Chapter 10 Wyatt
Wyatt
Mid-step, carrying my bag into the house, pain shoots up the side of my leg. I grit my teeth to keep from crying out. Fucking hell. It gets me every single time. I stumble, but manage to right myself before anyone notices.
Five steps later, I push my bag aside and ease down onto the couch, pretending I just need a breather.
“How’re you doing there, cowboy?”
I start, blinking up. I hadn’t realized Rose was sitting at the breakfast table nearby, watching me.
“Just need a break,” I say, keeping my voice as even as I can while pain burns up and down my thigh. “Late night.”
She shrugs, but there’s something in her eyes—sharp, knowing. She sees more than she lets on.
“Do you always wear that hat?” she asks, tipping her chin toward me. I glance up at the brim poking at the edge of my vision.
“Whenever I can. It’s my most comfortable piece of clothing. Why? You don’t like it?”
Her cheeks flush a soft pink, the color deepening against her light brown skin. Damn, she’s pretty when she blushes. Her rich brown eyes dart away, and that little flicker of shyness hits me right in the chest.
“I didn’t say that,” she mutters, voice softer now. She stands, gliding closer, and before I can move, she’s reaching for my bag.
On instinct, my hand wraps gently around her wrist. Warm skin. My pulse jumps.
“I can handle it,” I say, low.
“I know you can.” Her gaze flicks to mine, steady and calm. “But I know a good spot for this. Want me to put it away before the others claim it?”
This woman, she sees too much. More than I want her to. More than anyone has in a long damn time. Still, my leg’s throbbing bad enough that arguing seems stupid. I nod once.
She smiles, small and satisfied, and rolls the bag down the short hall into the one and only bedroom.
We’d left for a few hours to grab our things, leaving Kai behind with her. When we came back, the house looked different. It's neater, cozier somehow. A lot of the clutter has vanished.
I’ve got a feeling there’s one very overstuffed closet somewhere in this place.
The pack bed—rush ordered—has just been delivered. As the ache in my leg finally starts to ease, I make my way to the bedroom door.
The thing takes up damn near the entire space.
Harlan ordered one meant for six, even though Rose keeps insisting she’ll sleep on the couch.
That chafes every part of me. I’d never let an omega sleep on a couch while I took a bed, but there’s no way five grown men are fitting in her living room.
There's not even enough floor space for five alphas if we really felt chivalrous.
I shake my head. The whole situation’s a mess.
We built our restaurant empire from nothing. Sure, the first funds came from Logan’s dad selling his pizza place, but what we’ve made since far outpaces where we started. Still, that old man’s ghost manages to control us from beyond the grave.
My bag’s already tucked neatly in the master closet, the most convenient spot when I enter the bedroom.
“Thank you,” I say, tipping my hat.
She smiles. Small. Shy. The kind that hits somewhere low in my gut. She tucks a wild curl behind her ear, and my fingers twitch with the urge to do it for her.
A quiet cough from behind makes me turn. Kai stands there, hands in his pockets, looking composed as always. I clear my throat and look away, but being between the two of them has my pulse pounding and a tight, restless ache settling in my stomach.
Kai behind me. Rose in front of me. Not thoughts I should be having. Not now.
I shake them off. Or try to. We’re about to sleep in our first pack bed together. Without an omega we had our own rooms before. But with an omega it would look suspicious to continue that way. Well, all except Rose. The thought sours something in my chest. I don’t know why it bothers me so much.
“Rosie,” Kai says softly, “if you can’t sleep on the couch, I’ll be on the left. I’ll leave a spot open for you if you change your mind. No one will come near you.”
None of us would ever force anything. The thought alone makes my jaw clench.
“Thank you, Kai,” she says quietly.
It’s late. The reporter mess happened near dinner, and by the time Harlan bribed a store into rushing the pack bed over and we picked up our bags, it was nearly midnight.
We all move around getting ready for bed—awkward as hell. Sliding past each other in the narrow hall, Rose darting around us with her clothes tucked under her arm.
Then she walks out of the bathroom in a little two-piece set. Camisole top and short shorts over amazing curves. My heart stops dead.
And judging by the silence, I’m not the only one.
Every alpha looks struck dumb. Eyes wide and hungry. Rose doesn’t seem to notice, offering a soft “Goodnight” before slipping under the blankets she’s laid out on the couch. She turns off the lamp, the room dipping into shadow.
We file into the bedroom like we’re sleepwalking. A few hard lines under the fabric of boxers and sweats make it clear we’re all in the same kind of misery. Scent or no scent, Beta or omega, that is one sexy curvy woman.
Harlan slides into the middle. Evander curls against him. Logan turns his back to them, letting himself be held but still careful, like the air between them might break. Harlan’s hands stay on Evander only, disciplined. He’ll forgive Logan eventually, no doubt about that, but it’s still raw.
That leaves the far side of the bed for me and Kai.
I glance over. He’s already looking at me. That steady gaze sparks something I don’t have words for.
“You, uh… mind if I take the outside? For Rosie,” he says, voice gruff.
I nod and slide under the covers. He hesitates, then climbs in beside me. To leave the edge free for her, he moves close.
Even though Harlan’s pressed against my other side, it’s different. Harlan’s my pack brother. Kai… Kai’s something else. Something I want.
Our arms brush. Skin-to-skin.
I tell myself to let it go. To roll over, to sleep. Instead, my fingers drift, brushing the backs of his.
For one long heartbeat, he doesn’t move. My chest sinks with regret. I start to pull away—
Then his fingers flex, stretch, and wrap around mine.
My heart rockets.
It takes me a long damn time to fall asleep.