“It's so fucking good to see you,” I muttered, returning his embrace with enthusiasm.
“You missed a lot.” He laughed, stepping back and holding me at arm's length to look me over. Behind him, Nolan watched me intently.
“Hey,” I greeted, feeling a little sheepish.
The surly expression on his face melted away, though, and a smile took its place as he strode over to me, opening his arms to hug me himself.
“I’m pissed at you, but right now, I’m just glad you’re back.” He squeezed me so damn tightly, I thought he was going to crack one of my ribs.
“Where’s Hailey?” I looked around, my pulse noticeable in my chest.
“She tried waiting up for you, but we got the news that you were coming about two hours ago, and she was exhausted. The baby's been tiring her out.”
“She's currently curled up in the nest,” Wilder said. “She really did try to stay awake.”
“I’ll be here in the morning, and she needs her rest.” I turned to Merrick. “Are you okay with me staying here? This is your house, after all.”
“To be fair, I wasn’t looking to take in any of you to start with. But it made the most sense because Hailey needed space, and I've gotten quite attached to these two idiots. So what's one more?”
Merrick grinned as he spoke, and there was something about how he gave us shit that felt familiar and comfortable.
“See, I grow on people like a fungus.” Wilder smirked, and we all laughed.
“Hungry?” Nolan asked, nodding behind him.
“Fuck, yes. I would give my left nut to eat something that wasn't from a can.”
“You can keep your nuts. I made chilli earlier tonight, and there are leftovers,” Merrick said, walking toward what I assumed was the kitchen.
“I definitely won’t say no to that.”
I sat at the kitchen island while Merrick placed a bowl of food in front of me, digging in happily.
“This is fucking amazing, man.” I groaned, taking another bite before setting my spoon down in what was my second bowl of chili. “So…can I see her?”
It was a weird request, having toaskto see my omega, but I was painfully aware that I was on thin ice and navigating entirely new territory. As amazing as it was to have the familiar Wilder and Nolan here, even they had changed since having Hailey in their lives.
“Maybe a shower first?” Wilder suggested, his nose scrunching. “You kind of smell like a convict.”
Glancing down at myself, I was still wearing the khaki T-shirt and sweatpants that was the uniform for convicts inside the camp. It wasn't quite as garish as the bright orange jumpsuits we had to wear while fighting fires.
But it definitely didn't look normal.
“Good idea,” I agreed.
“I put a bag of your clothes in my room,” Nolan said.
Turning on the shower, I was pleasantly surprised to see just how amazing the water pressure was. The showers at the camp had been abysmal. You were lucky to get a consistent trickle of water.
Merrick's house was immaculate, though. All of the rooms I'd been in had been finished to downright royal standards, and the bathroom looked like it had been tiled not too long ago, and someone had done an excellent job.
Either Merrick was really handy, or he had an eye for hiring people who were good at their jobs.
I took my time cleaning every inch of myself. Showers in the camp were fast and pretty surface. Inmates were only given so long to clean up, so just standing under the spray and letting the hot water relax my muscles was a luxury I hadn’t been able to experience in a while.
Eventually, once I was certain I was squeaky clean, I turned the water off and quickly dried myself. Thankfully, somehow Nolan had managed to get ahold of my old clothes.
From the duffel bag he’d given me, I pulled out an old military T-shirt and sweatpants. Putting them on felt like stepping back into my old life.
