Chapter 9
Tony got the call while he was at work. Some snot nosed punk used their premature Voice to make Harley kneel for him.
Physically, he was fine. The teachers rushed over the second Harley kneeled at recess and separated the little assholes from his son before a fight could break out, but mentally...well...his pup was essentially a zombie.
It had happened to Tony once before when he was eight, but he had to suffer coming back to himself on his own cause his father was in a different country on business. Only your Prime Alpha - who was either your father or your bondmate - could snap you out of the zombie-like trance it put you in.
So it didn’t help Tony’s anger when he called Tiberius ten times on the car ride home but was met with voicemail after voicemail. The school had promised to reprimand the little shit and called in his parents, but all Tony was concerned about was getting his pup safe and back home.
Pepper would help legally bring the wrath down upon those responsible later.
Right now, he was carrying his pup into his house and offering him quiet words of encouragement. Which was getting harder to do with his pregnant belly.
The Omega’s scent helped, but it was the Prime Alpha’s that would make all of this go away.
If only that fucker would answer the phone.
Tony laid Harley down on the couch, rushing to his boy’s room to grab his stuffed bear before bringing it back to lay next to his pup. Then he walked into the hallway, trying to call that jerk and cursing when it went straight to voicemail.
The front door opened, telling Tony Steve was home but was too furious to care. Where the hell was Tiberius??
“Tony? Babe is everything okay?” the Alpha asked, hand gently resting on his shoulder while the Omega furiously texted Ty for the sixth time.
“No, no everything is not okay,” Tony said before turning to his mate. “I got a call from work that some little fucker had used their Voice on Harley. And I can’t get his Prima Alpha to step up and help him because he’s a worthless piece of shit,” Tony spit out, turning back to his phone and dialing, not watching as Steve walked past him. He also had a hand on his stomach, feeling his protective parental rage take over. “Listen here you dickless, spineless poor excuse for an Alpha. Your son needs you, but shockingly, you can’t be bothered to be there for anyone but yourself. Don’t bother calling me back...or trying to see Harley again.”
There...that made Tony feel better. He took two deep breaths before heading back into the living room to try and help his son get through this.
What he saw made him stop in his tracks.
Steve was walking around the living room, a cuddly Harley in his arms. His pup’s face was buried in the Alpha’s shoulder, tiny arms wrapped around his neck as Steve mumbled some quiet words into the boy’s ear. He didn’t stop moving when he spotted Tony, just smiled at the Omega before moving the two to sit back on the couch.
The brunette couldn’t help gawking at them for a moment before snapping out of it and joining them.
“How?...I thought...I thought only an Alpha Prime could counteract a Voice…” Tony said quietly, watching in amazement as both Steve and Harley snuggled closer together. The older blonde looked almost misty-eyed as he looked from Tony to Harley and back to Tony.
“Tony...your Alpha Prime is the Alpha you trust most. Not necessarily the one you're bonded to or...share DNA with…” Steve admitted with an adorable blush, before turning back to the pup in his arms. “You’re safe, bear. You’re home with me and your Daddy,” the older blonde said, pushing a tiny bit of his own Voice to bring the pup back to them.
“Daddy?” Harley mumbled in Steve’s shoulder, face buried but a tiny hand reaching out for the Omega.
“I’m right here baby,” Tony said with misty eyes, rubbing his son’s back and feeling an incredible amount of love for his mate. He watched as his baby slowly brought his face out of Steve’s neck, blinking and turning to face the Omega. “How are you feeling bambino?”
“Sleepy. My head feels funny, Daddy.”
“Yeah, do you remember what happened, baby?” Tony asked, one hand still rubbing his son’s back while the other curled around his round stomach.
“I was at recess...and...and now I’m here?” Harley answered with a sleepy voice, adorably snuggling up closer to Steve.
“That’s right bambino. One of your punk classmates used their premature Voice on you. Stevie here brought you back to me,” Tony said with a smile, rubbing his pup’s back and feeling nothing but love in that moment. The Omega went so far as to pull his feet up on the couch, one hand rubbing Harley’s back and while the other rubbed his swollen tummy, all while leaning into his Alpha’s side.
“Thanks Steve,” Harley mumbled into the Alpha’s neck, somehow curling up closer and...softly purring. Tony had only heard him purr on a few occasions. And it seemed the older he got the less he did it.
But here was his pup, curled up with his Alpha after experiencing a semi-traumatic event and purring in the arms of the man whose love he’d been resisting from the beginning.
And here was his soulmate, strong arms wrapped around their son as the big blonde Alpha purred in return. Cheeks adorably flushed pink, scent of happiness and insecurity wafting off him. Unable to resist any longer, Tony leaned forward so he could kiss his pup on the head before turning to kiss his Alpha on the lips.
Very carefully so as not to disturb the now sleeping pup, Tony pulled his phone out of his pocket to take a few pictures.
“Hey,” the blonde said quietly, only continuing when Tony looked at him again, “I love you, Omega.”
“I love you too, Alpha,” Tony cooed in reply, jumping a little when he felt someone else requiring his attention. “Oh, someone’s feeling left out of the love fest.” He grabbed one of Steve’s hands wrapped around their son to put over the place he had felt a kick.
His Alpha positively beamed when their peanut kicked again.
“Well hello to you too, puppy. Don’t worry. We love you too. Very much,” Steve murmured with misty eyes that settled on Tony and leaned forward so they could kiss again. After a deep kiss the two settled once more as the Omega found the remote to pick the next movie from their queue.
Some time later, his phone rang. Tony silenced it when he noticed the screen name, not wanting anyone to burst their bubble.
Especially not spineless sperm donors.
Said spineless sperm donor decided to grace Tony with his presence the next day. The Omega was hard at work with his latest design in renewable energy, elbows deep in designs when there was a sudden knock on the door.
"Come in!" Tony called, expecting it to be Pepper and frowning when he saw Ty walk in with his stupid smile. "Oh great it's you. Hey can you close the door on your way out."
"Oh don't be so immature, Tony. I got your messages and came to check in on our son." Tony could feel his anger spiking as he shut down his work to face the asshole. Both so he could focus his anger and also in case Ty had ulterior motives for coming to his workshop.
"My son is doing just fine, no thanks to you," Tony said, anger somehow spiking higher when the Alpha rolled his eyes and scoffed. "Look, I get it, okay? I get that you are a spoiled privileged Alpha whose never had anyone use their Voice on them, but it sucks. Harley was catatonic, Ty. We're lucky it was stupid school kid who was experimenting as opposed to someone that could've actually taken advantage of him. Did you know before the Omega Rights Act, Alphas could use their Voice to - legally - sexually assault Omegas? And it's always been illegal, but Alphas have used their Voice to make children under twelve do things too."
"What are you so worked up about? Harley's fine and he's obviously going to be an Alpha when he presents at twelve and won't have to worry about that anymore."
"That is in six years you fucking moron!" Tony growled at him, anger and shock coursing through him. "You don't even know how old he is? For fuck's sake why did I ever think you could be a part of his life?"
"Tony, calm down," Ty sighed in his condescending tone as flashbacks of them dating crossed his mind.
Tony was naïve and thought he was in love and happy with Ty at fifteen. He would focus on the good parts of their relationship. How Tony and Ty looked together as the most popular couple in school. He would cherish how charming the Alpha had been in the beginning. Focusing on those aspects, and whenever he said he'd love Tony 'forever and a day' rather than the bad.
Even when the tall, handsome blonde would openly flirt with other Omegas - later telling Tony it was harmless. Even when the Alpha would blame Tony's insecurities on his 'sensitive gender.' Even when he laughed when Tony said he wanted to run his father's company one day. Even when he would complained that Tony 'talked too much' or 'focused too much on his silly ideas.'
Through it all Tony thought that's that what love was.
Tony snapped back to the present when he realized that now, now he knew what love was. Thoughts of Steve - his kind, caring, amazing father and loving husband who is also his soulmate came to his mind. The sexy, sculpted, amazing in bed Alpha who constantly and vocally proclaimed his love for the Omega. Who puts the man above his gender and loves when he talks. Who loved his pup from the beginning and has been so patient and kind even when the pup openly disliked him back.
One who believed in Tony, who loved him mind, body and soul.
So Tony was totally relaxed and happy and totally tranquil when he turned to his ex.
"I am calm. And I will now calmly ask you to leave my office. You are a horrible excuse for a father and I forbid you from speaking to my son. I will give him your contact information when he turns eighteen, should he choose to allow you to into his life. But as of now, I revoke the zero rights you have to see or speak to him. And if you push this any further, I'll have to enforce legal action. Now, get out of my office."
The zen-like state stayed even as the Alpha's furious scent filled the room, Ty posturing and reposturing as if his tiny mind was trying to calculate a rebuttal.
"You...you can't actually do that."
"I can, actually," Tony said with a smug smile, keeping still even as the Alpha slowly began to approach him. The Omega recognized the Alpha's tired moves, the way he thought he was intimidating even when he had nothing to back it up. That, and the feeling of warmth in his bond gave Tony the confidence to stand his ground.
"You won't keep me from Harley," the Alpha growled, with the sheer audacity to try and use his Voice on him. At a bonded Omega. Who has long since been able to ignore any other Alpha's Voice but his mate's.
So Tony just laughed in the face of his ex, who's anger quickly returned as shock was also evident on his face.
"You really had the balls to use your Voice on a bonded Omega? In front of cameras I clearly have stalled around my work space? Wow you really haven't changed, huh? It's not my fault you were a moron and gave up on the chance to watch that amazing creature grow up before your eyes. Only showed up when it was convenient for you. You've signed your rights away, you've proven that you are a horrible father and if you don't get out of my office I'm going to call security."
A range of emotions crossed over the Alpha's dumb face, before finally settling on annoyance.
"This isn't over, Tony. I will see my son again," Tiberius said, his chin held up in confidence even though it wasn't evident in his eyes. Tony didn't answer, just smiled as he watched the Alpha storm out.
The Omega wasn't worried, though, even as the Alpha shouted empty threats as he left. Tiberius used to have power over Tony, but that was a long time ago.
He wasn't some naïve teenager anymore.
And since it came to his son, the Omega knew he'd do whatever it took to protect him.