Page 79 of Traded

I need his handsawayfrom me. I tip my head back against the headrest as he pulls my bag from above our heads, digging around in it and handing over my pods. “Thanks.”

One hand settles on my stomach, squeezing the skin as if I might be able to tear the heaviness free. Yank it out of my body and throw it at them all. Turning the music up, I block out Jonas’s presence and close my eyes.

I don’t open them again until the freshness of Lauren’s scent sweeps past as she returns to her seat. Carter’s watching me.

You okay?He mouths. He points to the empty seat beside him in silent invitation.

Bass rumbles in my eardrums, settling into my bloodstream. It makes me feel more alive—morehuman—than I have for days.

I don’t want to think about my pack right now. Any of them.

I’m so fucking tired of being trapped inside my own head. Shaking my head silently in response to Carter’s invitation, I offer him a small smile and close my eyes again.

Easier not to talk at all.

Chapter twenty-three

Silence is the New Style

“Honestly, I can swap.” Lauren hovers in the doorway, looking embarrassed. “If you want.”

“It’s fine.”

Fuck, I’m sick of that word. I might get it tattooed across my forehead. “It’s probably better this way anyway.”

Becausesomebodymixed up the room allocation. And now Lauren is nestled comfortably in the interconnecting, specially designed suite which links up Liam and Jonas’s rooms. It’s adorable. Built-in low lighting, fabric acoustic walls, a floor mattress, mini fridges filled with omegas in mind. I’m pretty sure there’s a luxury nesting vending machine if I remember from last year, though all the hotels start to blur together after a while.

But this room is nice too. A large, queen-sized bed sits against the far wall, topped with soft-looking blankets. Floor-length windows on either side look out across Chicago’s darkening skies.

And Liam isn’t on the other side of the wall, metaphorically and physically breathing down my neck. Of all the shit I could be angry about—if I was allowed—this one doesn’t top the list. Lauren looks concerned that we might have a repeat of the Great Hair Pull, and I wave my hand between us. Practically breezy. “Don’t worry about it. Enjoy. The blanket machine is incredible.”

She doesn’t look reassured. If anything, she only looks more concerned, and my lips press together as I turn back to the room, the words coming out flat. “It’s a room. Doesn’t matter.”

“Rosie!”

Lauren keeps at a safe hair-pulling-free distance as I stick my head out of the doorway, searching for the source of the call. “Here.”

Carter jogs down the dark green hall. “Why are you all the way down here? We’ve got half the damn team between us.”

“Room mix-up.” I don’t look at Lauren. “We’re only here for two nights. This is fine for me.”

At this point, someone could set me on fire and I’d die telling everyone I wasfine.

“Excuse me.” Lauren shifts on her feet. “I’m… uh. Going to find Liam.”

I hope she finds him before he finds me. This morning’s session was brutal, Liam muttering bark after bark into my skin as if he could cover us for the entire trip.

“Room’s nice.” Carter glances inside before returning his attention to me. There’s a faint glaze across his eyes, as if he hasn’t woken up fully from the sleep I had to shake him from when we landed. “I’m having too many late nights with all this shit. Gonna duck out of team dinner tonight and get room service. You mind?”

“I might do the same. The bath is huge.”

His expression is torn between amusement and relief. “Wine and fries in your immediate future?”

“You would be correct.” I lean against the doorway and try not to wriggle with excitement. “How are you shaping up for tomorrow’s game?”

Carter steps into me. I tip my face up to his, closing my eyes when he leans in until our foreheads touch.

“Petrified,” he confesses softly. “I scraped through the last assessment by the skin of my teeth. Cubs are a strong team.”