Chapter 23
Flora
“Come on, honeybee,” Chase said, guiding me out of the room. “Let’s get you set up in the guest room. It’s late, and I’m pretty sure Bear and Spencer are about to have words.”
“Chicken,” I muttered. Truth be told, I was probably the bigger coward out of the two of us, but I couldn’t help myself.
“I’ve seen what those two can do; I’m avoiding it at all costs. Even if you’re pissed at me.” Chase chuckled, not at all affected by my cajoling.
I glowered at him as he opened a door. “You're lucky I left my taser in my bag in the car.”
Chase glanced up at the sky with a grin. “Clearly some higher power is watching out for me.”
His cavalier attitude should have pissed me off, but a grin started to tug at the corner of my lips. “You're awfully chipper.”
He shrugged. “Don't get me wrong, I'm absolutely fuming that this sick thug trashed your place, but I'm also glad that you're here. Honestly, I'm just a swirling vortex of emotions.” He sighed wistfully.
“You’re something, all right,” I mumbled.
He ignored me, leading us into the room. “This is our guest room. It’s a little sparse, but these should help liven things up!” he declared, jerking his head at the bags of nesting supplies. “Do you want a hand?”
I shook my head. “No, nesting is very…” I trailed off.
“Personal?”
Nodding, I took in the room. It was shockingly boring. A bed frame. Plain white sheets. A dresser and a walk-in closet. Everything was in muted tones of gray, white, or beige.
“Are you guys allergic to color?” I muttered as I turned to the bags that Chase had placed in the doorway. The bed was depressing. It was large but looked rather uncomfortable. Who on earth only had a single pillow on a bed? Psychopaths, that’s who.
“Not at all. Our rooms have plenty of color. Mine happens to be blue. You’re welcome to visit any time, honeybee. The only time we have guests is when a coworker comes to visit, and let’s just say, none of them have particularly strong opinions when it comes to interior decoration.”
“Well, it’s only temporary,” I noted, more to remind myself than to Chase.
“Even if it’s a little longer than temporary, we can paint it. I’ll have you know, I’m good with a paintbrush. I love doing all the little nooks and crannies!”
Chuckling, I started removing items from the bags. The plastic crinkled as I pulled things out one by one, setting them on the very sad-looking bed.
Everything was high quality and impeccably made. Wool, cashmere, and muslin had me running my hands over them.
“These are too nice,” I said. I made next to nothing; there was no way I could ever pay them back for such beautiful items.
Chase shrugged. “Mable said they were getting no use, and she was just going to get the guys to take them to the shelter. If you like them, they’re yours.”
What must it be like to be so rich that you could have piles and piles of nesting supplies you didn’t even need? I had only met Mable once, and she had seemed like a sweet omega who deserved that sort of life, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little jealous.
I picked up one of the soft, pale pink pillows and hugged it to my chest. It had just the right amount of filling, so I could squish it satisfyingly. If a pillow was overstuffed or under-stuffed, or didn’t have a good bounce to it, I didn’t enjoy it as much.
Sadly, all the pillows in my destroyed nest had been old, thin, and well-worn. It had been one of the things I wanted to correct as soon as I had a bit of spare money—which probably wouldn’t be anytime soon—but it was a goal, all the same.
“I like this one,” I admitted, clutching it to my chest.
A smile spread across Chase’s face, and his scent intensified. “And if there’s anything you don’t like, don’t worry. We’ll donate it to the shelter. We’ll work on getting you your own stuff soon.”
I shook my head. “There’s no need to do that. There’s plenty here. You saw how thin my nest was in the apartment.”
He raised an eyebrow. “If I recall, your nest was extremely comfortable. Then again, that may have had something to do with the snuggly omega who was in it with me.”
My face heated, and I couldn’t meet his eye. Thinking back to what we did in my nest made me squirm. I wasn’t going to admit it, but that had been some gloriously amazing sex.
“Wait,” I said, putting the pillow down and turning to Chase. “You knew the cameras were there when you and I…” I trailed off.
“Yeah,” he said, scratching the back of his head, his face flushing ever so slightly. “That’s not my proudest moment, but I was honestly so obsessed with you, I disregarded it. I’m pretty sure Spencer and Bear got an amazing view of my bare behind at one point.”
Nothing about his words rang false, even though I was listening intently.
“I’m still mad at you,” I grumbled.
“I mean… I understand, but I’ll grow on you.”
“Like a fungus?” I asked, scrunching my nose.
Chase’s smile dropped, his expression turning perplexed. “I mean… maybe? You know what, yes. I am a fungus!”
Biting back a laugh, I got to work, organizing the blankets.
I had a sneaking suspicion that, if I didn’t take quite a few, the overbearing pack would insist on buying me a whole slew of them.
Deep down, a small part of me wanted to be spoiled and showered in pretty nesting supplies, but something about it felt wrong.
I had just met this pack. They were protecting me, and that was more than enough.
Though they were royal pains in my ass as well.
“You have a private ensuite bathroom in here,” Chase said, nodding at the closed wooden door on the other side of the room. “You won’t have to worry about one of us accidentally walking in. It has a lock.”
“Thank you, I appreciate that.”
Chase shook his head. “Don’t thank us. It’s the bare minimum. There are also some old T-shirts and sweatpants of ours in the drawers. The stuff we don’t wear often we store here. I figured you would want something to sleep in.”
My face heated as I nodded my thanks. I probably needed their clothing, but still, it felt… intimate? It really shouldn’t have, considering everything Chase and I had done.
After shaking out one of the blankets, I turned to face him. “Are there any cameras in here?” I asked pointedly.
He shook his head adamantly. “No, though I don’t think Spencer would mind. I’m the camera guy, though, and I told him no. I’m well aware of how deadly you are with a taser.” He laughed, hands automatically going south to protect his junk
“You’re the camera guy?” I asked through a giggle.
He nodded enthusiastically. “Yep. I like tech. I spend most of my time taking things apart and putting them back together. I’m actually in the middle of taking apart a laptop I found cheap and refurbishing it.”
“Sounds complex…”
He shrugged, smile still plastered on his face. “Not to me. If you need a laptop or phone upgrade, just let me know.”
“My laptop wasn’t in one of the bags that Spencer brought from my place, was it?” I asked with a grimace.
“I highly doubt it. If this bastard took the time to trash everything, he wouldn’t have left your laptop out of the carnage.”
Sighing, I turned back to the makeshift nest I was building.
“I really am sorry about all this,” Chase said.
“It's not your fault. Are there cameras anywhere else in this apartment?”
“There are,” Chase confirmed. “Some pointed at the elevator and at our front door, so we can see who's coming or going.
We also have one in the living space, but we installed that because I was pulling pranks and Spencer wanted proof.
If having a camera makes you uncomfortable, let me know, and I'll take it down.
“No, that’s okay. I just wanted to be sure there weren’t any in the bedrooms or, God forbid, bathrooms. Wait, did that creep have a camera in my bathroom?” I asked. That idea disgusted me.
Chase grimaced. “Honestly, I don't know. One of us is going to go to your apartment in the next day or two and give it a proper search. I don’t want to worry you, but there’s a good chance.”
I shuddered. “I feel violated.”
“It’s awful, and I’m so sorry that has happened to you. If you want, I can give you a camera detector. It’s a little device you can swipe around the room to see if there are any hidden cameras. If that will make you feel safer and more comfortable here…”
“Actually, it really would. Are you sure that’s okay?”
Chase shrugged. “Yeah, it’s no problem at all. If it helps you sleep, it’s worth it. I know you haven’t been sleeping too well lately.”
“Hmm. I wonder how you know that,” I said pointedly.
“We just needed to ensure you were safe. Now you’re here, there won’t be any cameras on you. If Spencer asks me to install any more cameras, I’ll tell him to shove them up his backside.”
“Promise?”
“Promise. In fact, I would take great joy in it.” His smirk told me he was being truthful.
“Thank you.”
“It’s getting late. I’m going to leave you to it.
I am just down the hall if you need me. I’ll bring the detector in a few minutes.
” He took a step forward, his scent intensifying.
For a moment, my mind wandered back to that night in my nest, the way his arms moved and his whispered moans in my ear.
“I’m serious, Flora—if you need anything, come find me.
Even if you just want to talk about plants for three hours.
Not that I think you would want to talk about plants for three hours, but Mable did that once, so I’m prepared. ”