“Maybe you should listen to it?” Faye suggests.
“Really?” I don’t know if I’ve been waiting for permission but hearing someone else say it aloud makes me feel a little better. “You think I should?”
Faye shrugs. “While I don’t know Jagger, I have come to learn a lot about scent matches over the last few months.” A dreamy expression washes over her face. Despite my ownbroken heart, I feel a rush of joy at seeing her happiness. The Silverwood Pack is exactly what she needs. “Obviously, me and my guys had a few misunderstandings along the way…”
“Like Damon acting like a grump and not telling you the whole truth?”
“Exactly.” Faye smiles. “But the truth is, if Jagger is really your scent match, it’ll be close to impossible to fight the pull you feel toward each other. I’m not saying you should give him a second chance, but what if listening to his songs helps give you some answers?”
“But…” My voice wavers as fear claws at my throat. “What if I don’t like what the songs say?”
“My gram has always taught me that knowledge is power, especially for omegas in a world where historically power has been used against us,” Faye replies wisely. “Sometimes the truth is hard to face, but at least then, you won’t live with any regrets.”
“Thanks.” I pull her into a hug, holding her extra tight for a few seconds. “I needed that.”
“Everything will be okay.” She clings onto me. “You’ll see.”
I dab my eyes as I pull away. “I wish I could be sure of that.”
“If you want someone to be there with you while you listen, I’m happy to be there.”
“Thank you, but I think it’ll be best to listen alone.”
Faye opens a tracking app on her cell phone. We’ve been sharing our locations with each other since Kady’s fake kidnapping saga last semester. “Sabs is at the gym, and Kady is at the library, so it looks like you’ll have the space you need.”
As we reach Margie’s kiosk, she waves me over frantically. “Delilah! Over here!”
Margie’s desk is covered in gorgeous flowers. There’s everything from lavish bouquets to cute, tiny pot plants in a rainbow of colors.
“These are all for you.” Margie gestures, making my jaw drop. “They’re from the handsome boy you were with this morning.”
Faye fails to disguise a giggle behind her hand.
Embarrassed, a burst of heat rises from my chest to my ears. “You can keep them, Margie.” Despite how pretty they are, I refuse to accept them on principle. From the corner of my eye, I see Faye admiring a stout cactus. “And Faye can take whatever she likes too.”
Although her house is now so full of plants, I’m not sure where she’ll put them.
“If he keeps this up, I’ll need to open a florist,” Margie jokes.
I smile, saying a final goodbye as Faye pulls me in for another hug.
“Good luck,” she whispers.
As I return to my room, I feel like I’m embarking on a bold mission. I curl up under my blanket, headphones in my ears, and get ready to hit play…
At first, I click through the tracks. Most of them are pop drivel—empty, catchy beats, designed to be played as background music in shopping malls—but one of them sticks out. The song is different from the others, the lyrics stripping back layer after layer of emotion. It talks about someone who is lost and broken. Of never-ending unhappiness in a world where nothing feels right.
Is this what Tae wanted me to hear? Is this how Jagger has been feeling? If it is, it still doesn’t explain why he chose to leave.
As much as I hate to admit it, listening to Jagger brings him closer to me again. During the time we spent together, he shared scraps of songs he was working on. Listening to him sing is like a physical memory. I can almost feel the weight of his arms wrapped around me and hear that same husky voice lull me off to sleep with lullabies. Those moments of calm among thepassionate storm of heat is where I felt truly at peace for the first time… well, ever.
With shaking hands, I remove my headphones and roll over to grab my cell phone.
ME
@Faye - do you still have the tickets to Jagger’s show?
She replies almost instantly.
