“Thanks for coming, Marlie. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
The Omega is cute, like a doll, and short, but she doesn’t hold a candle to Ariana.
“I bet you have. I’ve heard a lot about you, too. Not what I should’ve, though. Really wish I had known you were a lying liar who lies before I signed her up for that show. You’re a fuckingAlpha.”
“In my defense-”
“There is no defending this. None.”
“She’s my scent match.”
Marlie’s puffed chest deflates. She looks a bit like a fish out of water, the way her mouth opens and closes. I guide her into the house to the kitchen table. I’m sure they have some coffee here.
As I make a pot, she starts talking again.
“Oh, I fucked up.”
I slide a mug to her with a wry smile. “No, I believe that was me.”
“I’m the one who told her to go on the show!”
“And I’m the one who she’s going to have to be exposed to for the rest of her life. I think my fuck up is a bit bigger than yours.”
“But you couldn’t have known.” She doesn’t drink her coffee. She fidgets with the cup, spinning it in her hands. “Yeah, you lied about your designation, but you couldn’t have known that you’d scent match to her and present her with her literal nightmare.”
I don’t drink my coffee, either. I don’t even know why I went through the motions of making it, honestly. Maybe I just needed something to do with my hands. Plus, Ivan always says hard conversations are easier over coffee.
“I suspected. I can’t explain how or why, but I was fairly sure she was my match. I had to leave to reduce her risk of contracting FOS, but the rest of my pack-”
“The rest of your pack?” She stands so quickly that her chair falls back, and she spills coffee all over the table. “What the fuck do you mean? You told me she was held up for a few days doing interviews. God, do you lie like you breathe?”
“I didn’t think you’d meet with me if you knew the extent of everything. I have a scent matched Beta who is matched with another Alpha, too. We’re all Sax.”
“I hate this, I hate this. She’s never going to talk to me again. I’m going to lose my best friend. Why the hell did I sign her up for that show?”
She doesn’t seem to care that the coffee is dripping onto her sneakers.
Can she smell the shame that is seeping out of me? I know how much I fucked up, but I have a plan to win Ariana back. Moving here is the first step.
I don’t think Ivan and Grant are going to mind being closer to our girl.
Once Marlie calms down from her freakout, she leans across the table, getting in my face. “What is your plan? I know you have one. You will not abandon her to her fate. What is your plan, Derrick? And how can I help?”
Chapter Twenty-Six
It tookme ages to fall asleep last night. How was I supposed to relax after telling Derrick I love him?
Oh my God, I told him I love him.
It wasn’t even a conscious decision. It just fell out of my mouth.
There was no way I could stick around on the call after that. I don’t have any answers to the questions he was sure to ask.
Love does not equal forgiveness. I can separate the two in my head. My heart? That’s a different story.
But I recognize the undeniable affection I have for Derrick, even as I need to keep him at arm’s length. The difference between this morning and the last is that now I know I have the capacity to forgive him.
It’s going to take some time.
