Santo steps outside, closing the French doors, two beers in his hand. Miles will be joining us soon, he has a late phone call with the owner of the team. I keep waiting for our vigilante stunt to blow back on us, but so far it hasn’t.
Riley Barry and Luis Meyer are both facing felony charges along with Seth McCreuger. I’m completely shocked McCreuger didn’t sing like a goddamn canary after Miles and Caelia beat the shit out of him, but something tells me that it wasn’t worth the effort. Seth’s added charge is attempted rape, something he absolutely deserves.
As long as they’re off the streets, in prison, I’m willing to put them out of my mind.
Santo glances at Caelia worriedly when she whimpers, and I purr to help her sleep. For the last few months, she’s been having nightmares. It makes me wish that I’d been able to fuck up McCreuger, but that’s not what Caelia needed at the time.
I have a wicked temper, I know this. I usually work my shit out on the ice so I can be a better man and alpha. However, I can admit in hindsight that going after an unconscious man isn’t my style. Did I make sure to bump McCreuger into every corner I could while dragging his ass back to the SUV?
Absolutely. My pettiness knows no bounds. However, I’m not going to put my omega at risk to do it.
“She’s still having nightmares,” I confirm, taking my beer from him as he settles beside me. It’s the reason I suggested that we sit out here.
It’s peaceful, and it’s not a bed. This is the best she’s slept all week.
“Those stupid fuckers,” Santo grumbles.
One of the things that truly brings a smile to Caelia’s face is her art. The alpha who commissioned her to do the work for the sports museum, also asked if she does portrait work. Hisdaughter is dying of cancer and he wanted a family portrait done.
This has led to a surprising amount of work from people he’s spoken to. She’s booked out for several months at this point.
“I don’t want to hide from what’s happening, but I think we should go see Caelia’s dad soon,” I say. “He’s able to push in ways we can’t.”
“I’m free for the summer,” Santo shrugs. “Let’s go see him. We can rent a place.”
It suddenly hits me that we may be getting closer to her next heat, making me curse under my breath.
“Are you thinking about her heat?” Santo asks, smirking as I nod. “We could be getting closer to it. The last one took her by surprise, so I wouldn’t be shocked if it does this time too. Since she’s been cranky from the lack of sleep, it’s hard to know what to attribute it to.”
Miles slips out of the house, padding over with his own beer, and sits across from us with a sigh.
“Is she good?” he asks.
“She’s twitchy,” I admit. “I was just talking about going to visit Curtis now that the season is over.”
“I think we should,” Miles agrees. “Caelia doesn’t want to go to a therapist, and somehow these monsters follow her into her dreams despite the fact that they’re behind bars.”
“My dad is friends with one of the prosecutors in Nashville,” Santo says. “He’s keeping tabs on the case for us outside of what’s in the news.”
Blowing out a breath, Miles nods. The scandal has rocked the hockey community since they were on three different teams. Caelia’s name is being kept out of the news which I appreciate. Now, if only that’ll continue.
“Thank him for us,” Miles says. “I’ll find a rental house this time so we can have space and stay awhile. Caelia keeps insisting that she’s fine, but?—”
“She’s not,” I chime in. “Sometimes she’ll lose herself in her art and it’s as if there's nothing wrong with the world, but I can tell when the shadows begin to creep back in.”
“There’s different ways to handle trauma,” Santo muses. “Remember when we went to the rage room?”
“That’s not a bad idea,” I say. “Caelia holds her emotions together in a very different way than I do. If I’m angry, the world knows, while our girl will stew.”
“She does,” Santo says. “Fuck, I really want to call her dad to ask for advice. Is that wrong?”
“Call him,” Miles says, handing me an already ringing phone.
“You’re an asshole,” Santo mutters while Miles smirks.
“Oh I know.”
“Hello?”Curtis Freedman answers. The phone is on speaker, allowing the three of us to listen to the call.
