Page 47 of Pack End Game

Zak nods once, wisely choosing not to argue the point any further.

I shouldn't rush to agree. I should ask questions. Determine whether their teammates are likely to give me a hard time about my pajama-pants photos still making the rounds on social media.

But I love a good social event.

"Of course I'll come," I answer.

His face softens with immediate relief. "Good."

Good?

No.

Internally, my panic is instantaneous.

The second the words leave my mouth agreeing to attend, I realize I've made a grave error in judgment.

I don't know anything about football.

Okay, I'm not completely clueless. I know there's a quarterback. That's Spencer's position. Zak is a tight end, which definitely isn't as fake and sexual as it sounds. There are touchdowns. Helmets. Tight pants. Some amount of kicking. And a mascot, obviously, though based on recent experience, I'm not sure Simon the Sloth reflects the sport so much as he reflects unchecked whimsy.

That's it. That's the extent of my understanding.

Even after filming all those games for my brother in high school, I retained absolutely nothing about the game itself. Now, I've agreed to go to a dinner party with a bunch of professional football players who are undoubtedly going to ask me my thoughts about the sport.

Fan-fucking-tastic.

I'm sure their teammates have heard by now all about how I've got the guys house hunting after less than a week of knowing each other. I cannot show up also revealing my cluelessness about football. I'm not a fan of feeling out of my element, and this dinner party will be way outside of my comfort zone if I don't study up on my football knowledge, stat.

Somewhere between now and this weekend, I need to learn enough about the sport not to embarrass myself in front of the whole team. Otherwise, the talking house calling out my impending heat won't end up being the most humiliating part of my week after all.

Chapter Twenty

Freddie

Rufus the realtor is sporting the kind of smile that suggests he’s confident in his ability to find his clients the perfect dream home. Even after the last showing failed, he still seems optimistic about his skill set.

Sadly for him, I know my pack will make him earn every single dollar of his commission. And probably some new gray hairs. Our omega is way too into the unseen elements of a home, wanting to feel it’s the right place for us.

And I will have her back, no matter how absurd those feelings may be.

“Now,” Rufus says, clapping his hands lightly, “I know I missed the mark on the previous location, but this property does not have the same modern qualities and gives a much more contemporary vibe.”

The way he says modern like the smart home system wasn’t a demon in a house suit makes me narrow my eyes at him. Perhaps he’s in cahoots with the thing that I’m sure was attempting to clone us so that it could steal our physical forms in its quest for world domination.

No, thank you.

The only dominating I’ll be participating in is with my alphas. And Mia, if she’s into that sort of thing. Perhaps she’d like to dominate Simon. Or maybe Simon could be in charge. Will I finally get the chance to show the other half of my soul his first sexual experience? Simon is essentially a virgin… as far as I know.

Before I can fully daydream the scene, we’re guided into the home.

“Why are there three doors at the main entrance?” Mia asks, holding open the one Rufus leads us through so that Spencer, Zak, and I can follow.

“This home has a bit of an eccentric backstory. The sellers own an escape room franchise, and you may recognize that this home makes some nods to that profession.” Rufus’s voice seems to sound progressively further away as he explains.

He’s no longer directly in front of us somehow, and I’m not sure how he managed to disappear in the time it took me to blink.

I quickly grab onto Mia’s hand, unwilling to be separated from her.