Page 104 of Packed in the Fire house

When they brought up the hose and several bottles of dish soap, I did pause for a moment. “This looks like a potential health hazard,” I said, cocking my head to the side.

Walker beamed at me. “Don't worry, I will test it out for you.”

“We are bonded. If you crack your skull open, it's going to hurt me as well,” I pointed out.

“Well, I guess it’s a good thing we’ve done this pretty much every summer since we were kids.”

Rune started running the hose, and Blaze stood at the top of the slide, diving onto the tarp with the confidence only a man could possess. I winced as he made impact, but his laughter never ceased as he glided down the length of the tarp before getting up at the end, giving us all a thumbs-up.

Walker laughed. “This is going to keep them entertained for hours.”

“Do you think I can take Char on there?” Micha, one of my brother’s pack mates, asked.

Walker nodded. “It's totally safe. One of you just take her down on your lap. It's basically a slide.”

Micha whooped, looking to Kennedy for approval. My friend merely laughed and nodded. “If you hurt our baby, I hurt you,” she said simply.

“Totally understandable!” Micha said as he scooped up Charlotte, who was on Eli’s lap, and made his way toward the slide.

Even from a distance, I could tell how Rune’s eyes lit up at the sight of the little toddler coming toward the makeshift Slip ’N Slide. He greeted Charlotte before instructing Micha on the bestway to slide. With his daughter on his lap, Micha glided along, the toddler giggling the entire way down.

As soon as I saw her glee, I knew that the guys were going to have Luka on the slide before the night was out.

Chapter 39

Walker

This was the life I had always envisioned, the life I had always wanted. The sun was shining in the early afternoon, and I had all my teammates and family surrounding us as my pack and I enjoyed ourselves.

Sunny had yet to go on the Slip ’N Slide, but I knew it was only a matter of time. Storm and Micha had convinced Kennedy to give it a go, so Sunny was cuddling baby Samuel. There was something so right about seeing her with a baby in her arms.

“You should eat your fries,” I said, nodding down at her untouched plate.

She looked longingly at the food. “I know. They look so good, but I'm busy having baby cuddles.”

With a smile, I picked up a few fries. “Ketchup?” She nodded, and once I had dipped them, I held out the food for her to eat, which she took gratefully.

Yes, I had only offered to feed her to help her, but I couldn't deny the fact that it was scratching some primal alpha itch. Feeding my omega while she sat with a baby in her arms; there was something so caring about it, and I wanted to do it more.

Too bad we didn’t have a baby of our own yet.

“This is for you, Sunny,” Gil said as he handed me a gift bag. “I wish I could take credit for it, but I’m not even sure what’s in the bag. My astounding wife did it all.”

My omega chuckled, and I reached out, grabbing the bag for her, as she had her hands full with Samuel. “In that case, thank her for me! Is she stopping by today?”

Gil shook his head. “She wanted to, but they were short-staffed at the call center, so she picked up a shift. She’s a 911 dispatcher.”

“I’m so sorry, I wish I could have met her. You’ve said so many lovely things about her.”

“She’ll be at the firehouse meal next month, if all goes well. The life of emergency service providers doesn’t pair well with a lot of planning.” He chuckled.

Wasn’t that the truth? Yet, somehow, as I looked around our large yard with all our friends laughing, eating, and playing on the slide, it seemed like my life was pretty fucking perfect.

Sunny nodded. “I’ve had to reassess all my cooking skills to foods that suit slow cookers, because half the time when I cook, you guys get called away!”

“And yet, I’m looking at going up a size in turnouts because you keep feeding me so well!” Gil patted his belly. “And those cookies are criminally good. I’ll mourn the day you move in here and out of the fire station.”

“I’ll still bring cookies, or send the guys to work with them,” she assured him. “Actually, if you go look in the kitchen, there’s another batch of the oat cookies you like.”

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