Page 58 of Blizzards and Brews
“Come on, you’re the first one here outside of me and Riley,” Claire called out. “We’re making pizza.”
“Hell, yeah,” I grinned as I followed her into the cottage. She’d changed it recently to be a workspace for her and Adrien, but right now it was a hangout for all of us.
She already had bowls of dough rising and Riley was cutting up veggies.
“Hey, Lindsay. Word on the street is that you had to call industrial cleaners to the bar because of a blizzard heat,” he teased. My cheeks flamed but I just rolled my eyes.
“For once, the rumor mills are accurate,” I said, their jaws dropping. It was too hard not to laugh so I gave in, cracking up until they were.
“So, you gave in?”
I threw up my hands in exasperation.
“Did everyone think we should be together but me?”
“Yes,” they answered together, giving me a look that said they knew I was losing my mind.
“You’ve been borderline flirting the entire time I’ve known you,” Riley said, pointing his knife my way. “What changed?”
I sat down and started helping Claire stretch the dough over the pizza pans, letting them in on some of my stress.
“I’ve always known I couldn’t be enough for them. I’m not an omega, and I wasn’t an alpha. I couldn’t give Ollie what he needed, or Adam. Plus, it wouldn’t be fair to them or Dustin if I was holding back a part of myself. Then Spencer came along andhe realized both Ollie and I were his mates. That changed things some but I wasn’t going to dive all in just because he was here. They deserved better than that.”
“I bet Adam just loved that, especially after telling you the same thing about yourself,” Riley said, with an arch of his eyebrow.
“First of all, finding a solution doesn’t mean you care about them more or less, it just means you’re allowing yourself to entertain the idea,” Claire pointed out gently.
“I’m ready now, though. I just didn’t realize that what everyone needs is a little different than this idea I had been holding onto in my head. They’ve all made it very clear that I’m what they want. Everyone is happy and I think…I think I’m ready to let myself be happy.”
“Hallelujah,” Riley muttered. “I thought I’d have to come slap some sense into you guys.”
“Hey!” I laughed. “It just took a bit to get there, but I’m ready now.”
“Better late than never,” he said, more gentle this time. “Now this requires wine!”
“Sparkling cider for me,” Summer called out as she walked in, her belly rounding out now.
“I’ve got you,” Claire said, wiping her hands on her apron and going to the fridge, pulling both out. She served Summer first before pouring ours.
“What did I miss?”
“Gossip and pizza making,” Claire said as she gestured for her to sit. “Where’s Autumn?”
“Late as usual,” Autumn said, her cheeks flushed as she ran into the room, dropping her things on the side table and joining us. “I swear those men hate to let me leave.”
“It looks like you weren’t complaining,” I said, giving her a wink.
“And it sounds like you’re not, either. Alright, tell us everything,” she demanded, looking right at me. I bit back a smile as I recounted what I told them.
“But are you happy?” Summer asked, her face set in a sweet smile. “Do they make you come alive? Are they who you think about in the quiet moments?”
My chest tightened as I thought it over. It wasn’t a hard conclusion to come to.
“Yes. It’s always been them, from the moment I met them. Even Spencer wormed his way in with his charm and has stayed under my skin.”
“Then you’ve found your pack, Lindsay. They’re who you are meant to be with, and it’s alright to let yourself embrace them.”
“I’m going to,” I said, my voice strong and sure.