“Don’t apologize. She’s just being a kid. I have five siblings and a dozen cousins with children, so I’m used to their chaos.”
A laugh bursts from her lips, and she seems shocked by the sudden sound. “I bet family get-togethers are fun for you.”
“Dinner’s ready,” Shepherd cuts in, directing us all to the table. His timing coincides with the reappearance of the bashful brunette, who quietly apologizes to her mother.
“Little Bug, this is Manny, the man Foster told you about,” Hannah tells her, placing a hand on her shoulder to comfort her. “Manny, this is my daughter Kaitlin.”
Crouching down, I remember the bag grasped in my hand. I gently set it down and open it, grabbing the smallest bundleof flowers from inside and presenting them to her. “For you, Princesa.”
When I’d called Mamá to tell her about the dinner tonight, she’d told me to bring them flowers hand-picked from her garden. It’s a tradition in our family when courting a potential mate, or full pack in this case. My papas were struggling financially when they met her and could not afford to buy a bouquet of roses, so they’d asked their mamás for flowers from their gardens. It’s become a tradition in my family to bring them on your first courting date, something I had earned an earful for when Mamá realized Foster and I had already gone on a date.
Kaitlin looks to her mother before accepting them with a toothy smile. “Thank you! They is so pretty!”
Standing, I grab the other three bundled and shyly present them to the rest of the pack. Shepherd’s brows nearly hit his hairline as he accepts them, clearly unused to receiving flowers as a gift. Hannah seems just as taken aback, which surprises me. A woman as beautiful as her should be showered in sweet gifts at every possible chance.
“Thank you, Hot Stuff.” Foster smacks a wet kiss to my cheek, his free hand slipping down to grab a handful of my ass. “I’ll put these in water,” he adds, grabbing all the flowers and sauntering toward their sink. A glance at Shepherd and Hannah reveals they are as entranced by the sway of his ass as I am.
“We eats now? I is hungry!” Kaitlin runs to the table and clambers onto a chair, giving each of us a look that clearly says,‘Well, what are you waiting for?’
Dinner is delicious. Juicy slices of steak loaded with cheese and served over garlic potato jackets. Hannah and Shepherd cooked it together, adding their love to the flavors and enriching them. A sliver of jealousy pierces my heart as I imagine them side by side in the kitchen, laughing and flirting as they cook. I want that. The familiar companionship my parents share.Someone to take up space beside me and fill my heart with joy. And I think I want it to be these three who claim ownership over my soul.
“Shep and I are on dish duty,” Foster tells me, ushering Hannah and me out of the kitchen. She rolls her eyes, one hand resting on the side of her stomach, likely feeling her baby kick. The two men obviously want to give us a chance to get to know each other.
I follow Hannah to the couch, where she sinks onto the cushions with a groan. Kaitlin passes us by, heading to play with the mass of toys along the wall. The clink of dishes and small crashes of toys being moved around fill the air. It’s quiet. Much quieter than I am used to when a pack is around.
“He’s absolutely smitten with you,” Hannah tells me, glancing over her shoulder at her mates in the kitchen. “They both are. After the heat, you were all they talked about for several days.” Her expression shifts from wistful to serious as her attention turns back to me. “You make them happy, so I fully support whatever relationship you build with them. I’d like the chance to get to know you better. You’re… very attractive.”
“But?” I ask, sensing some hesitancy in her acceptance.
The sad look in her eyes threatens to break me. This woman must have been through something awful to experience such open devastation. “My life is… complicated. Before you choose to pursue anything with me, with all of us really, you deserve to know the drama that awaits you.”
Is there anything this beautiful Beta could tell me that would send me running?Maybe if they were like serial murderers or something equally crazy. I doubt that’s the case. This pack is too sugary sweet to live a life as heinous as that.
“My old name, one I’ve chosen to abandon, is Hannah Montgomery-Boyd. I grew up in the Montgomery cult.”
Montgomery cult. The one out of New Hampshire that Omen exposed? Wait, doesn’t that make her-
“You are Omen’s sister?”
A half-smile twists her lips, and she nods, blonde hair bouncing into her face. I react without thinking, reaching up to push the loose strands back behind her ear. Scarlet crawls up her neck and cheeks as I pull my hand away. “Omen is my little sister. I helped her escape the cult when she presented as an Omega.”
Mulling over what I’ve heard on the news and from Bea and Pack Graves, I consider the situation she is in. Pastor Montgomery brainwashed any Beta who was naïve enough to buy into his bullshit while advocating for the mutilation of Alphas and Omegas. He’s a power-hungry Beta with a chip on his shoulder and a hatred of other designations. Hannah’s sad aura makes sense now that I have a general idea of the hell she faced growing up.
“You still have ties to the cult?” I ask.
Her head shakes. “Not willing ones. I left Whitlan in July, but before that, I spent nearly a decade working as an informant for the DAU. Tearing down my father’s empire has been my only goal for a long time, aside from survival.”
Ten years of abuse and hatred so she could supply information to the DAU?Her grit amazes me. To endure so much to achieve a nearly impossible goal.
“I didn’t expect to become a target after he was captured. My mother, brother, and ex-husband all see my son as the heir to my family’s terrible legacy, and will not give up on getting us back in their grasp until they are caught and charged for the crimes they committed in the cult.” Her palm covers the back of my hand, lips thinned as if she expects the worst. “Being with us means accepting that they might go after you, too.”
Did I imagine a future where anti-designation cultists targeted me? No, I did not. But I’m in too deep to consider walking away. My soul longs for the life they’re promising me. A house full of love and laughter. The pack I’ve always dreamed of.
If that means facing these threats, I’ll stand bravely at their sides. Life is meant to be enjoyed together, not faced alone.
Pulling her hand to my face, I brush my lips along the inner part of her wrist and whisper a promise. “So long as your pack wants me here, this is where I will be.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
