Page 77 of Laurels and Liquor

“It’s about time we took a vacation. I vote for Fiji,” Mateo says excitedly.

I look to Mateo, who’s grinning from ear to ear. The expression is infectious, and I can’t help but return it, even if the idea of leaving the house fills my stomach with unexpected tension. Lex’s eyes flash to me, her concern coming down our bond before she turns a hard look onto Mateo.

“We can’t go gallivanting all over the world, Mat. Lydia needs her nest,” she says sternly.

As soon as she voices it, I know she’s right. Even now, I want to drag everyone back downstairs and pile back into bed. The idea of leaving the house, let alone the city, is out of the question, at least for now.

Mateo, to his credit, is unfazed. “All right, then it’s a staycation. Movie marathons, cuddling, and my favorite takeout places? Sounds amazing to me,” he chirps brightly.

The unspoken tension in the room seems to dissipate, enough for me to feel the distant brush of something passing between Lex and Lucas, though neither of them speaks. A glance between them, and Lucas throws up his hands. I look at her curiously, but she shakes her head.

“Another thing that can wait, sweetness,” she says.

I give her a wary look, but let it go. If it were important, she would insist on telling me. I know that as truth, sensing her agreement across our bond. So instead, I let myself get swept up in the affection of my mates, the laughter and banter as we share our first meal as a mated pack and forget about it. We deserve a moment’s peace, I remind myself. We earned this, and I won’t let my anxiety ruin this.

Chapter thirty-nine

Lydia

“Harder,love.Reallygiveit to me,” Rhett instructs, bracing himself.

I grunt and throw my whole body into the next strike, feeling the burn up my arm as my fist connects with the punching bag. Rhett’s pride pulses down our bond as I manage to shift him ever so slightly, and I grin savagely, shaking a few beads of sweat from my brows as I throw another punch, then another in rapid succession.

It’s mid-November, and I’ve started training with Rhett a few times a week now. It started off as self-defense lessons, basic hold-breaking techniques and that sort of thing, but we’ve since moved on to more offensive training. I don’t have the brute strength to take on an opponent like Rhett, but I can throw a decent punch now without hurting myself in the process. Caleb joined us the other day, when my mates decided that they weren’t going to lose their marbles about me spending time alone with another alpha, even a mated one. He’d supplemented Rhett’s lessons, and even taught me the very basics of firearm handling. Not that I will ever own a gun, but Caleb wanted to make sure that if there was ever a time when I’d need to use one that I’d at least know how to do it safely.

“Good girl. That’s the last of our sets for today,” Rhett praises, straightening up from where he’d been holding the bag steady for me.

I smile brightly, bouncing on the balls of my feet. The feel-good work out chemicals mix with the adoration coming from him, making me feel like I’m on Cloud Nine. It doesn’t help that he looks absolutely delicious in his gym shorts, his chest bare and glistening. He gives me a look as the flash of desire runs through me, half a challenge, half a warning. I flush and settle down, sending a wordless apology his way.

Ever since my heat, I’ve been climbing my pack mates like trees any chance I can get. I talked to Sylvie about it a little, and she reckons that it’s the mating hormones doing their thing. According to her, I won’t have another heat cycle for a while, up to a year in her experience. Something about making sure that the bonds are fully locked in before my body returns to anything resembling a normal cycle. In the meantime, the primal part of my mind will be screaming for me to jump on any of my mates’ dicks whenever possible. Sylvie started talking about how it’s my body’s way of trying its best to take advantage of the increased fertility mating bonds can cause, but I’d stopped her before she got too far along that path. The breeding kink my pack and I like to indulge in is one thing, but I’m not anywhere remotely ready to be a mother.

Rhett helps me unwrap my hands before we head back into the house from the gym above the garage. Mateo’s SUV is missing, as is Lex’s sedan, and the reminder that they’d had to go to work today stings all over again. I push the irrational feeling aside, though. They’d been more than indulgent of me and my unrelenting demands to have them near me at all times at first, because our bonds were new and being apart for even a few minutes was uncomfortable. But they couldn’t put off their work commitments anymore. They aren’t leaving me totally alone, though, as an attempt to ease me back into normal life. At first, only one of them would leave at a time, but now, I only need one of my mates at home with me, though everyone has adjusted their schedules to be home for supper these days.

Not that I’ve been slacking, either. They’ve thrown me into the deep end with the Magnolia Garden Theater, now that the structural repairs are underway. I’ve got a little work area set up in the basement lounge area, piled high with papers and folders of things for me to look through. I’m making decisions about floor plans and which event furniture to purchase for The Garden, but it feels like too much fun to really be called work. It’s like a dream come true, and even though the feeling has diminished a little more each day, I’m still waiting for the day I have to wake up.

Rhett and I take separate showers and then meet back in the kitchen to get started on cooking for everyone. We’ve just chosen a recipe—Cajun-style seafood scampi—when Rhett’s phone rings, the number for the gate guard flashing.

“That’s Jason. He’ll be here in a few,” Rhett announces, almost tentatively after he hangs up.

I sigh and nod, stomach sinking a little. Jason and I silently agreed to pretend he’s been in Everton on an extended visit, enjoying the time we have together to reconnect. It hasn’t been easy, but I was determined to not let the real world intrude. My pack was content enough to play along, which was good enough for me at the time. But we can’t avoid it anymore. He owes me one hell of an explanation, and I’m going to get what I’m due.

Pulling out a chair at the dining room table, I pull one leg up to my chest while tucking my other foot under my hips as I wait. My mind tries to take off in anxious thought spirals, but my mates are there every time, filling me with their unshaking calm. I hope I never get used to that. I’ve struggled with anxiety my whole life, and usually I’d have to try to talk myself down from the edge, with varying degrees of success. Now that I have these incredible people in my life and in my heart, I’ve never felt more grounded and safe. Before, I had to trust that they would protect me and care for me, and that I wasn’t a bother or a burden, which was, at times, impossible to accept with the voice of unreason whispering in the back of my mind that I didn’t deserve that sort of treatment. Now, I don’t have to take it on faith; I can feel the truth of those things in the very center of my being. There’s nothing to argue or doubt anymore. Pack St. Clair loves me and wants to care for me in every possible way, and that’s a fact as real and irrefutable as the sunrise.

I’m yanked from my happy thoughts by a knock at the door, followed by Rhett welcoming my brother inside. I don’t move, watching down the hallway as the two approach the open doorway into the open-plan living space. I’d seen Jason a few times since Christmas, so I’d known he’s been on the mend, but he looks good. There isn’t the heaviness to his gait or posture anymore, and the bags under his eyes have all but vanished. He comes over to the table and pulls out the chair on my right, turning to face me as he places a messenger bag on the table in front of us.

“So,” I start.

“So,” Jason echoes with a smirk.

I give him a half-hearted glare, and he smirks back. He’ll always be my little brother, driving me crazy until the day they put me in the ground. His cucumber and juniper scent is a cool, refreshing change to the constant sea of familiar aromas, and as he takes a deep breath, he cocks his head a little.

“I can smell them now. I thought it was the proximity and scent marking, but no. That’s all you, Lydi,” Jason says, almost to himself.

I smile fondly, looking at Rhett, who’s busied himself in the kitchen while I talk with my brother. He looks up and winks at me, the tickle of his primal satisfaction in my chest. I roll my eyes. Just like a man to enjoy having his claim recognized by another alpha, even if he’s my blood relative.

“Anyway, I guess we should talk about what happened in October.” Jason sighs, shifting in his seat.

I give him an ironic chuckle. “Yeah, I guess we should. There’s an elephant in this room, dying for attention,” I joke, rolling my eyes.

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