Still, the urge to say “I told you so,” burned in my chest. Hailey needed to trust us, and we weren’t giving her any reason to.
“You can’t blame her for protecting herself,” I said with a shrug.
Nolan looked at me like I had finally lost the plot.
I took a deep breath, I walked over to the kitchen, grabbed some of the beers I’d purchased the other day, and held them up. “I think we all need a drink—and a conversation,” I said, also grabbing a fresh soda for Hailey.
“Sure,” she grumbled, crossing her arms. “Ifsomeonecan behave.” She glowered at Nolan, who raised his hands in surrender.
“I’m sorry. I spoke before I thought.”
Hailey scoffed. “You called me stupid when it’syourpack mate who got us into this mess!”
“Actually, that’s a pretty smart move. Nolan here is just pissed at himself.” I laughed, raising my beer in the air. “So you’re a firefighter?” I asked, sinking onto the couch.
Merrick nodded. “I joined right out of high school. You?”
“Nurse. I considered doing the whole medical school thing, but I just wanted to start working and helping people, and nursing took fewer years of training. Also, I wasn't very good at school.”
“Honestly. Respect.” Merrick tilted his beer bottle toward me, turning the corners of his mouth down.
“Nursing school is no joke,” Hailey insisted.
“Have you ever considered it?” I asked.
Hailey cocked her head to the side. “A few times. I like working as an EMT, helping people when they’re experiencing the worst moments of their lives, but I would like to be able to do more.”
“Why haven't you gone for it, then?” Merrick beat me to the question.
“It's a huge time commitment, and I would have to take on a lot of student loans.”
“Not now, you wouldn't,” I pointed out.
“What do you mean?” she shot back.
“Cutie. I'm not so sure abouthisfinancial position”—I pointed to Merrick as I spoke—“but we’re pretty well off. You've got plenty of alphas who would support you chasing whatever dream you wanted.”
Hailey looked stumped for a moment, glancing between us like the idea had never even occurred to her. “Wait, you guys would support me doing that?”
“Of course,” Nolan said flatly. “We can easily finance it.”
“As can I,” Merrick added, meeting my eyes. “I was smart with my money and invested my first few paychecks well. I may not be at a lawyer's level of money, but I do okay for myself.”
“But what about the baby?” Hailey asked with a frown.
“We can make it work. Between all of us, someone can be with the baby at all times, and if our jobs don't allow it, we can always hire some help.”
Hailey looked thoughtful for a moment.
It hit me even harder than that we’dreallyfucked this up. Our omega didn't even believe or know that we would support her chasing her dreams.
That was one of the most basic things a pack was meant to do: support and lift each other up.
Pack members were there to help you when you were at your lowest and help you reach your goals. They were a helping hand when you needed them the most.
They were people who loved you and wanted what was best for you.
And Hailey didn’t see us that way—yet.
