Blizzards and Brews (Holiday Hollow Omegaverse)

Chapter 28

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Lindsay

H oliday Hollow might have outdone themselves this time. The winter festival was in full swing, with white lights and silver snowflakes everywhere.

Janet had gone out of her way to get everyone involved. The hardware store had a huge window painting of a snowy scene, complete with a handyman Snowman. Beatty’s diner was decorated with more silver garland and snowflakes than I’d ever seen before.

Walking down the streets of Holiday Hollow toward the festival grounds was like being inside some sort of fairytale. Everything seemed to sparkle with magic and light. It was amazing.

The festival grounds were even better. The air was filled with the scent of delicious baked goods, fried treats, the sound of music, and excited chatter coming from the beer tent.

“Hiring people to help out with this was the smartest decision we’ve ever made,” Ollie said as he hooked his arm through mine. His eyes were sparkling with excitement and we’d only just walked in.

It was still pretty early in the day, but the festival was in full swing and would be going on for hours. We opted to come now so we could appreciate it before heading back to the bar.

Ollie saw the hand-blown glass artist we loved and rushed ahead with Spencer following behind. I loved watching them together. My omega brought out our alpha’s playful side and he made us both feel safe and accepted. There was no need to hold back with him.

I was practically vibrating with excitement just like Ollie was, though mine was partially because of the big surprise coming up. Hopefully, they and Adam wrote it off as post-bonding bliss and holiday merriment down our bond. I hadn’t told any of the guys, which they might get me for later, but I knew Spencer was going to be so happy when he saw his family.

Alexandra and I had been texting non-stop, and she was quickly becoming one of my favorite people. She was the type to send random memes throughout the day, check in, and give those little updates that some people might find annoying, but I found refreshing.

My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I waited until Spencer and Ollie were distracted to pull it out.

“What are you up to?” Adam side-eyed me.

“Just a little surprise for Spencer,” I replied. Adam raised his eyebrows but didn’t argue with me.

“Oh my god, Beatty’s got her pie booth out. Get over here!” Ollie gasped, reaching back for me again and yanking me toward the booth. Adam let out a growl at me being manhandled but Ollie didn’t care. He was already focused on the baked sweets.

Every time she had one of these booths at Holiday Hollow festivals, we’d always get a whole pie and split it between us. We might be miserable afterwards, and on a little bit of a sugar rush, but there was no way I was turning down one of our traditions.

Ollie turned to me, his face suddenly serious. “Okay, the big question of the year: Apple, chocolate, or cherry?”

“Well, lucky for you, this year you don’t have to pick,” Beatty said as she held up a tin to show us the divided pies, cut into quarters and stuck together with little dividers so you didn’t have to choose.

Ollie let out a happy little squeal before slapping his chest and coughing, his voice dropping down to his normal range.

“I’ve always wanted to try pecan,” Ollie said. “We’ll take that one.”

I grabbed five forks from the tin in front along with a stack of napkins, before following after Ollie.

The pie was still warm and steam rose in the cold air as he took off the top. We all groaned as we breathed in the mixed scents.

“Beatty was on to something. I like not having to choose,” I hummed as I took a bite of chocolate, savoring the rich flavors before moving on to cherry.

“I’m going to need a drink,” Adam said. “You better save me some.”

“No promises. You better hurry,” Ollie said without a hint of remorse. No one got between this omega and his pie.

As we made our way through the pie I did a bit of people watching. The games were a huge hit right now with the kids running around, plus you couldn’t top the bubble machine. There were the usual small business and craft tents along with some face painting. It was the usual cast of characters that I’d come to adore.

Then I saw it.

“They brought back the ice skating rink,” I said, dropping my fork in the pie tin and hurrying past the rest of the craft booths to see it. It had been a few years since they had one but now it looked just like it did as a kid. A wave of nostalgia hit me square in the chest.

“We have to try it! Who’s guarding the pie?” Ollie asked.

“Me,” Spencer said quickly… too quickly. The way he was eyeing the ice rink had all of us looking at him.

“You’ve never ice skated before, have you?” I accused.

“I’m sure I did it at some point as a kid.”

“That means no,” Dustin translated. “Lindsay and I will wait here while you guys have a turn. We don’t want to leave Adam alone, do we?”

“Come on,” Ollie said, while Spencer glared daggers at us. The moment they stepped away, Dustin turned to me, narrowing his eyes.

“You going to tell me why you keep checking your phone today?”

“Spencer’s sister got a hold of me. They want to surprise him, and I’ve been helping her get a place at the inn. They should be here in like an hour.”

A warm smile spread across his face. “You’re too good to us.” He leaned forward and brushed his lips across mine. It was sweet and gentle and sent a wave of warmth through me.

“I could say the same to you guys,” I mused as I picked my fork back up, taking a bite of the pecan and groaning at the mix of flavors.

I swear Beatty uses magic to make these pies.

Adam’s scent hit me and I turned around to greet him but he beat me to it.

“They had cranberry lemonade, so I grabbed enough for all of us,” he said as he walked up with a drink carrier full. I snagged one and poked the straw in, taking a long sip. It was nice and refreshing, the perfect palate cleanser to the overly sweet pie.

As Adam took my other side I turned my attention to Ollie and Spencer, who were just now making their way out to the ice.

Spencer looked like a baby deer, his legs wobbly as he made his way forward. This time, Ollie was the confident one. He skated around Spencer offering advice and showing him how to position his feet. Unfortunately, Spence was not a good student, and our mammoth alpha was not graceful on thin blades. The more the poor omega tried to get Spencer to gain his footing, the more they fell, tumbling onto each other. At least they were mindful of the skates so the only thing hurt was their pride.

We weren’t the only ones laughing at them, and thankfully, they were laughing too. Their cheeks were pink from the cold and their smiles were wide.

This was exactly what I loved about the winter festival. It brought people together and let us all relax and unwind. Even the grumpiest of people couldn’t be in a bad mood around all of this.

“Are you guys torturing that poor Alpha?” Alice’s teasing voice joined us.

“Mom,” Dustin greeted, handing me the pie and standing up to give her a big hug. The moment he released her, Adam was swooping in. These men were so sweet with their mom, and it always made me happy.

“I see the pie tradition is alive and well,” she chuckled to herself as she sat down on the bench next to me, pulling me in for a hug as well.

“How can we say no to this?” I said, holding up the tin to entice her. “Do you want a bite?”

“Hell no, I don’t want to bite. These hips are wide enough,” she said, patting them for emphasis.

“Nonsense,” I said. “You’re perfect.”

“Perfectly round,” she corrected with a chuckle.

A commotion on the ice had us turning over to see that my men had not only knocked themselves over but an entire group of kids. Ollie was apologizing and helping everyone up, but even the kids were howling with laughter now at the Alpha sprawled out on his back, staring up at the sky.

“I think we officially found something that alpha isn’t good at,” Adam said, a little too smugly. At least this time it was laced with humor.

My phone buzzed in my pocket again. I pulled it out and stood up, glancing around to see where they were coming from.

Alexandra stuck out among the citizens of Holiday Hollow. She was all punk rock and Gothic goddess, her curvy hips swinging as she walked toward us, a wide grin across her black-painted lips.

She started to open her mouth but slammed it closed and looked around, trying to find Spencer. I cocked my head toward the ice before she slammed a hand over her mouth, stopping her laughter from escaping.

She was breathless by the time she reached me, but there was no awkwardness as she nearly tackled me in a hug.

“I’m glad we get to finally meet in person,” she said excitedly, dancing me around. I loved how bubbly she was despite the seemingly hard exterior. She was going to give a pack a run for their money someday.

“Oh, shit, hide me,” she said as she ducked behind me. Alice, Adam, and Dustin joined us, making a wall of bodies as Ollie and Spencer turned in their skates and made their way toward us.

“Don’t say I don’t try things,” Spencer grumped as he came up. “Thank God my sister isn’t here. She’d be recording that with her phone and sharing it with everyone we know. I’d never live that fiasco down.”

“I mean, I still could. Get back out there,” Alexandra said, and she poked her head between me and Alice.

Spencer’s jaw dropped open, and his eyes were wide as he stared at her, but it only took about two seconds for his brain to come back online. With a strangled gasp he was surging forward, yanking her out from between us and crushing her in a hug.

They were adorable and I felt my throat tightening with emotion.

“Breathing is important,” she reminded him, still laughing as she patted his back and squeezed him just as hard.

“I can’t believe you’re here! What are you doing here? Wait, you haven’t even met my pack.”

“Me and Lexi are good friends.”

“I’m pretty sure you and Alex are not good friends or I’d be hiding in shame from all the stories she shared with you,” Spencer teased, but his eyes were giving away how happy he was.

His sister grinned something wicked. “It’s only a matter of time, dear brother of mine.”

“Alexandra, I want you to officially meet my beta, Lindsay, and my omega, Ollie. This is the rest of my pack, Adam and Dustin, and their amazing mother, Alice.” He sounded adorably formal as he introduced us.

“It’s nice to meet you guys, but please call me Alex or Lexi… really anything but my full name,” she groaned. “Getting full named always makes me feel like I’m in trouble.

“Did you come alone?” Spencer asked as he glanced around. He didn’t have to look for long before a woman was rushing forward. She was as short as Lexi but had Spencer’s dark hair and green eyes.

An alpha and beta were behind her and it wasn’t hard to know who Spencer’s dad was. The alpha was as big of a bear as my mate, though his hair was a lighter auburn.

His beta father was all smiles and warm, brown eyes. He greeted us with a wave and seemed like the personification of a warm hug.

“These must be our new kids,” he said with a grin. He and Lexi definitely shared personalities.

They were a flurry of hugs and greetings before Dinah, Spencer’s mom, and Alice, were talking conspiratorially and heading off into the crowd. Spencer and Adam were talking to the dads about the seasonal beers we’d agreed on.

Dustin, Ollie, Alex, and I were all sharing treats and gossiping about Holiday Hollow as we moved through the crowd.

I hadn’t expected to feel like one big family so quickly but fate knew what she was doing when she put us together.

If this was how our first day as a big family was, I couldn’t wait to see what our future looked like.