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“We’re solid. Two alphas besides me, a beta, and an omega. All bonded. Everyone has consistent jobs, except our beta, but they were born into money, so they have a lot of wiggle room to play with passions. We established the pack six years ago, and, so far as I’ve been able to tell, everyone is pretty fond of Nicky. Hana, one of our alphas, takes a while to warm up, but she's open to the idea.”
“So, you’re all after her joining you?”
I shrugged. “I’d be happy to have her, but the decision is entirely up to Nicky. I think she's just in the exploratory phase right now.”
“She's… I was going to say she's always been patient, but I think it was that she was always a little bit bored. She needed more than she let herself have. Granted, I don’t know the rest of your pack, or you, really, but I’ll trust her judgement with it. Just don’t fuck her up, okay? She's tough, but she's a lot more fragile than she likes to let people see.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. I have no intention of hurting her.”
“I know. I can tell by the way that you look at her. But just know that she's stubborn as a fucking mule, and sometimes that makes her a little stupid. Said with love,” Sidney laughed. “She's been caught by that sunk-cost-fallacy in the past. And if she starts missing family dinners, I’m gonna get suspicious.”
“I gather there's a story behind that statement?” I asked.
“Just an asshole she used to date. The longer they were together, the less often she came around. And when we did see her, she was always stressed out.”
“Is that Alphonse?”
Sidney nodded. “She told you about him?”
“Tony and Billie picked her up from his place. He spooked her, and she’s been staying with us.”
Sidney stopped dead. “What?”
Well, fuck. Apparently Nicky hadn’t told himeverything.
“Why was she at his place? Fuck. I hope she’s not thinking about getting back together with him.” He ran a hand through his hair and started us walking again.
“She’s not. At least, from what I’ve heard through the pack grapevine. He showed up at her library, and, from the sounds of it, he bullied her into a date. If he makes himself a nuisance, we’ll see about having someone from the pack making sure she gets home alright, but we’re hoping he got the message to leave her alone.”
“I wish she’d told me.” Sidney’s brow furrowed. He let out a deep sigh as we rounded the corner. “In any case, I’m glad to have someone else in the ‘Nicky's well-being’ corner. I love her a lot. It was easier when we were kids and I could just punch anyone who was stupid towards her.”
“Working security at a club has taught me that some people never outgrow that.”
He laughed. “God, I don’t doubt that for a second.”
We passed the rest of the short walk chatting about inconsequential things. I liked having this opportunity to get a deeper insight into the beta that had swept over us like a storm. Nicky's family loved her, and that quelled a lot of lingering questions about who she was and what the future might mean.
Back at the house, we settled in for dessert with a fresh round of Italian sodas and a particularly vicious game of Monopoly. Once Nicky had snared the final railroad, it was the beginning of the end for the rest of her family. I couldn’t hide the amused curl of my mouth as I watched her absolutely trounce them, her in-game fortune ballooning with every round.
She was momentarily distracted by a text that she hastily replied to before rolling the dice. A moment later there was a knock at the door, and her spine snapped ramrod straight.
“I’ll get it,” said Luca. He trotted over to the front door and swung it open, revealing my beautiful omega standing there, looking apologetic, with a box from the bakery.
“I’m so sorry I’m late. I got everything managed as quickly as I could and got the dough in the refrigerator to deal with later.”
Nicky's parents stared at Jasper, confusion clear on their faces. Sidney glanced back-and-forth between me and the door, and his wife looked absolutely delighted by the turn of events.
Nicky shot up from her seat and dashed to the door. It was then that Jasper saw me. The colour drained from his cheeks. I rose to follow Nicky and set a comforting hand on Jasper's shoulder.
“Nicola, who is this?” her mother asked.
“Um…”
Sidney joined us in the entryway and thrust out his hand to greet Jasper. He swung his other arm over Luca's shoulders. “Nice to meet you. We’re Nicky's brothers, Sidney and Luca.”
Jasper swallowed hard and accepted the handshake. “Jasper.”
“Nicola,” her father said. “Explain.”
