“Max…”
He cups my face with one hand. I take it and hold it.
“And wherever your path leads, I’ll be watching on from the sidelines, super proud. You’re going to be an amazing alpha.”
We rest our foreheads together and I hold back the tears threatening to explode from my face. With one last squeeze of Jasper’s hands, I let go and hoist myself up.
Staggering just a little, I make my way back downstairs.
My back twinges as I put my torn-up jacket back on and push through the emergency exit. The music is still pumping, the festivities in full swing. Through the patio doors I glimpse the countdown to midnight—just a few minutes left. Not long to go now. I limp through the crowd as heads turn and eyes gape at me. Some faces are concerned, and others glare like I’m a vermin they’d rather avoid.
Katie catches my eye and comes running over.
“Max, are you okay? What happened? I’m so sorry about earlier. Let me help you.”
“It’s fine,” I say, spotting Todd and Simon behind her, watching her, both as concerned as the other. “I’m heading home. You should stay here, have a great time. I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“Are you sure?” Katie asks.
I nod and she does this half-smile head-tilt thing before heading back to her mates. Whatever is going on between us, it can wait.
The elevator is sitting open, and I exhale as I finally enter the warm-yellow light within. The doors slide shut and I let myself collapse against the back wall.
Above, the LED screen shows the same video from earlier, only in reverse, and I sigh a little, happy to finally be heading back to Earth.
The foyer is empty. Everyone is upstairs, excited about the impending strike of midnight, the New Year and all its promises. I’m just happy to be going home—back to my single bed, in my cozy room, in my small but comforting house by the woods.
I step outside and realize I’ve forgotten my puffer jacket. With the adrenaline gone completely it’s cold, but I can’t face going back inside. With an arm wrapped around myself, I step to the curb and raise my free arm to hail a cab, laughing quietly about what they’ll do with an old, discount puffer at the end of the night when nobody wants it.
Luckily, a free taxi pulls right up. I open the door and take one last look back up at the packhouse. It doesn’t loom as large as it did before, and I can almost make out the noise of the party from the top floors. There is a life I could have had up there, it would’ve been big and flashy, and adventurous and wild. But also painful and rocky and uncertain. Resolutely, I place one foot inside the taxi. I’m about to slide into the back seat when I hear…
“Max!”
THE STROKE OF MIDNIGHT
The packhouse doors are sliding shut behind Jasper.
“Max, wait!” he calls again.
I pull my foot from the taxi and place it back on the sidewalk.
“Don’t go,” he says. “Please.”
“Jasper, I have to. There’s no place up there for me. I don’t belong in that life, but you do. It’s what you’ve been working so hard for, it’s what you’ve wanted—”
“But what if it isn’t,” he says, and I stop talking. He takes a step forward, gulping. “Look, we don’t get to choose who our parents are, and I can’t pretend there aren’t things I have to do simply because of who my father is. But I’m tired and I’m done.”
I stare at his face, trying to read his expression. There’s no noise coming from his mind; I must’ve wiped my blood-wolf self out redirecting Clayton’s trauma.Interesting.But his eyes are set on mine, and his lips are steady, his jaw set. He means what he’s saying.
“All my life I’ve been told that I am one thing. That I can only be one thing. The alpha. I’ve been told that I’m responsible for the fate of my pack, that I need to live up to my father and his impossible standards. And I’ve had to give up things, friends, family…” His jaw twitches. “I’ve sacrificed to prepare myself to be the strongest alpha I can be. But I’ve also let people push me around and tell me what to be. And not just my father. Weaker people, creeps like Clayton, I’ve let them dictate who I’m supposed to be and what my life is supposed to look like. And I’m done.”
He beats his thigh with a clenched fist. The wind ruffles his perfect hair, bringing with it a whiff of his scent. Only it’s different than usual. What is usually a gentle mix of mint, lemon, and cherry blossom, is now overwhelming cherry. The moon is reflected in his eyes.
“Why does being alpha mean giving up the things that matter to me? Why should I give up the things that make me happy?”
His bottom lip hangs open a little and he takes the tiniest step in my direction.
“A good leader should lead by example, but how am I doing that if I turn myself into a jerk and push away the people who mean the most to me, the people who have only ever asked me to be myself. The people I…love.”
