“See?” Griffin turns to Rory. “They are always ganging up on me.”
Forest rolls his eyes. “Shut up and eat your breakfast.”
It’s funny. Weeks ago, this would not have been possible. Forest was detached and moving around as if he were in his own bubble, and maybe it was. And I was not part of anything either; I was just living, silently hoping that maybe I could build a friendship with Forest, who seemed to be so similar to me. Now here we are, sitting together and joking, as friends and chosen family. And the luna… when she came here, she was composed and distanced, and now she seems so relaxed and happy.
“Rosy,” Rory pauses, “I mean, Rose, you look happy.”
“That’s because I am,” she says.
He smiles. For the first time that I have seen, he actually smiles. “Then I am happy too.”
“Do you like the pack?” Forest asks him.
Griffin laughs. “He thinks it’s okay,” he says before Rory can answer. “He obviously noticed the good parts being Rose’s doing.”
“I just know her too well not to notice.”
“Don’t worry,” Forest says. “We all know you are right.”
“The pack’s already doing much better than a couple of weeks ago,” I explain to Rory. “Ever since Rose and Forest stepped up here. I hope you will like it here.”
Rory gauges me with his usual skeptical glance and then nods tentatively.
“Where are you currently staying?” Rose asks.
“Last night I stayed with Griffin,” Rory says.
“Do you want to move into the packhouse?” Forest offers. “You can be closer to Rose that way.”
“Yes, you could have one of the apartments here,” Rose agrees. “What do you think?”
“I think I would like that,” Rory agrees. He looks reserved, but his expression softens. He must really like Rose a lot. They are each other’s only remaining family, it seems.
“What about your so-called shady friends?” Rose asks. “Do they need help with anything?”
“They are fine,” Rory says. “And they are not my ‘so-called shady friends’, they are shady as fuck, but they helped me a lot.”
“I think it’s good to have connections everywhere in our position,” I say.
Rose nods at me. “I agree with that.”
The others chat a little about their plans today as my phone vibrates. It’s a message from Jonah. He wants to see me today, which means I need to prepare properly and get my work in the pack done in time. “Excuse me, everyone,” I say, getting up. “I need to head out and get to my work.” Before Forest or Griffin can even say anything, I add: “I have plans later tonight.”
They know immediately what I am talking about. Forest nods at me. “See you later at training, Martin.”
“Awesome that you made it work tonight,” Jonah tells me when I meet him in the club. “It was pretty much on short notice.”
“Yeah, dude, next time give me more time. It was a struggle to come here without raising any suspicions.”
Jonah’s lips curl into a sly grin. “But you made it work.”
“So, it was a test, huh?” I say.
“We just wanted to check how committed you are,” he says.
“And? Did I pass?”
“That’s for the alpha to decide,” Jonah says.
