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“The town I grew up in was smaller than this, if you could even believe it. I come from a really big family. So being the youngest, I was often pawned off on one of my older siblings, and they hated me for it. My only escape was to disappear into the forest, and on the rainy days when nobody else wanted to be outside, it was peaceful. Just me, the trees, the trickle of rain, and the scent of the forest.”
“Sounds lovely,” she said, giving me a soft smile.
“Favorite type of food?” I questioned. This would be one I’d pay attention to, just so I could spoil her a little. Maybe it would bring out one of her rare smiles.
She pretended a lot, but the real smiles… they were few and far between.
“If I’m making it, I like to bake. Sweet things are definitely my go-to. If I’m eating it, however, anything with cheese. I’m a sucker for a good mac and cheese, or pasta in general.”
“An omega after my own heart,” I teased. She bit her lip, trying to hide her smile this time, but I saw it anyway. It lit up her eyes, adding warmth back into them. They seemed to swirl with rivers of honey, a mix of brown and gold.
She was so beautiful that it made my chest ache. I had this need to take care of her, to spoil her, to be with her. My beta instincts screamed for me to soothe away her pain and bring out her smiles.
I wanted to calm the storm that lived behind her eyes.
“What’s your favorite dessert?” she countered, not realizing inside I was aching for her and hanging on to every word she gave me, hoarding them like treasures.
“Cookies. They have the most variety, and they taste good every time.”
She opened her mouth to say something, but my phone started going off, the group chat dinging again. Only this time, so did hers in the other room.
“I don’t want to grab my phone. Is it the guys?” she asked. My body froze as I stared at the screen. Now that I was nervous and on the spot, the words on my screen were like a foreign language to me again.
This could be the moment where I hide away my shortcomings. I could fight through it and fumble over the words. Instead, I clicked the icon for it to read out loud.
There was curiosity behind her eyes but not judgment. The vise around my chest loosened just a little bit at that.
Micah: We’ve got the house ready, come when you’re ready.
Riven: Is sleeping beauty awake now?
She snorted at that and snatched my phone, typing back for me.
His answer was immediate.
Riven: You make it too easy. Now get your asses in gear. We’re waiting.
After it finished reading off their messages, I got up and started cleaning up the dishes.
“We should pack up. They took the car, so I’ll just ride with you. Are you ready to face the world?”
She let out a sigh and stood up, fixing her hair and pasting on a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
“As ready as I’ll ever be.”
ChapterTwelve
Shaye
Dear Everett,
Today marks the beginning of us following along on your journey. I still can’t believe that you orchestrated this whole thing just for us. It feels like too much, or maybe it’s just that I don’t like thinking that it’s the final gift you’ve given me.
I’m not ready to say goodbye… I’ve never been ready. I may have said it to you that day you left, but this kind of goodbye, the letting go of the pain in my heart, feels harder to do somehow.
Being around the guys makes me feel human again, something I didn’t think I’d ever feel. Yet I feel so bad, like I’m betraying you, even though in my mind, I know that we could have been a pack if you were here.
Nothing feels right without you, Everett. It never has.
