Page 47 of Trick or Heat

DJ just beams, crossing his arms over the table. “I’m more excited that I finally have a formidable opponent.”

He holds my gaze, and the heat in his eyes does something to my insides. Liquid fire burns deep, but then one of the guys lets out an offended gasp.

“And what are we? Chopped liver?” Brodie asks.

“Chopped celery?” Raivat adds.

“Just chopped in general,” DJ answers.

Casey snorts as the guys gasp. “You both set yourself up for that.”

“Hey, I like chopped celery,” I tell them, causing them to smile wide once more.

There are more laughs and quips as we get our food, engulfing our meals after the long day we had. There’s barely a bite left when we’re done, and Casey orders another serving of fries and more milkshakes.

“I can’t possibly eat anymore,” I say, my stomach hurting.

“I know, but you think these guys are done?” Casey asks, pointing at the three neanderthals. Raivat is eating his last fry, trying to get all the ketchup, and Brodie is scooping the last bit of ice cream with a spoon.

“You’re right,” I whisper to him, laughing.

He catches my eyes then, nudging his head toward the three alphas across from us. “We should tell them.”

My stomach drops, but I give a nod. “Fine.”

When we look up, the guys are already looking at us. “What’s up?” Raivat asks first, inquisitive as ever.

I take a deep breath, feeling more nervous than I probably should. “We wanted to tell you guys something.”

They all nod, giving us their full attention.

Casey sits up straighter, the first sign of anxiousness that I’ve seen from him all day. “We haven’t been completely honest. You guys know that Elsie and I have been friends for a long time.”

“Best friends,” DJ points out.

“Yes, exactly,” I say, placing my nervous hands on the table. “Well, recently we discovered that we… well…”

Casey places his hand over mine, squeezing before he rips the band-aid off. “We love each other.”

He looks at them, confident, but I can’t. I keep my gaze toward the table. “We’ve decided that we want to date one another, as well as you three.”

I gulp slightly, but then I look at their faces. They don’t look surprised. In fact, they’re all… smiling?

“What’s happening?” Casey whispers to me.

I shake my head, unsure. “They look happy.”

Raivat laughs. “Of course we’re happy. Did you guys think we’d be upset?”

I blink. That’s exactly what we thought. I mean, that’s what I thought, at least.

“You’re not?” I ask.

They all simultaneously shake their heads as Brodie says, “Not at all.”

“Honestly, finally,” DJ retorts, gesturing between us. “We all knew something was going on between you two, but we didn’t know what for sure. This is amazing news!”

Casey and I glance at each other, confused. His brows are scrunched as he leans back in the booth. “Huh.”