Someone sprays something sweet on my neck and behind my ears. Another girl is laughing somewhere nearby.
And all I can think is:
They’re dressing us like gifts.
Wrapped up.
Pretty.
Ready.
“And now for your collar,” the redhead says cheerfully, slipping something thick and heavy around my neck. It’s made of dark leather and is stiff around the edges. It pulls slightly as she fiddles with the buckle. “This’ll protect your neck while helping to keep your bandage in place,” she says, biting her bottom lip as she concentrates to buckle it. Then she finally steps back, hands on her hips, and beams at me. “There. I think you’re ready.”
I giggle again, rubbing my palms together. Myfingers are freezing. They tingle like glass, like if I flex too hard, they might shatter.
A thought drifts in—slow and silly.
What if my fingers fell off?
Wriggling across the grass like little pink caterpillars.
I tip my head back and laugh, loudly and uncontrollably.
Hands curl around my upper arms. “Come on, omega,” the redhead says, guiding me to my feet. “Time to get on stage. Show all those alphas how pretty you are.”
“Yeah,” I say, still giggling. “I wanna show them my fingers.” I wiggle them at her like they all have their own personalities, and she snorts, loud and amused.
“My stars,” she mutters, shaking her head with a grin. “They really did hit you with the good stuff.”
In the Woods
Tadeo
“Hey!”Dakota shouts from inside the tent. “Someone hand me the green blanket.”
Alex spins, scanning the pile of bags. “Where?”
Our beta pops his head out of the tent opening. His short hair is mussed at the top, looking extra spiky. I push a hand over my own short hair, making sure it’s still in place. The weather’s been rather nice, despite the chill in the air.
“It’s in Knox’s duffel bag,” Dakota says.
Alex stomps over to our gear, boots hitting the ground harder than necessary.
My nerves twitch at the sound, and I scan the trees around us. I can hear the faint chatter of alphas in the distance—rowdy and buzzing—but nearby, everything is still. Not even a breeze to rustle the leaves, but I can’t get over how exposed it feels.
Knox scouted this spot for hours before we made camp. I know he wouldn’t have picked it if it wasn’t safe. Still, Ican’t shake the feeling that something’s off. It feels like a betrayal to doubt my pack alpha, but I can’t help it.
"Finish setting up," Knox says as he glances up at the quickly setting sun. "We’ll want to head out soon." He pulls off his shirt, revealing his broad chest, hard pecs, and a scatter of faint scars, then tosses it over a nearby branch.
“I should’ve brought something nicer,” Alex mutters, running a hand down his faded death metal tee. It’s an old band, the kind he used to live in as a teenager. “I didn’t really think about it when we packed.” He tucks his shaggy red hair behind one ear, but it curls up, brushing his jaw as he shrugs. “I guess there’s no helping it now.”
“You look sexy as always.” Knox winks as he crouches next to the basin of cold water we hauled in from a nearby stream.
Alex joins him, both of them splashing water onto their arms and faces. Alex flicks droplets at Knox whenever he leans in. The pack alpha predictably grumbles before splashing him back. I roll my eyes at their childish behavior, but the corners of my mouth twitch anyway.
A few feet away, Dakota throws himself into “organizing” the tent. Which, in his case, means dragging our supplies around as if rearranging them might somehow magically turn everything into a picture-perfect nest, and not a pile of stuff cramped into a ten-by-ten plastic tent.
“Do we really need that many blankets?” I call toward the beta.
