“That your alpha is wounded because you’re afraid you’ll be left behind with the three of them being mates?”
“Yes,” I admitted in a hoarse whisper. It was hard to put it out there, to even admit it to myself. But I didn’t want them to find peace and me be the one on the outside looking in.
“That’s ridiculous, son. Aspen adores you.”
“I love her, Mom. She’s it for me.”
Her eyes were shining as she moved closer and patted my cheek.
“I know, baby. She feels the same about you as she does the other two. You’re a pack because you all have a role. She’s the light and carefree touch, Jack is the fun, North is the sweet and caring one, and you are the leader. They look up to you and depend on you as much as you’ll depend on them. To Aspen, you’re her alpha and nothing will change that. Trust me.”
I let her words wrap around me, testing them out in my mind and seeing if they held any weight.
She had a way of making the world melt away when her attention was on me. I noticed that even when the others were around.
Mom was right. This wouldn’t change us.
His designation might shift our dynamic, make things a bit more complicated, but maybe my life needed a bit more chaos in it.
Aspen was proof of that.
I barely paid attention as I poured the hot cocoa in our mugs. Mom gave me a kiss on the cheek before taking hers. Just before she left the room she turned around to face me.
“Take time to be a pack before you let worry win out. You need time to exist together, and that stays true. It takes work to make it work year after year.”
With that she took a sip and kept walking, leaving me to my own mug of cocoa and my thoughts.
“The soonest appointment they had is for tomorrow morning,” Aspen said as she spooned fruit onto her plate. North nodded,looking uneasy but not complaining. To be truthful, he still looked to be in a bit of a daze.
Mom’s words were hanging in my mind and I knew that he needed this chance to get his mind off his designation.
This was my role. Keeping our pack together in moments where the world was throwing us into a tailspin.
“Everyone get dressed and be downstairs in thirty minutes,” I said. My rumbling voice seemed to startle them all out of silence.
“Why?” Jack asked.
“We need a pack day. Away from the estate and to help get North’s mind off things for a bit,” I said simply as I finished my last bite and stood with my plate.
Shockingly, no one argued with me.
Thirty minutes later, I was dressed in a bulky sweater and dark jeans, wrapped in winter gear, and waiting for my pack. Aspen was the first down, excitement dancing in those gorgeous, blue eyes. Her cheeks were flushed and her scent slammed into me as she moved closer.
“Morning, Cole,” she said as she stood on her toes to brush a kiss over my lips. I didn’t let her get away that easily, pulling her flush against me and deepening it. She parted her lips, giving me a chance to sweep my tongue inside. I tasted and teased her until a soft moan escaped.
Footsteps on the stairs had us pulling back. My eyes stayed on her as she bit her lip, cheeks flushed and lips swollen.
“It’s like I don’t exist to you, brother,” Jack joked as he clapped me on the shoulder, shattering our moment.
Reminding myself that I couldn’t kill him, I pulled Aspen with me out the door and into the garage. Jack, of course, hopped into his truck first. I didn’t complain, it was the most practical for now.
“Skating rink,” I said when we got settled in.
“Yes!” Aspen fist pumped. “I’ve been dying to go ice skating again. This is one my family actually approved of. It’s been years.”
“She’s going to skate circles around us clumsy alphas,” Jack laughed. “If I fall on my ass, someone better take a video.”
“Deal,” Aspen cackled.
