"I love you," I say, not to any one of them but to all of them. "All of you. So fucking much."
The chorus of "love you too" that comes back makes my eyes burn with happy tears. This isn't how I thought my life would go when I signed up for that dating app. I never imagined I'd find not just one person but five who would accept me, challenge me, cherish me.
But here we are, tangled together in a nest that smells like sex and love and pack, and I wouldn't change a single thing.
I've finally found where I belong.
Chapter
Forty-One
DMITRI
The SUV idles in the arena parking lot like a ticking bomb. Through the tinted windows, I watch morning light reflect off the glass doors we're about to walk through. Doors that lead to Coach's office. To consequences we can't avoid any longer.
My hands rest loose on my thighs, but inside, every muscle coils like a fucking spring. The plan is established. Now we just have to follow it. The decision Jax, Zayn, Aidan and I made while Darren slept off his heat. If they try to bench him, we all walk. Simple. Clean.
Darren doesn't know.Can'tknow. He'd try to stop us, throw himself on his sword to save our careers. The stubborn omega still hasn't learned that pack means we rise or fall together.
But we'll just have to show him.
"We doing this or what?" Zayn asks from the driver's seat, fingers drumming against the steering wheel. The leather of his jacket creaks with each movement. He's a bundle of live wires.
"Give me a second," Darren mutters, staring at the arena like it might bite. The suppressants are back in his system, dullinghis scent, but I still catch traces of woodsmoke anxiety bleeding through. "Just... processing."
Lexie's hand finds his, small fingers threading through his larger ones. "We're all here," she says simply. "Whatever happens."
She doesn't know the plan either. Couldn't risk her having to lie to Darren, to carry that burden. Better she finds out with everyone else.
"The longer we wait, the worse it gets," Jax says from the passenger seat. I hear the steel underneath his captain's voice. He's ready for war. We all are.
"I know." Darren takes a breath that shakes only slightly. "Okay. Let's get this shit over with."
We climb out in formation, five hockey players and one beta woman who belongs with us more than anyone else ever could. The morning air bites cold, carrying the smell of ice and industrial cleaner from the loading dock. Back to our home away from home. Maybe for the last time.
Aidan falls into step beside me, shoulders squared despite the bruises still coloring his knuckles. "You think he'll actually do it? Bench Darren?" he whispers, low enough so only I can hear.
"Maybe," I say quietly. "League pressure. Media storm. It's easier to sacrifice one than fight the system."
"Fuck the system," he mutters, and I feel a surge of pride. Our golden boy goalie, ready to burn it all down for pack. Good.
The security guard at the employee entrance does a double-take when he sees us. His eyes linger on Darren, on Lexie, on the way we move as a unit around them both. Instinct.
"Morning, boys," he says carefully. "Ms. Goodwin. Coach is expecting you."
Of course he is. He's probably been pacing his office since Vancouver, trying to figure out how to handle this clusterfuck. How to make it disappear.
He doesn't understand yet. Nothing disappears. You face it or it faces you.
The walk to Coach's office feels longer than usual. The corridors are empty when we wind through them. It's too early for most staff, too late for night security. Just us and the awareness of what's coming.
"Stop looking like you're heading to your execution," Lexie says, bumping Darren's shoulder. "You didn't do anything wrong."
"I lied," he says flatly. "Hid my designation. Put the team at risk?—"
"Bullshit," Zayn cuts in. "It's not in the bylaws you have to disclose status after a change. Not your fault they just assumed an omega couldn't play."
Darren's jaw tightens, but he doesn't argue. Can't argue with Zayn when he's right.
