She shakes her head. “Nah, no time for romance right now. Too busy getting people like Iris and Ben their happily ever after. And then there’s Michelle and Sara, did you hear about them? Pretty sure they’re starting to form a bond after all these years of denial. You know how it goes with packs in this town. Betas and Alphas… They just take a little longer to realize what they’ve been walking around with for so long.”
“Wow, I had no idea.”
“Oh yeah, and not just couples. I’ve been helping Omegas find their packs, too.” She wiggles her brows playfully. “I helped that painfully shy Omega, Summer, find her way with the Jones brothers.”
“But not for yourself yet?” I push, intrigued.
“Not for this little Omega, not yet.”
I squint at her, trying to read between the lines. “Hmm, no one good enough for you?” I say, giving her a playful poke in the arm.
She lets out a dramatic sigh. “Oh, please. You think I haven’t had my fair share of…interestingmen? I just… I’ve got standards.” She glances at me sideways, giving me that “I’m not fooling around” look. “And right now, the bakery is wild!”
I snicker, swirling the wine in my glass. “Wild, huh? What, are you setting up the mayor with the grocery store clerk while baking lemon slices now?”
Tansy grins. “Oh, honey, you have no idea.”
My face hurts from smiling, which is a weird thing to notice when I’m supposed to be in hiding. But being here with Tansy, on this couch that still smells of my mother’s old perfume and cardamom tea, almost makes me forget everything else.
Almost.
Tansy flops backward dramatically, her hair spilling over the throw pillow. “You should stay,” she says, completely serious now. “Like… for good.”
The words hit me in the chest, too sudden, too hopeful. I stare at her, heart stuttering, trying to laugh it off.
“I’m not exactly the town’s favorite person right now.”
“Who cares?” She shrugs, not missing a beat. “You’d win them over. You’ve always had that spark… people will remember it. They’ll remember thatyoutold them about your parents long before anyone else knew.Youfound the evidence of them embezzling the charity funds for their own use. It’s their fault they didn’t listen until it was too late.”
I swirl the last bit of wine in my glass, watching it catch the low light. “It’s not that simple.”
“It could be.”
“No.” I look up at her, forcing the truth out, slow and bitter. “My family bled this town dry, Tan. They put up that bullshit sanctuary campaign, took donations from people who didn’t have much to give, promised all that money was going to help the vulnerable and the voiceless… and it didn’t. It went into their accounts. It paid for city apartments and spa retreats and private security for galas they were never invited to in the first place.”
Tansy is quiet, her expression unreadable.
“And trying to stop it ruined my life here.” I sigh heavily. “I honestly can’t believe I came back. I just… I couldn’t live in my car any longer. I couldn’t nest in it. I never felt safe.”
Tansy sits up slowly, her brows drawing together, seeing me for the first time tonight. The wine haze slips just enough to let the worry through.
“Wait… you were living in your car?”
I nod once, jaw tight. “For a while. Couple weeks, maybe longer. It’s all kind of a blur. I kept moving around. Truckstops, rest areas, a friend’s driveway for a night here and there. Nothing stuck. And the townhouse was empty, so I figured… maybe no one would notice if I snuck in. I didn’t exactlyplanto crash into the parade float.”
Tansy’s lips part, like she’s about to say something, but she doesn’t. Instead, she shifts closer, wrapping her hand around mine.
Her fingers are warm and steady, grounding in a way I didn’t realize I needed.
“You should’ve told me,” she says quietly.
I shrug, not sure how to explain that I didn’t want anyone to know. “It’s not exactly something you text someone. ‘Hey, remember me? I exposed my family’s corruption, and now I’m broke and feral. Want to hang out?’”
She huffs a soft laugh, but there’s no humor in it. Her eyes are glassy. “You’re not feral. You’re just… tired. And honestly? This town owes you more than you’ll ever get back.”
I look away. “Doesn’t really matter what they owe me. No one’s lining up to repay it.”
Tansy squeezes my hand tighter. “Then screw them.”
