Chapter Thirty-Seven #2
I patted the big Russian defender’s shoulder. “Aww, the house is empty. Maybe you should get a cat. Probably quieter than your siblings.”
Dimitri was a good guy. We’d started as rookies for the Knights together. Before that he’d played for a team in Russia.
“Who do you think the new forward is going to be?” I asked Clark. “I really hope it’s Ellie Porter from the Sasquatches.”
She was very fun. Also, a fellow theatre kid.
“Ellie’s gotten… chaotic since she came out as a gamma last year. I don’t think the Knights need that.” LeeAnn made a face.
Dean, our omega goalie shook his head. “Ellie has not. People just talk more shit about her now that we know she’s not a kappa. Nothing has changed other than people’s attitudes.”
A gamma was a failed omega. Ellie had hid it, pretending to be a kappa. That was quite a choice, but considering how spontaneous she was, it fit. She revealed her status last year to support Grif.
“Is Jasper okay? Are we going to visit him at the hospital later?” I started lacing up my skates.
“Yeah, we are. The MASOs are also sending his pack food and stuff,” Clark replied.
“Carlos, what the fuck? You can’t just disappear,” Nia, a forward, and one of our co-captains said, a scarf over her coily hair.
“I was stuck in a blizzard. If we’re going to Tito’s before or after visiting Jasper, beers are on me. Nia, I need to sign up some MASOs. I have mates now.” I grinned. Her omega was the head MASO and he handled all the signups to the official MASO social group.
“Mates? You disappeared and came back with mates? No wonder Kylee looked like she wanted to burn the building down. How many?” Nia asked.
“To sign up? Three. Fiona and Dusty both want to be part of it. Saoirse goes where Fiona does,” I replied. Hale would have too much with class. But there was plenty he could be involved with without being part of that specific social group.
The door to the locker room slammed open and Verity stalked in.
“Carlos Margaret Rodriguez, you have some explaining to do,” she scolded as she came over to me and leaned on her hot pink forearm crutch. Verity was taller than me. Alpha anger wafted off her.
Margaret was not my middle name, but the fact she gave me the multi-name treatment made me want to shiver in my skates.
“Please don’t be mad at me, Verity. I care a lot for your brother and we’re going to be so good to Fiona. I know you’re going to just love our omega–and the rest of the pack we’re forming,” I sputtered, not expecting this to happen so soon.
As far as I knew, Hale hadn’t had that conversation with her yet. Mercy agreed to let him tell people at his own pace.
It must have been whatever Kylee was talking about when she mentioned us going viral. Dusty hadn’t texted me back about that.
Outrage and surprise filled her face. “You did what? No cake pops for you!”
Uh oh. Dread crept through me and Grif wrapped his arms around her.
“Kitten, take a deep breath,” he told her.
“What were you talking about? The ski trip?” I gulped.
“My car. He was seen picking you up at Tito’s in my car.” She held up a little pink backpack charm. “What girl was in my car? Why did you bring him skiing?”
“Oh, Fiona was looking for that. So, um, Fiona, is our omega. We bonded with her. Hale and I also bonded with each other. There are two other people in our pack. I invited Hale on the ski trip to Switzerland because we’re friends.
I’m sorry, but he’s really fun. Please don’t deny me cake pops. ” I cowered.
“Does this have anything to do with my little sister and Gwen going to pay ransom with lasagna, cookies, and scrunchies yesterday? They wouldn’t tell me why–something about plausible deniability?” She rubbed the bridge of her nose as Grif continued to hold her, Dean and Jonas joining in.
“Hale only took your car to the race so he had money for the trip,” I replied.
“Car race?” Verity looked about ready to explode. “He didn’t just steal my car, he raced it?”
“Hale knows he’s not supposed to take her car,” Jonas replied.
“I know. But it wasn’t just any race, it was Manhattan After Midnight. He got third. We didn’t wreck it,” I pleaded. I especially didn’t like alphas being angry at me. Even alphas like Verity that were all pastel and sparkles on the outside.
Also, no cake pops? Shit.
Verity sighed. “Okay, so you and Hale are friends. You are now both bonded to an omega and each other?”
“Yeah. This is Fiona. Mi Reina. Mi Amor.” I showed her a photo.
Anders, another forward, and a friend of mine, whistled. “She’s hot.”
“Yeah, she is.” I nodded.
Verity softened. “She’s adorable. But, and I mean this in the nicest way, I really hope the other two people in your pack are really responsible, because I wouldn’t let you and Hale watch a goldfish.”
“Saoirse’s really responsible. She’s a delta. And Dusty’s an alpha. He’s singing the national anthem tomorrow. He goes by BroKen for his music,” I explained.
“Carlos and BroKen formed a pack? Kylee is going to have a panic attack.” LeeAnn smirked.
“Pretty sure she already has,” Nia replied.
I looked at Verity. “I’m sorry. But go easy on Hale? He’s being really hard on himself right now. Yesterday he told us about your parents. Maybe just reassure him that no one’s going to let him traffic a baby?”
“Oh, he told you that.” She sighed. “I’ll try. It’s just that I don’t want him to drop out–or not go to the program he wants.”
I nodded. “Neither do we. Right now he’s literally emailing professors and seeing what his options are. Also, he’s making a spreadsheet of local PhD programs still accepting applications. There are good programs here in New York.”
“True.” Her look remained skeptical.
“Um, I’ll give Fiona her charm?” I held out my hand.
She shook her head. “I’ll do it when I meet her.”
“Practice is on the ice,” Coach Atkins yelled.
I quickly texted Hale.
Me
Verity knows.
Hale
Shit. Did she see my livestream? Maybe Mercy showed her?
Livestream?
“Verity, I’ll take good care of him. I promise.” Shooting her a hopeful look, I left the locker room and went out onto the ice, as her mates tried to calm her down.
Welp. I guess I’ll never be getting cake pops again.
When I finally made it back to the townhouse, there were work trucks in front.
I’d bought everyone a round of beers at Tito’s, then we went to visit Jasper.
No one seemed too mad at me. Also, the back office seemed to like their treats.
Good. I really couldn’t do anything about Kylee, but I’d like the rest of the third floor to not be mad at me much or often.
“Honey, I’m home,” I called as I walked in the open front door, like I was on a TV show.
The smell of paint hit me as I entered the living room, which flowed into the dining room, the kitchen behind it.
The living room and dining room were done in a deep green, one wall had floral deep green and blue wallpaper, and there were cream accents.
The floors were dark hardwood. It had come that way.
But now there was beautiful formal furniture, in navy fabric and dark wood, in the living room.
An expensive-looking rug lay on the floor.
Lush curtains hung in the window. A picture of all five of us, taken at Christmas dinner at the lodge, had been blown up, framed, and hung over the mantel.
There was a grandfather clock? Next to it sat a fancy enamel pot filled with a plant that just looked expensive.
The dining room held more of the same beautiful furniture, the cushions of the chairs matching the wallpaper almost perfectly. A fucking candelabra sat in the center, on some lacy runner, the candles dark blue. An empty hutch and a fancy wheeled cart sat against the wall.
Footsteps thudded down the beautiful wooden staircase. The main thing that had attracted me to this place was all the beautiful woodwork and details, which had been freshly refinished when the other pack had been preparing for sale.
“Carlos.” Fiona hugged me. “This place is beautiful. I love the fireplaces and the outdoor spaces. I want to make a container garden when it gets warm.”
While it didn’t have a little backyard, like Dimitri’s and Clark’s places, it did have two terraces, an atrium, and a balcony. It also had a garage.
“I think we also need a grill and a pizza oven. You work fast. This is beautiful. I love the photo over the fireplace.” I kissed her.
“I got started last night, that’s why I wanted the pictures of us.”
I sniffed the air. “Painting your nest already?”
“Just redoing a few rooms that had dull sell me paint jobs. I’m impressed. The kitchen is nice. Though I’m upgrading a few things.” She tossed her hair.
“That is great, but can we afford it?” I frowned. We should probably figure out a decorating and furniture budget.
She laughed in the way that means trouble. “So… the dads haven’t cut off my cards yet. The papers they sent said nothing about the family cards. I plan on buying lots of things until the cards stop working.”
“As long as you don’t get in trouble.” That worried me a little, but she probably knew what she could get away with.
“Oh, I won’t. Also, we haven’t signed anything.
” She gave an evil little giggle. “They told me I couldn’t take the sedan, because it’s a family car.
Only my motorcycle. So, Saoirse and I bought a car on one of the cards, in my name, big enough for the five of us.
It’s in the garage. It’s not a very big garage.
It’ll fit that car, mine and Saoirse’s motorcycles, and maybe some bicycles. Does anyone else have a car?”
“It’s New York. We should be grateful to have a garage. Dimitri’s doesn’t,” I replied. “I think Hale has a truck? I don’t have a car and neither does Dusty.”
She’d bought a car on her dads’ cards? That was wild. What was the limit on it? Of course it might not have one.
We went up the stairs, the sun streaming in from the skylight.