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A very stupid thing.
Daddy’s hand kept petting me, though, so my heart didn’t start pounding away again. “Shane’s mother approached Tanner about his preferences for a wedding. That seemed to surprise everyone because I personally haven’t heard about an engagement yet.”
Giggles coming from the omegas made me smile, and even Austin’s sigh was less dramatic as he grumbled. “She’s lost her mind if she thinks that was good manners.”
The way Daddy’s body tensed said he was trying not to laugh.
“At that point, Tanner was explaining that she’d asked him something about his views on if marriage was archaic and then if he’d heard about…about another type of ceremony none of us had any knowledge of. As we all stared stupidly, Charlie got…overwhelmed.”
Daddy was so good at explaining things without using stressful words.
Austin groaned and I heard a flop as the couch moved. “Fuck, she’s found the fucking Pledgers.”
Yep.
But it was so easy to picture Austin’s dramatic collapse onto the couch and the way he was probably gesturing with his hands, and that made it hard to get more upset.
“What’s a Pledger?” One of the alphas asked that quietly but I heard another groan.
“Fucking nuts. How did she find them?” I thought that was Master Russ and something about his voice had me carefully peeking out of my tent. “They ignore the incredible gift we’ve been given in our fated mates and pollute relationships from the very foundation.”
Oh.
I was so shocked my binkie fell out. “Mater?”
Oops.
Everyone turned to look at me, so I shoved my binkie back in my mouth and went back under my tent. The utter quiet said they were confused but I wasn’t going to explain, so I was glad when Russ laughed in a groaning kind of way. “Oh, yeah, Maters all the way. I take it you grew up as a Pledger, huh?”
I nodded and the blanket wiggled enough for him to see my response.
“Well, I’m glad you got out of that nonsense, and if you ever have questions about what real Maters believe, I would be happy to answer them. I promise. We’re not aliens or genetic throwbacks to ancient ancestors or abusers.”
I wasn’t ready to leave my tent but I wiggled enough that he could see my head under the blanket and put my fingers up on the top like I had little antennas. It made Master Russ laugh. “You were told aliens, huh? Well, that would be much more fun than being boring people who believe in the importance of finding their fated mates.”
I thought so too.
Daddy went back to petting my head and even fixed his legs so my tent had more room. “I was knee-deep in crazy with my own family when those movements were at their height. So can someonecarefullyexplain what those words mean?”
Austin’s sigh said he knew that was going to have to be him because Russ kept snickering about aliens and everyone else still seemed to be very confused. “Fine. But just keep petting his head.”
Yes, I liked that idea.
Austin talked.
I got cuddles.
Daddy got information.
“Stop giggling you’re not an alien.” Austin sounded like he rolled his eyes, but I knew he was just grumpy because of me. But I couldn’t stop being me. “They were a splinter group of thosewe’re not a cultcults that popped up about twenty years ago. Most of them faded into obscurity quickly but a few lasted long enough for people to take their stupid ideas seriously.”
Yep.
“Dress a pig up in a nice package and someone will agree it’s not bacon on the move anymore.” Austin sounded hungry, because I wasn’t sure that made sense but interrupting to point that out would’ve meant words. So I let him just keep going. “ThePledgers, as they came to be called, thought anything that looked like a traditional marriage—whatever that fucking means—was slavery for omegas and tried to talk alphas into pledging themselves to their omega like it was some kind of weird two-person kingdom.”
Austin was very good at explaining hard things.
“It’s bizarre and it’s created a buttload of unhealthy relationships.” I knew he was rolling his eyes again. Austin liked doing that. “Like, not even alpha sub and omega Dom kind of relationships. Just angry omegas that are confused and supposed to lead their families so their poor alphas don’t give in to theirbase instincts.”
