Clara comes up the street arm-in-arm with her tattooed alpha. She lets go of Victor long enough to wrap me in a warm hug that smells faintly of apple pie and ink.
“I can’t believe you’re here! You never come to the town Christmas stuff.”
“So youhavealways been a Scrooge,” Evander teases, strolling up hand in hand with Logan.
“Yeah,” Clara giggles, “holidays are not Rose’s thing.”
“I don’t blame her. Christmas with our families was a complete bore,” Kai says. “All those fancy parties with no real cheer. Just the command to smile so our parents could make business connections.”
His soft brown eyes meet mine, shimmering with the reflection of a thousand twinkling bulbs. He slides an arm around my shoulders, pulling me gently against him. The contact steals my breath and scrambles my thoughts in the most inconvenient way.
“You okay, Sugarplum?” Wyatt asks, stepping up beside Kai.
I school my features. Like Kai said—I’ve had years of practice faking calm at those sterile mansion parties. The dutiful daughter, now the perfect omega prop.
“I’m fine,” I manage, forcing a small smile.
“I didn’t know that about your family,” Clara says softly, her brows pulling together.
Guilt twists in my chest—a reminder that I lied to my friends. That I’m still lying, even now. And yet they’re here, steady and kind, no judgment in sight.
“I just don’t like to talk about it,” I say quietly.
Clara glances at Victor. “We get that.”
“Are the rest of your pack here?” I ask quickly, eager to change the subject.
“Yes! Jack’s checking out spice mixtures, and Bram and Dagan are in line for hot chocolate and doughnuts,” she says brightly.
“Oh, doughnuts!” Evander exclaims, clapping his hands like he’s discovered the secret of Christmas itself. I can’t help the laugh that slips out. His enthusiasm is ridiculous—and contagious. Hedidpromise me the best Christmas of my life, and honestly, that’s not a hard bar to clear.
“I texted them,” Clara says. “They’re bringing enough for everyone.”
“You didn’t have to do that,” I protest.
“She definitely did,” Evander cuts in smoothly. “But we’ll pay you back.”
“I’m not having friends pay me back,” Clara insists.
Logan raises a brow, smirking. “We’re friends now? Wasn’t your pack threatening ours with bodily harm a few days ago?”
My head snaps toward Clara, horrified.
She just shrugs. “That wasdaysago. This istoday. Things change. Do you want doughnuts or not?”
Evander knocks his shoulder against Logan’s.
“Okay, yes, we want doughnuts,” Logan concedes, sighing dramatically. “Thank you.”
The rest of Clara’s pack arrives moments later, carrying bags of mini doughnuts dusted in sugar and enough hot chocolate to drown a small army—just as the Mayor steps onto the stage.
She’s a tall alpha woman with sleek black hair and sharp cheekbones, looking like she could command a battlefield instead of a Christmas crowd. Her beta husband stands beside her—a good foot and a half shorter, rounder, and grinning like a man born to play Santa.
“Hello, everyone!” Mayor Liu calls into the microphone, her voice carrying easily over the hush that falls across the street.
Kai slips up on my left, handing me a mini doughnut as the Mayor drones on about community and the spirit of Christmas. I glance up at him while Inibble, and his gaze drops, tracking the movement of my lips like it’s the most important thing in the world.
“I came back for you, you know,” he murmurs, low enough that I almost miss it over the hum of the crowd.
