Chapter 36
O ur omega hadn’t gotten out of her nest since we arrived home. Bear stayed with her since, as her first bond, he was in the best position to offer her comfort on an instinctual level. Pumpkin made herself at home in the nest too, stretching out happily so Morgan could cuddle against her back.
Cooper eyed us. “So, what’s the plan? I need to know she’s safe before we head home.”
“She’s always safe with us,” I replied.
“You know what I mean.”
“The plan is whatever she wants it to be. We’ll get her comfortably set up, maybe remove as much as we can from the study and turn that into her room. Her nest can stay down here until our next batch of clients.”
Cooper pursed his lips. “I don’t love that other people are going to be in and out of here while she’s trying to get settled.”
“It won’t be for another couple of weeks and the upstairs is fully off-limits to guests. There’s doors we can lock if necessary, and the guests will only be in the lodge itself for their first and last days of the visit. I agree it’s not ideal, but it is how we make money so we’ll have to navigate as best we can.”
“I’m protective of her,” Cooper sighed.
“I get it. We are too. Ry and Kit should be done installing our new satellite soon and we’ll be back to having phone and Internet so Morgan can keep in regular contact with you.”
“She’s going to be okay, Coop,” said Cash.
“Agreed,” Dakota added. “She’s happy here. She wouldn’t be able to hide if she wasn’t and she wouldn’t overlook the opportunity to leave with us if she didn’t want to stay here.”
“Okay, fine,” Cooper huffed. “I’m just a little traumatized from her almost dying.”
“We’ll keep her safe,” I promised. “She’s the most important person in the world to everyone here.”
It took a few more reassurances, but soon enough they were ready to head back to where they had been staying so they could pack up and go back to their ranch.
“We’re heading out,” Cooper said as he kneeled in front of the nest.
Morgan crawled out and stood, the two of them wrapping their arms around each other in a fierce hug.
“I love you. Don’t you dare fucking almost die on me again.”
“I’ll do my best. Love you too, Coopy.” When he’d hugged her to his heart’s content, she turned to the rest of his pack, sinking into their arms too. “Thanks for not giving up on me. I love you guys.”
She let out a squeak through the force of their group hug and Pumpkin pawed impatiently at Cash’s leg until the hug opened up so she could be included.
“You take care of our sister,” Cash ordered Pumpkin, receiving a lick up his nostril for his efforts. “I’ll take that as a yes.”
We already had the flatbed hitched to one of the trucks, and they drove their snowmobiles up onto it so we could take everything into town in one easy trip. They were about an hour away, which would give me plenty of time to think on the drive.
Cooper sat up front with me, the other three crammed into the back. It wasn’t so bad with two alphas and an omega, but three alphas was pushing the limits of space.
“She won’t have to do a thing,” I told them as we drove down the mountain road. “If she doesn’t like the study as her room, we’ll build an extension that she can design herself so it has everything she could possibly want.”
“You never put in an omega suite?” Levi asked.
“In our defense, I don’t think any of us ever expected we would have an omega.”
“And how do you feel now that you do?” Dakota asked.
“Fucking blessed. We’ll make sure she’s happy. She deserves some peace in her life.”
“She really fucking does.” Cooper’s hands curled into fists. “I did what I could for her growing up, but it was never enough.”
“We’ve been trying to keep her off chores,” I told them. “First while she was healing, but now I don’t really want her to lift a finger to take care of anyone ever again. She’s stubborn about it.”
“Idleness was punished on the family ranch. It’ll take her a while to unlearn it.”
“It’s still wild as hell to see her around you guys,” said Cash. “Good to see, but weird all the same. Morgan is probably the least cuddly omega I’ve ever encountered and I don’t know what changed, but it’s nice for her to be able to relax.”
“The scent match probably helps,” I pointed out.
“She still has to trust you, though,” said Dakota. “She’s usually really slow to do that.”
“Do you love her?” Cash asked and Cooper reached around to whack him in the leg. “Ow! Hey, don’t pretend you don’t wanna know the answer too.”
“Little early to be dropping a word like that,” I replied, “but I like her a hell of a lot and anyone who hurts her is asking to be put in the ground.”
“I’ll accept that for now,” Cash announced.
I laughed. “Happy to gain temporary approval.”
They asked a lot of questions about me, my pack, and how we planned to move forward with Morgan. I didn’t have all the answers they wanted, but I told them what I could. They liked that she had photography in common with Ryder and that he had already taken her out, and that she and Bear had blogging and survival interests in common too.
“She only just started to find her shine,” said Cooper softly. “I couldn’t stand her being in another situation that dims it.”
“None of us want that for her,” I promised. “We’re not perfect, but we all know she deserves to have that light nurtured. We want her to shine as bright as the sun.”
They seemed satisfied by the time we reached their hotel and I got a crushing hug from each of them before I departed to head back.
I stopped at the local Best of Nests omega supply store before getting too far and left with as many pillows as I could carry. I wasn’t one hundred percent certain what Morgan might want, but the tiny omega who worked there was more than happy to hook me up with what she thought would be good. They had a couple of king mattresses in stock so I bought those and begged help from the hardware store staff next door to get them carried out and strapped onto the flatbed. I’d also gotten a foam layer that would cover the entire thing so it would feel like one bed upon the store omega’s recommendation, and stocked up on some blankets and a couple of sheet sets to cover everything.
Once I got home, I’d get all her new blankets washed to remove the scent of any other people who might’ve touched them.
I mused the whole drive, going over configurations in my head of how we could move everything out of the study. Maybe the loft would be better? It needed some work, but it was a possibility. Should I have picked up paint too? Fuck. I didn’t even know what Morgan’s favorite color was. An easy problem to solve, at least.
Ryder and Kit were already making their way out to assist me when I pulled up to the lodge.
Ryder whistled, taking in everything loaded into the truck. “Shit. You went all out.”
“I want her to be comfortable. What do you guys think about the loft?”
“Probably home to a million dust bunnies,” Kit replied. “Why?”
“If we cleaned it, do you think that would make a decent nest?”
Kit stared up at the top of our lodge. “We could make it work. Most of the stuff up there can be put in the shop and we’ll make sure it’s got a basic clean before we show her.”
“Let’s go, then.”
“Slow your roll,” Ryder said with a laugh. “Let’s get all the stuff inside first.”
The three of us made quick work of it, and I badgered them all the way up. A locked staircase connected to the loft, thankfully, not a ladder. Electricity was wired up there, and basic plumbing was already roughed in so it wouldn’t be too difficult to add a bathroom.
I coughed when I opened the door. A million dust bunnies might’ve been an understatement.
A lot of supplies were boxed up that we had never ended up needing but had brought out when we were first building this place. We created a steady stream of boxes heading down to the garage for now. My legs burned after too many flights of stairs, but at least I could switch over to giving my arms a workout getting rid of the dust.
I was exhausted by the time we finished, but also a little giddy. We didn’t have a ton of winter projects, and if Morgan wanted this to be her nest, I was ready to throw myself headlong into making it happen.
The three of us stumbled downstairs to the main level, Pumpkin perking up at our approach.
“Hey, sweetheart, do you think you’re up to leaving the nest for a few minutes?” I asked.
“I’m already out.” Morgan pushed her way free from the cold room, carrying a basket of potatoes. “I got tired of lying there.”
Bear was in the kitchen, filling a pot with water.
“What are you guys doing scurrying around so much?”
“We cleaned up a space that could be used for your nest if you like it. Hard to get the vision when it’s full of boxes and dirty, so we wanted to get it in better condition before you saw it.”
“I can’t keep this nest?” she asked.
“You can, but people will be coming to the lodge for wilderness trips and I don’t imagine you’ll feel very safe with strangers that close.”
“A valid point. Show me the new spot.”
Bear flipped off the stove and scooped her right off her feet. Her scent got extra sweet every time he carried her, so he kept doing it. The five of us went back upstairs, followed by an excitable Pumpkin. We spilled into the loft and Morgan swiveled her head, looking this way and that, examining the space.
I tucked some of her hair behind her ear, indulging myself in touching her for the sake of it. “What do you think?”
“It’s cozy for such a big space. Better vibes than the study and I like that it’s so out of the way of any visitor traffic.”
“We can add in a bathroom and a kitchenette,” said Ryder. “And decorate it however you want to.”
“Should we get started on transforming it?” I asked, nuzzling my cheek over her hair. “It doesn’t mean you have to stay and it doesn’t put any expectations on anything. We just want you to have a space that makes you happy.”
She sniffled. “You can’t be that nice. I’m going to get emotional .”
“Get used to it.” I laughed. “You’re getting nothing but nice ’til the end of time.”
Morgan cuddled deeper into Bear’s arms, pulling me closer to sandwich her between us. “You guys really want me to stay?”
“Stay or go, but we’re going to be right there with you as long as you want us,” I insisted. “We’re not going to fuck up the chance fate gave us.”
She wiggled onto her feet, Bear setting her down so she could step into my arms. “You have to let me help.”
“Whatever will make you happy,” I promised.
Morgan looked up at me, gray eyes misty. “ You make me happy.”