Page 17 of Every Chance to Stay

Despite everything Antonio had done to calm him, Lucky tumbled right back into the panicked depths of overthinking when the alpha was gone.

What was he going to do?

The question spiraled helplessly through his bus ride. Instead of heading home, he got off two stops earlier for the Marine Center. It was just past two in the afternoon; the tourists were likely gone or milling about the aquarium section. It didn’t matter. He just needed to find his dad.

Lucky flashed fake smiles as various volunteers and research staff greeted him, hoping the anger and hurt and just general upset didn’t show on his face. Not until he reached the office of Teague Wilde.

He knocked, throat burning with a matted ball of emotion, and nearly choked on a small sob when his father’s warm voice told him to come in. He didn’t even give his dad a chance to ask questions. Lucky rushed in, letting the door close under its own power, and all but threw himself into Teague’s lap.

“What’s wrong, little Lucky?” His father’s strong arms curled around him protectively. Teague leaned back in his office chair, making space for Lucky. A kiss was pressed to the crown of his head.

Words stuck in his throat, drowned out by tears that soaked into his father’s shirt. How easy it was to become a child again. Teague smelled like spiced rum. To him, it would always be the most comforting scent in the world, the one that wrapped him up in hugs and tucked him in at night. His father was strong and sturdy and always had a smile to give them. Shame and fear couldn’t get him here, not when his father’s large hand rubbed his back until everything spilled out.

“What happened?” Teague asked again once Lucky was wrung dry and his breathing had steadied.

Lucky sniffled, prompting his father to adjust his hold so he could grab a tissue from his desk. He pressed it to Lucky’s face just as he had when Lucky was a pup, and prompted him to blow his nose.

“I went on a date.” He started, sitting up to grab a second tissue to clean his face. “We had a great time by the way, you’re gonna like him.”

“Not if he’s the reason my pup is crying.” Teague grumbled, licking his thumb to rub Lucky’s cheek clean.

“He’s not, I promise he’s not.” Lucky sighed, “We ran into Evan Jones at Tesoro. Daddy, they’re surveying our beach for a land sale!” A fresh wave of anger threatened to bring more frustrated tears to his burning eyes.

“Easy, deep breaths Lucky.” Teague patted his back gently. “Surveying doesn’t mean anything is official.”

His father was always reasonable. Slow, steady, laid back to the point he could be frustrating. “We need to find mom’s paperwork. I know she filed for protective status, that will prove they can’t build there.”

“I’ll have Joe get a copy from the environmental protections office, Lucky. It’ll take a few days.” Lucky’s classmate was a capable research assistant, if anyone could track down the paperwork with ease, it would be Joe.

“Alright…” Lucky sighed, tucking his head under Teague’s chin. The office chair creaked in protest.

Silence blossomed as Teague rubbed his knuckles up and down Lucky’s back. His father didn’t press or offer continuous reassurances, he offered space. A chance to breathe, to think, to center himself without worrying about anything.

Minutes ticked by in comfort until there was a knock at the door at the same time the handle turned, “Hey dad, someone said they saw Lucky and— Lucky!” That was all the warning they had before Jack happily flung himself into the cuddle pile without question.

Lucky laughed, wrapping an arm around Jack as the office chair groaned and Teague grunted from an elbow to the ribs.

“You’re going to break my chair.” Teague protested halfheartedly.

Worry still clung to his heart like an octopus but with his family holding him, it was impossible to believe things wouldn’t work out. Everything would be okay. It had to be.

Lucky finished typing up the last line of notes from the three-hour lecture on the latest in reef restoration with a sigh of relief. He stretched his hands above his head, linking his fingers together. A squeak escaped him when a finger prodded his armpit.

“Serena!” He batted away harpy-like fingers eager to dig into his sides. “I swear to god if you don’t stop with the armpit fetish…”

“Slander!” Serena gasped in mock offense; hand pressed to her chest. “It is only because you leave them so defenseless and exposed that my innate desire to hunt little omegas like you is triggered.”

He snorted, “You’re a beta, you don’t have an innate desire to hunt anything!”

“That is beta exclusionary and I won’t stand for it.” Which led to her dramatically collapsing against his side. He shoved uselessly at her before submitting to his fate.

Serena smelled like coconut lotion and the hibiscus scented hair oil she swore kept her blond waves springy and glossy. She was all tan lines and sunburned cheeks when she tilted her head to kiss the tip of his nose. “Come get lunch with me, I need to stretch and stuff a sandwich in my face before the next lecture or I will literally expire.”

“Food sounds amazing.” Lucky’s stomach begged through the entire final hour of the lecture. It was his fault, forgetting his lecture snack was a literal sin.

“Perfect! Grab your stuff and let’s go, mi amor!” Serena squeezed him tight enough to strangle before finally releasing him to pack up her own stuff. Lucky clicked his laptop shut after saving his work, stuffing it into his messenger bag.

Just as they exited the classroom, Lucky’s phone pinged with a text message. He paused, fishing the device from the pocket of his shorts.