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“Really?” Relief hit me like a truck. “You’re amazing. Thank you so much. I’ll keep you updated.”
“Please do. Take care.”
I threw on a sweater and shoes and hopped in my car, letting my phone direct me to Tony and Billie.
They were still in the emergency room when I arrived, and I raced to their sides.
Tony seemed pleased to see me, and it loosened one of the many knots in my stomach I’d been harbouring since I’d left the pack house. I gave him a quick hug first before looping my hand through Billie's. They had a giant goose egg on their forehead and looked totally out of it.
“Hey, honey.” I kissed their cheek. “How are you feeling?”
Billie whimpered, their grip like iron in my hand. “Everything is wiggly. I don’t like being dizzy.”
“Nicky.”
I turned to Tony, taking in the worry lines between his brows and the way he chewed his bottom lip.
“I really hate to ask, but I think I need to. I have to stay here with Billie, and Gabe is short-staffed at work, so he can’t leave quite yet. Jasper is going to be in heat any minute now, and only Hana is there with him. Our food service order got fucked up. We were heading out to get some temporary supplies when this happened. Could you…”
“Oh god, of course. I’ll get whatever you need.” Nerves at seeing Jasper right now were overridden by the fact that my pack needed me.
Tony's shoulders dropped. “Thank you. I’d ask you to stay here with Billie while I did all that, but…”
The moment he tried to pull away Billie's unfocused gaze shot to him, tears glimmering. “Don’t leave me. Don’t…”
“He's not going anywhere.” I kissed Billie's hand. “They’re going to take really good care of you. I have to go get some things for Jasper, but Tony will be here with you.”
Billie's glassy eyes flickered between me and Tony before they groaned and closed them. Tony caught me in a kiss that warmed me all the way down to my toes.
“Thank you,” he said again. “Jasper will be in the nest with Hana. You can leave everything in the kitchen, and I’ll bring it up to them when I get home. They don’t have to know that you’re there at all.”
I hugged Tony, burrowing into his arms and breathing in his coffee and caramel scent while tucking my nose against Jasper’s bond bite. Craving for the pack sank into my bones. I didn’t want to leave Tony’s arms, but Jasper needed me, and if I was too chicken to join his heat, then I could at least do this task for them.
I left a few minutes later with a list of what they needed. The hospital was nearby where my parents lived, so I went to their usual grocery store. The only cashier on staff this late waved to me as I entered the store. I waved hastily back and beelined for the section for premade high calorie meals perfect for omega heats. I grabbed a stack of them as well as a bunch of fruit and a few containers of pastries that couldn’t compete with Jasper’s but would be easy calories. I wanted to rush through the purchase, but the cashier was slow as molasses, and nothing seemed to want to scan, so he typed every single item in by hand until I was ready to scream.
As soon as I paid I dragged everything out to my car at top speed, dropping it all into my trunk and racing away to the pack house. The guard at the gate let me through, and I zipped down the street, coming to a stop in their driveway.
The house was dark.
I unlocked the front door with the key they had given me the same day they’d given me my bedroom. Struggling my way inside under the weight of the groceries, I dropped it all in the entryway and stood, huffing and puffing to catch my breath.
The varied scents of the pack hung in the air. Jasper's scent was heaviest among them, all sweetness thickened with desire like a syrup pouring down my throat. I shook my head and steeled myself, taking the bag of apples I’d bought into the kitchen to wash.
Fixing the hurt I had caused would be as easy as walking upstairs… I hated being away from the pack, and even though I was nervous as hell, the thought of leaving this house again without making things right felt wrong. I wasn’t sure how far gone Jasper would be, if it was possible to talk to him or if I would fall face first into the heat high, but it was a risk I was willing to take, to make sure that he knew how much I loved him.
I froze. I hadn’t fully admitted it to myself, but the truth was there. I’d been falling fast and hard for this pack, and they meant so much to me that I couldn’t even begin to comprehend a future without them. If I needed some extra care on the other side of things, I knew the pack would step up to help me.
Staring at the ceiling, I tried to pluck up the courage to carry everything upstairs. Tony had said I could leave it all in the kitchen and go without anyone else knowing I was here, but who knew how long it had been since Jasper and Hana had eaten? What if they were hungry? It was a flimsy excuse at best, though it was enough for me to override some of my trepidation and gather everything up to take it to them.
I bundled the clean fruit into a bowl and set it into one of the grocery bags, hooking everything over my arms to trudge up the stairs. My lungs burned by the time I reached the top. Apparently, lugging around fifty pounds of groceries overwhelmed what little bit of cardio I had gained with Hana's workouts.
I crept towards Jasper's room in the strangely oppressive silence. I managed to open Jasper's door with my elbow, taking a deep breath, bolstering myself to take the final step.
My arms burned as I shoved my way inside, trekking over to the kitchenette to unload everything. I wasnotfit enough for this. The scent of his heat hit me like I’d walked into a brick wall. Sweat prickled instantly on my skin, every inch of me tingling. My first instinct was to breathe as deeply as possible, sucking in more air until my body throbbed.
The curtains around Jasper's nest were closed, but now that I was in here and not moving, I could hear his whimpers and panting breaths and the slick sound of what was probably Hana fucking him.
I bit down on a whine.
