34. Walker
Chapter 34
Walker
S unny rushed into the office, eyes wide, her hair tumbling out of its loose braid. The sweet smell of baking that I was becoming far too accustomed to accompanied her lemony scent. She was wearing an apron that had flour practically covering it.
Sunny was a messy baker; it was one of the things that I found endearing that most would find irritating.
“Sunny! What’s wrong?” I asked, sitting up straighter, already halfway out of my chair. The sight of her panic immediately put me on edge. My omega shouldn’t be panicking about anything. It was my job to make it right.
“I messed up,” she rushed to say, her breathing fast.
Moving from behind my desk, I walked over to her, gently placing my hands on her upper arms and pulling her close. I hated seeing her in any sort of distress. The alpha in me couldn't stand it, and I could feel just how panicked she was through the bond.
“Take a deep breath and tell me what's going on,” I said, doing my best to keep my voice level. The last thing she needed was for me to panic as well and make the situation worse.
Sunny inhaled deeply, meeting my eyes and biting her lip.
“My brother called me. He went to see me and Luka unannounced today and found my apartment burned down, so he called me in an angry panic, demanding to know where I am, and I told him because if you think I’m stubborn, you haven’t met my brother yet. Then it dawned on me that, if he’s coming here, he’ll see the bites, so I blurted out that I’m bonded and now he’s on his way here.” She spoke in a rush, her sentences running together.
“Wait, how much did your brother know prior to the call?”
Sunny bit her lip. “Nothing,” she admitted. “I worked really hard to keep it from him. Even being as close as we are, he was distracted with his newborn. New baby bubble is serious.”
I raised a brow. “I'm guessing he's not exactly happy with the situation?”
“Of course he's not. He’s overprotective to a fault, but he was so busy with his new baby that I didn't want to disturb him. I didn't tell him about the fire, I didn't tell him about staying here, and I didn't tell him about the bonding.”
I could only imagine what her brother was thinking. His twin sister had lost everything and was bonded to alphas he didn’t know.
Rubbing her upper arms, I gave her what I hoped was a reassuring look. “We were going to have to meet your brother at some point. I'm looking forward to it. He can't be all that bad, considering you guys shared a womb.”
Sunny grimaced. “I don't know. I just thought I would have more time to ease him into it. Then I kind of had to drop it on him like a bomb.”
“It's better it's out in the open.”
Her eyebrow rose. “You don't really believe that, do you?”
I nodded. “I do.”
She sighed. “I'm pretty sure he's on his way here…”
Would a little more warning be nice? Sure, but clearly, I wasn’t going to be getting that.
“Then I guess we better get the others.” I smiled warmly.
“Rune’s feeding Luka,” Sunny mumbled.
There was no way I was going to make a big deal about it, but I knew that this was a considerable step for Sunny, as she liked to be in control of caring for Luka, understandably so. Seeing her let go a little made me happy.
However, there was a more pressing issue. I wanted Sunny's brother to like me. From what she’d told us, he was a big part of her life, and his approval, while not necessary, would be nice.
“Sunny!” a voice shouted from the entrance, making her wince.
“I think he's here,” she whispered.
Storm Sanderson was nowhere near as intimidating as he thought he was. The young alpha had come storming into my office, Blaze and Rune hot on his heels. Rune was holding Luka, who was distracted playing with his facial hair.
“Hello, you must be Storm.” I smiled at him, pulling Sunny into my side. Her body was rigid, and her worry was radiating through the bond.
“Who the hell are you?” he asked, frowning at me.
“Storm, this is Walker,” Sunny said, looking between us. “He’s part of my pack.”
Storm’s eyes widened. “How old are you?”
Ah. Yeah. The age gap probably didn’t look that good. Especially with my prematurely graying hair. “Thirty-two.”
He blanched. “You’re over a decade older than her! Is this what you do, take advantage of omegas who go through bad situations?”
My body tensed at that suggestion. How dare he say that? I knew the situation didn't look ideal, but I wasn't exactly robbing the cradle. Sunny was an adult and could make her own choices.
“Storm!” Sunny’s voice was sharp. “I suggest you stop talking to my pack mates like that. Our bonding was an accident. I went through a heat spike, I think, and I bit first. It is what it is. You can't stand there and say you haven't gone a bit off path before ? —”
“A happy accident.” Blaze smirked and nodded, his dark curls bobbing as he did so. “Honestly, we were intending to court the pants off your sister once she settled down and was no longer in the firehouse, because well, she’s amazing.”
“You were going to wait until she wasn’t living at the firehouse?” Storm asked, confused.
“Of course.” Rune nodded. “If we started a relationship with an omega who was under our care after her apartment burned down, we would be lowlife scum. That would be taking advantage.”
“Stum! Stum!” Luka cried happily, noticing who was in the room. He held his hands out, excited to see his uncle. He clearly hadn’t quite mastered saying his uncle’s name yet.
“Hey, munchkin.” He smiled, greeting his nephew warmly, plucking him out of Rune’s arms and giving him a cuddle.
“I’ve been taken care of here, Storm,” Sunny said in a soft voice.
Her anxiety was bouncing through the bond, and I was honestly surprised she wasn’t showing any outward signs of it, because holy fuck, I had never felt nerves like that before.
“Still, she’s nearly a decade younger than you, and you have her living at a goddamned firehouse! Sunny, you should come home with me. You know Kennedy and the guys would love having you.”
Unexplainable rage filled me at the idea of Sunny being taken away from us, and I knew immediately that my pack mates were feeling the same.
“Storm, you know that’s not happening,” Sunny said. “Could you be separated from Kennedy?”
Storm cursed softly and deflated ever so slightly.
“You can’t live here.” He looked between the alphas. “Do you guys even have a pack house?”
“We will by the end of the month,” I declared, giving Sunny a small squeeze before leaving her to grab some papers out of my desk drawer. As I did, I spoke. “We weren’t prepared for bonding—it wasn’t on our radar—so we mainly crashed at a small apartment not far from here that we’ve had for years. As soon as Sunny and I bonded, I started looking into suitable housing. We put a deposit on this property last week. I was just waiting for Sunny to see it and approve before I finalize the sale.”
I had been working away in the background ever since the day we bonded; my pack mates knew but hadn’t been overly involved. The papers in my desk included photos, a floor plan, and multiple other papers to do with the property.
Storm took the papers off me with a confused frown. Sunny stepped forward, plucking Luka out of his arms. He flicked through the sheets, his eyes widening.
Sunny shuffled forward, looking over his shoulder. “That is huge!” Sunny gaped. “I know you were looking, but you never said you found something serious!”
“It’s also a really nice neighborhood,” Storm said, eyes on the papers.
As a pack, we weren’t struggling for cash. We had all saved, had inheritances, and Blaze had his trust. We had put money away for a future home, and now that Sunny was part of our pack, we were all in agreement that we needed a forever home.
The seven-bedroom, spacious property had plenty of room for a large family. Even if Sunny opted to not have any more babies, the space would be well used with four adults and Luka. There was also a pack bedroom and a nest for Sunny. Part of the reason I liked the house so much was that there were beautiful skylights in the nest.
“Walker, this is too much,” Sunny said, gaping at the papers.
“Do you like it?” I asked.
She scoffed. “Of course I like it, I would have to be blind not to like it. That doesn’t mean I want it.”
“You like it, we are getting it.”
Sunny’s eyes widened. “Then I hate it!”
I chuckled, pulling her in for a hug and kissing the top of her head while Luka grabbed the name badge on my shirt. “I’m sorry, but you’re a bad liar, Sunny. We’re getting the house. You deserve better than this firehouse, even if you don’t believe it.”
Storm had been watching our interaction with wide eyes. “Fuck, you really do care for her,” he muttered, making Blaze and Rune laugh.
I was tempted to tell Storm that we were even taking care of the shithead ex, ensuring he could never go near Sunny, but she hadn’t told Storm anything about Gregory, something I did disagree with. The more decent alphas looking out for Sunny, the better.
“We’re kind of stuck with them.” Sunny scrunched her nose playfully, addressing her brother.
Storm sighed. “I suppose I better reintroduce myself. Hi. I’m Storm, Sunny’s idiot twin.” He held out his hand.