Page 79 of Bailey-Rose: The Complete Duet

“I figured you guys wouldn’t leave this room or think to use the phone, so I brought up some sandwiches,” she shared. “Boys, I know you’re worried, but trust me when I say this is going to be the longest day of your life. If you don’t eat or rest, then none of you will be of any use to Bailey-Rose. You know that girl, she’ll be so worried about everyone but herself, so I suggest you don’t give her something to fret about.”

Everything Nurse Harlow said was true. I’d seen that side of my kitten when I was left to deal with an angry knot after she’d passed out from not eating. The silly woman was far more worried about me than the fact she passed out. Tucking my phone back in my pocket, I stood and hugged the woman.

“Thank you,” I said, taking one of the trays. “Alphas are stubborn, forget the big picture, and need others to remind them.”

“Oh, you’re most welcome,” Nurse Harlow tutted. “It’s my job to look after Dr. Arbour’s patients, and in this case, it means all of you. That darling girl would never be able to rest if you lot weren’t all right.”

“That’s the damn truth,” Crew said, grabbing a tray. “That LouLou is a tyrant when she thinks something is wrong.”

We all chuckled at how true that was.

“I ended up in rut a few days ago and tried to keep my distance, but she wouldn’t hear of it,” Yun-Sun shared. “Instead, she decided we needed to take a trip to see Dr. Arbour so we would stop worrying about hurting her.”

“Sounds about right,” Crew agreed between stuffing his face. “Eli had to pretend to leave for business trips when he had to deal with his bouts of rut.”

That raised some eyebrows from us.

“Dammit, Crew,” Eli muttered. “You made that sound incredibly inappropriate. What he’s trying to say is that I couldn’t be in the house with Bailey-Rose while in rut because she doesn’t understand how overprotective Alphas get during that time. If I told her I needed some space for a couple of days to let my rut pass, she’d take it as a personal challenge to ‘fix’ whatever upset me.”

“Let me guess, she kept telling you that you’d never hurt her,” Yun-Sun added dryly.

Eli gave an answering grin. “Something like that, but it wasn’t her I was worried about. There was a reason no male tutors were ever allowed to work with her. One time, I caught her math tutor staring at her butt instead of the whiteboard, and I didn’t know my rut was due. The man left rather suddenly with two black eyes so he couldn’t look at anyone for a while.”

That had Gareth laughing and shaking his head. “Sounds like he deserved that punishment.”

I was distracted as my phone started to vibrate, and I looked down to see my father, Jonas, had texted me.

Jonas:

I'll be arriving in Windermere in two days. I expect you to be there to pick me up.

The ping on my phone was a flight schedule so I knew when to collect him from the airport.

Vili:

I can’t stop you from coming here but I won’t be the one to pick you up.

Jonas:

So you do have the ability to respond, that's good to know. Son, we will be having a conversation while I’m there.

I rolled my eyes at Jonas daring to call me his son. His sperm might have been the one to assist in my creation, but the only time he ever involved himself in my life was when I found myself in trouble. It would seem I’ve truly pissed off my fathers, and Jonas coming here was the drastic move Wilhelm alluded to. Let him try and talk to me while I had something monumentally more important to focus on. Lucky for me, the security company Eli called had agreed to take the job, so all I had to do is tell them Jonas would be a threat to my precious kitten, and he’d never step foot near us.

It was truly sad that things had to come to this, but I refused to even resemble the type of people they were. I chose to be a person I could look in the mirror and respect. Someone worthy of having the love of a woman like Bailey-Rose. If I had it my way, she’d never find out the cruel nature of the people who brought me into existence, claiming to be my parents.

Vili:

Take this as my final response, Jonas. Come near me or my true family, and I’ll take everything you value in this world from you. Stay in Numoland and forget you ever had a son.

Four hours into the surgery, and so far, all the updates had been positive. The riskiest part of this whole thing was repairing the valve and creating one from her own tissue. Nurse Harlow had just left after sharing the good news—it worked. Now, all that was left was to put everything back where it belonged and get her heart beating on its own again.

The police chief hadn’t arrived yet, letting us know they’d caught a lead and were running it down. Honestly, I didn’t want the chief to show up here because that meant he wasn’t out there looking. Something in my gut told me they wouldn’t find him, at least not today. There was so little time from him leaving, the ambulance showing up, and cops being called with zero trace of where he’d disappeared to.

None of that mattered, though, not right now, at least. What I was praying for over and over again like a fucking mantra, willing it into existence, was the chance to look my baby girl in the eyes and know she was still here with me.

I thought losing Callie was going to break me, but that was nothing compared to this ache I felt in my chest. The power of determination was keeping me from shattering into a thousand pieces, but if Nurse Harlow steps foot in here with that look on her face, that would be it for me—everything would be over, and there would be no point in existing in this world without Bailey-Rose in it.

Before, when people talked about the bond between an Alpha and their scent-matched Omega, it sounded absurd. How could one moment, one whiff of a scent change your life forever? It didn’t make sense.