Chapter 17 Hailey
HAILEY
Between me and Smokey, I probably overpacked. But a girl can never be over prepared; this is a new place and the more of my belongings I have, the more comfortable I’ll be. Plus, I don’t think the guys like the idea of me needing to go back to my apartment to get things.
My favorite pillow smells like me, which has me frowning. I want it to smell like Earl Grey and forest rain.
The house smelled like them, stronger in some areas than others, but when Sterling opened the door for me, to the room I would stay in, my jaw dropped.
“Is this…?” I question, not able to finish my sentence.
“It’s obviously not perfect. You can do whatever you want to it,” he says as I walk into the room.
No, room is an understatement. This is a nest. A real fucking nest. Not the boring, rent-a-nests Lavender Moon had. My first heat was barely memorable, the nest a complete blur, nothing notable. Honestly, I’m pretty sure I just disassociated and let my body do what I needed it to.
But as I look around this nest, I realize at this very moment how badly I wanted one.
There’s a window in here, but the blinds cover any light coming in.
Unlike the rest of the house, this room has a massive white rug in the center of it, along with a pack-sized bed.
The bed sits on the floor, a soft gray frame bracketing the bed.
There have to be at least twenty pillows on the bed, ranging in different shades of soft pink. The downy comforter is white and pristine.
There’s a soft pink couch in the corner, and a simple gray nightstand by the bed. A vase of pink flowers sits on top of it, along with a box of tissues and a remote.
“Like I said, you can change whatever you like. I want it to be perfect for you,” Sterling says.
I wrap my arms around his waist and squeeze.
“It’s amazing,” I tell him, truly meaning it. I mean, sure, now that I think about it, the idea of adding some warm lighting and maybe a few paintings, oh, and a mini fridge would be great too.
I clear my throat instead. “There is something missing,” I tell him. When I look up at his handsome face, I can tell he’s exhausted.
I’m pretty sure Nate passed out the second after we found Smokey. There’s an instinct to take care of him just as much as he wants to take care of me.
“What’s that?”
“It doesn’t smell like you or Nate in here,” I tell him.
I swear his forest rain scent cocoons around me like a caress as he clears his throat.
“Do you want me to get some of our things?”
“I think I’d actually like it better if you stayed,” I say honestly.
I’m wiped from today, from the scare at the apartment, to seeing how afraid Nate was for me. And now I’m here, in their house, in this beautiful nest they had set up for their future Omega—which I’m starting to believe should be me with every passing day.
“Let me just go get changed and I’ll be right back,” he says, and I swear his chest puffs out when he says it. Like my seeking him out for comfort is some sort of privilege.
“I’ll do the same,” I tell him, as I semi-unpack my things. Meaning I flip open my suitcase, leaving it like that while I dig out my skincare and beauty products and bring them into the attached bathroom.
If I thought the nest was nice, it has nothing on this bathroom. Damn, it’s massive. There’s a two-sink vanity, a separate room for the toilet, and the tub is inside the fucking glass shower. I didn’t even know that was a thing. I whistle as I look at it and start my nightly routine.
When I come back out, Sterling is lying on the bed, a book in his hand.
“Nate was passed out, so I brought one of his pillows,” he says, pulling back the blankets for me to get in.
I can’t even remember a time I was tucked into bed. I try to not get choked up as I nestle into the sheets, Nate’s scent thick on the pillow Sterling grabbed for me. Sterling dog ears his page, placing the book on the nightstand and turns himself so we’re looking at one another.
“I like having you here, seeing you in this nest,” he says.
“I’ve never had a nest,” I whisper back.
“It’s yours. If you don’t want us in here, or if you need us in here, all you have to do is ask. It’s yours to decorate and do as you please.”
“You’re so sure of me? If it doesn’t work out, you’d have to tell your next Omega that I stayed in here,” I say, and I can hear how pathetic I sound.
Sterling almost looks mad at that line of thinking as he shakes his head.
“That’s not even a possibility I’m willing to entertain. This is your nest, no one else's, not ever. You’re our Omega, say it.”
I take a deep breath before repeating the words. “I’m your Omega.”
Sterling grabs my chin, placing a soft kiss on my lips.
“Good. Now It’s been a long day. Let me hold you while we get some rest,” he says, and I cuddle against his side, a soft purr rumbling in his chest.
The vibration and sound soothes me in a way I never considered, a lot of my nerves falling away as I let myself enjoy this. I fall asleep faster than ever lying on top of expensive sheets, wrapped in an Alpha’s arms.
Sterling is still dead to the world when I wake up, and I make sure to check on Smokey, who is curled up on one of the office chairs. I notice that one spot smells more like Nate, and I hope this is the first step to Smokey coming around.
I feed him and change his water before heading to the kitchen.
Music that would definitely be played at the club booms around the main living space, and I peek around the corner. Hayes is shirtless, his back to me. He isn’t the size of an Alpha, but he is muscular, his biceps and traps shifting with his movements.
He sings along to the music, his hand gripping a frying pan as he flips some eggs. His ass shaking side to side with each verse and I can’t help but grin as I watch.
“Like what you see?” a voice says behind me and I jump.
I turn over my shoulder and see Nate rumpled with sleep. God, he looks cute. He’s also shirtless and his scent is heavy. It feels like I don’t stand a chance in this house.
Between Sterling and Nate suffocating me with their delicious scents and Hayes making breakfast looking like a wet dream, I can feel myself becoming putty in their arms. How easy it would be to live like this every day.
“Seems only fair he gives me a show,” I joke.
Nate smiles, his eyes crinkling with the motion.
“Oh, sweetheart, all you have to do is ask. Hey, Hayes—”
I put a hand over his mouth and I can feel his smile underneath my hand.
“Oh, good, you’re all up. Baby, how do you like your eggs?” Hayes asks, no concern that he’s topless and looking so hot.
“Scrambled,” I rasp out, because that’s what these men are doing to my brain. Scrambling them. My hormones are all wonky and I’m wanting things I’ve never wanted before.
I won’t admit it to them, but I had a dream about bonding last night, and when I woke up this morning, I wanted to combine all our scents in one nasty, freaky sex pile.
“You got it. Bacon and pancakes good?” Hayes asks and I have to shake my thoughts away.
I just nod, as I sit down at the island and watch him work.
“You cook?”
“We all do. After they work a long shift, I like to treat my Alphas, isn’t that right?” Hayes says, giving Nate a small peck.
Okay, I knew that they were together, but I hadn’t seen a ton of affection between them. Watching that has me squirming excitedly in my seat. My mom’s Alphas weren’t even friends, let alone lovers.
Hayes watches my reaction and moves further around the island and brings his mouth to mine. There’s a hint of Nate’s Earl Grey taste and I lick my lips.
“Wouldn’t want our Omega to feel left out,” Hayes says with a grin.
“Definitely not,” Nate agrees, placing a kiss on the side of my head. “Coffee?”
“Oh, I don’t like coffee,” I reply.
“How about a cup of Earl Grey?” Hayes jokes and my cheeks heat, because honestly, that sounds amazing.
“Earl Grey, it is,” Nate says easily, smacking Hayes’ ass as he makes me a cup.
This all feels so overtly domestic I’m not sure how to handle it, but I don’t let myself spiral.
Instead, I let myself daydream even more.
What if this was how I woke up every morning?
What if Alpha scents and purrs surrounded me all the time?
Alphas soothing me to sleep and waking up being fed a fully balanced breakfast and never having to wonder how I would make rent.
More than all that, what if I really had this pack and could experience this easy intimacy every day of my life?
I’m not sure what my scent is doing, but whatever it is, it has Nate wrapping his arms around me and holding me tight.
“What’s wrong? What do you need?” he asks.
I want to just not answer his question, avoid it like I do a lot of things.
It’s like my instincts are kicking in, and I realize that asking for what I want from this pack won’t earn me irritation. If anything, all of them seem more than eager to please, and who am I to deny them that privilege?
“Scent mark me?” I ask it more as a question, and Nate nearly growls before he rubs his cheek all over me.
Oh fuck, that’s the good stuff.
I’m not even embarrassed about the little noises that squeak out of me. I want to drown in their scents. Like full on doused but nothing in their scent. I don’t even want to even catch wind of the scent of cherry. I want to be so claimed by them that my scent is hard to pinpoint.
Christ, when the bridge of his nose rubs against the side of my throat, I think I might black out.
“Fuck. Burned the pancakes,” Hayes says, moving the pan while staring at us. “That didn’t mean stop.”
I clear my throat and Nate places another kiss on the top of my head, and I melt.
I didn’t think I was touch starved, or was lacking in affection, but now I realize that I completely was.
It doesn’t matter that I’m surrounded by Alpha scents all the time at work.
This is so totally different, I’m not sure how to handle it.
“This is the best morning ever,” Hayes says with a grin, tossing out his burned batch of pancakes and starting over again.
“Was that okay?” Nate asks.
It feels like the words are lodged in my throat, but when I look at Nate, I realize he needs assurance just as much as I do.
“It was perfect,” I tell him.
He seems to puff up with pride, grabbing his coffee and taking a sip. “Oh shit,” he grumbles, getting up and pouring me my cup of tea and bringing me cream and sugar.
Both Nate and Hayes pause, watching how I make my tea and I have to calm down my perfume. Who knew I was so damn easy? A little scent marking, breakfast, and them wanting to know how I take my tea is all it takes.
“What did you want to do today?” Hayes says, easily flipping a pancake as he plates my eggs.
“Oh, I don’t know. I do have to work tonight,” I say in a low voice.
The tone switches, and I can tell my job makes them uncomfortable, hell even I feel uncomfortable going tonight.
“I was thinking we could go shopping, get some more things you need for your nest,” Hayes says cheerfully, trying to switch the mood.
“I thought we were waiting until my apartment was all clear,” I say.
Nate clears his throat. “I think your landlord is being sued. You should stay here indefinitely,” Nate says.
“Indefinitely?” I repeat.
Both of them look at me like they’re searching for the words to say as I feel two large palms grab my shoulders and squeeze, his earthy scent giving me even more pleasure.
“We all know what this is, Hailey. We’re courting you.
Like I told you last night, the nest is yours.
I understand that you don’t want to leave your job until you’re ready to bond, which I think is something we should talk about eventually.
But the fact is, your apartment fucking sucks and we would all sleep better at night knowing you and Smokey were safe here,” Sterling says behind me.
I turn to face him, not even wanting to argue. They’re not wrong about the apartment; as proud as I am that I was able to provide for myself, it wasn’t the safest location.
“We should talk about bonding?” I croak, my hand going to my throat.
“When you’re ready. Until then, we will continue to show you what life would be like with our pack, and that means spending copious amounts of money to make your nest perfect, okay?” Sterling says.
“Okay,” I mumble as I take a sip of my tea. I don’t bring up the rest of my stuff at the apartment or what I should do with rent, because what if they change their minds tomorrow and then I’m back to square one and have nothing?
“Eat your breakfast and prepare to be spoiled,” Hayes says happily, giving me my plate first.
I smile as I eat my food, already feeling properly spoiled, and shoving my anxiety far away.