I don’t want to disappoint anyone.
I hurry out and hop in when he pulls up, and he greets me with a smile.
“There’s my girl,” he says, reaching out to take my hand.
I don’t hesitate to place my palm in his, already sinking into his comforting presence.
“You ready?” he asks as he puts the truck in drive.
I nod, and he pauses, putting it back in park, and then turns to look at me with one eyebrow up.
Stupid rules.
I roll my eyes and both of his brows go up, but instead of getting mad, he quirks a crooked smile.
“Yes, Brooks,” I mutter. “I’m ready.”
“Good girl,” he says, putting the truck back in drive.
My face flushes when he says those words, just like last time. I don’t know why it affects me so strongly, but it’s nice to hear I’m doing something right for once.
We pull up to the park and I look around warily, knowing this is the last place Steve and Josh would be, but on edge nonetheless.
“They’re not here, it’s okay,” Brooks says. “But the second you want to leave, you tell me, and we’ll leave. Yeah?”
“Okay,” I say, taking his hand and walking around the truck toward the open grassy area.
It’s evening, but the sun sets late in summer, so it’s still light out. I spot Riley’s bright blue hair first, and he comes bounding toward us with his arms out. I stop and pull back, letting Brooks intercept and hug him as my heartstrings pull tight in my chest.
We still have to be careful about their scents on me, though I want to cover myself in them. Riley frowns, drooping for a moment when he remembers we can’t touch. But my attention is swiftly diverted when a tall, statuesque woman comes striding up behind him.
I freeze, staring at her. She’s the most gorgeous person I’ve ever seen. I blink, expecting her to disappear or change or… something, but she doesn’t. She moves closer, and then she’s holding out one long-fingered hand.
“Sage,” she says, her voice husky and almost too sexy for me to handle. “I’m Neveah, but please call me Vee, if you’d like.”
“Vee,” I say, placing my hand in hers automatically.
Her grip is strong but gentle as she shakes my hand, then smiles at me. I suck in a deep breath, trying to catch her eucalyptus scent, but they’ve all worn scent dampeners today.
“I’d like you to know that if we weren’t being so careful about our scents, I’d ask if I could hug you.”
I nod, at a loss for words, and she tilts her head. My stomach flutters, butterflies taking off erratically inside me as I stare at her, and my scent sweetens slightly between us. The look in her eyes is hard to read, and she turns to Brooks before I can try to figure it out.
“Brooks,” she says, and he dips his head in greeting. “Shall we?”
Vee waves her hand to the side, holding her arm out for us to head toward a picnic set up on a blanket in the grass.
I follow Riley, his boisterous, excited energy giving me a boost of confidence.
“Isn’t this so cute?” he says, kicking his shoes off and flopping onto the blanket. “I think I drove Vee half-mad shopping for everything, but it was totally worth it.”
“It’s really cute,” I say, taking in the wicker picnic basket, then a pile of fluffy purple pillows I wish I could dive into.
Vee and Brooks settle next to us, chatting lightly about the weather and how it’s impacted their jobs as Vee opens the picnic basket. She passes items to Riley, who arranges them in the middle of the blanket. A platter of cheeses and meats, a bowl of nuts, glasses and a bottle of sparkling water, fruits—including apples and grapes—as well as three different kinds of crackers.
I’ve never seen anything like this.
Riley digs in, loading up a plate, and I hesitate, unsure if I should serve the alphas, and if so, how to go about doing so. Before I can figure it out, Vee snags a plate and fills it up, then passes it to me.
