38. Roman
Chapter 38
Roman
P acks that formed when the members were young were some of the strongest. There was something about childhood friendships that just stuck when it came to packs.
For that reason, I had been somewhat apprehensive when it came to Sebastian joining our little ragtag bunch. We were all grown-ass men now, with fully formed personalities, and I was concerned that we wouldn’t mesh together, but I had rolled with it for Duchess, and Seb seemed like a decent guy.
It turned out my worries were completely unfounded. Being on the ice with Seb was fun. It was easy, just like our time off the ice.
It was hard to believe that was the same guy from the Hawks I used to brawl with.
And if that wasn’t amazing enough, my omega had been sitting rink-side, cheering us on.
I had been on cloud nine until the next morning, when Phillip gave me a harsh reality check.
“Who the fuck did this?” I asked, frowning at his phone screen. I was sitting up in my bed, which felt rather lonely now that I was used to being around Hazel. Phillip was perched on the edge, still in sleep shorts himself.
He had woken me up and immediately shoved his phone in my face.
There were a lot of posts about Hazel. And they weren’t polite.
“Hazel found them while she was scrolling on her phone this morning. Apparently, some of the puck bunnies were unhappy with her being in the family section. It seems like they decided to vocalize their displeasure online.”
There was post after post, picking apart Hazel, from her looks to how she dressed.
“This is complete bullshit. They get no say on who my family is!”
“I agree. They’ll quiet down in a week or two, but I wanted to let you know. Stephanie is one of the more vocal ones… and she’s your issue to deal with.”
I groaned. Stephanie was a puck bunny who was fun for the odd night here or there. As a single alpha, I had indulged on occasion.
“I’ll take care of her. How’s Hazel holding up?” I asked.
“I’m fine. Annoyed more than anything,” a soft voice said from the doorway.
Her eyes were still hooded with sleep. She looked absolutely beautiful in a matching pink T-shirt-and-shorts pajama set that stretched over her belly.
“Hey, Duchess,” I greeted her warmly. Instead of getting out of my bed to hug her, I pulled the comforter back, silently inviting her to join me.
Without a word, she padded across my room and crawled into bed, snuggling into my side. In the early morning, her sweet cherry scent was all the more potent.
“I’m sorry this is happening,” I told her, planting a kiss on the top of her head.
“They’re just jealous.” She shrugged.
“Still, it’s not nice.”
“They’re mean, petty, vindictive bitches who are losing three of their favorite toys. Give them some time, and they’ll settle down. There’s not much I can do about it. It doesn’t feel great… but it’s not like you’re going to leave me for them. Right?” Anxiety laced her voice.
“No way in hell.” I snorted lightly. “You’re it for us.”
“It would be nice to make it official at some point.”
“As soon as you’ve given birth and are healthy, I fully intend to bite you, marry you, and file official pack papers, like we did for Seb. Ideally, all at once, but I don’t think a wedding officiant should get to see you naked. That’s just for us!”
As much as I wanted to bond with her immediately, it was best to bond during heats. It was stronger that way, and she’d had so many life changes in the last few months. There was no rush. We weren’t going anywhere, and we sure as fuck weren’t letting her go.
Hazel snorted lightly.
“You’re taking this shockingly well,” Phillip remarked. “Even when you first saw the posts this morning, you were relaxed.”
“I’m too tired to take it any other way.” She sighed, burying her nose in my skin, taking deep breaths.
I slowly ran my hand through her hair, and she hummed in pleasure, snuggling deeper into my side. A lazy morning in bed with my omega was the best way to spend my time, but usually, we would be in the nest.
Since Hazel was already passed out in her nest when I had been ready to sleep last night, and I hadn’t wanted to disturb her, I’d climbed into my own bed.
“How about we spend the day shopping for the nursery?” I asked, looking down at the sleepy omega.
“After a nap?”
“Yes, after a nap,” I agreed.
That small nap ended up being several hours, and by the time we finally left the house, it was well into the afternoon.
Hazel’s exhaustion vanished the moment we stepped into the furniture store. All of the lists she had made of nursery furniture and design choices were swiftly forgotten as she tore through the store, looking at everything they had to offer, a vision quickly taking root.
“I want color! Lots of color,” she had insisted as she rummaged through the various piles of linens for the baby’s bed.
Turned out, there were two kinds of beds the baby needed. There was a bassinet for when they were little, and then the crib for when they were slightly bigger.
And naturally, both needed several sets of sheets.
She had picked out a variety of pastel colors. Blues, greens, pinks, yellows—she didn’t discriminate.
“Isn’t it supposed to be blue for a boy and pink for a girl?” Cormac asked, watching her pile items into the cart.
“Our child isn’t going to be restricted by something as boring as color!” Hazel declared, grabbing several overly stuffed pillows. “They deserve a whole rainbow!”
It took everything in me to suppress my giggles at her behavior; it was just so damn adorable. I did get the distinct impression, though, that if I did comment on it, she would pelt me with various pieces of bedding.
“You know, if you decided to find out what the gender is, you would be able to decorate the nursery accordingly,” Cormac said, once again putting his foot in it.
Hazel whirled around glare at him. “You listen here, Presley. We decided as a pack that we would be surprised at the birth. Don’t think my child’s genitalia holds any sway over how I decorate their room.”
Cormac looked at her with wide eyes, speechless.
“Ignore Cormac. Your pastel rainbow nursery is a brilliant idea,” Phillip soothed.
“I never said it wasn’t a brilliant idea. It’s an amazing idea. I was just curious!” Cormac rushed to say.
Hazel ignored us, walking away and rummaging through the large shelves full of swaddling clothes.
“Are you sure we can afford this?” Hazel asked as she took in how large her pile of purchases had grown.
“Duchess, money isn’t a concern for us.”
“But I’ve gone over the top. I’m having one baby—one. I’ve got enough stuff for triplets!” Tears welled up in the corner of her eyes.
“Sweetness, it’s good to have options! We can afford it, and we want our baby to have everything they could possibly need,” Cormac said, taking the blanket out of her hands and placing it into the cart.
“This may not all fit in the nursery. It’s a lot of stuff for a small room.”
“We can make more space. Several of us have empty cabinets in our rooms that you can use. If that doesn’t work for you, Duchess, then we’ll happily just buy a new house.” Hazel gawked at me. “How did this conversation go from me buying a lot of nursery supplies to you wanting to buy a new house?!”
“Because we love you and want to give you the world?” I grinned at her.
Hazel frowned at me. “Go get me more goose-down pillows!” she ordered, throwing a flower-shaped pillow at me and storming off down another aisle.
Cormac chuckled. “She’s the best.”
“We got damn lucky,” Phillip agreed.