“That must be hard, having to beonall the time.”
“Yeah,” she said, nodding her head as she pulled away from me, running a hand through her hair. “You can’t show weakness when it comes to business or they’ll pounce on it. Add on the fact that I’m an omega, and some people in the city are just waiting for me to choke. I’m glad I came back to Holiday Hollow while I figure things out. The orchard is important to me and I want to make sure I set it up for future success, but it’s giving me the time to do the same for myself.”
She shot me a wry grin, that spark and confidence flaring back into her green eyes.
I tilted my head in question.
“I still want that date, Boone. Is that going to be a problem, with you or the pack, now that I’m staying here in the interim and such?”
“You’re aware that I’m not as easy going as Jack or as smooth as Hunter right?” I asked, the question slipping through my lips and right through my filter before I could catch it.
“Yep,” she said, not missing a beat. “You’ve got that mysterious, silent and strong thing going on, but I’d want to have a date with you regardless if you were in this pack or not, Boone. You’re thoughtful and you’re kind. You showed up literally on my step fixing it, just because you thought it was the right thing to do, and beneath all that tough exterior—which is still delicious by the way—I’m pretty sure you’re just a big teddy bear.”
“I am not a teddy bear.”
I built half the town for Hollow’s sake. There was no way this little omega was comparing me to a child’s toy.
“Yep, a big teddy bear that smells like a warm walk on a nice autumn day,” she said with a wide smile that made my chest puff up in response.
I shied away from my scent in the hopes it would deter others who were just using me as a means to an end. Something I was working through in therapy that I went to every couple of weeks. When my parents passed, I’d went and seen a therapist for a while, and then when everything had happened with Heidi and her getting between Hunter and I, I ended up going to see their son, once he’d retired.
It was nice talking to an unbiased third party, and the guy I saw now was honestly pretty cool. We ended up shooting pool most of the time while we talked and he helped regulate my anxiety meds and didn’t bat an eye when I told him I wanted to start using blockers for my scent.
But now, after not taking them for a day and seeing Autumn’s reaction, I wondered if it wasn’t time to stop taking them altogether. Not my anxiety meds, no, but I’d worked through most of my issues when it came to my scent and attracting people who only wanted me for what I could do for them or who I knew. You couldn’t hold people accountable for other people’s actions.
Hell, Autumn and I were already past that. She’d already hooked up with Hunter and then all but stomped her foot when she told me that we were going on a date. If I was honest with myself, the fact that she thought I smelled good did things for me.
Hollows knew that she smelled absolutely delicious herself, all sweetly baked and spiced, just waiting to be devoured. I wondered if she’d follow my directions or continue to be the feisty little omega she’d shown herself to be.
That thought caught me by surprise. It’d been a long time since I’d even allowed myself to indulge in sexy thoughts and here she was getting me to consider how she’d react to my directions.
“I hope you’re hungry!” Hunter’s voice called from the front door, the man himself walking in with a cooler on his shoulder a moment later.
His eyes swept over me and Autumn in the kitchen before he sat it down and gave me a hug, his head knocking against mine in reassurance, telling me without words everything I needed to hear.
“Welcome home,” I said, my voice thicker than normal.
“It’s good to have you back here, brother,” he said into my ear.
“Good to be here.”
He squeezed my shoulder one last time before turning towards Autumn and walking right up and into her space.
“You’re looking better, sweetheart. I’m glad to see you up and about and that the boys took care of you,” he said, catching a lock of her hair.
Autumn’s cheeks turned pink before she cocked her hip and refused to back down. She had no reason to be embarrassed and I was glad as hell she stood up to him and cut through some of his charm.
“They took care of me while you were fishing alright,” she said, a smirk on her lips for a brief moment. “Helped figure out what to do about my grandparents’ house too.”
“Hey now,” he said, tilting his head. “I spent the better part of the morning cleaning up the debris from the lake so no one would get hurt next time they went out. I know you probably wish you got to seeall thisfirst thing this morning, but I knew the guys would handle things.”
“Do I look like a woman who needs to be handled?” she challenged.
Hunter let out a low chuckle. “Darling, I don’t think you want me to answer that.”
Gods, the sexual tension between them was thick, both of their pheromones reacting to one another. I could tell the moment Hunter caught the trace of Jack’s scent by his reaction as he flicked up an eyebrow and called for his brother.
“What did I miss?” Jack asked, hair damp and still running a towel through it.