21. Charlie
Chapter 21
Charlie
T here was a distinct possibility that I had gone overboard.
When I said I was going to order food, I failed to mention how much food I was going to order. Several good restaurants near us did catering, so I had placed orders with each of them. Yes, this was only supposed to be a small lunch, but I clearly didn’t do small.
The result was that our dining room was starting to look like a Thanksgiving feast. Just to be safe, I had covered all the bases, when it came to the cravings Eli had told us about. There were several pasta dishes, and there was steak. There was even an apple pie for dessert.
The apple pie had led to some debate between me and Micha. Eli hadn't specified whether it was just plain apples that Kennedy had been craving or apple-flavored things, so he was under the impression that an apple pie wouldn't satisfy the craving like fresh apples would.
“Well, at least they’re apple adjacent,” I argued as I placed the trays on the table.
Micha nodded. “Yeah, but I’m still going to get some regular apples for our fridge. If all goes well, then Kennedy's going to be spending a fair bit of time here.”
“It’s so weird… This omega has suddenly become an integral part of our lives, and I haven't even met her yet. What will happen if we don't get along?” I asked, voicing my concern.
Micha clapped me on the shoulder. “I can imagine it's really weird. Kennedy's a great girl, and you'll see that for yourself. Not to mention, she’s stunning. I think we really have some potential to date her as a pack. Also, we both know how picky Eli is about women.”
I laughed ruefully. Eli was probably the most discerning out of all of us when it came to his choice of who to date.
We’d discussed over the years how we would go about dating as a pack when the time came. Our plan had always been to court omegas as a singular unit. None of this individual dating and potentially bringing one back home to the pack.
That was the plan for when we were a few years older, when we were done with college and ready to truly settle down. Until then, we’d all had a few flings. We were alphas in our prime. We were sowing our wild oats and having a bit of fun.
Sometimes we dated individually, sometimes two or three of us dated the same girl, but it was usually a beta, so we knew it wasn’t going anywhere.
When Eli admitted that he had asked an omega on a date, I’d been shocked. Even more so when I learned more about her and the fact that she had a child. Personally, I loved kids. They were so innocent and fun and fearless. We babysat our nieces and nephews on occasion, and every time, we ended up building forts, jumping off high surfaces, and generally causing the most fun chaos.
Children were amazing. Adults were boring.
This was different, though. As much as I loved kids, this wasn't someone's child I could give back to them when they got overtired or upset or needed serious parenting. As pack mates, we would all be responsible for Eli's child. It felt like responsibility was about to hit us square in the face, and I wasn't sure we were ready for it.
“Do you really think Storm can handle the pack having a baby?” I asked.
Micha sighed. “I'm not sure. He needs to grow up sooner or later. If he is at all mean to Kennedy or her child, though, I will punch him.”
“He won't be mean. We know he's a good guy. He just tends to think with his dick a bit too much.”
Micha nodded in agreement. “He said he would be here, though, and he’s nowhere to be seen.”
“We’ll deal with that later. I'm hoping he just needs a bit of time to adjust to the news. He doesn't seem to think it's going to impact him at all, only Eli. Today, let's just focus on Kennedy.”
The next two hours while we waited for them was agony. We hadn't set an exact time to meet up. Due to the nature of Kennedy being sick, we were trying our best to keep things casual, even though bringing a child into the world was the opposite of casual.
Still, all the food was prepared and just needed to be heated up when it was time. We ended up gravitating to the living room, sitting and watching a documentary that we had no interest in watching and neither of us were paying attention to.
The second the sound of the front door opening hit our ears, we both shot up from the sofa and made a beeline for the front door. We were both far too eager to see her.
I approached them a bit slower than my pack mate, giving them time to take off their jackets and get more than one foot in the door.
“You brought the tiny terror!” Micha exclaimed happily as he rushed forward, plucking the baby out of the omega’s arms. Kennedy gave him a startled look, but the baby was clearly content in his arms, snuggling into his chest, smiling happily. “I've got so many amazing things to show you,” he declared before wandering down the hall, taking the baby with him.
“Did he just kidnap my baby?” Kennedy asked, an adorable frown marring her features.
Now that Micha was out of the way, I could get a good look at her. Eli certainly wasn’t wrong. She was gorgeous. Long, dark reddish-brown hair fell past her shoulders, and she was wearing a long-sleeved knit dress that hugged her in all the right places.
Her scent, that I had only gotten hints of until now, hit me like a brick wall. Fuck me, it was intense.
Don't get a visible boner. Please don't get a visible boner.
It was undeniably sweet, like all omega scents were, but it had that floral and musky edge that made my mouth water. No omega had ever smelled that good to me. My hands itched to grab her and bury my face in her hair, drinking that scent deep into my lungs.
“Kennedy, this is Charlie.” Eli introduced us as he took her jacket, hanging it on the peg in the hallway.
She turned her attention to me and smiled brightly. Her entire face lit up, and I sort of swore I felt my knees shake.
I was not the kind of alpha who got weak in the knees for a girl’s smile.
At least, I wasn’t before.
Eli had spectacular taste.
“Hi, it’s nice to meet you,” she said, holding out her hand to shake mine with a shy voice. Her tone wavered ever so slightly, giving away her nerves. Still, her voice sounded like liquid honey, and I wanted to spend the rest of my life listening to that voice begging me to knot her.
“It’s nice to meet you,” I said, ignoring her outstretched hand and pulling her in for a hug. She was pregnant with the child of one of my pack mates. As far as I was concerned, she was family, and you don't shake hands with family. There was also the added perk of having her pressed up against me. I had to angle my hips just right, so she wouldn't feel my impending raging boner.
“Oh! Hi,” she mumbled into my chest before looking up at me.
Fuck me, those eyes. Large, deep chocolate brown, and almost painfully expressive. They were the kind of eyes that gave away every single emotion.
I couldn't pinpoint why, but I really liked that.
“Are you hungry?” I asked. “Let’s go in,” I said, leading her into the open living and dining space.
Micha was sitting in front of the TV. He had spread a large colorful blanket out on the floor and was sitting cross-legged with the baby in his lap, watching videos of dancing fruit on the TV.
Kennedy smiled down at them. “Oh, she’s loving those videos.”
“They’re addictive to watch!” Micha agreed, his eyes never leaving the TV. “They're good for her mental stimulation… I may have Googled.”
I led Kennedy to the sofa. Eli was hot on her heels. In the few moments I’d witnessed them together, his hand always reached out to her, touching her back, holding her hand, or simply hovering near her. His alpha instincts were probably running riot. When an alpha became attached to an omega, they would become protective, but if that omega was pregnant, then all their instincts were ramped up tenfold.
“So, what do you do, Charlie?” Kennedy asked. “Eli’s told me a bit about you guys, but I want to hear it from you.”
“I’m studying sports medicine. I used to play ice hockey all the time with Storm as a kid, and even at the beginning of college, and I developed a real passion for it. I wasn’t good enough at the sport to keep it up. Do you want a drink?”
“Just water, please. It's good that you're able to study something you're passionate about,” she said, her voice almost painfully sweet. I wanted to pull her into my lap. Her eyes kept looking over me, and I could tell that she wasn't completely oblivious to my charms, either.
“We've got ginger tea here,” Eli interjected, sitting next to Kennedy as he did. He turned to me. “It's good for the nausea.”
“Oh, if it's not a bother, could I get some of that?” she asked.
“Sure.” I went to go into the kitchen, but Eli stood.
“I’ll go and get it for you, killer,” he said, smiling at me while Kennedy was behind him, so she couldn't see. I knew exactly what he was doing. He was giving me time to speak to Kennedy without him present and hovering.
I sat on the sofa adjacent to where Kennedy was sitting. I wanted to be close, but not so close it would make her uneasy. If I didn't think it would freak her out, I would have sat straight down next to her.
“Why does Eli call you killer ?” I asked.
Kennedy laughed, running a hand through her hair. “I'm studying psychology and criminology. When we first met, there was a joke about me being a secret serial killer because of what I’m studying. The name has kind of stuck since.”
“I like it, though I’m not going to say it suits you, because that may be a touch rude.” I laughed.
Kennedy joined in, laughing, and her body relaxed somewhat.
Good, I wanted her to feel at ease with me.
Actually, I wanted her to feel more than just at ease with me, but I needed to take this slow. I had met her only five minutes prior, and already, I was thinking about the long term with her.
Suddenly, I fully understood Eli's obsession with her.
“How old is your daughter—her name’s Charlotte, right?”
Kennedy nodded. “Charlotte, Char, Lottie. The poor girl has too many nicknames.” She giggled. “She’s almost eight months old now.”
“I call her the tiny terror! The cutest terror that ever terrorized, in my humble opinion!” Micha declared, craning his head to smile at us in a way that wouldn’t disturb the baby in his lap.
“And I don’t want to pry…”
Kennedy shrugged. “Isn’t that what we’re doing today? Getting to know one another?”
“Her dad?”
“Not around. He doesn't even know that she exists. I met a cute guy when I was working at the local ice rink. The next day, we ended up at the same club, and one thing led to another. He told me his name was Charlie and gave me his phone number, but when I tried calling him to let him know that, you know, I was pregnant, the number was disconnected.”
“So, there's a man out there who has no clue that he has a child? Well, that’s a disgrace to the Charlie name!” I insisted.
Laughter erupted from Kennedy's chest. “Well, maybe you can bring some honor back to the Charlie name.”
I intended to do just that. Some moron had messed up, leaving such a cute and delicious-smelling omega behind. There was no way in hell I would do the same.
“So, you did it all on your own?” I asked.
She nodded. “I worked part time, up until I was six months pregnant, and I had several scholarships that helped with some of my living expenses. I did every odd job that I could to save up in preparation for giving birth. I had already been accepted into my master’s program when I learned I was pregnant, and I didn't want to give that up. I knew that the best chance I had for my baby was to get a good job to support us.”
“The alpha who put you in this situation should have supported you—wait, that’s presumptuous of me. Was her father an alpha or beta?”
“Alpha,” Kennedy confirmed. “Considering he didn't even bother to give me his correct number, relying on him wasn’t an option. We've been doing all right.”
“That doesn’t make it okay. I hate that you had to do it all alone. You know you won’t be this time, right? Regardless of what happens romantically between all of us, you are family now.” I looked over to Micha. “I'm pretty sure he's decided that he's keeping your kid.”
“She’s so sweet!” Micha said, beaming at Kennedy. “Just like her mama.”
Kennedy shook her head, though she was grinning. “You guys are too much.”
“Nah, I think we are just enough,” Micha said.
“We aren’t overwhelming you, are we?” I asked calmly. “The last thing I want to do is stress you out. Especially in your condition.”
“Trust me, pregnant women can deal with a lot of stress. I'm honestly surprised Char didn’t come out with anxiety.”
Eli chose that moment to come back in with a steaming mug of tea in hand. He handed it to Kennedy while frowning. “Well, you're not going to be so stressed during this pregnancy.”
Kennedy rolled her eyes. “I know, you guys keep telling me that.”
Eli turned to me as he sat next to Kennedy. “She needs a bit of time to believe we’re more than just talk,” he explained, and as he did so, Kennedy opened her mouth indignantly, thought about it for a moment, closed her mouth, and pouted at him.
“He's infuriating when he's right, isn't he?” I asked.
“He is,” she growled.
“Where’s Storm?” Eli asked.
“He hasn’t left his room yet today,” I admitted. “I think he was out late, partying…”
Eli frowned. I’d known he was going to be pissed. Storm understood he was bringing Kennedy today, and he had decided to go out drinking until the early hours of the morning instead of being here.
“I can go see where he is,” I said, standing up.
I wasn't even fully on my feet when a door opened upstairs and footfalls reached my ears.
“Looks like he’s finally waking up,” I said.
Ideally, I didn't want Kennedy meeting one of our pack mates while he was hungover. It didn't exactly give the best first impression.
“I’m sorry about Storm. He’s…” Eli trailed off.
“The least responsible of us all?” I filled in.
Eli nodded.
Kennedy bit her lip. She hadn't even seen Storm yet, but I was already getting angry at him for damaging the impression our pack was giving Kennedy. Despite only meeting her a few minutes ago, I already desperately wanted her to like us.
From the few glances we had shared, I’d detected attraction on both sides. Micha had also insisted they had a spark, and given her pregnant state, it was obvious she and Eli shared a mutual attraction.
I was about to open my mouth when Storm stumbled down the stairs. Looking thoroughly disheveled and wearing only a pair of sweatpants, he descended the stairs, followed by a random woman I had never seen before.
It was a puck bunny. One that smelled like lavender, but not nice lavender—like toxic lavender. Like the flower had been left out in the sun and had been burned to a crisp.
“Oh, fuck! Hey, guys, sorry I just need to see Julia—no, Jenny—out, sorry!” he said, tugging the girl in the direction of the front door.
A startled squeak escaped Kennedy's chest as she stared at Storm, her eyes impossibly wide.
“Charlie?!” she cried.