“My two youngest children have packs.” Cassie fans her face, overcome with emotion as her eyes fill with tears. “I never thought I’d see the day! I thought we’d done something wrong with Beckett and Forest?—”
“It’s not your fault that no omegas want them,” Sabs chips in. “Let’s face it, Beckett would bore anyone to death, and Forest spends more time with fish than people.”
“Be nice, Sabs,” Ray tuts.
“Maybe we should get you back to the hotel?” Pops pats Cassie’s shoulder. “They have a spa. A massage and a swim would be nice after all the traveling.”
Cassie hiccups. “That does sound good.”
I can see the love between Sabs’s parents. A love that’s built on trust and friendship over years. If we’re going to be half as happy as the Maverick family, we’re going to have a pretty awesome life.
“Here.” Ray grabs Cassie’s cardigan then wraps it around her shoulders. “Let’s get ready to go.”
“We’re around for a few more days,” Bug says. “Any chance we could get tickets to see our daughter’s alpha’s big hockey game?”
A lump forms in my throat. “Y-you want to see me play?”
“Of course we do.” Bug claps me on the back. “You’re family now.”
“I can get extra tickets.” I’m grateful for Orin’s offer as I’m too stunned to speak. “We’d love to see you there.”
Bug offers me a smile. “I look forward to seeing you out on the ice.”
“Oh, Sabs!” Cassie dives on her again for another long hug, one of probably 100 over the course of the day. “I really am so proud of you.”
“Okay, Mom.” Sabs pats her. “We know you get weepy after a few drinks.”
“Sorry.” Cassie swipes at her wet cheeks before turning to address the rest of our pack. “It was lovely to meet you. I can see that Sabs is in very strong—I mean,good—hands.”
“Let’s get back for that massage, okay?” Ray starts leading Cassie toward the door, pausing to peck Sabs on the forehead. “See you soon.”
“Will do.” Sabs gives her father a big squeeze. “I guess we’ll see you at Adler’s game.”
“You betcha!” Bug winks. “We wouldn’t miss it.”
We wait at the door, watching them head down to the car, Cassie swaying slightly.
“What a lightweight.” Sabs laughs, but it’s filled with affection, wiping her forehead as soon as Orin closes the door. “That seemed to go well. Sorry for all their heavy questions.”
“It was to be expected,” Orin replies.
“But we probably should talk about the future, right?” I feel her nerves as she fiddles with her hair. I’ve noticed that Sabs tends to mask uncomfortable feelings under jokes or tries to divert attention away from them. “You know, about us… dun, dun, dahhhh…bonding!”
Although I can’t feel the others’ emotions, I notice the postures of my packmates stiffen. They haven’t wanted to put any pressure on her, but I see how they look at my bond mark onher neck, almost as if they’re imagining what theirs would look like alongside it.
“We don’t have to talk about any of that if you’re not ready,” Orin says.
“No, I want to talk about it.” Sabs lets out a deep breath, her next words coming out in a rush. “We should do it. Talk about it, I mean. What we’re going to do.”
Luca, Orin, and Drax hang on her every word. I can’t imagine what it must feel like to be in their shoes. I notice Luca’s jaw is tight. Poor guy. He’s already told me that he’s gone through a full tube of Teeth-Numb gel because of the tingling in his canines he gets whenever he’s in the same room as Sabs. I’m guessing that Drax and Orin must be experiencing similar discomfort too.
“I’ve waited a long time for you, Sabs,” Drax speaks first. “Just being with you is enough for me. We don’t ever need to bond, if you don’t want to.”
“You know that I think you’re my scent match.” Luca nods earnestly. “But we can go at your pace. Whatever makes you feel comfortable.”
“While I appreciate you all being super sweet and chivalrous…” Sabs flashes us her mischievous smile that we all love so much. “I think I do—no, I know—that I do actually want to bond with you. All of you.”
“You do?” Drax sounds surprised, which baffles me because it’s obvious how much she cares about him. While he might have been stuck in the friendship zone in the past, he’s the one she feels most comfortable around. The one she runs to if she’s upset.
