{ Slight reference to gross James in this chapter but it shouldn't be too triggering. It's about him not knowing how to take no for an answer but there's not much touching or noncon. Either way, I feel the need to warn you all about it.

Happy reading! }

After months of hard work and managing production, the fiancé collection for ShiroDaddy's Essentials was finally ready to launch. Shiro was currently in the control center in his office building, holding hands with Matt under the table and taking a deep breath. He was stressed and praying that their launch would go through without a hitch.

" Everything will be fine..." Matt murmured and rubbed his thumb around Shiro's palm. He could sense how worked up his alpha was and didn't want it to get any worse.

There were so many things that could've gone wrong in the makeup business. What if the website crashed? What if there weren't enough units for enough people to get what they wanted? What if people were disappointed with the product? What if someone hacked the site and stole user information?

Shiro's mind was spinning, but he tried to focus on what Matt was saying and let the words lull him into a calm haze.

" We're going live in one minute..." One of Shiro's executives told him as they all sat at a round table.

Matt smiled a tad and pressed a kiss on Shiro's hand.

" Imagine how much better you'll feel when it's all over..." The omega told him, continuing to massage Shiro's hand.

And soon, the collection was live. The eyeshadow palette that Lance and Keith had helped him model months before, the lipsticks, everything. After the production had taken longer than expected, Shiro had been worried that the hype would die out among his audience, but clearly not. The collection was sold out in 20 minutes worldwide, and all Morphe stores and Ultas were out as well.

Shiro felt like he could finally breathe after doing an Instagram live and heading home with Matt. They were free from the stress of that launch, and plus, they'd just made many more millions of dollars.

" I think... it's time we set a date." Shiro told him from the driver's seat of their lamborghini as they sat in the garage.

" For the wedding?" Matt asked.

" Yes..."

Matt felt like his heart was going to jump out of his chest at first, but he welcomed the thought.

" It'll be after the baby is born? Right?"

" Of course." Shiro replied. He would think about it while they got ready for the launch party which was to take place that night.

" I can't wait." Matt leaned over, pressing a kiss on Shiro's lips and then pulling back. The motion felt a little awkward, but whatever. His baby bump wasn't that big yet. They had a little while yet before they could figure out the gender.

But either way, they were finally settling down.

...

Lance was holding Keith from behind while the omega did his makeup in the bathroom mirror. He was the very definition of a clingy boyfriend. Even after the fiasco at Walgreens had passed and so had rut and they'd moved on with their lives, Lance found himself with a constant drive to protect Keith.

" Babe... I'm fine." Keith assured, doing mascara. There was no way he and Lance could go to Shiro's launch party without wearing makeup. Keith felt like it would've been rude, especially after he had plenty of videos doing varieties of makeup on his channel.

" I know..." Lance murmured, pressing a kiss on Keith's scent gland and leaning his face against his omega's shoulder. He still couldn't help himself.

" Are you going to let me do some makeup on you for this?" Keith asked, turning around and letting his hands run up Lance's chest. He wasn't wearing anything too heavy, just some winged liner, bb cream, pinkish glitter eyeshadow, and mascara. It wasn't very noticeable from far away, but Lance was close enough to admire it. He thought Keith was beautiful either way, though.

" Nothing too extreme, right?" Lance asked, a scared chuckle sounding from his throat.

" No... I don't want to cover up those cute freckles of yours..." Keith smirked a tad.

" Stop..." Lance blushed and turned to the side, and Keith turned him back, cupping his cheek and pecking his lips.

" Make me."

Lance narrowed his eyes and pursed his lips.

" Later."

" Can I just do your brows and eyes?" Keith pleaded and rubbed Lance's chest through the vest he wore. They were both fairly dressed up, Keith wearing a black button up and black slacks as well, his hair pulled into a tiny bun. And Lance had on a white shirt with a greyish vest, as well as khakis.

" Fine."

After a while, they were both made up and heading downstairs, where Romelle was waiting for them by the door. She wanted to bring Lotor, but she knew with other beauty gurus going to the party it was too risky. People gossiped too much.

" Ready?" She asked, wearing a pink dress and heels, her hair pulled up into a long ponytail. She looked like an Ariana Grande stan alright.

Keith had to admit, he was a little scared to leave the house and wasn't sure if they'd be followed and targeted. Still, though, he knew that it was just his agoraphobia trying to come back and he wouldn't let it.

" Yeah."

...

The venue was at a very private resort in LA, one of the ballrooms having been dressed up with lilac decor and with the lights mimicking colors from the palette. Light oranges and pinks were also in there, along with white balloons all over the floor.

Guards could be seen all over the place and the security was definitely tight. Shiro had clearly rented the whole hotel, being as there weren't any customers in there. As Lance and Keith walked in, the alpha grabbed his hand. He looked around and saw that there was a hallway near the back of the room as well, leading to restrooms and an outside patio area which looked over the city. They were maybe ten stories up.

" Hey! So glad you could make it!" Shiro exclaimed when he saw them come in, coming over and pulling Lance and Keith into a hug at the same time, then Romelle. And not far behind, Hunk, Shay, as well as Pidge showed up. They were some of the first people through the door.

" I bought the whole collection." Keith told Shiro, sticking out his tongue.

" You little shit... I sent you a PR box." Shiro chuckled.

" Oh well."

Other beauty influencers and gurus from YouTube began to show up. CEO's of makeup companies Shiro partnered with or liked were there, and there were many people famous on YouTube for other things as well.

Keith did his best to make conversation, but he'd never really been the best at it in big group settings. He was always so nervous when there were a lot of people around him and trying to talk to him. Holding Lance's hand helped at least.

There was a stage area at the front of the room and tables as well. Shiro had brought in fancy catering from a boujee company in the city and arranged for his 100 guests to have a meal during his speech. They enjoyed the appetizers and entrees, which consisted of crab cakes, scallops, and mini cheese souffles. The guests had the choice of chicken or filet mignon for their entrees and Keith wondered how the hell Shiro had ever gotten so rich, but he didn't ask. They all ate and were grateful for the food nevertheless.

" So..." Pidge looked to Matt at the table, being as their friend group was located at the head table near the front. " When do I figure out if I'm having a niece or a nephew?" She asked.

" Soon... I have a couple more weeks yet. They could've technically done it with a blood draw a while ago, but those tests aren't as accurate." Matt replied.

" Pidge, I'm helping you babysit and you're crazy if you think it's happening any other way." Hunk said, folding his arms.

" Wanna bet?"

Lance just held Keith's hand under the table, and Shiro got up a minute later, telling them all he would need to give his speech before dessert was served. He kissed Matt on the head before heading toward the stage.

Shiro tapped the mic up there and cleared his throat, and the conversation in the room died out from a dull roar into a couple whispers. People turned up to face him on the stage, admiring his purple and sequin covered outfit.

" I'd like to take a moment to thank everyone for coming and for supporting my brand." He began. " To think that this all started as a dream on paper... and that my siblings and I didn't really grow up wealthy at all... it's crazy. I can still remember my brother Keith and I playing in the mud for fun while other kids had iPhones and Nintendos. I remember everything being... simple. Now here I am... a multimillionaire with a family of my own on the way."

Keith tuned out of Shiro's speech when he heard whispering from some of the other tables.

" Keith? Wasn't he the one who got raped...?"

" Yeah."

" If you believe it."

" There was a whole court case..."

" I don't know who I believe... now Allura's friends with him."

The omega felt the breath being expelled from his lungs and he tried to take a deep breath. He froze, his eyes going out of focus. Everything drowned out, absolutely everything.

" So you're the James I've heard so much about..."

" Yep, the one and only." James replied with a tiny smirk.

" Shiro, stop. You're embarrassing him." Keith scratched the back of his neck, blushing slightly and looking to the side as they all sat at the dinner table.

" I am not." Shiro rolled his eyes, then looked back to the boy his little brother had been dating. Now that he wasn't living at home anymore and hadn't been, he obviously wasn't around to interrogate Keith's boyfriends as they came along. He and Matt lived in an apartment a while away from his hometown as they brainstormed marketing ideas for Shiro's makeup brand, which was basically a joke at that time. " Now, James... Keith tells me you do sports?"

" Yessir."

" Like...?"

" Football, basketball, and lacrosse." James replied with a tiny yawn. Keith facepalmed before digging into his food. James had never really been the best at formality.

" I see... where does Keith fit into such a busy schedule?" Matt asked, then took a bite of his food. He didn't like the vibe James gave him, but he didn't hint at that.

" Everywhere. He lets me crash at his place a lot so we watch movies and have dinners and breakfasts together... we do a lot of stuff." James explained, and Shiro was already wondering how Krolia was okay with Keith having a boy alpha spending the night like that. Still, he figured since they'd been together almost a year, there was some trust that had built up.

After dinner, Keith and James were told they could sleep in the guest bedroom. It was late and the drive back to town would've been difficult when tired.

James thanked them and got up, and Keith was just praying that Shiro would be okay with him. There had been a reason he'd been so scared to introduce James, and that was because he had a macho attitude. Keith knew Shiro wouldn't be a fan of that.

Keith shut the door to the guest room and walked over to the bed, sitting on it.

" So... how'd I do?" James asked, crawling up behind Keith and pulling the omega toward himself.

" I'm not sure... but I think if he was too worried he'd be making me stay and having you drive home..." Keith chuckled a tad.

" Cause I'm such a bad guy, right?" James asked, laying Keith back on the bed and hovering over him.

" Totally... the worst." Keith whispered sarcastically.

" I'll show you how bad I am..." James whispered, snaking his hand under Keith's pants. Keith's eyes widened and he quickly grabbed James' arm.

" Not here... are you nuts?" He whispered, growing a bright shade of red.

" C'mon... I deserve a treat for being so good during dinner..." James murmured, leaning down and beginning to suck a hickey on Keith's neck. And in that moment, Keith knew that he could've said something. He knew he should've shoved James off... and if it called for it... yell for Shiro.

But still... James would've called it a misunderstanding and made him feel like he was in the wrong. What was the point in arguing about it? He would've rather just shut up and let James have what he wanted.

James always got what he wanted. And he was always the one who didn't get believed after the fact.

...

" Keith, hey. Please look at me." Lance said, cupping Keith's cheeks as he stood with him in the hall, and that was what Keith snapped back to. He realized his cheeks were damp and that he'd been zoned out, and was now staring into Lance's blue orbs.

" Lance?" He asked, quiet.

" Yeah... it's me... what's going on?" The alpha asked and ran a hand through Keith's hair, and Keith hadn't been sure what triggered his flashback. He knew that kicking James out of his head for good was impossible.

Leaning his face against Lance's shirt and probably staining it with makeup, Keith said nothing.

Lance realized it must've been Keith's PTSD and he felt his anger flaring up. He knew there was nothing he could do besides be there for him, but that didn't make it any less painful. Watching Keith suffer post-James was like letting James win, and Lance just couldn't accept that. He could cope and care for Keith, but still, the fire in his gut burned.

When Lance had realized Keith was having a flashback, he'd taken him into the hall and tried to snap him out of it. Now that he was holding his omega and feeling the slight shaking of his body... he found it all the much harder to contain himself. James could rot in hell for what he'd done.

" He's not here... he can't get you anymore, Princess..." Lance whispered and stroked Keith's bangs gently.

Keith pulled back and wiped his eyes, looking to the side. This was just a part of his life that he had to deal with after all the trauma that he'd been through. And even after James had been placed on house arrest and the case was over... he didn't have peace. The double gated community their house was in made Keith feel way better, yeah. But he couldn't shake the feeling that James was plotting something, and something big.

Whenever that guy wanted something, it was seen to that he got it and in due time. Keith's eyes beaded and he tried to wipe his tears away, but they just kept flowing from his eyes as he spiraled. Was it even over? Was he crazy for thinking he could live a normal life and feel safe?

Lance rubbed Keith's back.

" Should we...?"

" Let's go home..." Keith choked up.

All they could do was pray that if James came back like some sort of psycho boomerang, that they'd be prepared to fight his agenda.

{ Is anyone sick of all of the tea yet? :D

Too bad.}