Chapter Ten
Fiona
We let Dusty know that we were heading back, and left the party. Hale joined us on the first ski lift, but then he went off in another direction to check out the snowboard parks.
Curling into Carlos, as we took the lift down to our lodge, a whimper escaped my throat.
“What’s wrong, Mi Reina?” He stroked my back.
“Stupid omega instincts,” I said softly. “The alpha leaves and I get sad even though I’m with you. Sorry. I just can’t help it sometimes. Also, he smells nice.”
“Fuck. Hale probably didn’t even think about that. He’s kinda oblivious to social cues. Also, I don’t know how much time he’s spent with omegas, especially because he doesn’t date,” Carlos said as he continued to rub my back.
Oblivious to social cues? I’d believe that. Especially since he was a science major.
Though he wasn’t the only one. It was very clear that Hale had a big fat crush on Carlos, who had no idea. When Hale had wiped snowflakes off Carlos’ face, I’d secretly been cheering for them to kiss. It would have been hot as fuck.
“Hale does think you’re cute, and he liked the idea of the three of us hooking up at some point on this trip,” Carlos added.
“That could be fun.” My inner omega settled a little. Hale thought I was cute. He was just clueless. Also, he was still getting his degree and probably not ready for anything but casual fun.
Alphas usually took longer to be ready to pack up than omegas.
Carlos held my hand as we walked back to our villa, the snow still falling lightly, making everything feel magical. Yep, this was so much better than being introduced to business alphaholes by my fathers.
But if I didn’t show interest in someone soon, my grandfather might want to use me for an alliance. My fathers might dare not arrange a marriage for me. But my grandparents on my mother’s side?
That was another story entirely.
One I wanted to avoid at all costs.
We do not put mafia men in our vaginas, because ultimately their loyalty is to The Family, not their family.
Women? Maybe. But the men? Never. Especially alphas.
My mother taught me that. She’d intentionally sought an overseas marriage with my business mogul fathers because she wanted a match that her family would find acceptable, but was not part of The Family Business, as she called it. She encouraged me to do the same.
Saoirse agreed. We’d added other people to the list, like male assassins, bartenders, members of the military, therapists, finance bros, podcasters, politicians, exes, and people whose names started with J.
Would my mother have liked Carlos? Probably. He was kind, made me happy, and was supportive. I’d already decided that she would have loved Saoirse, because Saoirse always had my back.
“Hot shower, then I’ll make something warm for us to drink? We could put on a movie? We could also use the hot tub?” he offered.
“First option.” Warmth enveloped me as we entered the villa. I wanted to cuddle with Carlos under a pile of cozy blankets.
“Perfect.” Carlos kissed me.
I went upstairs and texted Saoirse that we were at the villa. My father also texted me.
Dad
You made it to Switzerland? Be safe. You’ll be back on the 27th?
Me
Yes. Love you. Don’t worry, I’m fine.
Dad
It’s not you I worry about. It’s everyone else.
Yep. Sure. And that’s why he’d had a very expensive company surveil me throughout my time at the academy. I’d made them after about a week, but knew if I didn’t play along I’d get worse. Saoirse had one pinned to the wall the moment we’d left the bar together.
Dad
Do you have New Year's plans?
Me
Yes, I do.
Since Carlos wanted me to go to his game on New Years Eve and meet all his friends at a party, I should get a cute new outfit.
Hmmm. What did one wear to a hockey game when your boyfriend was playing?
A quick search on my phone told me that I either went super cute or wore his jersey–while being perfectly accessorized.
Oooh, I liked that idea. Carlos absolutely had fans and I wanted every one of them to know that he belonged to me.
My group chat with my assassin friends, aka the omega assassin brunch society, was also buzzing. There were lots of pictures of people getting ready for the holidays.
Timotheé
Bitch, have fun. Bring me back BroKen?
Timotheé, Timmy, was from Paris, which he never let us forget, and an omega specializing in seduction and close-contact jobs. Like all of us in that friend group, he was part of the Order of the Black Dahlia. But he also worked for the Company, like Saoirse.
The Company was like Interpol, but make it assassins, while the Order was a high-level professional society that could also get you work. I hadn’t seen him much. He’d been really busy.
Me
Yeah… so about that…
Timotheé
Did you hook up with him? Do tell?
Me
Saoirse has hooked up with him. Many times. You know how her jobs keep getting interrupted? It’s been him. Every. Single. Time.
Timotheé
Isn’t he an alpha?
Me
He is. And… don’t tell her, but I see sparks.
Timotheé
If you start a pack with BroKen I’m coming to your mating party.
Me
You’re already there, Bitch. Miss it at your own peril.
But there is a hot alpha chemist who smells like pluots.
Timotheé
Nice. You have fun. Don’t get lost in the snow.
Taking a very long, hot shower, I put on some burgundy plaid pants and the matching burgundy pajama top. I left the matching pair I’d gotten for Saoirse on the bed.
I ordered the jersey and some new leggings.
That would look cute with an oversized jersey.
Yes. I wanted to be adorable for my hockey player.
I’d make sure to get my nails done. Oooh, I should stop by Faun and get a bag that would match my jersey.
I texted my sales associate pics so she could put something aside for me.
Yes, I’d be so cute he couldn’t stand it. I got a party outfit, too.
Putting on my fuzzy slippers, I padded down to the living room. The fire roared. There was a blanket on the couch. Not enough. I found the cupboard of linens and gathered up all the blankets. I also called housekeeping and asked for more.
Satisfied that we might have enough blankets for snuggling, I found Carlos, who was in the kitchen.
For a moment I watched him appreciatively as he whisked something on the stove. The air smelled like cinnamon and chocolate. Was he making homemade hot cocoa?
Wet hair stuck to his head. He wore a cream sweater with green Christmas trees and green plaid flannel pants. Mmmm, so deliciously huggable. Even without him cooking.
While I was an accomplished cook, a partner cooking for me was a major turn-on.
“It’s almost done. Choose a movie?” he asked.
“Absolutely.” As I started looking for something to watch, housekeeping came and I piled all the blankets on the couch.
Oh, movie. Holiday movie? Old favorite? I decided on my favorite animated unicorn movie from my childhood, only it was in German. Perfect.
“You look adorable and cozy,” Carlos said as he carefully handed me a cup.
“What did you make me?” I asked. The brown drink was thick and smelled both sweet and spicy. A cinnamon stick poked out of the cup.
“Champurrado. It’s sort of like hot chocolate,” he told me as he carefully sat next to me on the couch and wrapped one of the blankets around us.
I took a sip of it, letting the flavors explode over my tongue. “Delicious.”
Relief filled his scent. “Oh, good. This is my favorite. It’s my abuelita’s recipe. I brought everything with me in case we couldn’t find it. Though I probably didn’t make it as good as hers.”
“I love it. Abuelita. That’s a granny right? I think all we can do is aspire to replicate our granny’s recipes without disgracing them and hope that one day, by the time we’re the grannies, we’ve gotten close enough.” I snuggled into him, taking another sip.
He made me his granny’s hot chocolate? My heart swelled. If that wasn’t love, I wasn’t sure what was.
“That is a really good way of thinking,” he told me. “What is your recipe that you aspire to?”
“Chocolate cake. There’s something about the frosting that isn’t quite right, but only I can taste it,” I told him.
I took another sip. What delighted me most was the little brown mugs. Mine had little stars on them. Carlos’ was a little rounder, with little squiggly designs.
“These cups. Were they in the cupboard?” Could I abscond with one?
“I brought them. My tia, my auntie, makes them. She has her own studio and everything. I brought everyone one. And you can keep it. It has your name on it.” He smiled and took a sip.
“Oh?” There was my name, right there on the handle. “Thank you. I love it.”
So not only had he brought everything to make me his granny’s hot chocolate, but he had special mugs made for us?
This was why I was in love with this man.
We watched the movie, my eyelids growing heavy. I was so snuggly warm.
The door opened.
“You two look cozy.” Saoirse smirked. She glanced at the TV and sighed. “We’re in Switzerland and you’re watching this?”
“It’s in German, therefore it’s a cultural experience,” I told her, pausing it. Also, it had subtitles.
“Sit. Let me make you something.” Carlos shot up off the couch as she hung up her jacket and took off her boots.
“Join me,” I demanded, pouting when she gave me a puzzled look.
“Alright, then.” Saoirse snuggled under the blankets with me.
Carlos was at the stove, probably warming up what he’d made for me.
“Did you have fun?” I asked her.
“Yes. I even found a good trail to race Hale down. But the larger question is, do I want to?” Her look went skeptical.
“He’s using it for views, so the larger conversation is making sure your identity is concealed, because he has a decent following.” I showed her his follower count.
She frowned. “People do enjoy watching dumbassery.”
Carlos brought over a mug for her with little dots on it. Steam rose from it, and a cinnamon stick stuck out.
“Thank you.” She took a sip and nodded. “This is very nice.”
The three of us sat on the couch to finish watching the movie, with all the blankets piled on us. I laid my head on Saoirse’s shoulder, my legs over Carlos.