Chapter 20
Juniper
Sighing, I snuggle deeper into Geo’s chest, my naked body sprawled over his while his muscled arms band around my back. I’m sated, full on the food Geo streaked through the house naked for, and comfortable lying on my built beta. Calloused hands skim over my skin, and every now and then Geo will press a lingering kiss to the crown of my head and sigh, like he’s exactly where he’s always wanted to be.
“I can feel you smiling, you know,” he murmurs, the baritone of his voice vibrating through his chest. He scratches his hand on my back before his free hand lightly spanks my ass, and my smile widens. I can hear the smile in his own voice when he asks, “What’re you smiling so big about?”
I shrug, shuffling around until my chin rests on my joined hands that rest on his chest. Peering up at him through my eyelashes, enjoying the way he looks down at me like I’m the world he orbits, I tell him honestly, “I’m just happy. Really happy, Gee. I haven’t felt this way in… hell, I don’t even know. All I know is that I was with all of you when I last felt like this.”
It’s like his entire face softens, his smile warming even more. “Same, Firecracker. You have no idea how happy I am that we found you again. ”
“Me, too,” I whisper, right before crawling up his body and straddling his waist, long past caring about my scars, the slight wetness left between my legs even after Geo cleaned me up, and the fact that I’m completely nude and straddling a beefcake who could bench press me asleep.
Not that Geo seems to mind in the slightest, his hands cupping my ass as he leans comfortably against a mountain of cushions and soft blankets. He’s grinning widely, truly beaming, and I know the same look is reflected on my own face. “So, you guys made me a nest.”
Geo rolls his eyes, and I’m pretty sure he blushes, though it’s still a little dark in my nest.
“Yeah, we did. Made you one at the twins’ house, too. Leylan did some mad research to make sure we got it right. This one here is the best one we’ve managed,” he confirms, pinching my ass and drawing out a godawful squeak out of me.
Glaring at him only makes his smile harder, and I can’t keep the ruse of being annoyed, so I do the next best thing. I wriggle on top of him, the slick between my legs coating his stomach. I know he can smell the bloom of arousal, my perfume spilling from my pores, and his darkening eyes prove as much.
“Well, thank you for my really nice nest. From what I can see, I love it,” I offer, leaning down to kiss him in appreciation.
Geo hums against my mouth, pulling back enough only to mutter, “How much do you love it?”
“Mmm, so much,” I tease, laughing when he sits up suddenly and traps me in the warmth of his arms, kissing me harder and deeper. When he pulls back for air, I whisper, “I’d be more than happy to show you just how much.”
“I’m so down, baby,” Geo grins, hands roaming leisurely. Then his voice sweetens, and he softly demands, “So long as I get to keep you tonight. Stay with me.”
“Wild horses couldn’t tear me away, Gee. I don’t want to be anywhere else right now,” I confide, happy in our little nest bubble. The only thing that could make this moment better is if the others were in here with us. But I’ll take Geo in any and all forms, and if that means I get him to myself, then I’m more than happy with that.
Sure enough, we spend the rest of the night tucked away in my new nest, learning one another’s bodies, our likes and dislikes. I’m even blessed with little check-ins from the others, seeing their smiling faces and inhaling their individual scents, setting me at ease just as effectively as Geo does. I’m one happy fucking omega by the time I fall asleep, tangled all around my beta, inhaling soft hints of fresh air and sea salt.
***
“I have to go,” I laugh against Geo’s mouth, providing a poor attempt to actually separate from him, despite being in public.
Geo grins against my mouth, hugging me close to his body as he leans against his car, making absolutely no effort to release me despite the glaring fact that I have only a handful of short minutes to get to my first class.
Pulling me into another kiss that sears my very soul and does things to my nether region that I will be deeply embarrassed about later, Geo growls against my lips, and I damn near melt into a puddle, lost in our own little bubble.
A bubble that a bubblegum pixie pops with her very presence and unwavering spunk. “Oh, we’re into PDA. Love that for you and all, but damn, girl. You’re creating your own fog of perfume around you.”
“Fuck’s sake,” I snicker against Geo’s mouth, finally pulling away, but not before he gets one more kiss in. Still in the cradle of his arms, I turn and smirk at my apparent best friend and quip, “To what do we owe the pleasure of your company this morning?”
“I don’t need a reason to hang out with my bestie and her beefed-up beau,” she smarts, grinning as she flicks her pastel hair over her shoulder. It hangs in sheets of pretty colors down her back and over her shoulders today, the pink strands matching the pale-pink skater dress she wears with chunky black boots that would surely hurt like a bitch if she were to use them to kick a motherfucker.
“Bestie, huh?” Geo chuckles from behind me, finally standing and releasing me from his hold. “I thought we were your best friends, Firecracker.”
Rolling my eyes, I point at him and say, “Childhood besties.” Then I point at Silver. “Self-appointed bestie, I had no choice there.”
“It’s better that way,” Silver chimes in, and I can’t help but snort.
“I have to go, anyway. Stop distracting me, you big shit,” I grumble, turning to offer Geo one last lingering kiss before backing away quickly, stealing his opportunity to wrangle me back under his spell. “I’ll see you later.”
“Have a great day, baby,” he grins, winking before bending into the car to retrieve his gym bag and watches as Silver and I walk side by side into the building where our first classes are held.
“Sooo,” she drags not even five seconds into stepping into the building. “Who was that hunky beefcake and where can I find one?”
Just as I open my mouth to answer, I’m cut off by my mirror in man form, Munro jogging lightly to catch up with us. With a grumble that sounds grumpier than usual, he damn near snarls, “You need a lobotomy, more like. You don’t need a hunky beefcake.”
“You’re so right,” Silver sighs. “I need, like, five of them. So, who is he?”
Ignoring the glare Munro sends the pastel pixie beside me, lips twitching because it seems to me that a certain tatted beta is jealous, I answer, “That’s Geo. Childhood bestie turned… pack?”
“Are you asking or—?” Munro starts.
I shove him. “Why don’t you shut up?”
He laughs, the storm cloud above his head vanishing for a split second, before it comes right back and he glares at Silver as she laughs. Jesus Christ, I hope this shit doesn’t last. As amusing as it is to watch an oblivious Silver and a secret-crush-harboring Munro, being stuck in between the two will undoubtedly get old, and fast.
“So, you have a pack?” Silver interrupts, genuinely sounding interested.
Her question brings an immediate smile to my face, one Munro pulls a funny face at, and I shove him again while I answer. “Yeah, they’re mine. We were childhood friends and we got separated. I’ve just recently found them again.”
“Aww,” Silver practically swoons. “That’s something straight out of a romance book, Kitten. How do I get my own romance book?”
“Fucking hell,” Munro growls, right before he grips my leather jacket and drags me into our first class just in time, snapping over his shoulder, “Get to class, bubblegum princess.”
Silver simply rolls her eyes and shouts, “See you later, Kitten. See you never, grumpy guts.”
Then she’s gone and the door to class is shutting us in, and I’m forced to follow Munro to our seats in silence, watching him the entire time. He practically falls into his seat, shoulders dropping as he stretches out with an air of nonchalance I don’t buy.
Sitting beside him, I lean back in my chair and wait until our professor begins his lecture before I dutifully inform, “That wasn’t very live, laugh, love of you. Who pissed in your Cheerios this morning?”
Munro sighs. “It’s nothing.”
“Sure, and Earth is flat and we’ve never gone to the moon,” I sass, smiling when he glares. When he turns to face the front again, likely to ignore me, I nudge him with my elbow and offer, “You can talk to me, you know? We’re practically the same person. If you can talk to anyone, it should be the female version of yourself.”
Munro snorts, and it draws the attention of our professor, and only when he looks away and continues on his spiel about different methods of photography, he quietly confesses, “The place my pack and I are staying at are selling and the new landlord isn’t taking on tenants. Within the next three months, we’ll be homeless, and there aren’t any places available to rent around here that don’t cost a kidney and maybe a limb. And then Silver…”
He shakes his head, clamming up suddenly.
I sigh. “I’m sorry. That sucks.”
Munro snorts humorlessly, and nods. “You’re telling me.”
We’re quiet for a long moment after that, content to sit in silence. Until I’m not so content, and I blurt, “What is it about Silver?”
Munro turns his head toward me, eyebrows pinched and a funny smirk on his face. “You don’t know?”
“Know what?” I push, my curiosity caught.
Huffing a laugh that seems less humorous and more disgusted, he informs, “That girl is loaded. Pretty little pampered omega was born with a silver spoon in her mouth, pardon the pun. So, she’s out flouncing around, enjoying her life without struggles, and my pack is struggling to find somewhere to live before we find ourselves homeless in three months. It’s infuriating.”
A heavy silence hangs between us, and I bite my lip with an echo of anxiety and understanding. I know how that feels, worrying about having a place to stay. I’ve struggled enough in the last eight years, jumping from place to place, not always having enough money to put a roof over my head. Knowing Munro and his pack are facing a similar fate sets my teeth on edge.
The rest of our classes go by without much chitchat, my mind running a mile a minute. I can barely scrape enough attention to skate through my lectures, and by the time lunch time rolls around, I have a stress headache behind my eyes and I’m tits-deep in worry for a pack I don’t even know.
“Alright, that’s it. I’m done with the silence, and I’m pretty sure you’re going to wrinkle between your brows if you keep frowning like that,” Munro drawls, smudging his thumb between my eyebrows before snatching a tray from the stands and nudging me toward the food stalls. “What are we having today? Pasta or burgers?”
“Both,” I murmur, lifting my hand to bite at my thumbnail .
Munro gives me an exasperated look, but he goes about gathering our plates like a miserable gentleman and carries them to a table that already seats three other dudes. They’re all handsome, one with hair as dark as midnight that reaches his chin in light waves and honey-colored eyes that sparkle the moment we reach the table, while the other two look almost identical with hair the same shade as coffee with a dollop of cream, and eyes as deep a blue as the ocean.
“Shove over, nerd,” Munro demands the pretty boy with black hair, the sugary scent of frosted plums wafting indicating that the nerd in question is a fellow omega.
The guy slides over, grinning at the thundercloud beside me, and says, “A please every now and then wouldn’t go amiss, Ro.”
“Fuck off, please ,” Munro quips with a smartass grin that has the omega laughing.
Munro sits opposite the omega, and jerks his head to the now empty seat, and says, “Sit down and quit biting your nail off, for fuck’s sake. Stop worrying about it, J. I didn’t tell you so you could stress out about it on our behalf.”
Rolling my eyes, I accept the food and grump, “I’ll do what I want, so how about you shut up?”
Munro grins and relaxes significantly, content now that I’m sassing him back instead of worrying about his living situation. Not that I stopped worrying, but maybe I can talk to the guys and see what we can do, if there’s anything to be done.
“Oh, I like this one,” the pretty boy beside me laughs, turning to face me with a pizza held in his hand. “And what do we call you?”
Snorting, I hold my hand out for him to shake and offer him my name. “Juno. The Female Munro. The Coolest Person In The World. You?”
“Aero. Omega. Tech wizard. Game Guru,” he rattles off quickly with a matching energy I like, shaking my hand with a cheerful grin that could rival Evron’s. Sadly for this guy, I prefer my flirty alpha over him and his buddies. They’re all beautiful, but they have nothing on my guys. Not even their scents offer any kind of appeal to me, the sugary, frosted-plum mixing with rhubarb and wild mint that I assume come from the twins seated opposite one another on either side of Munro and Aero.
“Cool. I’m not calling you anything but Aero, though, sorry to disappoint,” I snicker, removing my hand from his with the intent on getting stuck into my food while I try to think of solutions for Munro and his pack.
“He has nicknames, but it’s none of those. You won’t be disappointing anyone,” one of the twins snorts, ignoring the affronted look the omega sends him, reaching a hand out to me to shake and he nods to the guy opposite him. “I’m Haze. My brother, Rage, right there.”
“Juno. Nice to meet you,” I shake his hand, and Rage’s, despite his reluctance. Once I have my hand back, I reach for my fork and stare at the pasta and burger like a starved woman, only to steal a fry from Munro’s plate before taking a bite of my own food. Then I gesture to Munro to help himself to my pasta, stealing another fry while he stabs his fork into the overfull bowl of bolognese pasta. With another shovel of food in my mouth, I sigh gratefully now that I’ve inhaled carbs.
It takes a moment for me to realize the table has fallen silent, and I eye the others as they stare. Mouth full and painfully unladylike, I blurt, “What? Do I have sauce on my face?”
Aero shakes his head, face painted in shock. “I’m just shocked your hands are still attached to your arms.”
“Huh?” I practically grunt like a damned animal, noting that I should probably find my manners before they think I’m a total slob. This is why making friends is hard. I am a slob, for food anyway, and pretending otherwise is a ball ache.
“Munro never shares food. Ever,” Rage explains, eyeing his friend like he’s lost his mind .
Shrugging a shoulder, I say, “Honestly, same. Unless it’s my pack, and apparently, this walking bad mood, I won’t let anyone touch my plate.”
“Why do I get special treatment?” Munro questions curiously, taking more of my pasta.
“Why do I?” I counter, and we find ourselves grinning at one another, mirror expressions that the others laugh at.
“Oh my god, she’s literally a clone of him in chick form,” Aero laughs, relaxing in his seat like that explains everything. Because, truthfully, I don’t know why I’m comfortable enough to share food with Munro. I suppose it’s a ‘kindred spirit’ thing. We’ve not known each other long, but I already know he’s more like me than anyone else in the world.
“Literally Munro with tits. This is fucking trippy,” Haze snickers, biting into his burger. He waits until he swallows before muttering humorously, “Wait until we tell Pace. He’s not going to believe it.”
Rolling his eyes at the banter, Munro murmurs, “My pack, if you hadn’t already put two and two together.”
“Oh, no, I guessed as much when you told Aero to fuck off. I’m not as stupid as you look,” I quip, biting into my own burger before I almost choke on a laugh when he throws a fry at me. His lips are twitching, like he’s suppressing a smile, and it sets the table off once more.
Aero is shaking his head with a beaming smile by the time it quietens down again. “I like you, Female Munro. You can stay.”
“Gee, thanks,” I laugh, and that’s how the rest of lunch goes. Filled with banter and ribbing, getting to know Munro and his pack better, and finding myself enjoying the playful camaraderie. It makes me realize what I’ve been missing all these years, the friendships, the fun, the general comfort of spending time with people you like and seem to like you back.
By the time school lets up and I leave my last class with Munro at my side, I’ve already decided that I’m going to help them in any way I can. I’ll talk to the guys, see if they have any ideas on what we could do. I’ll look for places nearby for the pack, maybe offer them my dorm room since the guys already made me a nest in their house. Although… that might be a little presumptuous, since they haven’t asked me to move in or anything. Not that I expect them to. Or that I would say no if they did. But it could be a ‘when you’re here, you have a room’ kind of deal and not a ‘we made you a nest and want you to move in right this second. Or ever. Or… oh my god, is it warm in here? I feel warm.
“Why are you all flustered?” Munro asks, eyeing my rosy cheeks that feel hot to the touch.
Grimacing, I blurt, “My inner thoughts just sent me on a spiral. It’s nothing.”
He raises an eyebrow, and I shake my head with a groan, “I’m trying to think of ways to help you guys, and thought of possibly offering my dorm room and I’ll stay with my pack, but then I fell down a spiral because that sounds like I’m inviting myself to move in, and they haven’t asked, but they built me a nest, and I just want to help, but now I made it weird in my head.”
I’m damn near breathless by the time I’m down spewing words at Munro’s feet, and the guy simply stares at me for the longest time before he’s suddenly laughing so hard that I freeze as I stare at him in utter shock.
“I’m glad my troubles amuse you,” I blandly mutter, waiting for the dick to calm down.
It takes a minute, an obnoxious one at that, before he finally stops laughing. With a smile, he says, “Don’t overthink it, J. If they made you a nest in their house, then they obviously want you with them.”
“But we only just found each other again. There hasn’t been anywhere near enough time for the whole ‘move in with me’ spiel. And, in case your laughing jig made you forget, they haven’t asked me to move in so I’m not just going to invite myself to stay there,” I point out, feeling stupid for this whole thing. That’s what I get for trying to help; embarrassment and a boatload of overthinking.
“When did they make the nest?” Munro questions, raising an eyebrow.
I clear my throat. “Before I found them. They made one in their childhood home, too, while I was gone.”
The look I receive after that calls me several shades of dumbass, and it doesn’t go appreciated, but I get the point. I see what he’s saying without words, and I groan once more. “I get it. Wipe that look off your face. Anyway, I’m going to help you guys, I just need a brainstorming sesh. Do you mind if I talk to the guys about it? More heads are better than our two, right? If we can help make sure you guys don’t end up on the street, then we will.”
Munro shrugs, a seriousness overcoming him. “I guess. Could do with the help at this point. We got the notice a few days ago, and although Pace is trying his best, things are looking pretty bleak.”
Nodding, I offer a friendly bump of my shoulder and say, “I’ll talk to my pack. Maybe we can all have a brainstorm sesh over pizza or something.”
“Sounds good, J. I appreciate it,” he says with a bone-tired sigh.
With a parting smile, he leaves me to my musings, and I decide to head back to my dorm room to gather clothes for a sleepover Geo coerced me into. Not that I put up a fight, because it was Geo and we were naked, and there were a lot of orgasms, but still.
Pulling my cell out of my pocket, I tap my messages and open the group chat with the guys, typing out a quick message.
JUNO: Any plans for dinner?
Messages come in pretty quickly, like they usually do when I reach out to them, and I’m snickering as I wander along the path that will eventually spit me out at the dorms .
EVRON: Are you an option on the menu?
CREEK: You can choose, so long as you’re eating with us.
GEO: She’s sleeping over. I was very convincing in my efforts to get her to stay the night, so she’s definitely eating with us.
EVRON: Hell yeah! Sleep over!
LEYLAN: LOL I’m easy. What takes your fancy, Juju?
LOWIE: I’ve got it. I’ll surprise you.
EVRON: Oooh, surprises. I like it. Does this mean Juno IS on the menu?
I’m just about to type out a reply, amused and suddenly completely at ease with just a few messages, a strange prickle on the back of my neck has my footsteps slowing.
Frowning, I raise my head to peer around subtly. My cell is still clutched in my hand, vibrating with every message that comes through as the guys continue the conversation without me, yet I can’t shift my attention away from the weird awareness that slithers down my spine. Someone is watching me. I can feel their eyes on me, setting the hairs on my body on end, and a swirling pit of worry forms in my stomach the more the feeling of being watched grows.
Giving up any pretense of being subtle, I turn around and openly look for the source, only finding clusters of students milling around after classes. No one seems to be looking over at me, all engrossed in conversations or sitting out in the remaining rays of sunshine before nightfall.
Biting my lip, I scan my surroundings once more, finding nothing out of the ordinary. When nothing jumps out of the bushes and screams ‘boo’ at me, I decide to message the guys and head to my dorm quickly, the unease clinging to my shoulders with a clawlike grip.
Looking down at my phone, I turn with the intent to hurry to my dorm, only to collide into a body that blocks my path. Stumbling back, I look up sharply, eyes wide with a flush of panic. A man, one I vaguely recognize, stands on the sidewalk with his hands outstretched and an uncomfortable smile on his face. “Woah, there. Sorry about that. Looks like we both weren’t paying attention.”
He says it friendly enough, but there’s something about the shrewd, calculating gleam in his dark eyes that sets me on edge. There’s no doubt in my mind that this is who was watching me, the unease in my stomach growing tenfold as the guy takes a step back away from me and stretches his lip into a bigger, more uncomfortable smile, as though he’s trying to set me at ease.
It doesn’t.
In fact, it has the opposite effect, and I grip my cell tightly as I try to offer the man a smile that I’m certain comes out more like a grimace. “No worries. Sorry for running into you.”
“Not a bother at all. You enjoy the rest of your day,” he assures, bowing his head a little, hands still held out like he’s trying to appease a startled wild animal. Before he departs, he eyes me once more and says, “I’ll see you around, Miss Henley.”
Then he disappears down the sidewalk, tucking his hands into his pocket before he rounds a corner and vanishes from sight. It takes a whole stunned minute to realize the motherfucker used my old pack name, and my heart stops for all of three seconds before it starts a thundering beat beneath my ribcage.
I’m pressing buttons and calling the first name in my contacts before my brain catches up, pressing the phone to my ear as I wait for the call to connect.
“Hey, beautiful. You disappeared from the chat. Everything—” Creek answers, and I can hear the smile in his voice, a soothing sound to the riot currently exploding within my body.
Interrupting him, I blurt, “I think someone is following me. ”
It’s all it takes for him to rush out with, “Where are you? I’m on my way.”
“Not far from the library,” I breathe, rubbing a hand over my chest where my heart gallops like an untamable stallion.
“I’m around the corner. Be there in five seconds,” he assures, voice steady and calm, my lighthouse in an unfamiliar storm I don’t know how to deal with.
I stay on the phone until Creek rounds the corner briskly, is right in front of me, and even as he tugs me into a warm hug that instantly makes me feel safe. I drop my arms and band them tightly around him, clinging to him as he tucks my head under his chin, his hand cupping the back of my head to keep me pressed against him as I tremble with panic.
We stay that way until my heart has calmed down enough, and I’m no longer shaking like a leaf. Eventually, Creek pulls back long enough to peer down at me with determination, and announces, “We’re packing all of your shit and you’re staying with us. We were going to give you time to settle into the idea, build up with sleepovers, but fuck it all. You’re coming to live with us, where we can keep you safe.”
There’s such a finality about it that I can do nothing but nod, my earlier worries evaporating like they hadn’t existed before, and allow Creek to lead me to my dorm, pack all of my things, and carry it all to his car before he drives us to his house.