6. Sam
Chapter 6
I t’s not exactly on the way home, but I make a quick detour and pull into the grocery store. Teddy read the text from Kelly too, and while neither of us has a lot of experience living with beta women, I think we can figure this out. He’s already got a search pulled up on his phone for what she might need. Steve gets out of the truck and follows us in. I doubt he knows what we need to get either, but I can send him to grab some candy while Teddy and I try to figure this out.
The store here is pretty small. It has a little bit of everything, but not much variety on anything. Except condoms, apparently. I chuckle a little at the memory of our beta’s shopping trip on our first night together. At least it makes shopping for feminine hygiene products easier. I peer over Teddy’s shoulder where he’s pulled up a questionnaire designed to help pick out the perfect products for your period.
Do they have to sound so damned upbeat about this?
Eventually, Steve wanders back, and in the spirit of getting us the hell out of here, pulls up his own search engine. “What’s Kelly’s age, approximately? Uh, she’s so not a virgin. Do you think she needs something for overnights? Probably better to grab those, too, just in case.” He scrolls down his screen before handing me a giant bag of gummy bears and a package of chocolate bars, then stacks some truffles on top before reaching over to grab some slim tampons, a box of pantyliners, light overnight pads, and regular flow, passing them all off to Teddy. He walks farther down the aisle and picks up a bottle that says Menstrual Pain Relief and a bright pink bottle that says Midol, reading the back of both before putting the generic looking one back.
“Ok, that…looks like everything,” he says, still scrolling through his phone before looking between us. “Did you want to make her some sort of comfort food? According to this site, it might help with the PMS…but it might not. Oh, we should probably get some hot cocoa and marshmallows, that’s always good. She probably already has a heating pad though…” He trails off, looking thoughtful before shoving us to the freezer section to pick out some cartons of ice cream. “She isn’t lactose intolerant, is she? No…she’s been eating that soup…hmmm. Fuck it, everybody loves chocolate. ”
All three of us are now thoroughly loaded down as we make our way to the front. Billy is working again this afternoon, and he looks from me to Teddy to Steve before he shrugs and starts ringing us up. “Afternoon Mr. McKinnley, is Kelly feeling ok?”
My eyes squint before I nod. “Sorry, it’s Carpenter now, but you know you should just call me Sam—unless your manager’s around.”
He gives me a big grin. “He’s not, but he gets upset if I use first names, it’s just easier to remember this way. Also, I saw your friend there”—he nods towards Steve—“and another guy chasing after her last week, and I was keeping an eye on her when your truck pulled up. Sorry, I didn’t mean nothin’ by it.” His ears are red as he stares down at his hands, scanning our items.
“Well, Billy, I appreciate it. Thanks for keepin’ an eye on our beta. This here’s Steve—he was with his brother Garret—and Teddy, our omega.” Billy’s eyes flip up to Teddy for a brief moment before they swing back to me. He finishes ringing us up in silence, and I press my debit card to the reader. We each grab a couple of bags before he pipes up again. “Congratulations, Sam…Mr. Carpenter…Carpenters…not sure how that works. But tell Kelly I said congrats too. Have a nice evening.”
I nod in return as we file out and start loading stuff into the truck bed. Teddy’s staring intently at Steve as we all settle in. “Ok, Vee, I appreciate your helping back there, but I didn’t think you liked Kelly. I mean, I thought you actively disliked her. What gives? ”
Steve looks between the two of us. He’s chewing his lip and looks like he’s trying to decide on an answer. “That’s…fair. I don’t like her. I don’t hate her, but…I’m jealous? You all seem to have such a good relationship. She makes it look easy. I didn’t think I’d ever have a pack, and now I do, and they’re falling all over themselves for a skinny little beta girl. It’s…frustrating.” This last word is spoken almost like a question. “Besides, whether I like her or not, I don’t want her to feel bad—if she feels bad, you two will spend all your free time trying to make her feel better.”
Teddy is staring intently at him from the front seat. “So all this”—he waves his finger around towards the bed of the truck where we stowed all our purchases—“is just so we won’t give her attention?” Teddy sounds skeptical, and I can’t blame him. What Steve says doesn’t make a lot of sense for a long-term plan.
The alpha throws up his hands. “Ok, fine, I don’t hate her as much as I thought I would…just because I don’t want to fuck her doesn’t mean I want her to be uncomfortable. I don’t want to fuck Garret either, but he’s a miserable bastard when he doesn’t feel good. It’s just…better for people to not hurt. Alright?”
Teddy reaches through the seats and pulls Steve into a tight hug. “Thank you, Alpha. I appreciate your help. Now buckle up and let’s get home and get dinner started.” Steve pulls back. His smile is as big as I’ve seen it yet.
Three seatbelts click as I start the truck, then Teddy pipes up. “You know, with all of us at the house, it would probably make more sense to plan out meals, at least by a week, so we don’t have to go to the store as much. I know you mentioned the chore chart too, but you’ve been doing all the cooking, and most of the cleaning. We’ve all been washing our own laundry. Let’s be honest, I was under the assumption we are going to bond. It seems kind of silly to keep everything separate at this point.”
I nod along. It’s a good point. We’ll talk about it more after we get his nest finished, and the twins settled. For now, let’s just get home and get warm food and cuddle our pretty beta.
Steve
H elping Sam in the kitchen is a lot more enjoyable than I would have ever thought. He’s a good teacher, and every time he gives me a compliment, I want to melt. He said we don’t have time to make a proper slow cooker chili which, in his opinion, is the best comfort food. I completely disagree, but I’ve never had his chili, so maybe I’m wrong.
Instead, we’re making breakfast for dinner. Which seems kind of counterproductive to me since it’s meant to wake you up. However, as he kneads the dough for biscuits, I’m starting to realize this isn’t a quick cup of coffee and quinoa bowl type of breakfast. Teddy stands behind me cooking sausage in a skillet and looking over a recipe for country gravy on his phone.
Sam’s voice draws my attention back to him. “Steve, can you please get in the fridge and get out the buttermilk? I need a touch more, and my hands are sticky.” I grab the green bottle he points out and pour into the bowl until he says, “Stop,” then put it away and go back to watching his big hands knead the dough. He’s explained to me that if he works it too much, he ends up with hockey pucks instead of biscuits, so he’s trying to get it done right as fast as he can. He rolls the whole thing out onto the stone countertop and starts pushing it flat before nodding at a drawer. “Rolling pin, please.”
Cook used to use one of these when making croissants, but I never got up early enough to watch her make breakfast other than pancakes, and I’m kicking myself now, because this is fascinating. I want to learn to do this, to cook and take care of the people I care about…and Kelly, because they care about her.
Passing the rolling pin over to Sam, I watch as he flattens out the dough, kneeling down to check the height of it before grabbing a glass out of the cabinet and cutting out rounds of dough, then kneading it together and rolling it again. I’m so engrossed in this strange repetitive behavior that I jump when Teddy touches my shoulder. “Sorry to interrupt, but can you get in the pantry and hand me the cornstarch? I forgot it, and I need to keep whisking. ”
It’s still both amazing and freaky to walk into Sam’s pantry. Sometimes I feel OCD, but this shit is next level. It does make it easier though when I locate the shelf full of baking supplies. I grab the clear bin marked ‘cornstarch’ in his neat block letters and take it to Teddy, who gives me a quick peck on the cheek and goes back to stirring.
Sam is just closing the oven door when I return to his side. He takes a timer that’s shaped like a bell pepper off the back of the stove and turns it to twenty minutes, then bends over to reach under the cabinet where he keeps pots and pans. I am apparently a fucking thirsty bitch, because all I can do is stare at his ass while he shuffles around, occasionally grunting, before standing up with a…wok? Well, it’s not something I would expect for breakfast, but if he wants to make a stir fry, who am I to complain?
My internal musings about Sam’s delectable ass are cut short by a low “wuff” and Jake scrambling out from under the dining room table and flailing into the living room. I guess that means Garret and Kelly are home. It took longer for them to get here than I thought it would, especially since we also stopped at the store.
A moment later, Garret walks in, arms full of a box of books, trying to block Jake from running out the door and knocking Kelly over. She follows soon after with several pieces of clothing still on hangers draped over her arm. She startles when she sees me. “Sorry, Steve, we…I needed to stop at my parents’ place to grab a few things, and so they could meet Ga rret. Now the back of the car’s full. I hope y’all weren’t waitin’ on us for food. That took a lot longer than it was supposed to.”
Garret returns from down the hall, sans a box, and takes the clothes out of her arms to carry upstairs. He doesn’t even acknowledge that I’m here, which isn’t overly strange. We often have that freaky twin relationship where we just move around each other without ever talking. And most of the time, I’m fine with that. But right now, for some strange reason, I need him to acknowledge me. Maybe it’s because he’s been with her for the last hour and a half or so, but I need him to acknowledge that we still have a good relationship.
What the fucking hell is going on with my mind?
I never needed validation from Garret.
Is it just an insecurity thing because other than going to class, we’re always together?
Is it because it’s Kelly?
Would I feel this frustrated if he was with Sam or Teddy?
Ok, yeah, probably, then it would totally be jealousy.
I step in his path as he comes down the stairs, and his head jerks up, eyes meeting mine. His filled with a question while I just stare, annoyed. “Everything ok there, bro? Sorry it took so long. Kelly’s parents wanted to ask what my intentions were towards their daughter and tell her, repeatedly, that she could come home anytime she needed to.” He looks annoyed at that last part, but at least it explains some of the tension in his shoulders and his lack of speaking .
Really, I should be elated for my brother. He’s never wanted anyone like this and the fact that she’s reciprocating his feelings, even hesitantly, is wonderful for him. Unfortunately, like with everything else in our life, I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop. Something great happened, we found our pack…now what kind of horrible disaster is going to occur? Seriously, if Kelly’s overprotective family is the worst we have to worry about, I’m going to count it as a win.
Speaking of the devil, Kelly walks over and leans against Garret, burying her face in his chest. Her voice is muffled as she talks. “Is there time for me to grab a shower? I feel crusty and gross from work and school, and I really want to de-funk and put on pajamas.”
Garret drops a kiss to the top of her head. “I’m sure that’s fine. Just go get comfortable.”
Her arms tighten around his waist in a quick hug, but instead of replying to him, her face tips to me. “Sorry, Steve, but…you would have a better idea. About how long till dinner? I don’t want anybody having to wait for me, but I feel wrung out.”
Oh…ok, well, we don’t really talk.
I mean, we talk just…shit.
“Um, Sam set a timer for twenty minutes on the oven right before you guys got here, so you probably have time, I’m guessing.”
She rubs her cheek absently against Garret, cuddling closer, her eyes closing. “Thank you, yeah. A shower sounds really good. Sorry, I’m just so tired. Lemme…Lemme go get cleaned up and then I’ll be happy to eat. Thank you guys for making dinner.” It seems strange that I’m included in her show of appreciation, since I’m still learning, but I still preen at the thought of taking care of my pack.
She stumbles a bit towards the bathroom before pulling up short. There’s a mumbled, “Need a towel.” Then she swings towards the stairs. Garret follows her up, arms outstretched to catch her in case she falls, before joining me in the living room. Teddy pops out of the door to the kitchen before I’m able to make it back to check in.
“Hey, gravy’s all done, and Sam doesn’t need any help with the eggs. You want to help me set the table, Vee?” I nod once, and his attention turns to Garret. “You ok, man? What took so long?”
Garret stares at him. My brother does look a little shell-shocked right now. “Kelly wanted to stop by her house to grab a few things and her parents insisted on talking to me while she packed some stuff up. They also want to meet Steve, even though I tried to tell them he wasn’t in a relationship with her.”
They both turn towards me as I snort laughter. “Yes, we can all agree her virtue is safe with me. Come on.” I grab Teddy by the arm and drag him towards the dining room to start setting the table. Before long, Sam comes out, loading down the center with a big platter of steaming biscuits, the pot that Teddy made gravy in, and the wok filled with scrambled eggs.
Huh, weird.
I guess it works when you have to cook for this many.
Teddy follows him into the kitchen and returns with a pitcher of water and a jug of orange juice, while Sam returns with jelly and butter. He looks between the two of us. “In case y’all don’t like gravy on your biscuits.” Oh, makes sense.
Before I can reply, Jake comes scrambling into the room and slides into his place under the table, his tail thumping against the chair legs. A moment later, my brother comes in, leading a sleepy-looking Kelly. Her hair is damp from the shower, and she’s rubbing her eyes with the hand not holding my brother’s.
Why does she have cartoon boobs drawn on her shirt?
Shit, I know that design.