Page 12 of Never Bet Against A Hockey Player

But I refused to risk losing him over my own selfish wants. Mom would do everything she could to ruin my life and make sure I didn’t see Gavin. Then he’d be at her mercy without me as a buffer.

A possibility I couldn’t consider for even a second.

If I had to break my own heart to give him the life he deserved, then that’s exactly what I would do.

Chapter

Four

Lachlan

“What the fuck was that?” I demanded as we watched Dhara and Gavin rush out the front door of the diner.

I came in to load up on carbs, and now I was scent-matched with a girl who looked like she was ready to vomit the moment she realized it.

Not exactly the reaction that I’d ever anticipated getting when finding my omega.

Hell, I’d expected awkward. Shy, maybe, if she knew who I was. I’d even take overwhelmed.

Not my omega being fucking terrified.

Nobody dreamt about finding their scent-match only to watch them look like they’re trying not to run from you.

Conrad looked equally as shaken by the encounter.

“I wish I knew. I met them last night,” he explained. “She was cleaning in the locker room when I got out of the shower. Scared the shit out of her. Gavin came busting in ready to throw down for her. It was adorable.”

“Her son?” I asked.

My voice sounded strangely calm, even though I was freaking the fuck out on the inside.

My omega had a child. Not just any child, but a preteen.

“No, her brother. Gavin’s great. You’ll love him, especially because he’s going to be at practice tonight with the juniors. But she’s guarded. Dhara reacted pretty much the same way to me last night. I told her I’d be patient, and I will be. I just wish I knew what was going on. Something has her terrified and I want to know what it is.”

I wasn’t sure what to do with this new information.

The other waitress walked over with our loaded-up plates, sliding them in front of us and effectively ending the conversation. From the look on her face, she knew what happened.

“Can I get you boys anything else?”

The omega was older and definitely the main character type. I’d seen her talking and moving around the room like it was her stage. Her pack gravitated around her in the stolen glimpses I’d caught since I’d been here.

I had a sinking feeling that would never be our pack.

Not if our omega looked like she’d rather be anywhere but where we were.

“Give her time. Go easy on her,” she said when we told her we didn’t need anything. The look she gave us reminded me of my own mother. It was protective and weighted. I wondered if we passed whatever internal test she was judging us on.

After a few long beats, she tapped the table once, as if to hammer home her point, and then she walked away.

Neither one of us made a move to eat our food.

I was stunned, uncertain, and not really sure where to go from here.

Dhara came back, but did the bare minimum. Honestly, if she was anybody but my scent-match, I think I’d just assume she was another rude waitress who hated her job.

Even as she avoided us, our drinks never ran dry. Anything we asked for she delivered with a smile.