Not trying to be a comedian or anything… Just being, me.
“Merp,” I said, a smile on my face.
Blake cupped my jaw. “Beautiful,” he growled before poking my nose. “You are so silly, Layla.”
I thought he would kiss me: the last Alpha of the pack to do so.
He did not.
I had never tastedsuch good soup.
“Good soup,” I murmured, and a little dribbling on my chin. Josh was there to wipe it away with a napkin.
“Does it have enough salt?” Josh frowned. “Enough parsley? Blake was in charge of seasoning the chicken, but if you need more, we can grab it from the fridge.”
“Perfect amount of parsley,” I burped, then I let out a laugh.
Oopsie.
I hadn’t intended to burp. Hadn’t intended to embarrass myself… in front of my pack.
They didn’t mind.
They saw me for me… Saw what other Alphas did not see.
Around them, I could just be… Layla. The shy, twenty-seven-year-old Omega who had a dorky side. A quirky side.
I’m your little quirkmuffin, I wanted to say. I did not.
The Alphas were simply glorious, they cooked for me and made me the coziest, snuggest, and tastiest chicken and dumplings I’d ever consumed.
Every bite was a miracle, a revelation into the secrets of love and life.
I saw a sign on the kitchen wall that my Alphas hung up that read,Home is where the Omega is.
My heart warmed, and while others might find the sign cheesy, I did not.
My Omega purred as she scratched at my chest. She desperately begged to be let out.
No girl, I warned my Omega, narrowing my eyes as I focused on my soup,you don’t get to embarrass me right now. We’re not even bonded to this pack yet. And who cares if they have sweet signs on their walls?
They could still leave. They could still turn abusive like the others.
Still, when I peered at them… I did not think they would.
Safe,I thought.
One word: safe.
And snug, and cozy, and caring, and warm.
That’s what this pack was, what Josh, Blake, and Dreydon were.
In a world where Alphas sought to take what they desired from Omegas and leave them worse for wear, these Alphas cared for me.
They cared about my safety, making me feel cozy and snug, and feeding me when typically? The reverse was common, exactly like Gretel discussed weeks earlier.
Gretel had been judged by a rude, mean pack on her date that left her in tears—a scary pack, too—who’d told her to be more of a Trad Omega, stay in the kitchen, serve her Alphas and change her blue hair.
