Chapter 58
Wilder
I pulled the pan of enchiladas out of the oven at the firehouse and set it on top of the stove, joining the pan I’d already pulled out.
The cheese was still bubbling, but I grabbed a plate to serve up my portion, anyway.
In a few seconds, my guys would descend upon the kitchen like ravenous beasts.
I wasn’t a gourmet cook or anything, but I liked feeding people. It made me feel good. Useful.
Like when I made Lucy a grilled cheese in my cabin.
For the first time since I started firefighting, I wished I had a job with normal hours.
Being away from her for these long stretches was torture, although being on this shift meant I could put off telling her the truth of my diagnosis for a bit longer.
It wasn’t fair to her, or the guys, for that matter. They all deserved to know.
My phone rang and my heart raced when I saw it was King calling. I’d texted him a couple hours ago about Lucy, and my mind immediately imagined the worst.
“Hello?”
“Wilder. I need your help.” King was always annoyingly calm and businesslike, but right now, he sounded like he was seconds away from losing it.
I gripped the counter, my knuckles turning white. “Is Lucy okay?”
“What? Yes, she’s totally fine. She had to go to Briar’s Landing and I’m watching the demon for her.”
“Demon? What the fuck are you talking about?”
“The bunny! The little demon bunny from hell who has it out for me! But she likes you. So you need to come here and talk some sense into her.”
My guys stampeded into the kitchen, and I stepped out into the hall so I could hear King. “You’re calling me because you can’t handle a tiny bunny that’s literally smaller than your fist?”
“You can judge me all you want as long as you get over here,” he hissed.
“I’m in the middle of a shift. I can’t just leave.”
“Wilder, I swear to god, if you don’t get over here, I will set fire to my house just so I can call 911 and get dispatch to send you over.”
What the fuck was happening at that house?
“I guess arson prevention is part of my job,” I said dryly.
“You have five minutes to get here before it’s no longer prevention.” He hung up the phone.
I stared at my uneaten plate of enchiladas, my stomach rumbling. Fuck. I had to go over there, didn’t I? We were a pack now.
I picked up my plate and headed back into the kitchen.
“This is great, boss,” Ezra said around a mouthful of food.
I grunted. It might be immature, but I still held a grudge against him for flirting with my girl. I transferred my lunch into a plastic container before adding two more helpings to it, against my better judgment.
“I have to respond to a call. I’ll be back soon. Noah, you’re in charge while I’m gone. Call me right away if any other calls come in.”
Silence descended on the kitchen. I put the lid on the Tupperware and turned around to find all of my guys’ eyes on me.
Yousef sat back in his chair with a shit-eating grin. “Could this important call have something to do with a cute little omega?”
“No,” I snapped.
The guys cheered. Assholes.
“Boss, if you can wait three months before you bond her, that would be appreciated,” Noah said with a glint in his eye.
“No, no. Lucy is amazing. You definitely need to bond her in the next nine days,” Ezra said.
I scrubbed my hand over my face with a long-suffering sigh. “Another fucking betting pool?”
Noah winked. My fucking captain winked at me.
I flipped them all off before grabbing my food and stalking out of the kitchen to my truck.
King
SHE IS DOING THAT FOOT STOMP THING
SHE IS PLOTTING MY DEMISE
I snorted and pulled out of the parking lot. I headed down Main Street, slowing when I saw Leo’s car in front of his shop. Looked like he was back from his flower delivery.
I pulled over and headed into his shop, leaving the truck running. Leo was sitting in an armchair with his laptop.
His eyes widened when he spotted me. “Lucy?”
“Is fine. But King needs to be rescued. Let’s go.”
The beta grabbed his cane. “Rescued? From what?”
I smirked. “Blossom.”
“Huh?”
I held the door open for him. “No fucking clue, but he sounded desperate.”
A loud meow had me looking up just in time to see Felix scamper down the big tree outside the shop with the agility of an Olympic gymnast. The same tree I’d fucking rescued him from. He landed nimbly on his feet and trotted over to my truck.
“Do you ever get the sense that Felix is an evil mastermind?” I asked Leo.
“Yes. And seeing how he somehow materializes inside my house whenever he wants, he has greater powers than we could ever know.”
The front door to King’s rental was unlocked, so I pushed it open. “King? You here?”
A loud crash from the other room greeted us, and Leo looked at me with an arched eyebrow. “I feel like we’re walking into a horror movie.”
My lips twitched. “Stay behind me. I’ll protect you.”
“Big manly alpha is going to protect me? At least I have a weapon.” Leo lifted his cane in the air.
I snorted. “I guess you should go first, then, so you can defend me.”
The beta grinned as he took the lead.
I’d never been inside King’s place before, but I assumed it didn’t always look like this.
A lamp in the living room had crashed to the ground, and toilet paper covered the entire floor.
We followed the paper trail into the kitchen and found a frazzled King standing in a pile of flour, in a standoff with Blossom.
“Umm, hello?”
The alpha whipped around. His button-down shirt was completely undone and his hair was ruffled and sticking up.
“Thank fuck. Talk sense into her!” He pointed at the tiny bunny sitting on top of the kitchen counter.
I frowned. “It’s not safe for her to be up there.” I walked over to Blossom and scooped her up in my hand. She let out a happy squeak.
“No. No. You can’t pretend to be all cute and reasonable now!” King’s voice was bordering on hysterical.
I put Blossom on my shoulder and crossed my arms. “Don’t yell at her.”
King snarled and tore at his hair. Leo chuckled and patted him on the back. “We’ll get this cleaned up, don’t worry. By the way, I like the new look.” He gestured at King’s bare chest.
“She chewed the buttons off my shirt again. This time she got my hair, too!” He pointed at a chunk of his hair that did, in fact, look shorter than the rest.
Leo and I couldn’t contain our laughter. I put my hand on Blossom to make sure she wasn’t jostled as my shoulders shook. King glared at us as he scrubbed his hand down his face, but I was pretty sure I saw a hidden smile.
“I think this is yours,” Leo said. He started to bend over to pick something up off the floor, but King beat him to it.
Leo was clearly sensitive about his leg, and King went out of his way to make things easier for the beta without making him feel self-conscious.
I wasn’t the most in-tune person when it came to romance, but anyone could see that these two were into each other.
King held up a small button and made an I’m watching you gesture at Blossom.
I grabbed the Tupperware I’d set on the counter and dished up the enchiladas, popping them in the microwave. “What did you do to anger her?”
“I think it’s because I said her ears were lopsided that one time! It wasn’t an insult!” He slumped down on a barstool, his head in his hands.
“Well, have you apologized?” Leo asked seriously.
“Apologized? To the bunny?”
Blossom nudged me and I gently set her down on the counter in front of King, who let out an aggrieved sigh.
“Blossom, I apologize for this grave insult. Your ears are perfect.” He glanced at us, eyes wide. Leo made a gesture for him to continue.
“You are very pretty, and your fur is soft, and…” He groaned and put his head down on his arms. “Please forgive me.”
Blossom slowly hopped over to him. We all held our breath. She leaned in, snuggling the side of his head, and then…
She bit off a chunk of his hair and hopped back to Leo, depositing her stolen goods in his hand.
King groaned, Leo laughed, and I just slid a plate of enchiladas across the island. “You’ll just have to keep working to win her over.”
He muttered something under his breath and dug into his food. I passed a plate to Leo.
“Damn, Wilder. This is really good,” he said. “I didn’t know you could cook.”
“I would offer you some food,” King said bitterly, “but Blossom ate my meal prep salads.”
There was a beat of silence, and then the three of us burst out laughing.
“Don’t tell Lucy,” he said, covering his face.
Leo grinned. “Your secret is safe with us.”
If this was what pack life was like, maybe we would be okay.