“How was your chat?” Kota finally asked. He was a bit more awake now as well, his smile back to its usual brightness.
“Good,” Rylan winked at him. “I was wondering if you wanted to go check out the hot tub with me after breakfast, Kota.”
“Just us?” Kota asked, hope in his voice. The two really did need this moment.
“Yes,” Rylan said with confidence.
“I’d love that,” Kota said as he reached over and tugged Rylan closer, plucking a grape off of his plate and popping it into his mouth. The fact Ry didn’t argue was a sign he was feeling a lot more confident in his mate.
“That leaves us,” Greer said as he focused on me. There was no jealousy with his omega flirting with another delta. He was happy to be talking to me. I’d take that over being scared, or them finding their past again and shutting us out.
It seemed they’d had their moment and wanted to make sure they built the pack up as well.
“Do you have something in mind?” I asked.
“Would it be lame if I suggested the spa? They had this relaxing facial thing. Maybe it defeats the purpose but we could get pampered and just talk for a bit?”
“Count me in,” I said easily. That sounded like the perfect start to my day. “I won’t even interview you for the article yet.”
“There’s time for that,” he promised. “Give me this time and I’ll make sure to come talk business soon.”
“That’s huge for him. This guy hates the press usually,” Kota said.
“Probably because they’re vultures in those post-game interviews,” I said. “That was one part of journalism I could never get behind. You learn so much more from casual conversation and being an annoying asshole wasn’t really my vibe.”
“Thank God,” Greer said, giving me a smile. They came so easily to him now and I gave him a soft one in return, soaking in his attention like I was a sunflower and he was the sun. The warmth radiated from him now.
Our food was out quickly and we ate before breaking into two groups. Rylan and Kota went off to the hot tub while Greer held out a hand for mine. When our fingers were intertwined he walked me through the halls to the spa.
We couldn’t talk for the first half as the masseuses gave us facials and upper body massages.
Once they finished we were wrapped in fluffy, white robes with a mask on our faces. The music in the background was a serene rain and soft music mix.
We sat side by side on cozy chairs, completely at ease and ready to talk. Greer didn’t hesitate to start.
“So, Rylan and I talked through everything we could last night. It was incredible how stupid we were but we both agreed that it was meant to be this way. We weren’t ready then and we didn’t have all of you. The pack is important to me and so areyou. I want this to work this time and I’m ready to find a real life that doesn’t just center around hockey.”
“I’m so glad you guys were able to figure things out. Is it really just that easy? One chat and boom, everything is fine?”
He snorted. “Of course not. There’s going to be just as much newness to that relationship as we have with ours. I think we just finally both were able to push away those darker thoughts and realize our own roles and that it was a shared failing. It helped a lot to know that we both made those mistakes. I think now we can just let it go and start to heal. We’ve changed a lot.”
“I bet,” I said as I pulled my knees up and turned toward him, giving him my undivided attention.
“I know I said I wanted to take it slow but I think I’d rather just… not add a label to this. I want to talk and get to know you, to go back and keep things rolling, and let it progress however feels right for both of us.”
“That’s how I would prefer us to do this, too. Letting things happen naturally will always make a better connection. I don't want labels and rules to get in the way. We’ll figure things out and yeah, we’ll probably fuck up from time to time, but we’re all adults and can work through it when that happens.”
“That or Hayes will kick our asses,” he tacked on.
“If he even comes around. I swear he’s running from me.”
“He will,” Greer said with enough confidence that I chose to simply trust in that and let it go for now.
My phone pinged several times in a row, a surefire sign that Kota was messaging. I stood up slowly trying not to flash the delta and padded over to the stack of clothes and belongings I had across the room. I checked my phone, shaking my head at the four messages he’d just sent.
Kota
The hot tub was very steamy and perfect. We need to cool off now so are hitting the pool
