The next ten minutes involved a lot of bustle, with the alphas digging in the sand and doing all manner of physical labor. Erecting beach umbrellas was apparently quite an undertaking. It was a ridiculous process that Bianca was glad she’d never had to bother with before.
However, once the giant sunshades were arranged just right, and the alphas’ lounge chairs were positioned around the two omegas, and everyone had cool drinks, Bianca had to admit the whole thing wasn’t completely terrible. Surrounded by the scents of Callum and Pack King, she could ignore the squeals of children and boisterous conversations of strangers. Her omega kept up his usual entertaining train of nonsense, Daniel and Dante egging him on, and Bianca was starting to think it was going to be a good day.
Then Daniel opened his big mouth and ruined it.
“Come on, BB. Let’s get in the water.”
Bianca lowered her sunglasses to fix him with a glare. “Why on earth would I do that?”
“Because that’s what people do at the beach, babe,” Daniel replied, crouching beside her and enveloping her in chocolate and butterscotch. “It’s fun. The ocean is dope as hell.”
“I recognize that you are a country boy, Daniel-from-the-Corn-Belt, but I am not inoculated against whichever infectious diseases plague themasses.” Bianca resolutely crossed her arms over her chest. “I can enjoy the ocean just fine from here.”
Daniel cocked his head at her, then glanced over his shoulder at King. His pack leader nodded, his gold grillz flashing in the sunlight for a moment before he hid his smirk. Bianca’s stomach clenched, even as she protested what she knew was coming.
Then she was in the air, squirming in Daniel’s steel grip as he carried her toward the water. King sauntered along behind them, while Dante pulled a laughing Callum into his lap.
“I can’t save you, toots!” Callum proclaimed, squealing when Dante nuzzled his neck. “Just give in and enjoy it. I love a private beach as much as the next girl, but it’s fun to get down and dirty sometimes too.”
“Listen to your omega, BB. Just fucking frolic with me,” Daniel ordered, swinging her playfully.
The motion made a fuzzy memory tug at her thoughts: a young Bianca, splashing in the waves with her fathers and brothers. Astrid had returned from a long visit to the poolside bar above the beach to find her a soaking wet, giggling mess. Her brothers had tossed her in the waves, and it had felt like flying and she’d begged for them to do it again and again.
Astrid had been furious. She’d had Bianca’s hair chemically straightened for the first time ever in preparation for the trip, and she was distraught at the thought of having to wash and “manage” it for the rest of their vacation. Bianca’s nanny had suggested braids for the trip so that she could enjoy the water activities worry-free, but Astrid had balked at the idea. She’d claimed braided styles didn’t suit Bianca.
“I can’t believe you’ve never been in the ocean,” Daniel mused, shaking his head like the overgrown, foolish puppy he was. His guileless expression pulled Bianca from her bittersweet memories. “There’s nothingmore powerful and peaceful than the ocean. You gotta get in here and reconnect to mother earth, babe.”
Bianca huffed out an annoyed breath before correcting him. “I have dipped my feet in every ocean on this planet, Daniel. Though I admit my previous ventures have been from less public access points.”
“Careful, Countess,” King warned, sending a thrill to her core. “I told you earlier what the punishment would be if you kept that snobby shit up.”
Bianca didn’t say anything else as Daniel carried her into the ocean. She couldn’t see more than a few inches below the surface, making her wonder what might lurk in its depths. Though she’d learned to swim (without giving her mother a heart attack thanks to the discovery of high-quality swim caps and, eventually, a personal hairdresser), she’d never learned to like the water. The ocean was too huge and unpredictable to enjoy.
She didn’t realize she’d been digging her fingernails into one of Daniel’s tattooed biceps until she felt him purring against her. “Relax, BB. I’ve got you.”
Bianca clenched her fists, stiffening and pulling away from the pity in his voice. “I am fine, you numbskull, put me down this instant! I don’t want to be in this toilet bowl a m–”
The remainder of her sentence was cut off by a surprisingly hard slap of a wave against the side of her face. She coughed and spat, trying to rid her mouth of the salty taste of ocean water. Her eyes stung and she could feel water dripping down her ears and cheeks.
“My hair!” Bianca was suddenly panic stricken. The alphas had packed her for this little surprise getaway. They couldn’t possibly have grabbed everything she needed to salvage her hair for whatever else they had planned. “I’m going to look a mess for the rest of the trip!”
“Bianca, chill.” King appeared on her other side, sandwiching her between himself and Daniel. “Breathe. This trip is about you enjoying the simple life for a change. We told you we were taking care of everything, and we meant everything. Now, relax and lay back.”
Though she couldn’t help but melt a little at his command, she still felt a stab of anxiety. “King, you don’t understand! I need my products and–”
“I saidchill,” King growled, pressing two fingers to her lips and leaning close to stare into her eyes. “We brought products. We consulted the Tweedles, and you’re going to try a wash and go while we’re on the road. You already have a hair appointment scheduled for the second you get home. We got you, baby. I promise. Now shut up and lay the fuck back.”
Slowly, heart pounding and breath hitching in her chest, Bianca did as she was told. She could feel King’s and Daniel’s hands supporting her weight as she stretched out on top of the water. She almost lost her nerve at the first sensation of water on the back of her scalp, but Daniel squeezed her arm reassuringly and she let her neck muscles loosen.
Then she was floating, the alphas’ touch light against her skin as her body bobbed on the waves. She was weightless, the ocean rocking her to its own slow rhythm, accompanied by the crash of the surf against the sand. Bianca let her arms trail through the water, and it felt like dancing, like a ballet choreographed by the moon.
The ocean could hold her and, if it couldn’t, Pack King would. They wouldn’t let her drown, would anchor her if she felt lost and adrift. Bianca’s shoulders softened, the voices in her head quieting. There was only the gentle tossing of waves, the scents of salt and chocolate and butterscotch, tobacco, whiskey, and caramel.
Bianca gave into it. She let go. Her eyes stung, and she wasn’t sure if it was from the salt water or something more.
They floated and splashed for what felt like hours. Dante and Callum joined them, and Daniel came up with games to play that were poorly veiled excuses to feel everyone up as much as possible. Afterward, they lay beneath the umbrellas, enjoying the snacks King had prepared, and Callum had to be threatened with a spanking to make him drink enough water between cocktails. By the time the sunset signaled it was time to pack up, Bianca was exhausted in a new, wonderful way.
It was the most relaxed she’d felt in her entire life.
