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“Fine, let’s start on the floors.”
Nine
Summer
A door slammingjolts me out of my dream.
Crap.
Crap. Crap. Crap.Crap.
I look around, heart beating out of my chest, scared to ask my mom to take me to school because I just missed the bus. Again. Then a very dirty Maverick walks in, followed by Hudson, who is equally covered in dust and grime. Brooklyn trails behind them, talking on the phone and looking perfectly put together. Then I remember I’m twenty-six, and I don’t go to school anymore. Much less take the bus.
The relief I feel is instant, and I flop back on the couch, feeling my heartbeat settle by the second.
“What’s got you smiling?” Maverick asks me. He bends down, careful not to touch the white couch with his dirty hands, and gives me a quick kiss.
When he pulls away, my lips chase his, and he smirks at me as I pout. Laughing at me. It’s infuriatingly sexy the way his lip tilts up a little. “Oh, just a dream,” I say distractedly. I lick my lips, tasting bourbon and citrus lingering there. He tastes so good, and all of a sudden, I remember thatotherparts of him taste just as good. Flashes of my heat come back to me, and warmth travels through my body.
Great, now I’m horny.
My scent must spike in the open space because all three heads turn my way and flare their nostrils, varying degrees of alpha growls rumbling through their chests.
“I like where your head is at. But hold that thought until I’ve had a shower, sweets,” Mav growls, and I decide to tease him a little.
I look between him and Hudson, glance very obviously at their dirty clothes, and wrinkle my nose. “Yeah, probably should shower first…” A long-suffering sigh. “I just hope I haven’t taken care of the problem myself before you get back. Better hurry…” Before I’ve even finished talking, he and Hudson are both sprinting away, ripping off clothes as they go. Hudson grabs Mav by the arm and pulls him back when he gets a little lead. When they turn the corner, I relax back onto the couch with my arms behind my head and a smile on my face.
Too easy.
“That was evil,” Brooklyn sniggers and plops down beside me on the couch. Then she wiggles until her head is in my lap, and she’s lying longways along the couch. Her eyes close immediately, but I can still tell how exhausted she is. With a few kicks, she chucks off her heels, turns her head into my stomach, and sniffs.
My heart aches a little, so I do the only thing I can think of. I comb a hand through her hair in light strokes and let out a soft purr. One meant to soothe, to relax. Tension drains from her, starting with her shoulders, and I watch it like a wave through her body. Shoulders, then arms, and legs all going limp. Even the tension around her eyes relaxes, making her look years younger.
“Pretty sure this is supposed to be the other way around,” she mumbles quietly, seemingly on the edge of sleep.
I frown. “What is?”
“The comfort thing. Alphas comfort their omegas.” Her words are matter-of-fact. Like she hasn’t known anything else. It is amazing how different everyone’s views are. How the way we’re raised warps our way of thinking. My mom always told me it was an omega’s job to ensure her alphas were taken care of.They take care of your needs, give you a home, and stability. You have to return the favor. Alphas never look after their own emotional needs. Their omega has to do that,my mom used to tell me.
After I hit puberty and presented as an omega, that is. I think part of her hoped I was a beta. Maybe the world looked down on them, but they also weren’t bound by the same rules and societal standards as alphas or omegas. She wanted a simple life for me. Easy. I wonder how she’d react if she were alive today.
“I don’t think it’s a mutually exclusive thing. We’re supposed to take care of each other. Iwantto take care of you.” I murmur, still stroking her hair.
“Mmmmmm. Perfect mate.” Her words are little more than a mumble. Barely audible. A few more brushes of her hair, and the quietest snore slips out. A chuckle tries to work its way up and out of me, but I choke it down so my body doesn’t shake and wake her.
Wells walks in the front door a moment later, and I hold my free finger to my lips to make sure he stays quiet. In his hands are three large pizza boxes and two smaller ones. The smell of pepperoni and cheese wafts in with the breeze, and my stomach growls.
“Met the delivery guy at the gate when I was doing my rounds,” he whispers, tiptoes into the kitchen to set the boxes down, and points out that he’s going to be downstairs. I nod back and give him a thumbs up.
Every part of me wants to get up to eat. Since I smelled the food, my stomach has not stopped growling. It’s actually starting to make me worry it’ll wake Brooklyn up. Footsteps thud in the quiet house, sounding akin to a stampede. I flinch, watching every twitch and breath come from Brooklyn, hoping she stays asleep.
When they both slide around the corner, laughing, I glare at them and hold a finger to my lips like I did for Wells. This just makes them cackle even harder.
“Don’t worry, pretty girl. Once she’s out,nothingis waking her up for at least several hours. Trust me, we’ve tried. Drums, banging pots and pans, nada.” He flares his nostrils, clearly smelling the pizza, and continues, “Come on, let’s eat. Scoot out from under her. She won't wake up. Promise.” I glance at Maverick, but he doesn’t look like they’re trying to pull one over on me, so I do. Even still, I lift Brooklyn’s head from my lap gently and place it down on a throw pillow that I pull over with the same care.
I stand there for a few seconds, just making sure. But they were telling the truth. If anything, her snoring gets a little louder, her sleep deeper. I shake my head and laugh a little.
Hudson has pulled three plates out from the cabinet by the time I get to the kitchen, and Maverick has all the boxes open and laid out. The two small boxes are cheesy bread and garlic knots. Then the big boxes are one pepperoni, one meat lover’s, and one supreme pizza. Hudson hands me and Mav a plate and then starts to pile up his own. He takes four slices right off the bat of the meat lover’s and a few pieces of the bread sides.
