Players and Pages (Willow Lake Omegaverse #2)

Chapter 1

"And Jackson makes it to second with a steal!" the announcer called from the little box on the corner of my monitor. I watched as one of my favorite players did a little victory dance to taunt the baseman. A smile tugged the corners of my lips up as I shook my head at his antics.

While I’d never really been into sports, these new performance teams had caught my eye and I was instantly hooked. The Knuckleball Knockouts stadium was just twenty minutes away but I hadn’t gotten up the nerve to purchase a ticket yet, however I would soon.

I kept telling myself once the store slows down… but that hadn’t happened yet. If it wasn’t a busy day in store, it was online.

Footsteps had me turning around to greet a customer that was walking up to the counter, arm full of books. I lowered the volume on the game and flashed her a smile.

"Did you find everything you needed?" I asked as I started to scan her purchases.

"So much more than I could even carry, but I'll definitely be back," she promised. There was genuine excitement in her voice, like this store was life changing for her. That right there was the reason all three of us were working so damn hard to make this place perfect.

Though, Taryn’s babies, the mystery book boxes, were on hold until she was fully back to work. The twins always took priority.

"That makes my heart happy," I told her, throwing in a few book themed stickers along with her receipt. We liked to keep little freebies at the counter for customers that shared our excitement for reading.

"Do you know when the mystery date with a book section is going to be ready?" she questioned when I told her the total.

"Oh, Taryn is hard at work on it. We don't have an exact date, but if you subscribe to our newsletter, there will be an announcement a week or two before it's open," I reassured her.

"Yes, I subscribed and follow you on every page already." She beamed.

"You are my dream customer," I said with another grin. “I’m Dani. If you ever need anything, don’t hesitate to reach out.”

The customer shook my hand and took her bags before answering. "I'm Tricia. Book enthusiast and stupidly excited for the store updates. We don’t get good stores like this in these small towns, so I’m practically feral for it.” Her laughter was more of a cackle and had me joining in.

“I’ll be sure to pass the encouragement along,” I promised as she waved goodbye. "Thanks for coming in, we hope you come back soon."

The bookstore had been insanely busy since we opened the doors three months ago. Between my already established customer base, word of mouth, being a unique business in these parts, and Taryn’s online presence, we were more than lucky.

It didn't take that long to get the shared business up and running once we had the location, but with the arrival of Taryn's twins, we pushed the grand opening back a bit.

Even with that delay, that didn't stop the foot traffic one bit.

A soft cry behind me had me turning to see Taryn walking up, sweet baby Gem swaddled in her arms. There was a big, amber bow on her head that had me smiling at her. My focus was fully on my sweet, little niece and not my best friend until Gem started to wail.

"You want me to hold her?" I offered, holding my arms out in the position to take her.

"There are so many customers in here, are you sure you can juggle both?" Taryn asked. There was a guilt in her tone that I didn't miss.

"Of course. It will give me practice for the next babies you have," I told her with a wink. She was crazy if she thought holding Gem was a hardship. Plus, I could clearly see she needed a break.

"Don't curse me with that talk," she laughed as she readjusted her glasses, "but seriously, please don't say that in front of the guys. They are already asking when we can have more."

"Well, next time they bring it up, tell them you’ll have more when they can carry two of these angels for nine months," I said as I bounced Gem, pitching my voice into a soothing lull as I spoke.

Gem quieted for just a moment as a customer came to pay. I shifted her to one side and completed the transaction one handed. They just had one book, so it didn't take long. Gem started to fuss again, which had Taryn reaching for her.

I danced away, which quieted the cries easily. This wasn’t my first time with a fussy baby.

"I’ve still got her. Take a shower or a nap. We will be fine," I promised the very tired omega. My poor friend had dark circles and her hair was a bit disheveled. It had to have been a long night.

"I don't know what I'd do without you and Bea. She's got Liam now, too. Gem’s fed and changed, I don't know why she won't settle down," she told me as she ran a finger gently down her baby’s face.

"She may be overtired and you're stressed, not a good combo," I said.

"How do you know all of this?" she asked as she quirked up an eyebrow. There was her usual sass. “Any secret children we don’t know about?”

"Ha-ha. No. My little sister is eleven years younger than me, so I helped my mom with her," I answered.

Taryn face palmed her forehead. "Oh, duh. I'm sorry, you told me that."

I let out a little laugh and Gem cried because I startled her. It took another few bounces for her to calm again. "You're a new mother to twins. You are allowed to forget. It’s called mom brain. Now get your shower, nap, or whatever you need."

"Thank you," she called as she disappeared back to her office in the back.

Gem wiggled in my grip to remind me that she was there and I looked down at her sad little face.

I started to rock her just like I did my sister and her eyelids started to get heavy. "Why are you giving your momma such a hard time?"

She yawned her answer.

"Good thing you are so cute. Just try and be nicer to your mom," I told her as her little snores started.

I turned back to my forgotten game, eyeing the stats to catch up on what I missed. Even as my body moved to keep Gem settled, my eyes were locked on the screen again.

“Cy just made the game winning catch, that will be one of the most replayed clips for weeks to come! The Knuckleball Knockouts win,” the announcer called from my little speaker. Thank goodness I’d turned it down earlier or she’d have been startled right awake as the fans went nuts.

I watched as the Knuckleball Knockouts did a victory dance, barely suppressing my laughter at their ridiculous moves.

Baby Gem went to sleep easily and my team won, that's what I call a lucky day.

I turned the game off and Gem and I took a little stroll down the rows of books. I stopped to chat quietly with the patrons that were milling around, asking them if they needed help and answering a million questions about Gem.

No one could resist the babies.

After about forty-five minutes of napping for Gem, Ash walked in the front door, his smile in place and signature leather jacket on. He’d even gotten a set for the twins, it was adorable. I’d never seen a pack take so well to fatherhood.

Then again, maybe there was something to say for finding your pack in your thirties. We were all well past clinging to our youth.

"Hey, Dani, are you ready to hand over my other best gal?" he smiled at me.

"Of course," I said as I gently transferred the sleeping girl to her father’s arms.

"Taryn in the back?" Ash asked, gesturing that way with his head.

"I'd say yes. I told her to nap or shower or whatever she needed. Liam is with Bea," I explained.

"I love that you and Bea are such a great support team for her here," he smiled as the bell rang and Holt and Mathias came in. All three of them kept work to a minimum as best they could, their full focus on their family now.

"It helps that Liam and Gem are so cute," I laughed. “It’s not exactly a hardship to take care of them and their sweet mama.”

"That they are," he agreed. "Thank you again, Dani."

"Anytime," I told him as the three of them walked to the back in search of their omega.

Their pack was a bit rocky at first, but once they figured things out they were all in. I felt a little hopeless that I'd never find love like theirs.

Hell, I didn't even have any prospects, for that matter. I was a curvy bookstore owner. Most expected me to be shy and quiet, and when I didn’t fit that bill, they were out. I was too outspoken, too set in my ways… or any other variation of saying I was ‘too much’ to handle.

"You okay, Dani?" Bea asked, making me jump.

"Shit, where'd you come from?" It was maybe a minute since the guys had left me standing here. Apparently, I’d really spaced out.

Bea laughed and raised her eyebrow. She was forever sassy and I loved her for it. "I got most of my work done in the back, so I thought since the guys took Liam, I'd come help out here."

I did need to stock some of the shelves and straighten them up, so this was perfect timing.

"That would be great. Can you just work the counter? I have some books to put out," I admitted. “It’s been busy today.”

“Of course, anything you need," she said as she moved to take my place like she’d done countless times before. We all worked well as a team, which was a relief. The three of us had just hit it off so well. There was no drama or bullshit and we helped where we were needed.

That made all of this run so much smoother and with the new expansion, it was wonderful, but there was a hole in my life that needed to be filled.

I wasn't jealous that Taryn was living the dream, however, I couldn't help but wonder when it would be my turn.

It didn’t take long to get my work done. I was already heading for the front when someone crashed out of the back offices.

Taryn was wide awake now, an excited grin on her face.

“Bea! Dani!”

I waited, a bit confused and startled, until all three of us were gathered by the counter.

“So, Dani,” she started, breathing heavily and cheeks glowing. I didn’t even need to know what just happened back there to make her this happy.

It was written all over her face.

“Yes?” I questioned, unsure where this could possibly be going.

“Bea and I were talking and you’ve been a bit down lately and doing all the extra work with the arrival of the twins. It’s meant so much to me. To us. We wanted to do something for you, so I had the guys find these.”

She handed over an envelope. My eyebrows furrowed as I looked up at her. “I don’t need a thanks for being a good friend.”

“Just open it, woman,” Bea demanded with a laugh.

I couldn’t resist any longer, ripping it open. My jaw dropped the moment I saw the tickets in my hand. The Knuckleball Knockouts logo was right there in all its bright blue and silver glory.

“No,” I gasped. “You didn’t!”

“We did!” Taryn grinned and did a little happy dance. It wasn’t until she was moving, that I realized I was already bouncing up and down.

“I’ll take it the squeals mean she liked it?” Mathias joked as he came out, eyes sparkling as he watched us.

“Yes! Thank you so much!” I said, breathless and so excited. Then my eyes locked on the date. “Tomorrow?!”

“Yup! And Mathias promised to watch the front for us so we can go. It’s an earlier game, so lunch out and the game after. They also got us these!”

She snatched a bag out of Mathias’s hand and pulled out three bright blue shirts, tossing one to each of us. They were jerseys. My cheeks burned at Cy’s name across the back.

“He’s your favorite, right? Might as well represent him,” Taryn teased. It was then that I realized though they were the same color, she and Bea simply had team shirts, not player ones.

I wasn’t about to complain though. Cy, Griff, and Jackson were my favorite. They were always at the center of the dance videos and antics. The way those men moved should be illegal.

And they were a pack.

Just thinking of them had my cheeks flushing and I hid it by sliding the shirt on to make sure it fit. Of course, my best friends made sure it did, the soft material hugged me in all the right places.

“Okay, unfair. How do you make that look hot?” Bea accused, gesturing to her shirt that was just as cute, just longer. She was insane.

“Oh stop,” I laughed. “You’re cute as hell and you know it.”

“We should go all out,” Taryn said as she slid hers on. “I bet the craft store would have some fun accessories to match.”

“We close in an hour,” Bea said, glancing my way. “You free?”

“I’m definitely down,” I said, before crushing them both in a hug. “Thanks for always having my back.”