrance. She massaged into the soft ridges inside of her cunt and the come-hither motion brought Lena’s knees together.

Kara surprised her by speaking to their taxi driver and arranging a short tour of the local attractions while she lazily fingered her in the backseat. Lena was too enamored by Kara’s confidence to object. Her omega was eager to keep Kara’s hands where she needed them.

Kara rolled her window down so the fragrance of Lena’s arousal filtered out of the taxi and edged her to within an inch of her sanity. Whenever Lena’s cunt spasmed or contracted wantonly, Kara returned to fondling the swollen peak of her clitoris until her thighs tensed and her eyes glazed.

Not once did Lena get the release she so desperately sought, and Kara tormented her by bringing her close to it multiple times during the ride back.

She stumbled out of the taxi thirty minutes later to discover her slick had soaked through her jeans and promptly covered herself by wrapping Kara’s shirt about her waist. “Good thing I have this to conceal what you’ve done to me.”

“So next time I should keep my hands to myself?” Kara asked with a roguish smile and walked backwards to lead Lena through the resort while making eyes at her.

Lena raised her chin to regard Kara with a calculated raised brow. “Only if you're looking to get punished.” She used her best frosty tone just to screw with her a little.

The bashful hue of Kara’s cheeks vanished with her laughter, but Lena wouldn’t forget its presence. “See, when you say stuff like that, I can’t help but wonder if you have a whip and chains stashed somewhere back home.”

“Do you really want to find out?” Lena rasped and stalked forward to back Kara into an unfamiliar hallway. She exuded a feral and sexually aggressive energy that Kara responded to with a hard-on that looked obscene in her pants. “I don’t need accessories to keep you in line, Kara. My cunt can bring you to your knees, but maybe you need a demonstration of its power.”

“I’m always up for a demonstration,” Kara postured, all grins and fake toughness until Lena ripped her pants down and held onto her cock.

She shoved her mate down into a chair that was more decorative than useful in that part of the resort. Kara had all of five seconds to become acclimated to the idea of being mounted in public. Lena opened her jeans and wrapped Kara’s shirt over her to protect her modesty. She hovered over the stiff glans of Kara’s cock and sat down on it. Aided by their positioning, the thick tip slipped deeper into her pussy than she expected.

“I’m going to ride you hard until you come, and you’re going to be a good alpha and stay quiet or I’ll stop,” Lena husked near to Kara’s claim and moaned as she lowered herself onto the thickened shaft.

The very real danger of being caught inspired Lena’s frantic movements, and she bounced on Kara’s lap to pound into her cunt. There was nothing gentle in the heavy slam of her pelvis and she sank her fingers into Kara’s blonde hair to grip at the roots.

Kara’s ragged breaths competed with the wet smack of Lena’s cunt, and she knew her mate was trying to stifle her groans by biting her lips. Both rang out in the empty hallway and Lena rocked herself to rub the wide glans into the place near her cervix. “I thought you’d last longer than this, but you’re close already, aren’t you, Kara?”

The playful taunt wasn’t serious, but the jerk of Kara’s erection was a warning that Lena’s jokes had been accurate. Kara palmed at her ass and tried to buck upwards, and Lena asserted herself by sucking roughly at Kara’s claim.

“I’m sure I could even make you knot me right in this hallway with very little effort,” Lena whispered and sank her teeth into Kara’s neck with more ferocity than usual.

She sensed Kara’s complete enthrallment and assured her climax by unbuttoning her blouse. Her tits pressed into Kara’s face, soft and warm and fuller now that she was pregnant. Kara couldn’t take her eyes off them, and Lena moved faster to slide up and down on Kara’s thick cock.

“Oh, guh-wow-you’re right, I’m gonna come, Lena,” Kara admitted, groaning into her shoulder and gripping Lena’s ass cheeks with a vengeance. “Fuck, you’re too good at this.”

“Mm, and you’re lucky I’m all yours to do with as you please.” It was egotistical to think it let alone say it, and yet Lena meant it right then. Maybe it was the latent paranoia of the mysterious texts, or the all encompassing need to prove it to herself without a shadow of a doubt left behind.

Whatever the reason, Lena leaned into it and worked her cunt in strong pulsations to squeeze the entirety of Kara’s cock as she rode her faster. “Should I measure your love by the amount of seed you give me? Would you have enough to prove what I mean to you?”

Kara seemed intent on showing her, and the staccato beat of the alpha’s thighs struck her backside with enough force to partially unseat her. Lena whined at the onslaught of pleasure and dug her fingers into Kara’s shoulders as the alpha fucked her straight into an orgasm.

The sudden bliss seized her limbs, and Lena’s raunchy cry echoed down the hall. Kara snared her by the waist to continue rutting and pressed open mouthed kisses over the claims on Lena’s throat. The sensual mix of rough and tender gave Lena goosebumps, and she shuddered in Kara’s arms.

Warm breath cascaded against her skin and Kara buried her face into the crook of Lena’s neck as her cock stiffened even more. Hot blasts of seed poured into Lena’s passage and slid down Kara’s veined shaft in never ending trickles.

If there was a way to truly quantify Kara’s love, Lena was convinced this was it. She gaped at the copious amounts of cream that pumped into her chasm and eased off of Kara’s length to pull up her panties so she didn’t lose more of it. She no sooner buttoned up her jeans than she sank to her knees and popped her lips over the wide tip of Kara’s cock.

“God, that wasn’t enough for you, was it? You still need more to know that I love you.” Kara’s airy assumption was correct and she combed her fingers through Lena’s hair to show her appreciation.

The affection softened Lena’s omega but did little to curb her hunger for Kara. She puckered over the rim and circled her tongue around the sensitive glans to slurp at the excess seed. The compromising position they were in would be hard to deny if anyone found them, and Lena couldn’t bring herself to care as she hollowed her cheeks and sucked.

Kara’s glassy eyed stare was fixated on her, and Lena felt invincible because of it.