My voice echoes down the valley.
Joe freezes like a statue, unlike the others.
They’re moving towards me, and even though there are concrete walls and solid doors and a pretty garden full of trees and flowers separating us, it’s also like there’s nothing between us too. Keegan’s squatting in front of me, his hands in the air, before I blink. It’s a strange sight—his uncertainty, that is—until I remember it is me we’re talking about.
Behind us, a sound like a stampeding herd of elephants should have me running for my life. But instead of me running, I watch Joe crouching low and taking small, careful steps away.
Over my shoulder, something comes flying. It pulls my attention from Joe to Keegan, and in slow motion, I see my pill bottle bouncing off his forehead.
“Bit of fucking warning might not have gone a-feckin’-stray,” he shouts back, glaring behind me.
“Not about you right now, Kee,” Rafferty snarks, before he’s sliding past where I’m sitting, one foot up in the air. He screams and laughs as he crashes into Keegan’s legs, making him fall on his arse too. “Jesus, Tynan, you could have cleared that top path too. Fuck me, that grass is slippery.”
And the usual chaos and noise they bring is perfect, snapping me out of myJFC, my heat might be happening soonfreakout.I keep on smiling as Ronin lands on the seat next to me, making me fly up in the air a couple of inches, but Tynan’s there to catch my fall.
No one says anything, but their noses do a whole lot of twitching. The four of them keep taking deep and huge gulps of air. Until Ronin gently presses his elbow into my side.
“Tally girl, looks like you’ve got yourself another decision to make. But I’m just saying, no pressure, I’d have us home within four hours. In your nest, fifteen minutes later. And, since you’re such a good wife, I’d let you have a fiddle of my stick on the way home, if you were so inclined.”
My mouth pops open, and I turn to deadpan him.
He’s laughing—of course he is—when he grips my chin and dips down to kiss my open mouth. “I was talking the yoke, ya filthy, dirty lass. Teaching you to fly us home might be the concentration you need so you don’t send your pack into a full fuckfest at 35,000 feet. Or the alternate is, you take more of those pills, and we’ll all go find our own place in one of the mountain streams to cool off until you’re not smelling like you need some Pack O’Connor come in your pretty little cunt.”
Chapter Sixty-Four
TALLY
Despite Ronin selling the dream, I took the suppressants, then spent the rest of the day packing my bags while listening to Pack O’Connor go through every emotion known to man. I’m not sure if they did it to make me feel less alone in my own mental circus, but regardless, they reminded me we’re all human. And everyone has their own ups and downs, highs and lows, weaknesses and strengths.
Leaving Keegan and Tynan arguing, Rafferty trails behind me, his hands on my hips in case I trip on the stairs, to see Harris and Joe. Just because I am not going into heat doesn’t mean my pack has lost any of their obsessiveness to protect their Omegas. Even their reluctant Omega.
We get to the bottom stair, and Rafferty parks his butt on the step, but from there, he can see almost all the rooms. Harris is already standing at the door, his bags packed, his aviators resting on top of his head.
“Don’t let them boss you around,” he says before I’ve finished walking over.
“I won’t.”
“If you want me to take them out, you remember our code?”
I laugh, and Harris smiles.
Taking a big breath to stop the rush of emotions threatening, I do the unthinkable and throw my arms around him. It’s a little like hugging a tree. “Harris, I…”
He extracts himself from my hug, but that’s only because of the past few months we’ve spent together. It never goes well when we touch, something he’s aware of, and he’s also aware that Rafferty is armed and watching his every move.
Bobbing down to eye level, Harris talks nice and slow. “You don’t owe me anything. Every minute I spent with you was an honor. Don’t you stop working on yourself, and don’t be stubborn.”
Rafferty laughs, and I swing around to glare at him. He shrugs unapologetically. “Seems like Harris knows you pretty well, is all.”
Pinning him quiet with a solid glare, I turn back to Harris, giving him all my attention.
In the time I was dealing with Raff, Harris has got his bags in his hand. “I’m not a fan of goodbyes,” he says. “You’ve got my number in your phone, and seriously, don’t give a crap who they are, you need me to come sort them out, I will. Now, get your arse out of here before UKPPS decides to come fingerprint the joint.”
He just walks out the door, and I know I’ll never see him again.
Joe takes his place, and when I hug him, he returns it, squeezing me tight. “You can call me anytime, like always. I’m coming to spend Christmas in Ireland. Ronin and I are already trying to figure out the logistics, but it’s happening. I’m sureHarris said the same, but your pack don’t scare me.” He pulls me out of his arms so he can see my face. “You deserve all the happiness. Don’t second-guess that.”
A car horn beeps, and Joe leans in quick to give me a kiss on the cheek before he, too, races out the door. I stand outside, watching their Uber until the lights disappear from view. Down the road, a van waits, but I knew they’d be there, so it’s not alarming. All jokes aside, Ronin did arrange a “cleaning” crew to come and remove all traces of my time here.
