"I can't do this." I'm on my feet again, pacing. "I just escaped one controlling relationship. I can't jump into... whatever this is."
"Then don't jump. Let them court you. See what happens," Sharon says simply.
"My heat's in two weeks."
Silence. Then: "Okay, so you have less time than ideal. But Jess? What if you want this? What if you want them and freedom and all of it?"
I stop at the window. Someone - probably one of them - left the curtains open because they remembered I hate waking up in the dark.
"What if they turn into him?" My voice cracks.
"Then you leave. But something tells me they won't." Sharon yawns again. "Now let me sleep. Call me tomorrow after breakfast with your four alphas."
"You're terrible."
"I'm the best. Love you."
She hangs up.
I set the phone on the nightstand and stare at the ceiling some more, listening to the house settle around me. Footsteps somewhere overhead. The creak of old wood. The sound of water running through pipes that aren't exploding.
A goddamn romance novel. That's what Sharon called this.
Is that what this is? Some kind of fairy tale where the runaway bride escapes her villain ex and falls into the arms of four perfect alphas who've been waiting for her all along?
Life doesn't work like that. Real life is messy and complicated and full of people who disappoint you.
But lying here, in this warm room, wrapped in the lingering scents of four men who looked at me like I was precious...
Maybe I want to believe in fairy tales. Just this once.
A soft knock at the door makes me jump hard enough that I nearly fall off the bed.
"Yes?" My voice comes out squeaky.
The door opens a crack. Sergio's face appears in the gap, and he looks uncertain. Vulnerable. Nothing like the confident pack leader from earlier.
"I wanted to apologize again." His voice is low. "For earlier. The growling. That was completely out of line and I'm sorry."
"It's okay."
"It's not." He pushes the door open a little wider but doesn't come in, respecting the threshold.
"You're our guest. You should feel safe here, not like you're being claimed by possessive alphas who can't control their instincts."
I sit up, pulling the quilt around my shoulders like armor. "Can I ask you something?"
"Anything."
"What Pedro said. About how you've always felt." I meet his eyes across the small room. "What did he mean?"
Sergio is quiet for a long moment. His hand tightens on the door frame, knuckles going white.
"It's late," he finally says. "You should sleep. We can talk tomorrow."
"That's not an answer."
"No." He looks at me, and there's something raw in his expression. Something vulnerable that makes my chest ache. "It's not. But it's all I can give you tonight. The rest has to wait until you're ready to hear it."
