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Achilles
I’m standing outside Kairo’s room, simultaneously hoping he’ll need me and hoping he won’t. Being the only Beta in a pack of Alphas who all have very strong personalities can be… interesting. To say the least. But man, seeing Kai come in carrying an unconscious Omega last night was a new one.
I’d love to be able to say I never gave up hope we would find D’s childhood friend, but honestly, I had. I thought for sure everybody would come back last night disappointed once again, and I’d be left to pick up the pieces of my pack’s broken hearts. I got the shock of my life when they came home with a girl the twinsinsistis Blake, which is another reason I’m standing out here in the hallways like a weirdo.
Finally ready to give up and head back to my room, I go to walk past. Only to have Kai’s door crash open and get hit in the chest with a cloud of hair that looks and smellsexactlylike strawberries. I’m instantly thrown back to a memory of last night, while I was getting tacos.
* * *
Watching Kaspian and Kairo walk out the front door with hope shining bright in their eyes almost makes me roll my own. We’ve been searching for this girl for seven years, all over the damn country. If we haven’t found her by now, we aren’t going to.
As I turn to look over at Rook, I can see he’s already giving me a disappointed stare. He lifts his chin toward the kitchen in a silent demand to follow him. He leans down and murmurs something to Hades, too low for me to hear, and walks into the kitchen while D walks toward the garage.
Walking into the kitchen, he immediately rounds on me, getting right in my face and growling.
“Lee, I don’t give afuckif you’ve given up hope. We’re losing our pack mate to the guilt that’s been eating at him every single day for the last seven years. If you want to give up hope, fine. But keep it to your damned self and don’t make the rest of us feel bad for wanting something that could change our lives for the better in every way. We all agreed to look for Blake and we will continue to do so until Hades is ready to move on. Pack supports pack, and I love you, but you’re being kind of selfish. If you don’t want to help, stay home next time.”
He walks to the door leading to the garage and turns back. “Think about how you would feel if it was your sister who went missing. Would you ever stop looking for her?” Shaking his head, he slams the door, leaving me with my spiraling thoughts and thoroughly chastised.
Less than fifteen minutes later, I’m standing on the porch of my assigned foster home for the night, but it’s a bust. The foster mom is very sweet, but her oldest child is only four, so I politely thank her and soon enough I’m back on the road to get myself a metric fuck-ton of tacos.
Pulling up outside the taco truck, I hop out and practically skip to the ordering window, where there’s only one guy. He’s being a total asshole to the staff, though. If I had to guess, I’d say he’s in his early to mid-forties. He’s short, maybe 5’6” at most, with a pot belly that hangs over his too-big jeans, and a greasy comb over. I can’t hear what he’s saying, but based on the volume, the hand gestures, and the look on the cashier’s face, it can’t be good.
When the man finally gets his food and turns to leave, I notice he looks vaguely familiar, but I can’t place why. I’ve been coming here for years, whenever we’re in town, so maybe he’s a regular too and I’ve seen him here before. He stalks past me, stomping like an angry toddler. As he does, I get a sudden whiff of strawberry, but with undertones of whipped cream and something else that’s too faint to name.
Not thinking anything of it, I turn back around and greet the cashier and order my tacos, leaving an extra big tip to make up for the last guy. Then, I get back in the car to head for our temporary home.
* * *
I’m jolted back to reality when the Omega backs up and starts frantically apologizing.
“Oh god I’m sorry, I’m so, so sorry. It was an accident, I swear. I’m sorry!” She’s practically trembling in my arms, and every single calming Beta instinct I have is screaming at me to reassure this tiny girl I won’t hurt her.
I lean down just enough to look in her eyes and I’m momentarily stunned silent. She has the most breathtaking eyes I’ve ever seen. I shake my head to clear it and make sure she’s looking at me before I speak.
“Please stop apologizing, ma jolie fraise. Not a single man in this pack is ever going to raise his voice at you, let alone lay a hand on you. I will personally kick their asses if they try. Okay?”
She looks up at me with those gorgeous eyes on the verge of tears. “Okay… I really am sorry,” she whispers.
Brushing a lock of wild red hair away from her face, I lean in and get a hit of her incredible scent. I’m assuming that’s why the nickname rolled off my tongue without conscious thought. It’s so much stronger than the small amount of it I was able to smell last night. Sweet strawberries and sugar, with undertones of vanilla whipped cream and sweet, fluffy angel food cake. She smells like a goddamn dessert, and I would give anything for a taste.
Bending down close to her ear, I whisper back, “None of that now, jolie fraise, let’s start over. It’s so nice to meet you, Blake. I’ve heard only the best things and I can’t wait to get to know you myself. My name’s Achilles, but most of the guys call me Lee. And listen, if ya ever need a break from the Alpha nonsense but don’t wanna be alone, you come and find me, okay? The nice thing about Betas is that we’re very cuddly.” Giving her a wink, I step back, desperately fighting my body’s reaction to her scent.
Her blush is just about the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen, and I can’t help wondering just how far down her body it’ll go when she’s turned on. My dick jumps at that as the powdered sugar in my scent intensifies. Fighting a blush, I have to remind myself that she’s younger than even me and coming out of a really traumatic situation, so he just needs to chill the fuck out for a bit. Turning slightly to the side so the tent in my jeans isn’t so obvious, I hold my hand out in a gesture for her to pass me.
“I believe you were on your way to the shower when we collided?” I throw a little extra twang into my voice, hoping to get a small smile out of the beauty.
What I get is so much better. She beams at me, still blushing bright pink, and right there on her left cheek is a dimple.
Lord save me. I think I’ve died and gone to heaven. Is there any part of this girl that isn’t perfect?
“I’m not— I mean yes, I was. Kai gave me some medicine and I’m ready to wash last night off of me if that’s okay.”
Be still my heart.
“Blake, you never need to ask to use anything of ours. I swear. What’s ours is yours,” I tell her gently.
She looks stunned. “But you barely know me. Why would you open your lives to me like that? Plus, the rest of your pack hasn’t even met me yet. They could hate me or not want me here, or…” she trails off.
