Chapter 15
Bear
“She’s actually driving me insane,” Spencer said, watching his laptop and running a hand through his hair.
It had been a day or two since we had all watched her on the laptop, and Spencer was struggling to pull himself away from the screen.
He claimed it was for her safety.
I called bullshit.
Though, I didn’t blame him. Not one bit.
“How come?” I asked. My pack mate had been extra grumpy lately, and I knew it had everything to do with the beautiful omega we were all very quickly becoming obsessed with.
My anger at Chase was finally starting to ebb. While his actions at the club had been shitty in general, they might ultimately serve us well. At least we knew for sure that Flora liked his scent.
We knew she liked mine because she’d kept my jacket. Or maybe that was wishful thinking on my part.
Spencer… I didn’t know yet. Considering Flora had tasered him, she probably wasn’t feeling many warm, fuzzy feelings toward him.
“She went shopping and replaced everything I left in her fridge,” he said.
I paused, putting down my cup of tea. “You left stuff in her fridge?”
Spencer gave me a look that said clearly.
“Of course I did. She was surviving on month-old protein bars and junk food. She needs to be eating a well-balanced diet,” he explained, like it was obvious.
“And you just took all of her food and replaced it?” I asked.
“Yes,” Spencer exclaimed.
“Okay, man, that’s a bit crazy, even for me. Surely you don’t want her eating random junk?”
He shook his head. “No, I would be happy if she ate the food that I left. If she ate food that anyone else left, I would be angry. She’s so stubborn—she doesn’t understand I’m trying to help her.”
Spencer was usually the most levelheaded of our pack. Watching him lose his mind over Flora was highly amusing, and also slightly concerning.
“You can’t lose your focus,” I said. “Remember, someone is still stalking her.”
“Trust me, I’m well aware of that,” he muttered. “You should get going. The Garnetts are expecting you.”
Without another word, I nodded before turning and heading out the door.
Living so close to the pack we were protecting definitely had its perks. My commute was essentially an elevator ride up a single floor.
After knocking on the door, I only had to wait a second before it opened. Mable stood there, a baby in her arms.
“Bear! It’s been so long since I’ve seen you. How are you doing?” she said excitedly. “I’ve been stuck with Spencer and Chase for so long, it’s getting boring.”
A huff of laughter escaped my chest. “You and I both know they’re chattier than me.”
“You’re a tough nut to crack, but I’ll get there, Bear,” Mable said happily. “Do you want baby cuddles? I really need to go brush my hair, and everyone’s busy at the moment.”
I held up my hands. “Give her to me.”
A dazzling smile spread across Mable’s face as she thrust the baby into my hands.
“You are the best, Bear. Thank you,” she said before darting off into the penthouse.
Maggie cooed happily in my arms, looking up at me, her tiny, chubby fist reaching up to touch my face.
“You already developing your right hook?” I asked as I walked into the apartment. The baby babbled in agreement.
Of all the jobs we had done over the years, I could honestly say that protecting Mable and her pack was the most fulfilling. When we’d started protecting them, it had just been four single idiots. Now they had an omega and a baby.
At the play mat, I sat down, laying the baby on her back so she could touch the many toys hovering above the area.
She was so small and full of so many possibilities. That was what I liked about babies. They were blank slates who hadn’t been tainted by the world yet.
“You know, you and I need to have a conversation about boys,” I muttered. “How old are girls when they start to date?” I wondered out loud.
“Never, if we have anything to say about it,” Devin greeted as he entered the room.
“Hey. Your omega just ran off to do her hair,” I said.
“Cool, no worries. We’re hoping to go on a family date tonight—just to a restaurant at a park.”
I nodded. “Do you want me to get one of the others?” Usually, when they went out, two or three of us would go with them.
Devin shook his head. “Honestly, I don’t think it’s needed. Ever since Saint publicly told the world how obsessed he is with Mable, the fangirls have backed off.”
That was true. There had been a lot less fan mail since they publicly announced they had an omega and a child.
“You’re right there,” I said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if the Chargers canceled our contract soon.”
Devin frowned. “We’ve talked about that possibility as a pack. If that’s the case, come to us, and we’ll pay out of pocket to keep you guys. We’d much rather have the security of knowing that Mable and Maggie are safe.”
Warmth filled my chest, but my face didn’t show it. There was something about the vote of confidence Pack Garnett gave us—that they would be willing to spend their own money to keep us on because they trusted us—it made me unexpectedly happy.
It also meant I would still be on campus regularly, near Flora.
But I wasn’t going to say that.
Then again, if our contract with the Chargers ended, I doubted we would take on another job, anyway, until we were certain Flora was safe.
“You know we love working for you guys,” I said, picking up the baby and tickling her tummy. “If you want us to stay, we’ll stay. Hey, think how much fun it would be to boss Spencer around.”
Devin burst into laughter. “You and I both know that no matter how much money I’m paying the man, I’ll never be able to boss him around.”
I snorted. That was the truth. Spencer was stubborn to the core. Hell, we all were—but Spencer was a bit more obvious about it.
“She likes you, you know,” Devin said, watching his daughter play with my facial hair.
“I think she’s okay,” I laughed, playfully nipping at her chubby little fist and making her giggle. “How long until you guys try for another one?”
In the past, I never would have asked such personal things of my clients, but over the last year or two, Pack Garnett had felt like an extension of our family.
Plus, if there was going to be another baby, we needed to know for security reasons.
“If it were up to me, right away.” He laughed. “Mable needs time to heal, though. But she loves being a mother. She lights up every time she’s with Maggie. It’s amazing to watch.”
“I don’t know how she’s studying and raising a baby,” I said.
“Stubbornness and a lot of support.”
Hmm.
We could give Flora a lot of support, and she was stubborn. Was there the potential for more when it came to her and us?
I shook that thought out of my head.
Safe. She needed to be safe first.
Then… Then we could see if there was a spark.