Chapter 16
Chapter
Sixteen
Roxie
My phone rang loud enough to wake me from a dead sleep. I groaned and opened my eyes, crawling over the sleeping delta next to me to answer it.
“Hey, Ry, what’s going on?”
“Get up sleepyhead,” he sang out. “Breakfast time. Greer and I wanted to know if you two wanted to join us for breakfast.”
“Yes,” Kota answered around a yawn, his hand running over my naked hips which was not going to help.
“Fine. I have to take a quick shower then we’ll be down,” I grumbled.
“No time for another round, you two.” He laughed.
“Come join us then and we can skip breakfast,” Kota teased.
“You don’t get to take both of our omegas, brat. Get your asses downstairs,” Greer said. He sounded downright chipper and both Kota and I shared a shocked look.
“Fiiiine,” I said. “See you in fifteen minutes.”
I hung up and looked at the delta who was trying to pull covers back over us.
“No, they’ll kill us,” I said as I pushed off of him to head for the bathroom. “I’m showering. Give me a head start then you can join.”
“I’ll be there, little bat,” he said as he stretched out on the bed. Clearly, someone was not a morning person.
I hurried into the bathroom to use the toilet and brush my teeth before setting the spray on scorching. Kota joined me almost the second it started.
“I’m exhausted,” he groaned. “I need coffee.”
“Then keep your hands to yourself, delta,” I said as I started to wash my hair. He behaved until I pulled my conditioner out. He plucked it from my hands and squirted some into his palm before massaging it into my hair. My eyes rolled back and I soaked in the moment.
I could get used to this treatment.
Somehow we managed to get to the dining room within the fifteen minutes I promised. We didn’t even look for the others as we made a beeline for the coffee machine. Kota poured two before handing me one. I doctored it up as he dumped in a bit of sugar and chugged his.
“Roxie, Kota,” Rylan called out. I turned to find him and Greer tucked into a table in the corner. I glanced around but Hayes was nowhere to be found.
Come to think of it, he’d been scarce since we found out we were scent-matches.
If so, I’d give him until our final day to process then I’d find him. I was a journalist, no one could hide for long and I refused to go back to North Crossing with more questions than we came in here with.
Kota dragged me over to the table where they were waiting. The resort had an amazing breakfast buffet but they also had a full menu.
“Well, I see who the morning people are in this pack,” Greer pointed out. “This might be the first time I’ve seen Kota without a smile.
“Give me two cups and I’ll be right as rain,” Kota said as he lifted the cup and chugged down more of the dark roast.
“Hey, Rox, I think I spotted fresh cinnamon rolls. Come grab one with me?” Rylan said. I drank down a bit more of my coffee before standing.
“In case you missed it, that’s code for we are going to go walk away and talk about you,” I told the others. Greer let out a startled laugh until Rylan confirmed it.
“Exactly my plan,” he agreed, hooking his arm through mine and leading me to the buffet line where the pastries were.
“So, how was your night?” I asked as I snagged a plate. Coming up here meant I hadn’t even had a chance to order, so I definitely needed something now.
“Incredible,” he sighed, looking at me. “We really just both fucked up and we owned it and had this honest, raw conversation. Then I made him give me his knot.”
I couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled up. “Hell yeah. I did the same with Kota. It was incredible.”
“Good to know both of our deltas know how to use their knots,” he mused as he grabbed the tongs and put a cinnamon roll on each of our plates.
“I couldn’t agree more,” I said as I pushed him gently toward the fruit section. “We need actual nutrients.”
“Fine,” he grumbled as we loaded our plates up with something that wouldn’t send us into a food coma.
He waited until he was done to look back at our table.
“I was thinking I’d like to spend some time with Kota today. Things were moving really slow because I was caught up in all this. I’d have come around but this changed things and I owe it to him to be a bit more open.”
My attention shifted to Greer. He’d wanted to take things slow and I wasn’t sure where this put us now.
“I’d like the same with Greer. It couldn’t hurt to talk again now that you guys worked through your past,” I agreed.
Now that we had a plan we went back to the table right as the waitress was rattling off the daily specials. She started over when we arrived.
“French toast, extra bacon, and a mimosa for me,” I ordered.
“Double that,” Rylan agreed quickly.
The deltas both ordered plates loaded with protein while we started on our pre-breakfast plates. I woke up more and more as I nursed my coffee and got food in my stomach.
“How was your chat?” Kota finally asked. He was a bit more awake now as well, his smile back to its usual brightness.
“Good,” Rylan winked at him. “I was wondering if you wanted to go check out the hot tub with me after breakfast, Kota.”
“Just us?” Kota asked, hope in his voice. The two really did need this moment.
“Yes,” Rylan said with confidence.
“I’d love that,” Kota said as he reached over and tugged Rylan closer, plucking a grape off of his plate and popping it into his mouth. The fact Ry didn’t argue was a sign he was feeling a lot more confident in his mate.
“That leaves us,” Greer said as he focused on me. There was no jealousy with his omega flirting with another delta. He was happy to be talking to me. I’d take that over being scared, or them finding their past again and shutting us out.
It seemed they’d had their moment and wanted to make sure they built the pack up as well.
“Do you have something in mind?” I asked.
“Would it be lame if I suggested the spa? They had this relaxing facial thing. Maybe it defeats the purpose but we could get pampered and just talk for a bit?”
“Count me in,” I said easily. That sounded like the perfect start to my day. “I won’t even interview you for the article yet.”
“There’s time for that,” he promised. “Give me this time and I’ll make sure to come talk business soon.”
“That’s huge for him. This guy hates the press usually,” Kota said.
“Probably because they’re vultures in those post-game interviews,” I said. “That was one part of journalism I could never get behind. You learn so much more from casual conversation and being an annoying asshole wasn’t really my vibe.”
“Thank God,” Greer said, giving me a smile. They came so easily to him now and I gave him a soft one in return, soaking in his attention like I was a sunflower and he was the sun. The warmth radiated from him now.
Our food was out quickly and we ate before breaking into two groups. Rylan and Kota went off to the hot tub while Greer held out a hand for mine. When our fingers were intertwined he walked me through the halls to the spa.
We couldn’t talk for the first half as the masseuses gave us facials and upper body massages.
Once they finished we were wrapped in fluffy, white robes with a mask on our faces. The music in the background was a serene rain and soft music mix.
We sat side by side on cozy chairs, completely at ease and ready to talk. Greer didn’t hesitate to start.
“So, Rylan and I talked through everything we could last night. It was incredible how stupid we were but we both agreed that it was meant to be this way. We weren’t ready then and we didn’t have all of you.
The pack is important to me and so are you.
I want this to work this time and I’m ready to find a real life that doesn’t just center around hockey. ”
“I’m so glad you guys were able to figure things out. Is it really just that easy? One chat and boom, everything is fine?”
He snorted. “Of course not. There’s going to be just as much newness to that relationship as we have with ours.
I think we just finally both were able to push away those darker thoughts and realize our own roles and that it was a shared failing.
It helped a lot to know that we both made those mistakes.
I think now we can just let it go and start to heal. We’ve changed a lot.”
“I bet,” I said as I pulled my knees up and turned toward him, giving him my undivided attention.
“I know I said I wanted to take it slow but I think I’d rather just… not add a label to this. I want to talk and get to know you, to go back and keep things rolling, and let it progress however feels right for both of us.”
“That’s how I would prefer us to do this, too.
Letting things happen naturally will always make a better connection.
I don't want labels and rules to get in the way. We’ll figure things out and yeah, we’ll probably fuck up from time to time, but we’re all adults and can work through it when that happens. ”
“That or Hayes will kick our asses,” he tacked on.
“If he even comes around. I swear he’s running from me.”
“He will,” Greer said with enough confidence that I chose to simply trust in that and let it go for now.
My phone pinged several times in a row, a surefire sign that Kota was messaging. I stood up slowly trying not to flash the delta and padded over to the stack of clothes and belongings I had across the room. I checked my phone, shaking my head at the four messages he’d just sent.
Kota
The hot tub was very steamy and perfect. We need to cool off now so are hitting the pool
Kota
When you’re done being pampered, you should join us.
Kota
Rylan said there’s some kind of cookout tonight for dinner, just giving you a heads up.
Kota
Okay, I’m leaving my phone. See you out there, little bat.
He tacked on a bat and heart emoji at the end that had me smiling like a dork. That delta was just so full of light that it rubbed off on you.
“They’ve moved on to the pool and are checking in to see if we want to join.”
“I think I’ve been properly pampered and could go for a drink by the pool,” he agreed, standing and walking over before freezing. “Maybe we should wash these masks off first. We forgot to set a timer like they told us.”
I glanced at the clock and winced. We were definitely past time. I washed my mask off at the sink and dried my face. My skin was insanely soft now and I really did feel more relaxed and awake than before.
This was a great choice. More than that, I was glad my delta wasn’t afraid to spend time on himself and loved things like this. I could picture my pack spread out watching a move wrapped in cozy robes and wearing face masks and eating snacks.
We’d have just as much fun staying in as we would going out.
When I turned around he was waiting with my clothes in his hands. He handed them over but stopped me before I could walk away.
“Thank you for spending time with me, omega. I look forward to many more days like this.” Then he pressed his lips to mine in a sweet, gentle kiss.
He pulled away and I stumbled off to change, heart light and giddy. This was not how I saw this trip going but I was so glad they invited me along.
Somehow I’d come in with two mates, and I was leaving with four.
I just had to track down Hayes, first.