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“Absolutely,” I confirm, clenching my jaw with determination.
He smirks. “Remember you said that, short stack.”
Twenty minutes later, I sincerely wish I hadn’t.
20
Esperanza
“You are the worst.” I pout, trudging after Lincoln as we make our way out of the athletics center at the military base.
“You said you were up foranything. This is a thing.” He shrugs, though the devious grin on his face totally undermines his casual tone.
“Any chance you have selective memory?” I suggest.
He shakes his head, so I try a new, rather desperate, tack.
“You know omegas are flighty, irrational creatures. We have too many hormones floating around our small bodies. We can’t be trusted to think clearly or make decisions for ourselves. Obviously, you have to disregard anything I say.”
Lincoln doesn’t break stride, but he does roll his eyes quite dramatically. “Then as the good alpha that I am, allow me to make your decisions for you. And I decide ... we’re doing this.”
Well, that backfired pretty thoroughly.
“Liiiiiiiiiiiinncoooooooooooln,” I whine pitifully. “You do realize you took me to eatMexicanfood literally sixty minutes ago. I just ate a bunch of rice and beans and cheese, and now you want to make me work out? There’s got to be some sort of rule about how much time to take between eating and running. If my burrito makes a surprise reappearance, I’ll be off Mexican food for life.You’llprobably be off Mexican food for life too, since you can bet I’ll do my utmost best to ensure I end up puking all over you,” I threaten.
“So dramatic.” He tsks at me. “First, you barely ate half of that burrito. You’ll be fine. Second, no running today. I thought we’d switch things up a bit.”
He took me from the restaurant back to the military base, stopping at his apartment along the way. My heart leapt for minute as I thought maybe we’d be hanging out at his place, but he just ran in to grab a bag and then continued on to the athletics center where we always train. I’m not sure where or when he got them, but at the entrance to the locker rooms Lincoln handed over a bag with snow pants, snow boots, and a long-sleeve athletic top, and then instructed me to get changed. The damn things fit me perfectly too, taking away a great excuse I could have used for bailing.
“While I appreciate that you’re not gonna make me run in the snow, which I’m not fully convinced of yet, what exactly are we going to be doing then?” I ask, following him outside and back into the cold. It’s not snowing, but that makes it even colder since the lack of cloud cover means there isn’t any natural insulation to trap what little heat there does happen to be.
Lincoln continues leading me away from the building and over to a nearby athletic field, which remains covered in snow. When we get to the edge he stops and turns toward me, and like I child I blow a big gust of frosty breath into his face, giggling at his shocked expression.
“Watch it, short stack, or I’ll change my plans and have you shovel this entire field,” he growls playfully.
The place looks like a freaking football field, so I dutifully blow my next breath out toward the ground, watching it condense and swirl between us.
If I cared to analyze my behavior, I might observe that I am engaging in classic omega behavior. Testing boundaries against an alpha and potential mate. But since I absolutely, positively, very much, one hundred percent donotcare to analyze anything, I don’t.
“Okay, alpha, you’ve got me here. Now what are you going to do with me?” I grin with delight as a light blush paints his cheeks, looking very out of place.
He clears his throat awkwardly. “Two birds, one stone. I’m gonna teach you some survival skills, and you’ll get a workout in at the same time.”
“Survival skills?” I look around again at the snowy field. “You gonna teach me self-defense in the snow?” I don’t think it’s a terrible idea. We’ve been working on some moves in between conditioning sessions, but the gym is a very controlled environment. Ignoring the fear that always crops up at the thought of being attacked anywhere, I think about how I might apply what I’ve learned in the snow.
“No self-defense today, though it’s not a bad idea. Maybe I’ll throw some of that in ...” Lincoln muses, looking me up and down in a decidedly analytical way.
“So ...?” I prompt.
“So I’m gonna teach you how to build a snow cave.”
“A-a snow cave?” My face scrunches up; I’m not sure I heard him right. “You’re going to teach me how to make a cave. In the snow. Forsurvival???”
“Yep,” Lincoln confirms.
“What kind of situation do you think I’m going to be in where I’ll need to stay alive in the snow for long enough to warrant setting up shop in a cave?” I ask, bemused and also slightly alarmed at what the answer might be.
“Life is unpredictable.” Lincoln shrugs. “Maybe you’re skiing and there’s an avalanche, or you get injured, or maybe you’re hiking at high altitude and there’s an unexpected snowstorm, or maybe your car breaks down in a rural area and it isn’t safe to walk out to look for help,” he ticks off, holding up his gloved fingers as he lists off each example.
