7. Sloane #2
Then Garrett appears in the doorway with his sleeves rolled and his hair still damp from a shower, taking in the domesticity of our new Omega’s room finally evident.
His mouth curves into a small smile, and the last of the tension from last night loosens into something almost like amusement, almost fond, like this is exactly the kind of mess he expected to find from us.
“I’d ask whether you slept well,” Garrett muses, his gaze touching on me for a second longer than the others, “but Sloane smells like he’s still deciding.”
Callie goes pink against the pillow she’s holding as I tip my head back into Idris’ hold and make myself breathe, because the room has gone sweet again.
“I’m a bit better,” I say. “But I’ve got it handled.”
“With help,” Idris adds, his thumb pressing once beneath my jaw.
Garrett’s attention sharpens, but his smile doesn’t leave. “I assumed as much, given the state of the guest room.”
Callie makes a muffled sound into the pillow.
It shakes with her laugh, and that sound does more damage to me than the whole hour of cleaning.
I want to drag her back onto the mattress we just fixed.
I want Idris’ hand harder on my neck. I want our Omega to get here and not get here, want Theo real and safe and already tucked into the smell of this house until my body stops circling the thought of him like a promise.
Garrett’s gaze moves over my face with quiet assessment, then returns to Callie. “Given what this room smelled like last night, I’m impressed you can need more.”
Idris gives another low sound against my back, as Callie crosses to Garrett before the softness can thin out.
Garrett opens for her immediately, one arm settling around her back as she tucks herself against his chest. His expression changes with her weight against him, his control easing just enough that he looks less like the head of the house and more like just another one of her Alphas.
He bends to kiss her forehead, Garrett gathering her in with one hand at her back.
“Hi, sweetheart,” he murmurs.
“Hi.” She tips her face up, searching him in that gentle way that makes people tell her the truth before they’re ready. “You’re less scary this morning.”
Garrett lets out a breath that could almost be a laugh. “I owe you an apology for last night. I’ve been under pressure with Bellwether, and I brought too much of it home. I was so focused on making sure Theo has a stable place to land that I forgot I already have a home standing in front of me.”
Callie’s expression shifts, absorbing his words before resting her cheek briefly against his chest. “I get it. I got carried away with his room too. We don’t even know if he’ll like any of this.”
“He might not,” Garrett says. “And if he doesn’t, we’ll change it,” he adds. “That doesn’t make what you did wrong. It’s sweet.”
Idris’ hand leaves my neck as he steps toward the basket, and the absence of it makes me more aware of my body than the touch did.
“Groceries are handled,” he says. “I scheduled the delivery for tomorrow morning. Heat-safe food, low-scent options, bottled drinks, plain crackers, fruit, the electrolyte packets Bellwether listed.”
Garrett looks over at him. “Did you get the vanilla-blueberry spiced tea?”
Callie blinks. “Why would you...”
“Because,” Garrett says, looking back down at her. “It’s your favorite.”
Her smile widens. “Thank you, Alpha.” She goes quiet for a beat before speaking again.
“It’ll all work out,” Callie says, like she’s deciding to believe it while she says it.
“I promise.” Callie studies him for another second, then her mouth curves like she’s decided he needs to be dragged the rest of the way out of his head.
“And then you’ll have another person to cuddle. ”
His brows lift. “Is that what I’m missing?”
“Mara thinks you’re missing nothing.” Callie glances back at me, wickedness brightening her face because she knows I’m going to enjoy where this is going. “She said she’s seen you at fundraisers and would climb you like a tree. Respectfully. Professionally. With appropriate workplace boundaries.”
A low surprised laugh comes from him, Garrett’s scent warming by a degree, the cold mint losing some of its bite beneath the polished leather. He kisses Callie’s forehead once more before letting her go, his hand lingering at her back. “Tell Mara I appreciate her commitment to professionalism.”
Callie’s smile widens. “I’m absolutely not telling her that.”
“I know.” Garrett looks around the room again, but this time the mess doesn’t seem to bother him in the same way.
“The groceries are scheduled. The room is close enough. None of us need to stand here and adjust the same corner until Friday afternoon.” His attention returns to Callie.
“Let’s go prepare for our Omega, alright? It’ll be good to get out of the house.”
Callie glances down at herself, smoothing a hand over the sweater she’s been cleaning in. “I don’t know what to wear.”
“Then we’re fixing that,” I say.
She looks at me. “It’s not that important.”
“It is,” Garrett says before I can. His tone stays gentle, but there’s no hesitation in it. “First impressions matter when someone is frightened. Comfort matters. You should feel like yourself when he walks in Friday.”
Callie holds his gaze for a second, then nods as if that lands somewhere useful. “Okay. Something soft, then.”
“And I need a shirt,” I say, because if the morning is going to hand me an errand that isn’t another trip around my own instincts, I’m taking it. “Something that says welcoming Alpha, minimal threat.”
Callie’s eyes move over me with enough open skepticism to make my chest warm. “You own at least three shirts that say maximal threat.”
“Exactly. Emergency shopping.”
Idris reaches for his coffee from the dresser where he abandoned it earlier. “I’m not buying clothes.”
Callie turns toward him with the kind of quiet patience she uses on students who have interestingly missed the point. “You were planning to meet a nervous Omega in black?”
Idris looks down at himself. His shirt is black. His slacks are black. His expression barely changes, but I can feel the exact second he realizes he’s lost. “Garrett,” he says, without looking away from Callie, “choose one of the shops that require an appointment.”
Garrett already has his phone in his hand.