Leo drew me deeper into the stables. “Have you ever ridden a horse?”
“Nope. Sitting on the horse with you was the first time I’ve been on one.” Standing this close to him let me catch a faint snippet of his scent—mulberries and lavender, fresh and earthy. I hadn’t been able to smell him the last time, but now? A craving for him sank straight into my bones, leaving an indelible mark. I stopped moving, and Leo paused, looking at me curiously. My stomach clenched, my breath shortened, and my heart raced.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
“Great,” I squeaked. Except I wasn’t. What the fuck was going on with my body? This was only supposed to be a harmless indulgence of my crush, so why was every inch of me tingling? “Were you on blockers last time?”
“Yeah, I stopped taking them a few months ago and switched to a neutralizing wash. Why?”
“Just curious.” God, I wanted to climb him like a fucking tree. I’d never strayed past flirting out of respect for Tyler and his demand for me to be a one-alpha omega, but damn if I wasn’t tempted right now. “Could you excuse me for one quick second?”
“Sure?”
I sprinted away, racing right to where I had left Charlotte.
Her eyes widened. “What’s going on? Are you okay?”
“I don’t know if I can trust myself around Leo,” I hissed. “I feel super weird.”
“Take a deep breath and sit next to me,” Charlotte instructed. I complied, still staring at her like she might have the answers I sought. “What are you feeling?”
A little omega whine slipped out. “I wasfineuntil I caught his scent.” I growled, frustrated with myself and trying to formulate enough words to explain.
Charlotte and Chico shared a knowing look. What the hell did that mean?
“You didn’t catch Leo’s scent the first time you met?”
I shook my head. “He said he used to be on blockers.”
Charlotte scooped up my hand. “I’m going to say this with so much love because I know it’s probably going to cause a lot of chaos in your life.”
“So comforting,” I said with a nervous laugh. “Go ahead.”
“Do you think Leo might be a scent match?”
I stared off into the middle distance, another whine sneaking out. Was that why I’d been crushing on him after one brief interaction? Why I craved throwing myself at him in the stables? “That’s notfair. Tyler doesn’t want a pack.”
“Maybe it’s time to start considering whatyouwant,” Charlotte suggested gently. “I wasn’t allowed to pack up when I was with my ex-husband. It’s one thing if you don’t have the inclination to build a pack, but I’m not sure that’s what’s happening here.”
I flinched, panic gripping my chest. “Tyler won’t be okay with it. I can spin a lot of things to get him on board, but not a scent match. He’d never feel secure about that.”
I shook my hands, trying to dispel the nervous energy. Fate was cruel. All this time I had been envious of Charlotte finding her scent matches, and if Leo was one of mine, there wasn’t a fucking thing I could do about it. Being with Leo meant leaving Tyler. How could I throw away a decade-long relationship for a fated mate?
Goddamnit. Why couldn’t Tyler be on board with packing up? He could go on his business trips and wouldn’t have to hear a single complaint if I had someone else at home. I slammed on the mental brakes. I didn’t even know if Leo was actually a scent match, let alone if he would want to do anything about it.
“How do I know for sure if Leo is a match?”
“I’m not sure if you don’t already know,” said Charlotte. “I knew instantly when I caught their scent.”
“Could you go off your blockers?” Chico asked. “He can’t scent you right now, but his reaction would probably give you a good indication.”
I whimpered, twisting myself up inside in anxious knots. Knowing for certain would be better than wondering, wouldn’t it? I’d already resigned myself to a packless existence either way. Tyler had given me so much and I felt disloyal each time I thought about having a pack. I still wanted one, but I’d accepted years ago I couldn’t have one.
“Yeah. I could do that.” I buried my face in my hands. “Why is fate so mean?”
Charlotte laughed and hugged me. “It seems mean at the start, but when you look back, everything that happened was for the best. Whatever happens, you know I’m here for you.”
“Leo probably thinks I’m a total wacko running out on him. I literallysprintedaway. What the hell kind of impression does that make?”
