Page 39 of Sincerely, Pack Pucked
I’m surprised you haven’t snuck one into the dorms yet.
Maple
It’s not from a lack of trying.
I laughed to myself. The mental image of her trying to slip a greenhouse into her dorm was comical, but at the same time felt very Maple. She seemed quiet and shy, yet she had a stubborn, determined streak I had observed over the years.
She would make a good mother.
P
You mentioned that babies need a lot of stuff?
Maple
I’ve been looking online, trying to figure out all the things I need to save up for and buy, and there’s so much. The baby industry is clearly out of control, and I can’t tell what I actually need versus what is just really good marketing telling me I need it.
P
I’m afraid I don’t have much good advice on that front, having never had a baby. Hell, I’ve never even been around a baby.
Maple
I’ve been around a few, as I’m surrounded by omegas who’ve had babies. A friend of mine brought her newborn into the coffee shop a few months back, and I swear she was so stinking cute I nearly cried.
P
I think you’ll make an excellent mother.
Maple
That’s sweet, but you’re only being nice. I could be a disaster!
I frowned at the phone screen. Maple lacked confidence, that was painfully obvious. I hesitated before lifting my phone closer to my mouth and pressing record.
“You will be an excellent mother, Maple. I’ve seen you care for plants with more concern than most people show their children. You’re caring, sweet, and research whenever you’reunsure. I have zero doubts that you’ll be a wonderful mother. I would have given my left arm for a mother who cared that much.”
My finger lifted off the record button, and for a moment, I panicked, thinking I had come on too strong. I wanted my words to get through to her, though, and simply typing them didn’t seem like enough.
“Maple?” I spoke after a moment of silence and no reply. “Please don’t leave me hanging here...”
“Sorry, I just got a little…uh, emotional,” she said, her voice hushed and watery.
Oh, shit. Had I made her cry?
I was lifting my phone to respond again, but she messaged again.
“Thank you… You sound nice. Familiar.”
Did I want to be familiar? Saint and Jasper would probably want their voices to be sexy or alpha-y to the sweet omega.
Me, on the other hand… I liked the idea of being familiar. I wanted to be a comfort to her, a friend.
Well, I wanted to be more than a friend, but it was a good start.
“You sound sweet and cute,” I said.
Maple snorted. “S said much of the same. I think I sound like a normal person.”
