“Your daughter ignored my calls today. I was able to get a last minute appointment with the matchmaker, and Olivia couldn’t be bothered to answer her phone. Carrie is very in demand. She took you on as a favor to me, and this is how you repay me? Honestly, Olivia, for someone supposedly smart, you seem incapable of understanding how important it is to mate well.”
“Marnie,” my dad warns, his voice low and displeased. There’s an apology in his eyes when he looks my way, but it only goes so far. My mother has always gotten her way withmy dads. Always has, always will. She’s the center of their pack, and, for better or worse, can do no wrong.
Me, on the other hand . . .
“It’s true. We’ve given her every opportunity, and how has she repaid us? By holing herself up in some disgusting lab and snubbing eligible packs. It’s embarrassing. Do you know what my friends say?”
“Olivia is an adult, Marnie. She’s capable of making her own decisions.” My dad lays a hand on her shoulder, but she shrugs it away.
“Obviouslynot.” My mother turns to me, her otherwise pretty face made ugly with a sneer. “You will stop disappointing me. There are standards, Olivia. You’re a Wellington, and it’s time you start acting like one.” She turns on her heel and storms out of the room.
My dad appears uncomfortable. He rubs a hand against the back of his head and glances between my mother’s retreating back and me. “Don’t worry about her, honey. You know how she gets. She simply wants the best for you.”
She wants me to make her look good. But I don’t bother telling him that. Instead, I force a smile and shrug. “Sure, Dad.”
Whether he believes me, or is simply happy to have an out, my dad gives me a quick one-armed hug and scurries out of the room after my fuming mother.
All the happy, buzzing feelings I’d enjoyed today are gone, replaced by the sharp awareness brought on by the flood of adrenaline through my nervous system.
That’s it. I need a break. Heading upstairs, I pack a bag with a few days’ worth of clothes. Even if I don’t fully move into the packhouse yet, I think it’s time I start distancing myself from my parents. The less time I have to spend in this suffocating mammoth of a house, the better.
No one notices when I leave, a duffel bagslung over my shoulder, and I’m not sure whether I’m relieved or disappointed. Not that it matters. They’re no longer the people whose notice I crave. That honor now belongs to one sexy beta and three gorgeous alphas, and I knowtheywould notice if I up and disappeared.
I consider calling them and asking if they’re okay with me staying for a while but ultimately don’t. They built a nest for me. One that’s perfect and beautiful. They want me to live with them.
But maybe I’m also a little scared they’ll change their minds.
My stomach is a tangled ball of nerves when I park my car and drag my bag up to their front door. They gave me a key, but since they’re not expecting me, it doesn’t feel right to use it. So I knock.
There’s a commotion inside, then Liam pulls the door open, his brow furrowed. It smooths out immediately when he notices me, then rises when he notices my bag.
“Princess! Are you okay? What are you doing here? And why did you knock? We gave you a key.” Liam steps outside to grab my duffel bag before pushing me inside where the rest of the pack stops what they’re doing and watches us.
Wringing my hands, I shove down my nerves, clear my throat, and look up at Liam through the fringe of my lashes. “Could I... Would it be okay if I stayed here for a while? My mom is...”
“Stay forever,” Hayes replies from the kitchen. He puts down the knife he was using to cut an apple and strides toward me. “You don’t have to ask, vixen. We built you a nest and gave you a key. This is your home now. We’ve just been waiting for you to be ready.”
He’s so sincere, sosure, I deflate. Why was I worried?
“You’re sure?”
Liam brushes a strand of hair away from my face andpresses his forehead to mine. “Don’t be ridiculous, Liv. Of course we’re sure. You’re ours. You belong with us.”
I belong with them. I’m theirs.
“Welcome home, baby,” Sawyer says, his smile so bright it’s almost blinding. “Let’s get you settled.”
“I’m glad you had fun with Verity,” Liam says, pressing a kiss to my temple as I unpack my duffel bag. “But I’m sorry about everything with your mom.”
I shrug, trying to play off how much the situation hurts. Not just my mother’s judgements, but my dad’s unwillingness to stand up to her and speak up for me. But of course, Liam sees right through me.
“It’s okay to be upset, princess. They’re your parents. They’re supposed to love and protect you. Unfortunately, as I know all too well, that doesn’t always happen.”
“I know,” I say, sighing. I snuggle into his side when he wraps his arms around me.
“You know we’ll always love and protect you, right?” Hayes’s voice is a deep rumble that soothes something inside of me.
“Of course.”
