Chapter 4
Chapter
Four
Lennon
Conrad
I just want to make it very clear that my sister is off-limits. She’s also a grown-ass woman who will sweep the floor with you guys.
Mason
This feels personal. I’m innocent here.
Mason
Plus, I am hooking this girl up with some skincare right now as we speak. She and I are going to be besties.
Cade
Wilder and I are handling the furniture. We’re almost done. I think between us we can put it together pretty quickly.
Kieran
Lennon and I are on bedding and décor.
Lennon
And failing miserably.
Conrad
Whatever you’re doing is enough. I fucking owe you guys.
Kieran
We’re family. You owe us nothing.
“This is a disaster,” I said, tucking my phone away before tossing a set of new pillows into the cart. Kieran clearly wasn’t thinking this through when he volunteered us to set up the room.
“He doesn’t expect us to decorate,” he argued. “Our job is just to make sure it’s livable when she gets here.”
He held up two sheet sets, both expensive and soft as hell. One had a floral pattern, and the other was solid, silky black.
“My vote’s on the black,” I said with more confidence than I should have. I didn’t know the first fucking thing about omegas, let alone what kind of sheets they preferred. I was pretty sure the ones on our beds came with the hockey house.
“She doesn’t even have a nest,” Kieran sighed.
“Is there anything we can even do about that? The house isn’t exactly made for omegas.” He eyed me, not arguing but not looking happy about it either.
“Hopefully Cade and Wild will think of something.”
“It’s going to be so fucking weird having an omega around,” I muttered. It wasn’t that I was against it, more that I didn’t know how to have an omega in my space. Especially one that was brittle and broken, someone I’d have to be gentle with. I wasn’t good with gentle. That was Wilder’s job.
I’d seen the way most omegas looked at me. She wasn’t going to be comfortable in our house, either.
“Can you stop overthinking for five seconds?” Kieran groaned. “I can feel it from here. We’re just doing something nice for our friend because we care about him.”
“Sure,” I said, not bothering to argue. It was pointless.
“I think this is enough,” he added as he tossed the black sheets into the cart like I suggested. “We’ll just get Mason to handle the rest. He’s the only one of us with any sense of style.”
I wasn’t about to give him time to reconsider, grabbing the cart and pushing it toward the skincare section of the massive department store.
At least they didn’t drag me into some kind of nesting shop.
Would I do it for my future omega? Absolutely.
Would I do it in front of the guys? I don’t know. Probably not.
They just didn’t want to accept that this whole situation was doomed from the start. We didn’t know a damn thing about her, and everything I’d ever heard about omegas said they were finicky and particular. I wasn’t putting in all this effort just for her to burst into tears or some shit.
“Did you buy out the whole damn store?” I asked Mason when I pulled my cart next to his. It was completely full of face masks, lotions, sprays, hair care, and nail care. I don’t think he left a single thing behind.
“Look, this girl needs some pampering.” He gave me an unamused look. I had a feeling he was just buying up all the shit we’d tease him about grabbing for himself. “And I’m just the delta to give it to her.”
“If she even likes deltas,” I muttered before I could stop myself. “She might not want us around.”
Mason rolled his eyes and tossed yet another product into the cart. He didn’t bother to correct me. His thoughts on deltas were different from mine. He had embraced his chaos and wasn’t afraid to flaunt his designation. I’d learned the hard way that it was just ammo to be used against you.
“This is going to be a disaster,” I said to anyone who would listen. Clearly, everyone else had lost their damn minds. I was all for kicking her mates’ asses, but this felt like a step too far.
“We’d do it for any family we care about,” Cade said firmly. “So we’re doing it for Conrad.”
The look he gave me said get in line or shut up. I was at the losing end of this battle.
Mason raised a perfectly manicured eyebrow and pushed the cart toward the next aisle. I reluctantly followed, wishing I was anywhere but here, then I froze.
This was the dreaded nesting section.
“The fuck are we doing in here?” I protested, already backing away from it like it was toxic.
“We’re not making an entire nest,” Mason said firmly. “But I’m not letting this omega be uncomfortable.”
That was unusual. Mason wasn’t normally the one who cared about that shit. The whole thing put me in an even worse mood.
Maybe it was the lack of bloodshed.
“I think someone’s getting hungry,” Cade said. “I’ll leave these carts up front. Let’s grab food while Mason handles this.”
“Good,” Mason says. “Wilder and I can finish this ourselves.”
Honestly, they were the two best equipped for it. We should have sent them alone in the first place.
“I’ll keep them from going overboard,” Kieran offered, staying behind as Cade led me away.
I already knew what was coming.
“Care to share why you’re so angry?” Cade asked once we’d sat down with our food.
Did we have to fucking talk about every feeling?
Unfortunately, Cade knew better than anyone what it was like to grow up under strict expectations. I endured a whole lot less ass-kicking than he had, but just as much pressure.
“We’ve got a good thing going in the hockey house,” I admitted. “It’s mostly just us and Conrad. Now we’re throwing a broken omega into the mix.”
“We are,” he agreed. “But that doesn’t explain this.” He waved a hand at my scowling face, which only made it worse.
I hated how calm this alpha was right now, but that was just how Cade was.
“The hockey house is the one place I don’t have to perform,” I snapped. “I don’t have to pretend. I don’t have to be in control all the time.”
“And you think she’s going to change that?”
“Don’t they always?” I fired back with a sneer. Fuck, I sounded like an ass. “We know nothing about her. I’m not going to walk around on eggshells in my own fucking house.”
“She’s Conrad’s sister,” Cade said flatly. “It’s not like she’s going to care who you are.”
“I’ve done my research,” I shot back. “She’s not just his sister. She’s the princess of hockey. Her dads are legends. You’re telling me she’s not going to be high-maintenance?”
“Don’t you of all people know our parents don’t define us?” he countered.
Damn it. I hated when he was right.
He lifted a hand before I could argue. “Just give her a chance to exist. She needs a safe haven, and we can give her one. No amount of bitching will change that. She’s ours to protect for now, and we’re going to do it. Not just because I fucking hate the Narwhals, but because she deserves it.”
“Since when are we not assholes?” I muttered.
He huffed out a laugh. “We might be sometimes, but we at least have integrity.”
“I guess,” I grumbled, tearing into my slice of pizza. Whoever decided to stick a junk-food café in the middle of the department store was a genius.
I was supposed to be on a diet, but I barely followed it anyway. Deltas had it easier. We didn’t bulk like alphas. We were predators: leaner, quieter, but just as dangerous.
Which was why our first game against the Narwhals was going to be a bloodbath. They were the easiest outlet for my anger right now, and the idea of painting the ice red in Lana’s honor was keeping me from losing it completely.
I knew it wasn’t her fault. I also knew I’d never make her uncomfortable on purpose. If Conrad wanted her here, she would stay. Simple as that.
With a sigh, I shoved the last bite of pizza in my face, barely chewing before Mason let out a sharp whistle. I knew it was him without looking, because no one else would do that shit in the middle of a busy store. When I looked, he was waving us over, grinning like a madman.
Cade laughed and gestured for me to follow. “Come on. Let’s get this over with. We’ve got Conrad’s credit card.”
Everyone but me looked pleased with the haul. Maybe the others wanted chivalry points, but I didn’t give a fuck about that.
Five full carts was insane.
“Just think of her like a little sister,” Kieran said, clapping my shoulder. “You’ll barely notice she’s there.”
I knew that was a lie. Omegas had a way of getting under your skin, settling in like they belonged.
I wasn’t going to let that happen. Not again.
I kept quiet as we loaded up the two SUVs and Wilder’s truck. Everyone gave me space for the rest of the day, letting me be an asshole without calling me on it.
I knew once she arrived, that grace would disappear.
The moment the furniture was assembled, and Mason, Wilder, and Kieran started fussing over her room, I slipped outside and stalked down the block toward the arena.
It should be empty at this hour.
There was a light on in Coach’s office, but I ignored it and went straight for the locker room. It was blessedly empty as I changed into workout gear and laced up my skates.
I hadn’t realized how tight my chest was until I hit the ice. The cold air burned my lungs, grounding me in a way nothing else ever did.
My skates glided over the pristine ice, carving my path. My muscles warmed up easily as I picked up speed, flying in a way that made me feel alive.
It didn’t take long for my mind to empty into a silence that was both familiar and healing.
Coach never protested when he found me here after hours.
My body could handle the extra work and my mind needed it.
We all knew my fight records rivaled anyone in the AHA, and this kept it from soaring into numbers that would get my ass benched.
Minutes passed as sweat started to make my gear stick to my skin. I knew without looking my face was red. The fucking joys of being a red-head.
I slowed down until I was gliding, cooling down from the rigorous skating I’d just done for who knows how long.
It was in the quiet of that moment that I let everything process again. I still wasn’t happy about our space being invaded, but I knew Kieran was right. I had no reason to judge her. I was projecting my past onto someone I hadn’t even met.
Conrad didn’t exactly talk about his parents like they were the doting, loving type. She likely felt the same. This rooming situation was something she needed.
If she kept to herself and I did the same, we could coexist just fine.
The Flynn Cup was all that mattered and this season was going to be even better than the last.
I had made hockey my life a long fucking time ago. I was confident in who I was. Settled. I knew that being a delta meant we had to prove ourselves, and it usually didn’t bother me.
But everything this ice princess represented did. She had connections I could only dream of, and one wrong word from her could end my entire career.
Omegas are sensitive. Deltas are blunt, and I don’t filter for anyone… that’s a recipe for disaster.