I stared at it.
"What's that?"
"A credit card."
"I know what it is. Why are you giving it to me?"
"For necessities." His voice was clipped, businesslike. "And whatever else you need."
I picked up the card, turning it over. My name was embossed on the front. Presley Prince. The letters gleamed in the morning light.
"When did you..."
"I always get what I want,Miss Prince."
"I can't accept this." I set it back down like it might explode. “I might spend too much.”
“Spend as much as you want.”
"What if I buy a house by accident and leave this arrangement today?"
"But you won't, and nobody ever bought a house by accident.”
"How do you know?"
Hastings leaned back in his chair, his gray eyes boring into mine. "I just do. I think you like being here."
My heart kicked against my ribs. "I've been here one day."
His lips quirked. It was small, barely there, but it was a smile.
I took that as a win.
He was silent for a moment as I stared at the card.
"Where would you buy a house?" He sounded genuinely curious now, like he was trying to solve a puzzle.
"I don't know."
"You must know. Somewhere close to your family?"
The word landed heavy in my chest. I swallowed, my fingers tightening around my coffee cup.
"I don't have any family." I looked at the three of them, these alphas who'd given me more in one day than I'd had in years.
“Nobody?” Hastings asked.
"I told you. I only need a cat and somewhere to call mine. Maybe I'd build a bookshelf and have enough money to buy all the special editions I see in the charity shops."
Fritz set down his toast. "You're pretty basic."
I laughed, the sound breaking the tension as I slammed my hand on my chest. "I'm wounded.”
“I mean that you have simple wants.”
“A house and a cat aren’t simple.”
"Apart from a house and a cat, what else do you need?" Hastings asked, and there was something in his voice that made my throat tight.
