Talk About… Rivalry (Rockwood Valley Omegaverse #2)

Epilogue - Sidney

Sidney

A Year Later

Rockwood Valley had more traffic than I’d ever seen in my life. People were filling the streets and heading north toward the fairgrounds.

The Artisan Fair quickly became a pack labor of love. Leo took over the admin, even when his own business was opening. The lounge had shorter hours but the town absolutely loved the atmosphere. It had drawn the attention of a local wine club, and thanks to Sinclair Vineyard’s selections on the shelf, they’d decided to call it their new spot.

After that, word of mouth had his place just as full as Whitaker Brews was. Leo had been right all along, it was not a competition. Rockwood Valley was big enough to accommodate both of them.

Taylor worked at his family restaurant, though he didn’t wait tables unless I came in on lunch breaks, a tradition that always ended with him eating lunch with me. Bennett sometimes joined, but he had his own job.

Thanks to his family being ‘so happy he found a pack’ but unwilling to travel to see us, they let him start working from home. He did some of the behind the scenes work now, only traveling from time to time.

When my art supplies were delivered, the pack made sure that the garage studio was perfect. It was now my oasis and constantly covered in paint splatter. The walls were lined in art ready for our first fair and a few commissions I’d done.

Thanks to Leo asking me to paint myself, I had found a new appreciation for art and started seeing myself differently.

Maybe it had a bit to do with our bond always being full of reassurance and adoration that never failed to make me feel appreciated and seen.

Having it hanging in the lounge was enough for a few more commissions rolling around. Of course, Avery decided I needed a website, helping me set it up so I had a way for people to contact me and I could pick and choose which ones I took on.

The biggest surprise of the century came when my dad stopped by to visit. Along with apologizing for his actions, he handed me over bank account details. He explained he’d been putting money in there for years. It was meant to be a college fund, then a marriage fund when I stuck around.

Despite my protests, he insisted I take it, and it was enough that I could be comfortable, buy what I needed, and I now added to it with each commission I landed.

With all of us sharing expenses there wasn’t much to cover outside of our monthly trips to thrift stores and antique shops, slowly adding more and more decor to our house.

Some may call it cluttered, I called it cozy. Everywhere you looked there were pieces of my pack, I couldn’t walk through our house without smiling.

After that talk with my dad, I’ve been heading over to the ranch to ride Queenie. She wasn’t a good horse for teaching riding lessons, but she deserved to have someone who could show her the trails. Especially, since she never warmed up to anyone else.

Those were some of my favorite days. A chance to get away and clear my head, to connect with nature and the horse I’d formed a bond with.

Oddly enough, dad started joining me on those trails after the first few weeks. We didn’t talk much, but it was no longer awkward and I knew he was trying for me. Queenie even let him feed her a treat now and then.

“You nervous?” Bennett’s words pulled me from my thoughts and I glanced over, smiling at my alpha.

“Shockingly, no. Just excited,” I said as I ran a hand over my bump. Somehow we made it through my first heat without a pregnancy and decided to leave it up to fate my second heat.

Fate decided it was time for a baby. The day I found out I was pregnant, I was terrified. But after the first several scans showed only one baby, I fell in love with the idea.

That and my men were absolutely feral over me now, protective and constantly ready to claim me.

“She’s ready for this,” Taylor said with confidence. He was in back with all of my canvases and leatherwork that Maverick didn’t already have in his truck. I’d finally given my grandmother’s box attention one day and it wasn’t long before I fell in love with the process of making horse bridles. Now I had an array of them to share, though I kept my favorite for my girl Queenie. Seeing her prance around after I put it on only made me love her sassy self more.

Now, here I was, ready to share all of it with the world.

We spent weeks preparing for today, the booths were set up, and now, three hours before the fair opened, we were ready to set up mine.

Bennett and Taylor were hanging with me so I wasn’t alone or overwhelmed. Not to mention they seemed to think I shouldn’t lift anything at all now.

Maverick and Leo left hours ago to handle the last minute logistics, making a surprisingly perfect duo. Mav had the passion and connections, Leo had the analytical mind to monitor numbers and put all of those great ideas into a perfectly meticulous plan.

Leo’s grand opening had gone so well, and he had a steady flow of people coming in each night. Our entire pack was there to show support, even Maverick.

In fact, Maverick admitted he was wrong when numbers for Whitaker Brews never dropped. After that, Leo became Mav’s biggest asset with finalizing this fair. I was so damn proud of how far they came together.

I was shocked when we pulled into the lot. It was still filling and there was even a crowd already waiting at the gates of the fair grounds. Security had them blocked off for now. It seemed we didn’t have to worry about this being a success. It already was.

We circled around back, parking in the vendor lot and unloading everything before heading in, arms full of my hard work.

Maverick must have had the bond wide open, he appeared almost the moment we stepped up to our booth, helping arrange everything, eyes brimming with pride.

It wasn’t just for me, but for this whole event coming together.

A lot was riding on this first fair. If it went well and turned a profit, he’d be able to keep it running, keeping his fathers’ legacy alive.

“Hey, sweetheart,” he finally greeted, dipping down to kiss me. “I’m so fucking proud of you.”

He was looking at my work, while I was taking in all of his.

“And I’m proud of you. Did you see the front?”

He grinned, the smile unrestrained and lighting up his face, taking away his signature scowl he reserved for anyone but us and his family.

“I did,” he admitted. “With our small entrance fee and the table fees, I think we’re going to be just fine.”

“The first of many,” I agreed, wrapping my arms around his middle.

The next three hours were a blur of setting up, Taylor managing the money and Bennett prepared to package the art people purchased. He even had a book ready to take down contact information and hand out my business cards when needed.

Leo’s mom stopped by to show her support, giving me an extra long squeeze. Our first time meeting at Leo’s grand opening she shed a few tears, apologizing for never doing more for me. Thankfully, we cleared the air quickly and she fell right into being a pack mama, giving us just as much love and spoiling as Mama Whitaker did. I was grateful our baby would have two wonderful grandmothers and a mom in their lives… something I never had.

With a promise to see us later, she was off, letting me handle the growing number of people filling the space.

Once the crowd moved in, time flew by. I sold more than half my stock in the first four hours. After that, it was more relaxed and gave me a chance to slip away with Leo to explore.

The air was tinted with the scent of kettle corn and fried food. Music filtered around the noise of the crowd. It was a burst of nostalgia, time spent here as a kid with the Whitakers.

Now, I spent it with my pack and I knew our baby, and our nieces and nephew would be able to experience it, too. That was everything to me.

This was the heart of Rockwood Valley, and I already knew that our little town was about to get even better. Some of our shops downtown would fill in with new storefronts, and with this running twice a year, I had a feeling everyone would be thriving.

“Are you happy?” It was a question Leo asked me from time to time. A confirmation that I was content with my pack and my life. Even though my answer hadn’t changed from that first heat with them, he still liked to hear it.

“Insanely happy,” I confirmed. He grinned down at me and pulled me closer, breathing in my scent that they still couldn't get enough of. His own cedar and citrus had me breathing out a sigh, then giggling as our baby kicked happily.

I moved Leo’s hand to my stomach, letting him feel the movements, something they all loved.

We decided to wait to find out the gender of the baby. Our nursery was a soothing mix of cozy and serene that fit the rest of our house. We bought baby blankets and onesies that we loved until we filled the space.

Our baby was going to be perfect and I couldn’t wait to meet them in a few more months.

We made our way back to the booth after seeing everything there was to offer. As the hours wore on and I made even more sales, I could barely stay on my feet.

Lack of sleep and a busy day had me ready to collapse.

When the final hour struck, the entire pack helped load up the SUV and we waited a bit longer for Maverick, Leo, and the security team to close up the grounds. He’d hired night guards to ensure nothing got in the way of the next day’s events.

After a pit stop for pizza, we finally arrived back home. All I wanted was pack time, food, and maybe a long shower with one or more of my mates before we collapsed in my bed, where we all slept most nights.

I breathed in deeply as I walked inside, the mix of our scents embedded into the very foundation at this point.

“Still smell like home?” Maverick teased, wrapping his arms around me and tucking me into his chest.

“Always,” I said. “It’s absolutely perfect.”

The End