As if the others didn’t exist, he leaned forward, his nose brushing against my jaw for a second before he hummed in approval.
“Raspberries and white chocolate have always been my favorite flavors.”
My brain was offline. I just stared at him, breathing in his scent as he invaded my space. Then he was gone just as quickly. The sharp winter air cut into the space he had occupied. I shivered as it washed over me, biting down on my tongue before I whined. It was building in my throat.
My omega was already stupid for these men, and I couldn’t give in.
It had been just as easy with my exes, and the outcome of that was anything but pretty.
The rest of the world slowly returned to focus. The guys climbed in, filling the remaining seats, somehow squeezing into the back two rows.
“Hey, princess, you get to be in charge of the music,” Mason said, leaning in between the seats and snatching Cade’s phone from the middle console before handing it to me.
“Is that alright with you?” I asked Cade, refusing to dive into anyone’s phone without permission.
“Oh, absolutely, princess. What’s mine is yours.”
“Aren’t you guys taking this princess thing a little too far?” Conrad asked, shaking his head. “Swear to God, if you guys make me remind you one more time that my sister is off-limits, I’m killing you all.”
“I think you’re gonna have to kill us,” Cade said, glancing over at me. His face was so serious that I knew he meant every word. “I’m getting kind of attached.”
My jaw dropped, I never expected the quiet alpha to be that blunt.
The others voices chimed in, arguing with Conrad, but I barely processed what they were saying. Cade’s eyes were burning into me, his expression softening.
“I know you’re not ready yet, princess,” he said, reaching over and gently closing my mouth for me. “But when you are, we’re going to be there. Until then, we’re going to prove to you that not all hockey players are assholes, and that this pack can take care of you properly.”
“Okay,” I managed to choke out.
I came back to reality as one of the back doors opened and Conrad stormed out. My heart sank. That was the last thing I wanted. Conrad meant everything to me.
“Why don’t Mason and Cade take you to the mall as planned?” Kieran suggested gently. “Wilder, Lennon, and I will go try to talk some sense into him.”
“We’re in this,” Wilder said. “At your pace.”
I swallowed hard and nodded. The truth was, I was being a coward. I should’ve gone to talk to Conrad myself.
But part of me needed to see if this pack was going to stand up for me. To fight for me.
I watched them climb out, my eyes burning with tears I wouldn’t let fall. All I brought my brother was chaos.
It seemed I always tried to find my pack in my brother’s best friends. That wasn’t why I agreed to come here. This was more than a little unexpected, and I swore off hockey players for a fucking reason.
I just wish I had the strength to stay away. This omega was weak, touch-starved, and they made me feel things even my exes never had. Selfishly, I wanted this.
In reality, Milo, Sutton, and Dean weren’t really his best friends. Just like they weren’t in our relationship for me. They used Conrad the same way they used me: as a means to get closer to our dads.
Back then, they were so obsessed with hockey and proving they had what it took to make it big, they would’ve sacrificed us both to make it happen.
In the end, that’s exactly what they did.
“Let us fight this battle with Conrad,” Mason said. “His friendship means something to us, but we are all way too old to do ultimatums. We shouldn’t have to choose between the two of you. He’s still our best friend, and this shouldn’t change that.”
“It shouldn’t,” I said softly. “But it does.”
“You’re worth a fight, princess.”
“You guys don’t even know me,” I protested, voice cracking. It was a weak argument, but they listened, waiting to hear what I had to say so they could counter it. “Lennon barely tolerates me. We just found some common ground a few days ago. Wilder and I may share reading time, but today is the first day I saw him opening up. Kieran’s been sweet and attentive, but we’re not exactly all over each other. We’ve barely had time for any one-on-one conversation, and that rings true for pretty much all of us,” I reminded them.
