“I’m not going anywhere. I just thought you’d be more comfortable without me on top of you,” Max said.
“Nowhere I’d rather have you than on top of me, omega mine.” I felt his mouth move into a smile as he rested his head against my chest. It felt good to have an omega in my arms again. I waited for the guilt, something that said I was cheating on Grant. It never came. Instead, there was a sense of peace so profound I almost thought it was my husband giving me permission to live again.
“You have to be uncomfortable with your pants down around your thighs. Why don’t you get more comfortable and we can cuddle more.”
Looking down at the omega in my arms, I couldn’t resist smiling at the younger man. I wanted nothing more than to stay in bed with the omega all day. Unfortunately, that also meant revealing a part of myself I wasn’t sure he was ready for. I know I hadn’t been when it happened.
Helping Max off me so I could sit up, I pushed my jeans off my good leg. I sat there for a moment looking at the top of my prosthesis, wondering if I really wanted to do this. It might scare the omega off, something I didn’t want to do. But, it was better to find out now if seeing my residual limb would send him running.
Rolling the jeans down enough to disengage the leg, I eased the prosthesis off my thigh. A heartbeat later I rolled down the silicone liner, revealing what was left of my leg. It dawned on me I hadn’t prepared for an overnight visit. I didn’t have what I needed to put the leg back on again. “I might need a little help when I’m ready to put this back on. I didn’t bring my spray bottle of alcohol with me. You might have to go over to my house when you’re ready to get rid of me.”
“Hmmm. That might be a long time from now. Does that mean I’m stuck with you?”
“Could be. Would you mind?”
“No, I don’t mind at all.” Max came around to the side of the bed, still naked as he sank to his knees before me. My breath caught as he stared at my residual limb. “It’s really not as bad as I imagined.”
The omega’s gaze met mine, not showing any signs of the disgust I expected to see. The feelings welling up inside me, as Max accepted a part of myself I still couldn’t wrap my head around all these years later, were overwhelming. It was like the omega saw the real me and wanted me anyway.
“Can I ask why you don’t wear the prosthesis more often? You’ve only used your wheelchair the whole time I’ve known you.”
“I had to give my leg a break. I had a place that was in danger of developing a pressure sore. I need to make an appointment to go back to my prosthetist and get a new socket made. My residual limb has changed some since this one was made.”
“Sounds complicated. You’re okay now, though?”
“For short amounts of time. I’m not in a hurry to get back into my leg. I just wasn’t sure how wheelchair friendly your house was. I’ve had to make some adjustments to my house for when I was in the chair. I also have arm crutches, but I was vain enough not to want to show up using them. They probably would have been the better choice.”
“It must be tough, trying to remain independent after losing a leg like that. Can I ask what happened?”
Nodding, I pulled Max up into the bed with me. Once we were both settled, with the omega in my arms, I took a breath.
“We were out Christmas shopping. Just getting a few final gifts for relatives of Grant’s before the big day. We were finished and on our way home when it happened. Grant was in the passenger seat and our son was in the back on the passenger side. Christmas music was on the radio and the two of them were singing along. A truck blew through a red light as we were driving through an intersection. He smashed straight into the passenger side of the car. Grant and Craig were killed almost instantly.” I swallowed the lump in my throat as the memory of that night sank into me. “Seeing my husband and son lying there, bleeding out, and not a damn thing I could do about it because my fucking leg was pinned under the steering wheel which had buckled under impact with the light pole we’d been pushed into. In all, that truck took out my car and three others. When it was all over, the whole car was crushed so much it took the jaws of life to get us all out it. Grant and Craig were already gone by the time they got me out. I almost didn’t even care when they told me they weren’t going to be able to save my leg. I had nothing left by that point anyway. That was five years ago.”
“I’m sorry you lost your family. I can’t even imagine what you’ve been through. The only thing I can do is hold you, Pierce. I’ve got you now. I’m here and I’m not going anywhere.”
“That helps, Max. You have no idea how much that helps.”
Even though it was still early in the day, sleep came quickly. Comforted in the arms of the omega, I slept more peacefully than I had in a long time. This Christmas wasn’t the pain-filled day I’d been dreading as the month had crept closer to another holiday without my family. For the first time, I could see a
