18. Chapter Eighteen

I was pacing the sidewalk in front of Wyatt’s house like a wolf stalking his prey, when backup rolled up. Well, not backup per se, but an assortment of vehicles, each carrying a Sinclair quad.

Fucking great.

Jamie exited his SUV first, followed by his husband, Sebastian. The oldest of the Sinclair quads, Lachlan, was next. Though his husband, Quinn, wasn’t with him. Quinn was most likely working this morning at The Sweet Spot.

Finn was next to exit his vehicle, going around his Audi to open the door for his husband, Wade, whose dark spiky hair was dyed a bright, pumpkin orange this morning. Wade changed his hair color more than anyone I had ever met. It was always a surprise whenever I saw him.

Bash frowned at Wade’s hair, telling him dryly in his British accent, “You look like a pumpkin.”

Wade batted ridiculously long lashes that surrounded his stunning gray eyes, grinning impishly. “It’s for Halloween.”

“That’s not for another month,” Bash pointed out.

Wade rolled his eyes, “I’m trying it out.”

“Try again,” Bash advised.

Wade stuck his tongue out at his brother-in-law. This was their usual mode of communication, so I paid the two of them no mind.

Last to pull up was Brendan, with his husband, Ryan. Ryan waved, smiling brightly, before his green eyes ran down the length of my body. He blushed and looked away quickly, whispering something to Brendan.

Shaking my head, I tried to tell myself it could be worse. Half my department could have rolled up in squad cars and handcuffs. The worst part was they would have been justified in hauling my ass in.

Thankfully, none of the quads seemed to have any of their children with them, though I did wonder who had their brood. Likely their mom, Mary, and her two fated mates, Maeve and Allan Rafferty.

Jamie smirked at me, slowly unwrapping one of his sour hard candies. The cellophane crinkled loudly, before he popped it in his mouth. “I have a lot of questions. But first, I gotta know, where’s the rest of your clothes?”

Flipping him off, I rolled my eyes, flinching when my bare foot hit a tiny pebble that felt like a boulder.

“Fuck, Becks,” Wade smirked, “where have you been hiding those abs? You make Gabe look like he’s Pooh Bear.” I knew he was referring to Gabe Carmichael, who owned a construction company and had the impressive muscles you got from physical labor. I peered around expecting to see the Kodiak bear shifter to drive up. Honestly, I was surprised he wasn’t with them. Gabe was an alpha but he was super tight with all the omegas in this group, especially Ryan and Wade. Where one was, the others were bound to be close by.

“I can hear you, Brat,” Finn reminded his husband that he was in ear shot.

Wade smiled prettily at his mate, not even a little ashamed of admiring my abs. “I know.”

Finn muttered something that sounded like, “I’ll deal with your ass later.” To which Wade responded, unrepented, “Promise?”

Turning my attention back to Jamie, I pointed towards Wyatt’s house. “My clothes are still in there. You heard him ask me to leave.”

Bash snorted loudly, “Is that what we’re calling it, then? You’ve acted a right wanker. Asked you to leave, indeed.”

Why did everything sound so much worse in Bash’s dry, British accent?

“Do you want us to get your clothes for you?” Wade asked, and I could hear the laughter in his voice.

Giving them all my fuck off look, I mumbled childishly, “I could get my clothes back if I wanted to.”

“So, you don’t want your clothes back, then?” Ryan inquired impishly, his green eyes full of merriment. “It’s a good look on you.”

Lachlan’s deep voice cut in, “Why are we here, exactly, Jamie?”

“I’d like to know that too.” I aimed a pointed look at Jamie, who was rocking back and forth on the heels of his black motorcycle boots, hands shoved into the pockets of his black jeans. “I called you. Not your entire family.”

Jamie snorted, waving a hand at the huddle of people. “You called for help. This is the backup. You’re family now, Becks, whether you want us or not. Mom declared you one of her chicks, and when Mary Sinclair claims you, you don’t argue.”

Sighing loudly, I turned to Finn. “I think Wyatt might have post-partum omega syndrome.”

Bash snorted, “What he has is an alpha acting like a twat.”

Finn, apparently done with the entire conversation, calmly walked up the steps to Wyatt’s front door, and knocked softly. After a minute, Wyatt cracked the door open and peered out wearily. Seeing who was on his porch, he opened it wider, looking confused. He was holding a crying Julianna, who looked red and sweaty.

“Dr. Sinclair? I mean, Finn,” he caught sight of the small crowd on the sidewalk in front of his house and frowned. “What’s going on? And why is he still here?”

Finn glanced at the gathered group of people, then shook his head. “Good morning, Wyatt, may I come in?”

“Why?” There was clear suspicion in his voice, and his eyes were still raking over me.

Finn sighed noisily, “Becks thinks you might be suffering from post-partum omega syndrome. I just want to check in with you to see how you’re feeling. May I?”

Finn held his hands out in a silent question for the baby. When Wyatt hesitated, he said, “We have three of our own. That’s my husband over there.”

Wade waved from the sidewalk, and called. “He’s really good with getting them to stop crying.”

Wyatt wilted, “I guess you can come in for a minute. Just to prove there’s nothing wrong with me.” His voice rose to make sure everyone could hear him. “The only person I want to harm is Grayson.”

“Who the fuck is Grayson?” Jamie looked around, clearly confused.

“I am,” I growled, really wishing I had my shirt and shoes. I could see neighbors peeking out behind curtains, no doubt enjoying the show.

Jamie stared at me, then grinned. “Fuck, I forgot that was your name. Huh.”

Whatever else Finn had quietly murmured to Wyatt must have worked, as he followed Wyatt inside and firmly shut the door, leaving us all standing outside the house.

Wade turned his sharp gray eyes on me, tapping his bottom lip with his finger. I had enough experience with Wade to know that was never a good thing. “What did you do?”

“Why are we all here?” Brendan asked, pushing his wire rimmed glasses up his nose. “What’s going on, Becks?”

Rubbing my hands over my bare arms, because it was chilly this morning, I pointed a thumb at Jamie. “Ask your brother. He called in the cavalry.”

Jamie shook his head at me, arching a dark brow. “Becks did a bad, bad thing, and we’re here to help.”

“I ask again, what did you do?” Wade demanded, and somehow he, Bash, and Ryan had made a line in front of me on the sidewalk, blocking my pacing. Ryan was sweet, but Bash and Wade were…not omegas you wanted to mess with. Bash was dangerous and Wade was just…Wade. He was one of those scarily efficient omegas, who got things done. I had no doubt he could make someone’s life hell if he put his mind to it.

“I was trying to help!” It was my only defense at this point, because when I thought about what I had done I could admit to understanding why Wyatt was upset.

“He acted like a twat,” Bash reiterated.

The front door opened, and Finn tossed out my shoes, shirt, and then my leather jacket. He gave me a hard look, shook his head in disappointment and shut the door.

Skirting around the trio of omegas, I scooped up my scattered articles of clothing. At least I could get dressed.