Chapter 6 Lia #2
He chuckles. “I own the vineyard.”
That’s what his scent reminds me of: grapes, oak, and pine. Wine, and the barrels it is aged in.
“I don’t know,” I whisper softly.
I can’t stay with a random Alpha and his daughter in their house. That’s crazy talk. I don’t even know these men. Who are they, anyway? Just a bunch of Alphas walking around horny at some Blossom Festival in their hometown?
The heels of my hands press into my eyes and I rub, hoping and praying that when I pull them away, I’ll be faced with the morning again.
Maybe this is just all a bad dream.
“Daddy? Is she okay?” I hear Amber ask.
“Why don’t you go wait in the car, princess? We’re almost done here,” Eli says.
“Awww,” Amber mutters. “Fine.”
Pickles barks and moves away from me for the first time since we pulled up hours ago. I gasp and lift my head, watching as he rushes after the little girl. My eyebrows raise in shock. Pickles never leaves my side.
Eli moves after my dog before I reach for him, stopping him before I can think about what I’m doing. My hand lands on his arm. I feel the strength of his forearm beneath my touch. And when I look up into his face, he’s staring down at our connection.
I quickly pull my hand away. “She’s fine with him. I have him trained well.”
“Right,” he murmurs, still looking down at where I was touching him.
Sirens whoop outside again. A couple of cars honk their horns. Lights begin flashing, and they beam right through the sliding glass door that heads to the little balcony outside. A balcony that I won’t be able to cool anything on because it’ll get stolen.
I feel sick to my stomach. The Omega inside of me whines, but I swallow down the sound.
This isn’t my home. This isn’t my kitchen. I don’t have furniture, so I can’t build out my nest. I don’t have the money to go out and buy all new things for my kitchen. I have to check my bank account balance. I’m going to have to pull things out of my savings.
The room tilts around me as another surge of hormones rockets through my body. It evaporates the bones from my legs.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa,” Walker says when he catches me.
“Lia!” Knox barks as everything whites out for a moment.
“Put her on the ground. The carpet’s soft,” Eli says.
I feel myself being lowered before I’m settled against someone. My legs are pulled into someone else’s lap. Someone else entirely is running their fingers through my hair, and when I open my eyes, I see Knox removing my shoes.
“Just a little massage,” he says as he picks my foot up into his callused hand. “You need to settle down a bit.”
“Your scent is acrid,” Walker says from behind me. “Tell me what’s on your mind.”
Eli sits next to me, running his fingers through my hair. “What is it you need, Miss Lia?”
Everything. “Knox?”
“Yes, ma’am?”
“How much of my things from the fridge and pantry were you able to get to?”
It takes him a moment to respond. “Not much. Pantry was caved in when I opened the door. A lot was opened and spilled onto the floor.”
That pulls a whine up the back of my throat. “I have to go grocery shopping.”
“You let me take care of that,” Walker says. “Just make me a list and I’ll be back soon.”
Everything moves in a blur after that. Eli goes on the hunt until he puts a pen and a notepad in my hands.
The list is almost three pages long, and I feel guilty as ever handing something like that to Walker.
But he doesn’t even flinch as he leaves the apartment.
I hear Pickles outside, as well as a giggling Amber, and it pulls Eli from my side for a moment.
“Did you know there’s a playground in this complex?” he asks as he peers out the window.
“And a swimming pool,” I croak out.
“Shh,” Knox says as he moves from my feet to behind me, resuming the massage Walker was giving me earlier, “you need to rest. You’re wound too tight for someone who has to stay away from stress right now.”
I’m not sure how long it takes Walker to get back with the groceries, but eventually, he’s lugging bags inside. Eli and Knox go to help, but when I get up to join, the three of them give me one of those silent, scolding looks. You know, the ones you give kids that are acting up?
It makes me bristle as the three of them go back and forth from Walker’s vehicle. Whatever. I can’t care anymore. I have bigger things to contend with, like the fact that this kitchenette is going to have to cut it for my freelance baking.
My orders start tomorrow, after all.
While they’re hauling things in, I start putting them away. I don’t have near the kind of storage that I need for all of the things I have, but at least Knox was able to get the bigger ticket items from my kitchen, like my mixer and my baking pans.
“All right,” Walker says as he sets his bags down, “that’s the last of it.”
Knox comes trotting in, thumbing over his shoulder. “Eli’s coming with a few more things we pulled from your kitchen that weren’t ruined.”
I peer over his shoulder and, sure enough, there’s Eli with bags of mixing utensils, measuring cups, and my decorative piping products. Good. I don’t have the money to replace any of that right now, renter’s insurance or not.
Oh, crap. I have to call my renter’s insurance.
“Do you need anything else before we leave?” Eli asks.
Amber’s giggling and Pickles’ barking pull me out of my head. Leaving. They’re heading out?
The Omega inside of me dreads being left alone in a place that isn’t mine. But I have to get myself settled. I have to place phone calls and figure out furniture so that I’ve got a functioning nest for what’s coming.
I have to pull out of this and move forward.
“No, no,” I say with a shake of my head as I unload the last of the groceries. “You guys have done enough. Thank you so much for your help.”
“Here,” Walker says.
I furrow my brow at the folded piece of paper as I take it from him. I figure it’s the grocery list he’s giving back to me, though I don’t know why he wouldn’t just throw it away. However, when I unfold it, I realize I’m very wrong.
It’s their numbers.
All three of them.
“Now, I know you’re an independent Omega,” Walker says, “so, we aren’t going to step where you don’t want us.”
“But,” Eli adds, “if you need something, please call us.”
Knox nods. “You’re supposed to be staying away from anything that stresses you out. So, if there’s something you need help with, call.”
“We mean it,” Walker says.
I clear my throat and fold the piece of paper back up, slipping it into the small pocket of my cardigan. “Thank you. I will.”
“Promise,” Walker says.
“What?” I ask.
He stares me down with that stoic look on his face. “Promise me you’ll call one of us if you need something.”
With the three of them staring at me, I wouldn’t be able to lie if I put my all into it.
“I promise,” I say.
“Good girl,” Walker says with a nod of his head. “Then we’ll leave you to it.”
The hair on the nape of my neck stands up at his words. Pickles comes rushing back into the apartment, but the instant the door closes behind them, a whine bubbles up the back of my throat.
Alone. I’m now alone in a new place that isn’t mine, that doesn’t smell like mine, that doesn’t look like mine, with a kitchen a quarter of the size of what I need, with no furniture in sight.
Maybe you should have taken Eli up on his offer.
I shake my head and shove the thought away. I have calls to make. I pull out my phone and scroll through my contacts, passing the number for my bank, my heat suppressant dealer, my clients, and my health insurance company before coming to the number for the people who handle my renter’s insurance.
But instead of pressing down on the “call” button, I press the button to add a new contact.