Chapter 31
I was so nervous I could barely focus. Cooper must have gone in around the same time I did since he was gone when we came back out. I asked the front desk to let him know I had gone next door and would be back soon.
Bear kept a steady arm around my waist, guiding me into the adjoining lab. I let him hold my hand while they did the blood draw, but I drew the line on him joining me while I peed in a cup.
“You’re free to go back to the clinic,” my phlebotomist told me, “or you can get yourself something to eat or drink while you wait for the results. We’ll send them over as soon as they’re finished and the doctor will give you a call.”
“Do you know how long it’ll take?”
“Shouldn’t be more than an hour. Post-heat omegas are prioritized unless there’s an emergency case.”
“Okay, thank you.”
“Tea?” Bear signed, raising an eyebrow in question.
“Sounds good.” We picked up some to go from a cafe across the street and I sipped it standing outside, snowflakes drifting down around us.
Bear nosed along my cheek and whispered in my ear, “Feeling okay?”
“I’ll feel better when I get the results, I think. Where are the others?” I hated not having a phone. I wanted to be able to contact people.
“Shopping.” Bear tapped my fingers. “What are you thinking?”
I told him as much.
“Let’s go get one,” he signed, offering a tentative smile.
“Really?”
Bear nodded. “You need one.”
We picked Cooper up at the clinic, relieved the doctor had given him a clean bill of health with instructions to make sure he stayed hydrated. Our next stop was the strip mall down the street, which blessedly contained somewhere I could pick up a new phone. I didn’t have a wallet or ID or anything useful, but Bear handled all of it. I suppose he could legally handle anything for me since he was my bonded alpha now, but I chose not to be annoyed about it in this case since I didn’t have any option to get what I needed myself.
By the time Bear had added all the pack numbers to my new phone and Cooper had added his, the clinic was calling Bear to let him know my results were in. We hustled back, nerves making me want to throw up.
I had to wait a few minutes for someone ahead of me to finish, but then they took me right back to Dr. Martin.
“First off, your pregnancy test came back negative.”
Relief washed over me. “Oh, thank god.”
Dr. Martin gave my hand a sympathetic pat. “It’s still early, but omegas tend to show signs very quickly. You don’t have any markers that would indicate something is developing.”
Bear tried to communicate with the doctor, but it became immediately obvious she didn’t know ASL.
“He’s asking if the suppressants or my ordeal in the woods prevented a pregnancy.”
“Both are very possible. Long-term suppression can make it difficult for omega bodies to regulate themselves. Kicking off a heat because you were in proximity to scent matches likely happened before your body was in any condition to conceive. It’s similar to a beta release for a video game. Technically it works, but there’s going to be bugs.”
I nodded carefully, absorbing her words.
“Your body still has some healing to do. I would recommend some IV fluids to help restore your system since you’re very dehydrated. Everything else should heal perfectly fine in time. I’m going to have to recommend you not go back on suppressants for a year or so to let your body recalibrate. Your heats will take time to settle, and heat flares won’t be uncommon, but it will be much healthier long term. If parenthood isn’t in the cards, we have very effective birth control both for you and for your alphas.”
I let out a little groan of displeasure. Suppressants had been my lifeline for so long, but at least now I didn’t have to be afraid of my heats.
Bear leaned close, whispering in my ear, “Want me to get a vasectomy?”
I blinked, turning to him. “You’d get one?”
“I want you to be comfortable,” he signed, face full of conviction. “I won’t speak for the others, but I’ll do it if you want me to.”
“You keep being the best alpha ever. I appreciate you so much, Bear, but let’s put a pin in that for a moment and approach it when things are less chaotic.”
He nodded firmly. “Whatever you need.”
Bear tapped my knee and signed out another question for the doctor.
“Do we have to come in for the birth control, or is that something we can take home and have on hand?”
“I can write you a prescription for both. If you’re able to come into town, you can get the injectable variety administered at any pharmacy, and if you’re caught unawares again, you’ll have the pill form at home.”
“Okay, great. Thank you.”
I took a long breath, drawing the relief into my lungs. Dehydration was something I could manage. The most important part was I didn’t have to worry about becoming a mother. It wasn’t a common mindset for omegas to detest the idea of parenthood, but I had long ago accepted I wasn’t that normal for an omega. Children were a sensory nightmare for me. I was pretty sure I had only survived taking care of my brothers and fathers because they were all older than I was. If I’d had to endure changing diapers and listening to toddler shrieks, I never would’ve made it.
Bear tapped me again to get my attention and signed, “Do you want the IV?”
“Could I skate by with some sports drinks?”
Dr. Martin pursed her lips. “Less ideal, but I can’t force you. I’ll get you a prescription for some rehydration tablets you can add to your water. The electrolytes and minerals are tailored for omegas.”
We picked up everything she prescribed, and I added the tablets to a lemon iced tea I grabbed at the store before meeting up with everyone else.
“Not pregnant!” I announced, beaming at both packs. “Big fan of no babies.”
I wasn’t prepared for all of them to hug me at once, and I squawked, trying to wriggle free from the absolute mountain of alpha everywhere around me. Bear carefully extracted me.
“Time to rest,” he signed sharply, eyeing down the congregated alphas.
“Clothes first, please.”
We swung by a few shops so I could procure a couple of outfits. I needed something appropriate to go to work in, but also something to wear at the lodge besides my woolen layers or the alphas’ borrowed clothes. It was weird shopping with an entourage, and even weirder to have no access to my own money to pay for what I needed.
“You don’t have to buy me things.”
Maverick gave me an affectionate smile and handed his card to the cashier. “We want to.”
I had only half listened to the heated discussion between Cooper’s pack and mine about who got to pay, but mine had apparently come out as the winner.
That was even weirder.
My pack.
Bear was my bondmate, and the others were his pack, so they were mine too.
We moved on to the next store, Bear sticking close to my side.
“You guys are welcome to stay at the lodge as long as you want,” I overheard Kit telling Cooper while I was picking my way through a clearance rack of sweaters.
“We can stay until Morgan is settled, wherever that ends up being,” Cooper replied.
I couldn’t quite decide if I liked the idea of them hanging around. It was sweet that they wanted to make sure I was safe, but I already felt like I was and didn’t need a babysitter to prove it.
“You don’t have to stick around, Cooper. I know you guys have lives to get back to.”
“If you tell me to leave, I will, but I would like to stay.” He gave me his patented puppy eyes. He didn’t pull them out very often, which only made them more effective when they made an appearance.
“Okay, fine. It’ll be nice to catch up when neither of us is on the brink of death.”
Unfortunately it also prevented me from getting one last sexual hurrah. I wasn’t going to fuck anyone in my nest with my brother and his pack in the house. I had grown far too used to being touched in my time at the lodge, and even now the moments between having Bear’s arm around my waist and disappearing into the fitting room were too long.
That didn’t bode well for going to work. Logistically I knew most omegas took omega leave to accommodate for the shift in needs after a fresh bond and recovering from a heat, but my new job would never keep me if I tried that. I was already toeing the line after missing my start date and not contacting them.
I grabbed a couple of sweaters I didn’t particularly care about and marched back to the fitting room, pulling out my phone on the way. I looked up the number, deciding it would be better to leave a message and wait to hear back.
It went straight to voicemail.
“Hi, this is Morgan Harris. I was supposed to start last week but I got snowed in and lost access to all my communication options. I know it’s probably a long shot considering I missed my first week of work, but I was hoping with the circumstances you might consider still keeping me. Thank you so much, and I look forward to hearing from you.”
I hated office speak. I understood the need for professionalism, but it felt inauthentic to me. Dragging on each sweater in turn, I gave myself a quick spin in front of the mirrors and checked the mobility, raising my arms overhead before deciding they were good enough. I had what I needed to get by until I could access my regular wardrobe.
That was another thing to add to the to-do list. I was emotionally and physically depleted on a level I hadn’t experienced in a long while, and just wanted to go back to the lodge. I should call the police station, too, now that I had a phone. Did I have to make an appointment to file a report? A little whimper escaped. I was half tempted to curl up in the fitting room for a power nap.
Bear was waiting patiently outside for me and blessedly got his arm back around my waist, soothing the anxiety that had swelled during my brief phone call. I allowed myself the luxury of leaning against him and snuggled close while the cashier rang through the purchases.
“Ready to go home?” Bear whispered in my ear.
“Please.”
Cooper’s phone rang and he frowned at the screen. “Who is Bunworth Properties?”
“My landlord from my old apartment. Why are they calling you?”
“Beats the hell out of me.” Cooper hit the green button to answer. “Hello? Yes, this is he. I’m sorry, what? Are you fucking with me right now?”
“What’s happening?”
“She’s right here.” Cooper passed the phone over.
“Hello?”
“Ms. Harris, we’ve been trying to get in contact with you for over a week. Your lease ended and you did not clear out your apartment. We’ve taken the liberty of doing so on your behalf and you’ll be receiving an invoice. If your belongings are not picked up within twenty-four hours, they will be donated or discarded depending on the nature of them.”
Hot and cold flashed through my body. “You went through all my stuff?”
“Like I said, we attempted to get into contact with you. This was supposed to already be done.”
“I was a little busy almost dying. I just got a new phone, like, an hour ago.”
The caller let out a huff. “Be that as it may, we cannot make exceptions for you.”
I sighed. I wanted to go back to the lodge and sleep, but apparently that was off the table. “Is everything still at the apartment?”
“No. It’s been moved to our warehouse.”
“How do you expect people to coordinate a move with this little notice?”
“We don’t. You had a move-out date and you missed it. We make allowances for three days to accommodate a heat, and beyond that, the cost is passed on to the renter who failed to meet their obligations.”
I stuffed down the urge to growl. Almost dying wasn’t a good enough excuse for them, so fuck me, I guess. “What’s the address of the warehouse?”
She rattled it off and I input it into my new phone. “You’ll need your ID and a copy of your lease agreement to claim your items.”
Shit. “I don’t have either of those. What part of almost dying are you not understanding? Everything I own is gone or held hostage.”
“I’m sorry. I’m sure local charities will appreciate your contributions.”
“You can’t be serious. You can’t give away my stuff.”
“I’m afraid we can. It’s in the agreement. Have a good day, Ms. Harris.”
She ended the call and I was left standing there frozen, fury bubbling up my throat. I almost hurled the phone onto the concrete, but Cooper snatched it before I could.
“What’s going on?” Ryder asked. “Who’s giving away what stuff?”
I gave them a quick rundown, a rage reflective of my own flowing through the alphas gathered around me.
“That’s bullshit.” Ryder growled. “There has to be some way we can get to it.”
“Let me see the address.” Kit held out his hand from my phone and plugged in the location into his maps app. “Well, conveniently it’s here in Great Falls, but it’s also closed to the public until morning.”
Bear gathered me into his arms. What the hell was I going to do? Brandon probably had my wallet, and all my other identifying documents would be with the stash my landlord had stolen because I was too busy being trapped in the woods to clean out my apartment. Last I’d heard, they didn’t even have anyone to move into my suite after I was out and they still had two other units sitting empty. They had no reason for them to pull this kind of fuckery on me. I’d planned so meticulously so I could get one last camping trip before moving away. Almost everything had been packed besides essentials, I’d had a truck lined up, and the week I’d been at the lodge had been intended for driving my things down to Missoula, unpacking, and settling.
“We’ll figure it out,” Maverick promised.
I wanted to believe him, but even an alpha’s stubbornness didn’t stand much of a chance against the capitalist wheels of bureaucracy.