4. Ulysses
All my instincts were screaming at me for not having Bailey-Rose in my sights.
I’d never truly understood why Crew acted the way he did around her when it seemed like she could live a fairly normal life.
Now my eyes were opened to the dread of not being around if something happened you could’ve prevented.
In all the things I’ve heard and read about the changes that happen after finding your Omega, none of them ever talked about the intense protectiveness that overtakes you.
Yes, Alphas innately are wired that way, but I felt like everything was on overdrive.
I strained my hearing when I heard a little squeak from inside, but when nothing else followed, I relaxed slightly.
“Wow… you got it bad, bro.” Crew snickered as he squatted in front of me. “Just a suggestion, but you might want to call your pack brothers and give them a heads-up. I can call your parents if you want to avoid that conversation for a bit.”
I rubbed my forehead, trying to decide what the best plan was.
If I told my parents right now, they’d want me to bring her over immediately, which would be beyond overwhelming for Rosie.
Better to give her a few days to adjust to this new realization before my family added their two cents.
They would mean well, but since Mr. and Mrs. Thatcher were always gone, they’d taken to looking after Crew and Bailey-Rose like their own.
“God, my mother is going to be over the moon,” I muttered. “She loves Rosie like a daughter already. This will just make all her dreams come true.”
“Just think, you’ve now secured the favorite-child spot for life,” Crew pointed out as he raised his phone to his ear.
“I’m an only child, asshole,” I shot back, tuning out whatever he was telling my mother as I pulled out my phone.
Now the question was, do I call or text? We had a group chat, so maybe it might be better to get their attention first, then call them. Warrick wasn’t working at the bar tonight, and the others should be finishing up their day at this point, so it was a solid chance we could all talk.
Ulysses:
Guys, I have major news. This is not a joke. I need you to answer me right away.
Warrick:
Are you okay?
Gareth:
Do I have a minute to finish this meeting or do I need to step out right now?
Ulysses:
I’m fine Warrick, better than fine.
Ulysses:
Gareth, if you’re serious about it being a minute, otherwise you’re gonna want to tell them to come back another day.
Vili:
This sounds like it’s a good news! I free if call is needed.
Yun-Sun:
Good timing just got out of court.
Ulysses:
Once Gareth gives the go, I’ll start a call.
Gareth:
Fuck it, this guy’s pissing me off as it is. I can make him come back in hopes he’ll have better ideas then.
The second I finished reading his message, I hit the dial button, and an electronic ringing sounded.
“Dude, didn’t you say you were going to your best friend’s house?” Warrick asked when he answered. “What could possibly have happened in the forty-five minutes since you left the house?”
“I’ll tell you when the others get on,” I said, listening for the beeps that meant another person answered the call.
Taking a second to pull the phone away from my ear, I heard the water still running, which I was thankful for.
It wasn’t that I was trying to hide I was talking to my pack, but I knew I wasn’t going to be able to keep my cool as I told them.
This had been a tough journey for us as we started to feel hopeless with one failed scent card after another.
“Yo, Ulysses, you still there?” Gareth called, snapping my attention back to the call.
I cleared my throat, suddenly overwhelmed with what I had to tell them. “Guys…” I started, unsure how to even describe what just transpired. “I-I found her. She’s here with me. Well, not right beside me. I got kicked out of the bathroom so she could take a shower, but I’m just outside the door.”
“Ah… one, that sounds a tiny bit creepy, if I’m being honest. Two, who the hell is she, and why was this an emergency?” Warrick questioned.
A growl of frustration slipped out at how terribly I was explaining this. “I found our Omega,” I blurted.
“Hold on, what did you just say?” Yun-Sun pressed. “I feel like I’m missing part of the story. Where are you right now that you’d be sitting outside some woman’s bathroom while she showers?”
“Yah, sounds little bit creepy,” Vili added, his heavily accented voice making him distinct on the call.
“I’m at my friend Crew’s place. We’ve been best friends for years.
Earlier, he called me to help him with a situation that had to do with his little sister, Bailey-Rose.
I’ve known this girl for just as long as Crew, and we’d been close before I left for college.
Now, I see her for the first time in several years only to discover she’s my scent matched Omega,” I explained.
“Look, the bottom line is all of you need to get over here now. There’s more to this whole situation, but I’m not doing this over the phone. Just get your asses over here.”
“Holy shit! This is for real, isn’t it?” Gareth asked in disbelief. “Why wasn’t she in the Matching system?”
“All of that will be explained, Gareth. There’s a legitimate reason, but I’m not saying anything until you’ve all had the chance to meet her,” I assured him. “I’ll send you guys the address, but I’ve got to go… the water just turned off.”
“So mysterious, this is exciting,” Vili said, and I could picture the giant smile on his face.
Finding our Omega was important to all of us but even more so to Vili.
He’d come to Preidon from Numoland three years ago to run the international portion of his family’s jewelry business.
He knew no one and didn’t speak our language well—even now, there are times we have to explain the meaning of phrases or slang that’s not commonly used.
When he joined the pack, it was like we’d given him the greatest gift in the world.
There was nothing more important to Vili than this new family, and it certainly made the transition of combining five existing lives into one smoother with his help.
“You have no idea, Vili, so I suggest you all hurry the fuck up,” I urged before hanging up and immediately texting them the address and gate code.
The sound of someone clearing their throat had my head snapping up and halfway standing to protect this doorway by any means necessary.
When I saw it was Eli, I relaxed slightly, but only slightly, as I registered the look on his face wasn’t all that pleased.
Then again, this man was never one to express clear emotion to anyone but Bailey-Rose.
“Eli,” I greeted with a respectful nod.
While his second father might own the majority of the company in name, Eli is the one who ran the damn thing.
That wasn’t the reason I tended to be wary around him, though.
When it came to Rosie, Eli was ruthless in his efforts to keep her safe behind the scenes so as not to tip her off.
That Alpha’s Achilles heel was in the form of a tiny loving Omega—also known as his baby sister.
In some ways, Crew got to stay being Rosie’s brother because Eli took on more of the father role after their father, Adrian, passed away.
“Why are you sitting in front of the bathroom door?” Eli questioned, his frown deepening as he crossed his arms. “I’m telling you right now it better be a good answer because scent match or not, I won’t allow you to pressure her into anything.”
His icy tone was cold enough to give me the chills. I had zero doubt he would uphold that threat if he felt I was stepping out of line when it came to his precious sister.
“Eli, I know we don’t know each other all that well, even after all these years.
That being said, I will say this once,” I bit out through clenched teeth, trying to keep calm at his unspoken accusation.
“I would never pressure or manipulate Bailey-Rose into anything she didn’t want to do.
Only the lowest of the low would dare to do that to a person, regardless of their connection.
Now that we’ve cleared that up, I don’t want ever to hear you question my intentions when it comes to Bailey-Rose.
Her safety, happiness, and well-being have been important to me since the day I met her. ”
Eli’s jaw flexed, probably not used to people speaking to him in such a manner, but I didn’t give a flying fuck.
How dare he question my motives when I’d never given him a reason to think less of me.
I’d known Crew and Rosie for almost twenty years.
This kind of treatment was reserved for strangers, not family friends, and I wouldn’t let it stand.
Taking a deep breath, Eli closed his eyes and let out the breath slowly as if trying to calm himself down.
I knew his protectiveness over Rosie was intense, but I’d never seen this side of him before.
Typically, the Eli I knew was calm and even-tempered about everything, to the point I sometimes questioned if he might be a robot.
Even as I looked at him now with his perfectly cut hair, close-cut beard, and pressed navy suit giving him an air of detail and control, I also knew that man worked out like a beast, which had me considering a new motivation other than keeping himself in peak condition.
When he met my gaze again with blue eyes the same color as Rosie’s right eye, I saw the barest flicker of fear that I questioned if I was right.
“I apologize, Ulysses, that was beyond rude of me to attack you in such a manner. I think it’s just been a shock to return home, learn of the events that transpired, and then find you in her room while she’s showering has set off my protective nature.
Bailey is still so fragile from what occurred with Randall, I overreacted. ”
Hearing him apologize and seeing the true regret on his face, I relaxed, stepping away from the door to close the gap between us. I offered my hand to him, and he gave me a quizzical look but took the offered hand.
“It’s nice to see you, Eli,” I greeted, hoping to start this interaction over. “In case you haven’t heard, in a surprising turn of events, your sister is my scent match. I truly hope we can build a good friendship since I know how important you are to Rosie.”
He gave me a wry smile. “Sucking up has never been your strongest skill, you know that, right?”
“Figured it couldn’t hurt,” I answered with a shrug and a grin. “It did get you to stop glaring at me, though.”
A huff of laughter was Eli’s response as he ran a hand through his perfectly styled hair. “I’ll be honest, I knew this could happen one day, but clearly, I wasn’t prepared for it.”
“Is anyone? I came over intending to cheer her up enough to leave her room,” I pointed out.
“Just so you’re aware, I called the rest of my pack, and they are heading over.
I thought having her meet them here would be less stressful for her.
She set off her monitor twice fairly back-to-back, which is why I was sitting outside the door while she showered,” I explained, feeling it couldn’t hurt for him to have the reasoning.
“Ah, yes, it would make sense for you to think she needed that,” Eli commented with a nod.
“Just to set your mind at ease, she truly has been able to manage her condition with little involvement from us. I suppose being an adult helps since now she understands the details of what her body goes through and how best to prevent dangerous situations.”
I raised a brow, not believing the calm he was portraying. “Right, and that knowledge has set your mind at ease enough to delete her heart monitor alerts from your phone?”
Eli started to answer then stopped, giving me the answer I already knew. “You rushed home from the office because you already knew she had two alerts back to back, making you worry. You knew I was coming over, but I can’t figure out why you thought I was causing the problem?”
“Honestly, I don’t think it had anything to do with you.
If Crew had been standing in this room, I would have chewed his ass out for upsetting her,” Eli answered honestly.
“I should have known that Crew would be hiding, though. He texted me what happened and didn’t even bother to speak to me when I tried to call.
That brother of mine could make a nun pull out her hair with how he handles certain situations. ”
He didn’t have to tell me that. I was well aware of that trait in my best friend.
My phone buzzed, and I glanced down to see it was Warrick letting me know he and Vili were pulling up to the gate.
Shit, they’d made it here in record time.
Then again, Warrick wasn’t known for following the rules when it came to speed.
“Well, I’m about to flush him out from his hiding spot since two of my pack brothers are here,” I shared as I texted Crew to greet them because I wasn’t leaving this room until Rosie was ready to meet them.
“Indulge me as I make this request because I know you can’t do anything about it, but please don’t let them hurt her.
Bailey has been rejected time and time again by people who make snap judgments about her condition.
You are one of the few people who saw past the disease and limitations to find the amazing woman underneath.
Those men have no idea how lucky they are to be matched with her,” Eli said, his voice so full of emotion and vulnerability it had me looking at the man in a new light.
Eli, just like Crew, put his lives on hold to be by Bailey-Rose’s side without a second thought.
Now here I was, appearing out of thin air and changing the life they’d created for the three of them.
Traditionally, once the pack finds their match, the courting begins, allowing the Omega time to get to know their new pack.
It also provides the chance to establish residency if they need to move states or out of the country.
Now I see it also gives the family time to adjust as well to the idea their loved one is going to start their own family.
“I couldn’t agree with you more, Eli. These men are good men, and I have no doubt they will see the diamond that she is, even if there might be a few minor flaws. At the end of the day, she’s going to be the most precious thing to us,” I assured him.