Yet here I was ready to brave the winter storm to deliver presents with Lyla.
Just to keep her safe. It was my job to help people.
Ignoring my duty as the eldest son, my heart said it would do anything for her.
This was madness, but I couldn’t give in to it. There was too much to lose.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN - Lyla
I wasn’t going to say I regretted my decision to make the trek to the Big Sisters’ building, but I totally regretted it. My face felt as if it had a layer of ice on it with mini daggers stabbing into my flesh, and I couldn’t even feel my feet and hands. My legs ached from trudging through the deep snow.
Every inch of skin was covered except a slit between my scarf and hat for me to see. Despite the gray sky, it was bright outside. Everything was so white and it all blurred together to make one Arctic wonderland. A few times, I thought I might not be able to find the right street even if it was just five blocks from Primrose House.
I held onto the straps of my backpack. Jason and Ozzi insisted they be the ones to pull the sleds with the presents on them. I carried the emergency kit with a blanket, small shovel, hand warmers, a flare gun, water, and food. It was nothing compared to what they were hauling, but it felt like it weighed a ton.
The Alphas marched forth without complaint. Jason led the way and Ozzi followed behind me. My hunky Christmas elves.
Me, I was about to become Frostina the snow woman. I wanted to curl up into a ball and forget about my aching body. Not even the extra warmth my body was producing because of my heat was helping.
Just when I was about to shout that we should turn around and go back home, I spotted the corner of the Big Sisters’ building. The distinctive red of the brick peeking out from beneath layers of snow was like a beacon. I stumbled forward, increasing my pace.
Almost there. So close.
My snowshoe flipped to one side, and I started to topple into a snowbank. Ozzi was suddenly beside me, his arm around my waist. He helped me steady myself. Our gazes locked. His intense dark eyes held me just as tightly as his arms.
A pang sharp as the icy chill on my face dug at my abdomen. Images of him fucking me doggy style right here in the snow flashed through my mind.
“Yes! Right now!” I was shouting before I even realized it. Time to bury my head in the snow and wish I’d never been born.
Ozzi furrowed his brows and cocked his head.
Quick, Lyla! Think of a way to save face. I jerked my arm up to point at the building. “That’s Big Sisters right there. Yay!”
Jason was already walking around to the front entrance. Ozzi nodded and walked beside me the rest of the way. Every step, I could feel him beside me. His big, hard body strained as he pulled the sled and made his muscles tighten and flex. At least that’s what I imagined was going on beneath his coat and layers of clothes.
We rounded the corner to the doors, and inside the nook where they sat, there was relief from the pounding wind. The building had once been a general store big as two houses and an upstairs for storage. It sat empty for twenty years after the store clothes, and then in the 1990s, it was a dance studio. They’d redone the interior beautifully, so when it was finally passed on to the Big Sisters organization, they had a gorgeous homebase for the region.
With as many volunteers that helped with the club, the best way to have us go in and out was to put a keypad lock on the entrance. I put in the code and the locks snapped back so I could push open the big metal door. I held it open for Jason and Ozzi to come through, and shut it immediately so as not to let any of the heat out.
Taking off my gloves, I then pulled down my scarf and pushed back my hood to rub my hands on my face. It was difficult to discern if my hands or my face was colder, but the prickles of feeling coming back to both of them erupted under my skin.
“Woo!” Jason’s exclamation echoed in the empty building. “That was invigorating! I can’t remember the last time we went snowshoeing.”
“I think it was three years ago after that one big snow in March. We walked to work that way.” Ozzi unzipped his coat to reveal the dark green sweater with several Santas in a row across the chest. I’d given each of the Alphas a sweater I’d made for my brothers to wear. Jason’s was red and patterned with tree ornaments.
“Oh yeah. We pulled a twenty-four hour shift because no one else could get in.” Jason peeled off his hat and coat and draped them over the back of a chair. “So where do we put the presents, Lyla?”
They’d walked to work in a snowstorm and stayed for over twenty-four hours? These Alphas were superheroes. Why did their dedication make them so much sexier? Like they weren’t already immensely droolworthy. Maybe they didn’t exist and they actually were elves sent by Santa to help me through Christmas. Emberlee would say that Lord of the Rings elves were the hottest, but if Ozzi and Jason put on tights and wore curly boots and hats with jingle bells, oh fuck, I’d come on the spot!
I flicked on the main floor lights and spread my arms to direct them to a seating area in the big open room where the trees were set up. “Welcome to the Big Sisters’ Winter Wonderland.”
There were three trees standing and waiting to be lit up. It was like I could hear them calling to me to plug in their lights. I hurried over and turned on the biggest one first. It was greenand stood eight feet tall. The other two were shorter at six feet—a white one and a pink one—but each one was so pretty.
“The girls decorated the trees themselves. We had a party with cookies and cider and sang Christmas songs. It was so much fun.” Many of the girls didn’t have festive households and so this meant a lot to them. There were a few that probably wouldn’t get a visit from Santa as their families couldn’t afford it. Miss Eloise made sure every single kid had a gift. It was the least I could do to make certain they were delivered on time.
“Oh man, I like the white tree. It has ninjas and samurais all over it.” Jason grinned as he looked at the handmade ornaments.
“It’s some anime that’s very popular right now. I can’t remember the name, but the girls love it.” My hands and face felt like they were raked with hot coals which meant the blood was flowing through my extremities again. “Okay, so the red gift bags are for the youngest girls, the green bags are for the tweens, and the silver bags are for the teens. We’ll sort them by groups under each tree, and since the tweens are the largest group, they can be in the center.”
