Kai nods, grinning like he hasn’t got a care in the world. A rage-fueled desire to hurt the man nearly overwhelms me, and I hate that he brings this side out of me.
Why the fuck is he so happy?
Like he didn’t break my fucking heart, like he didn’t lie to my face!? How dare he come back here and act like it hasn’t been five fucking years of this pain.
We follow Kai out silently, but the second I’m buckled into my seat, and Nick turns his truck on, I unleash my agitation. I turn so I’m facing Nick and can glance at Benson, in the backseat behind his brother.
“I want you to know that nothing I’m about to say is meant to insult either of you. I just need to vent, and since I can’t tell Sable or Stella, you two are all I’ve got,” I growl.
“I think I can take it, omega. Let it out. I’m here for you,” Nick offers gently, his scent already reaching out to soothe me, filling the small space with pine needles.
“Great. Because I’m having a hard time understanding this man’s motivation. Things between us ended brutally when Kai told me he was leaving in front of half of the fucking town instead of trying to make long distance work or,I don’t know,asking if I wanted to go with him!” I hiss, waving my hands around like a crazy person. “Now he’s back, and acting like nothing ever happened! Using his sweet angel of a mother against me because he knows how much I love her. Taunting me with that fucking scent, and inviting me to dinner without a shirt on!?” I’m shouting now, breathing heavily as my scent explodes with my fury, making Benson grunt and Nick cough.
They let me vent, nodding along quietly as I lose my absolute shit. The warmth of Nick’s hand through the thin material of my dress as he caresses my thigh with his thumb soothes some of my frayed nerves. I breathe in his scent once again, and Benson’s reaches me next. I relax slightly, but not enough.
“Then, of all fucking things, he makes my childhood dream come true in the blink of an eye and doesn’t even mention it! Like it’s no big deal. Like it doesn’t even fucking matter!” All of my anger deflates as I slump back in my seat, tears filling my eyes as I work hard not to let them fall.
This is so fucking confusing.He’sso fucking confusing.
“Why does he seem perfectly fine? Like the last five years have been a breeze for him and not the torture they were for me?” I whisper. I don’t know what answer I’m expecting. I don’t even know who I’m really asking for one either, my fake alphas, myself—the universe?
Only Kai really knows why it was so easy for him to walk away from me.
The next thing I know, Nick is undoing my seatbelt, leaning over my body to pull the bar to lean my seat back. Then Benson reaches out and grabs me, pulling me into his lap.
My body turns to jelly in an instant, and I melt into his arms.
“He’s hiding his pain, Plum,” Nick says as I nuzzle my face against Benson’s neck, breathing in deeply. “I can see it in his eyes every time you cuddle into us. The way his muscles tighten.”
“The way he flinches when you show one of us affection,” Benson murmurs, pressing a soft kiss to my forehead as I look up at him.
“He looks unfazed and perfectly chipper to me,” I grumble, frowning up at the alpha. Benson chuckles, shrugging one shoulder.
“He’s good at hiding it from you,” Nick says, and I glance over my shoulder at him, catching the reflection of his green eyes in the rearview mirror.
“Or maybe you can’t see it through your own pain, but it’s there.” Benson is quiet for a long moment before he continues. “You’re in control here, Plum, but if you want us to help you see it, we can apply pressure until he shows you just how much he’s hurting,” Benson offers as he strokes my hair.
I nibble my lip, staring out the window. I don’t like the idea of hurting someone else just because they hurt me. That’s not who I am or who I want to be, but… Well, it’s not that I think Benson is lying; I just haven’t seen anything that makes me think Kai is actually hurting at all. Using Nick and Benson as shields isn’t supposed to hurt Kai, just scare him off.
“No. I just needed to vent,” I say with a sigh as we pull off the main road into a neighborhood. Benson nods, and I take the next few moments to just breathe and compose myself.
I am not ready for this dinner or the way it makes my heart ache. Not at all.
“Is everything okay, Plum?”Kai asks when we get out of the car.
I glance up at the massive two-story house before me. He better have something that helps Bee up the damn stairs that are no doubt in there. She walks with a cane most days.
“She’s fine,” Nick grumbles, stepping up to my side.
I don’t see Kai’s reaction, because I’m too busy admiring the Christmas decorations Bee already has up. Now, I like Halloween as much as the next girl, but I’ve always loved Christmas. There’s just something so magical about the season that’s missing from the rest of the year.
Bee is honestly a big part of that love. She decorates the day after Halloween, ready to start off the holiday season as soon as possible. She’s always been that way, and I adore her for it.
Apparently we’ve been standing out here for long enough, because Bee’s front door swings open. I snort when I see her standing there with a green elf hat on and her walking cane wrapped with red ribbon. Yeah, she’s definitely feeling as festive as always.
“Well, get in here!” Bee says half-chidingly as she ushers us in from the cold.
The second we’re inside, she turns and pulls me in for a hug.
