The statement lands in the center of the room like a grenade, and for a moment, we all just stare at each other in its aftermath.
Darren's face goes through a rapid series of expressions. Confusion, disbelief, shock. "What?" he finally manages, voice cracked.
"At the restaurant," I say, speaking for the first time since he arrived. My voice sounds rough to my own ears, unused after hours of silence. "When we first smelled her. Pumpkin spice, like the kid said."
Aidan shifts awkwardly, looking afraid to meet Darren's eyes.
"That's why we all left the table," Jax continues, picking up the thread. "We needed to... process what was happening."
"Why didn't you say anything?" Darren demands, looking from face to face like he's searching for a punchline to a joke he doesn't understand.
"There wasn't really a good time," Aidan says nervously. "She walked out, and you were pissed?—"
"Yeah, of course I was pissed!" Darren exclaims, throwing his hands up in frustration. "You all acted like complete assholes, and then disappeared without explanation!"
He's right about that, too. We handled it terribly. But the shock of finding our scent match combined with the complication of Darren's obvious interest in her... It was overwhelming. We panicked.
"We should have told you immediately," Jax acknowledges, shoulders slumping slightly. "That's on me. As pack alpha, I made the call to wait until we could process what it meant, to give you space. It was the wrong call."
Darren runs a hand through his already disheveled hair, pacing a short line in front of the door like he's considering bolting again. "So let me get this straight," he says, voice tight with controlled emotion. "Lexie—the woman I've been seeing, the first person who's made me feel normal since this whole omega thing started—is your scent match? All of you?"
"And yours too, most likely," Zayn points out, rubbing his throat where Darren's arm had pressed. "You just can't tell because of the suppressants."
Darren stops pacing, his expression shifting as he processes this new information. "I... guess that makes sense," he mutters, almost to himself.
And it does. Darren's been on heavy suppressants since his presentation, dulling his newly enhanced omega senses to manageable levels. If Lexie is indeed our collective scent match, he wouldn't have recognized it the way we did.
"So what now?" Aidan asks, voicing the question we're all thinking. "Do we tell her?"
Darren's head snaps up, eyes narrowing. "No," he says firmly. "Not yet."
"She has a right to know," Zayn argues, crossing his arms over his chest.
"You already made a terrible first impression," Darren counters, gesturing to encompass all of us. "You owe her an apology, at the very least, before dropping this on her. All of you."
Another fair point. Our behavior at The Terrace was inexcusable, regardless of the circumstances. And Lexie, from the little I observed, seems like a practical, straightforward woman. The kind who values actions over words. But an apology would go a long way toward establishing trust. Getting our foot in the door to prove ourselves with actions.
"Darren's right," I say, drawing surprised looks from everyone. I rarely weigh in on pack disputes unless absolutely necessary, preferring to observe rather than participate. But this feels important. "We approach her as people first, not alphas seeking a mate. We apologize. We earn her trust."
Jax nods slowly, considering. "Agreed. We do this right. No rushing, no pressure." He looks directly at Darren. "And we respect what's already developing between you two."
The acknowledgment seems to take some of the fight out of Darren. His shoulders drop slightly, the tightness in his jaw easing. "Thank you," he says, the words clearly costing him something in pride.
"So what exactlyisdeveloping between you two?" Zayn asks, unable to help himself.
Darren's eyes narrow, but he doesn't rise to the bait this time. "That's between me and Lexie," he says firmly. "But I care about her. And I'm not going to let anyone, pack included, mess this up."
The declaration is both challenge and plea. He's asking us to respect his boundaries, to give him space to explore this connection without our interference. But he's also making it clear that Lexie matters to him. That this isn't just about sex or comfort or novelty.
"No one's trying to mess anything up," Jax assures him, voice gentle but firm. "We want you to be happy, Darren."
"Funny way of showing it sometimes," Darren mutters, but there's less heat in the words now. The anger that propelled him across the room at Zayn seems to have burned itself out, leaving exhaustion in its wake.
"We'll make it right," Aidan promises, earnest as always. "With both of you."
Darren studies each of our faces, searching for sincerity or deceit. Whatever he finds must satisfy him, because he nodsonce, a sharp jerk of his chin. "Good," he says. "I'll ask if she's willing to hear out the apology you all owe her, and if she is, we go from there. If she's receptive, we can tell her about the scent match. If not…"
He trails off, but the implication is clear, even if he isn't spelling it out. The future of our pack hands in the balance, and we'd better not fuck it up.
