Page 19 of Slick Handling

“YES!”

“No she does not. This is not some carnival kissing game.” Coach interrupts as I glare at McKinley. My hand once more reached out to draw the Omega close to me.

What the hell was I thinking?

“What are you doing with her?” He asks, looking at me like I’m the one with reason. It’s a look that I never get from everyone and the feeling is heady having the look of someone I respect on me like that.

“I’m going to put her in a helmet and make her sit on the bench.” He looks like he’s going to argue but then thinks better of it.

Maybe he can see there is no sense to be talked into anyone anymore. Coach is also an Alpha who has been with his Omega and his other pack mates for more than three decades. He gets that Omegas drive us all a little insane.

He throws his hands up, walking away and I look down at the Omega.

“Okay baby weed, let's get you ready for a hockey game.”

CHAPTER 8

CLOVER

Hockey is very fast and very cold.

I shiver on the edge of the bench, wishing that I was in a jacket or had a blanket to keep me warm. I don’t bother to complain because Griffin kissed me and I would very much like him to kiss me again.

He told everyone to leave me alone and sat me down, telling me to not get in the way and stay where I am. The coach didn’t seem very happy to have me here but he didn’t make me leave.

Griffin made me wear a helmet. It’s too big for my head and wobbles when I move too quickly. It does nothing to help me blend in with the team. Something I know because other people are looking at me from the stands wondering who I am.

Oh beans and biscuits.

I shrink in on myself as Griffin skates over, throwing his legs over the board, and shuffling to sit next to me on the bench. He leans forward, grabbing a water bottle and squirting it in his mouth. The way he breathes in and out, deep sucks of air like he can’t get enough in his lungs makes me stare.

The sweat is clinging to him and smells so good on his skin. It’s eggnog but more of the spices rising up and it makes me want to lick his neck.

His eyes are suddenly on me and I stay quiet.

The reward is the smile he gives me. His mouth guard is peeking out of the left side of his mouth as he holds it between his teeth. The smile washes over his features as he stares at me like he finally sees me.

“The period is almost over. Come sit on my lap for the last minute. My line is done and you’re shivering.” He doesn’t give me a chance to say no, only picks me up, and settles me down on his lap.

The pants he wears are padded and all of him feels bigger than before because of it. He adjusts so his stick is resting between my legs, pulled close so it rests against my center. There is no pressure on it but I’m still hyper aware of the presence.

“Do you know what’s going on?”

“No.” I don’t know the rules of the game. I’ve gathered that they’re trying to shoot the puck in the net, but all the blue and red lines and circles just look like scribbles on the ice.

I don’t know what position each person is or even what those positions mean. All I know is that everyone seems angry and moves fast. They push each other around and no one seems to be friends with anyone.

There are a few Betas who are playing for both teams but everything about this game is giving off that raw Alpha violence that they are known for.

Growing up I had been told how dangerous Alphas are. I believed that my whole life. Especially when I had been cornered at the last social held at the academy.

Every two weeks there would be an event where we would meet potential packs and socialize. It was a time where we could wear makeup and have fancy dresses on. The school paid for people to come in and do our hair and glam.

I loved it the first week until the end of the night when Bryce Weaver had cornered me. He was in his late 20’s and made it very clear that he was looking for an Omega to bond sooner than later. He was in a pack with one other Alpha and a female Beta. The Beta hated me right away and the other Alpha seemed to enjoy making her jealous by lavishing me with extra attention.

The whole situation made me uncomfortable. I had tried to avoid the next social event, thinking that I could skip the whole debacle. That’s when The Academy presented me with an option to be courted by Pack Weaver. When I had hesitated in front of everyone and said I wasn’t ready it was accepted, but talked about.

Pack Weaver was very well off. The sort of pack any Omega could join and never have to worry about a single thing. But Bryce smelled like cigarette smoke. The scent clinging to him, stale and thick. His other Alpha Orion smelled like exhaust fumes. It was like being around them could make you choke. Their Beta, Jennifer, had a natural scent of lilacs. Which wouldn’t have been a bad scent if I wasn’t allergic and sneezed constantly when she got too close to me.

---