She tilts her head to the side, a small smile twisting her lips. “Your house is already pretty full with three alphas. They can be pretty animal-like sometimes.”
The moment the words leave my mouth, I realize my mistake.
She thinks we’re an established pack. Packs live together. But Lucas and I have our own place, Matheo has his mansion in the hills, and Kyren lives... actually, I’m not entirely sure where Kyren lives when he’s not crashing on someone’s couch.
“Well,” I begin carefully, “our living arrangement is…unique.” Not technically a lie. “We each have our own space, but we come together regularly.”
Also not a lie, though regularly is stretching it when it comes to Kyren. But since the couch in question has often belonged to Matheo in the past, I’m going to say it counts.
Trinity nods, seeming to accept my explanation. “That makes sense. Four grown men need their space sometimes.” She smiles, a hint of something wistful in her expression. “It must be nice, though, having that built-in support system.”
“It is nice,” I say, surprised by how true it feels despite our arrangement being entirely fabricated. Sharing the villahas been less fraught with friction than I would have thought possible. “What about you? Do you live alone?”
“My apartment is my sanctuary,” she says, pulling out her phone again and frowning at the lack of signal. “Just me and my color-coded calendar.”
“Sounds familiar.” The thought of her living arrangement being so similar to what mine was before Lucas makes my chest tighten unexpectedly.
She gives me a shy smile. “We’re a lot alike, I think.”
I agree with her, but only because I’ve spent so much time dissecting her life through every bit of her digital footprint that I could get my hands on.
“You’re easy to relate to,” I tell her.
“Not for most people,” Trinity scoffs, eyeing me. She kicks at a pile of pebbles, sending them skittering along the trail ahead of us. “You’re the first male beta I’ve met who was packed up. Was it hard to slot yourself in with them?”
I choose my words carefully because I really don’t want to lie to her.
“Lucas and I were actually together first. We’ve been a couple for a few years now,” I explain. “Matheo and Kyren were roommates in college, and I decided to rush their frat. After a bit of hazing, they were the only ones who were willing to sponsor an upstart, sixteen-year-old beta delusional enough to think he could make it through rush in an alpha fraternity. Matheo and I worked together after college, and when Lucas and I decided we wanted a pack, it only made sense for us all to link back up.”
Trinity’s eyes widen. “Sixteen? In college?”
I nod. “Math prodigy. My parents were very proud—and very eager to get me out of the house.”
“That’s remarkable.” She looks genuinely impressed, which makes my chest tighten pleasantly.
“I usually get what I want when I’m determined to have it,” I say, meeting her eyes directly.
Trinity blushes again, and I realize just how true that sentiment is. For a moment, neither of us speaks. The tropical breeze rustles the foliage around us, and somewhere in the distance, a bird calls out to its mate.
I’ve been studying Trinity Jones through data points and digital footprints for weeks now, but being here with her—seeing her flushed cheeks and bright eyes, smelling her unique scent that grows stronger with her emotions even with my more muted beta senses—makes me realize how much I’ve missed by viewing her as a puzzle to solve rather than a person to know.
She’s not just beautiful. She’s fascinating.
Trinity breaks the silence first.
“So how does it work?” she asks, her voice shy but curious. “In the pack, I mean. I take it you and Lucas are...togethertogether.”
“We are,” I confirm. “Lucas and I are partners in every sense. Matheo and Kyren are...” I search for the right words that won’t be outright lies. “They’re important to us in different ways.”
“What would have happened if...” Trinity trails off, fidgeting with her water bottle. “If you had been there this morning? When I was with Matheo?”
The question sends a jolt through me. She’s asking about boundaries, about pack dynamics, about whether I would have been jealous or participatory. The idea of watching Trinity with Matheo—or better yet, joining them—makes my pulse quicken.
“Anything you wanted could have happened,” I say honestly.
Trinity’s voice hitches slightly. “That’s not what I expected a beta to say.”
“Most people exist on a spectrum, betas included,” I reply with a small smile. “But betas don’t usually have the same possessive instincts as alphas, so we’re fairly adaptable in our sexual preferences.”
