Page 66 of Vegas Baby!

“Perfect timing. The rest of the nursery supplies should be getting home almost at the same time as us.”

Ava perked up at that. “I can’t wait to see everything.”

The packages arrived a few minutes after we did. Once Bryce had given her the go-ahead, she’d gone wild on ordering. I knew she’d get a boatload of supplies from the baby shower, but she’d already started nesting almost as soon as we moved into the new pack house. I didn’t blame her. Most omegas started that process as soon as they realized they were pregnant, but Ava’d had the opposite experience with having to pack up her apartment in her second trimester and then being thrust into chaos.

Ava was happy as a little clam tearing into the packages while the rest of us hovered to see her bounty. The first thing she opened was rolls of wallpaper. The image showed rocky cliffs, orange and yellow flowers, and bright blue ocean.

“Is that somewhere specific or were you just going for ocean vibes?” I asked.

“It’s Monterey!” She beamed at me. “We went at least once a summer when I was little and since we’re so far from the ocean now, I wanted the baby to have a piece of it.”

“That’s beautiful.” Luke rotated the roll to see the full image. “We can put this up tonight if you want.”

“I’d love that. I’m so excited to see everything come together.”

“Should I tell everyone the color themes for the baby shower are blue, green, yellow, and orange?” Micah asked. “Assuming you want to stick to the colors in the wallpaper.”

Ava nodded. “Gorgeousandneutral since I don’t know what I’m having yet. The ocean suits everyone.”

Bryce kissed her hair. “What else did you get?”

The next package was bottles, a warmer and sterilizer in the next. Car seat, feeding pillow, baby monitors, baby-proofing supplies, a pack of onesies. We carted everything to the nursery or kitchen depending on what it was, getting it all tucked away for the eventual arrival of the baby. Going through her new supplies rejuvenated our omega after she’d gotten peopled outmeeting Micah’s mom. I’d have to make sure she got plenty of rest prior to the baby shower so she didn’t get too exhausted and overwhelmed.

“I still need to order a bunch of clothes and supplies,” Ava said. “Babies need so many things. It’s bordering on ridiculous.”

“You’ll get a ton more at the baby shower too,” Micah pointed out. “Pretty likely my family alone will have the baby’s closet overflowing so you can wait until after the shower to order more and see what you still need.”

“Unless you’re feeling nesty,” I amended. “Follow the instincts, but know you’re going to end up with everything you need.”

“I can do that,” Ava agreed. “Can we go up to the nest for a while?”

“Absolutely,” said Bryce.

The four of us piled into the nest with her while she happily folded the multitude of onesies she’d purchased. They’d still need to be washed before the baby put them on, but I kept quiet about it since it was instinct driving her actions, not logic. Anything that was tucked into drawers would need a refresh wash after collecting dust for two months anyway.

She snuggled in for a nap and I stayed with her while the others got to work on the wallpaper. I could watch them through the open doors, and thank god Micah knew what to do because Luke didn’t have a creative bone in his body and Bryce didn’t look like he’d ever even attempted home decor before. Their quiet cursing filtered over to us and I nudged Ava to watch them, wallpaper hanging over Bryce’s head and back while he held it up against the wall, Luke and Micah trying to make sure it was centered and aligned.

Ava giggled in my arms. “Should we help them?”

“And ruin the entertainment? Absolutely not. It’ll be a good bonding experience for them.”

“Do you think they’ll be okay?” she asked quietly.

“Hard to say. There might always be friction between them, but I think it’ll go down in time.”

“I don’t like friction,” she grumbled.

“No one does. I do think they have great motivation to resolve things, though. We’ll be a team to take care of the baby and you, and even if Bryce and Luke aren’t each other’s favorite person, they’re going to put that aside for you. If they don’t, well, maybe we’ll have to handcuff them together for a while.”

“Or get them a giant get-along shirt.”

I snorted at the mental image of the two alphas shoved into an oversized T-shirt. “I would pay good money to see that. We both know that Luke can be stubborn, but he’s not usually too hardheaded about things that really matter.”

“I really want this family to work.”

“Me too, sweetness. I’m going to do everything I can to help that along. I’m hoping by the time there’s a little human in the house, they’ll have figured it out.”

Ava nodded decisively. “No bad mojo around the baby.”

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