Chapter Thirty-Seven
AJ
A fter that incredibly delicious picnic, courtesy of Dean and Verity, I leaned back into the table while the guys played flying disc. Despite the chill, the park was busy as families and packs spent time together, people exercised, and dogs played.
The guys were right, Verity was nice. Freakishly nice. Also freakishly pastel. Even her coat was baby blue .
While she could still have an ulterior motive, I wasn’t convinced that she was bad. Jonas wouldn’t let her spend time with Dean if he thought she couldn’t be trusted.
She’d made amends with my sister and paid her debt. Grif loved me, wanted to be with me, and wouldn’t replace me with her. I also had gotten no indication from her that she was after that, either.
Verity probably made a fun person to watch fútbol with after a couple of beers.
She plopped down next to me in a cloud of anxiety. “I never meant to slight you. I hope you understand that I never meant any offense, Alpha AJ. Like I told Grif, I’m happy to step back or make concessions. If you uphold lead alphas in your pack, I won’t contest.”
“Jonas is head alpha.” My eyebrows rose.
She shook her head. “When someone has more than one alpha, sometimes one of them is lead, and they get... firstsies.”
“Firstsies?” Were we five?
“Before she went to jail, Mom was head alpha, but Mumsy was Dad’s lead alpha. So, when they disagreed, Mumsy would use her... privilege to get across her disapproval until Mom relented,” Verity replied.
“One mom used her status to cockblock the other until she got her way?” I laughed. “While I admire that level of petty, no, Jonas would absolutely be against something like that. He’d tell us to figure it out like grownups. He doesn’t do petty. Jonas locked Grif and me in the gym until we worked shit out.”
Why did I tell her that? But it was true.
He cared about us. It sounded like her alpha parents barely tolerated each other. No wonder the pack broke up.
“Work it out. Like fighting? I... I don’t know how to fight. The parents didn’t let any of us learn.” More anxiety wafted off her.
“Like by talking. You don’t know any? Even self-defense?” I frowned. Pretty much every young alpha took some sort of fighting art. It was a good outlet for anger and hormones.
That was some power play, not letting your alpha kids learn to fight.
“Only what they teach university first years. Not that it would help me now.” She laughed derisively as her gaze focused on the guys.
Jonas threw the disc to Dean as he jumped up and caught it. He twirled around, taunting Grif with it.
“I know we got off to a poor start. Grif means a lot to me, and his happiness is important. You don’t need to step back or make concessions. Just be good to Grif and don’t ice me out or plot against me. This is my pack. I will not tolerate being replaced.” I put an edge to my voice, so she knew I was serious.
Grif chased Dean around the table, then picked him up while Jonas took the disc from him. Dean licked Grif.
Horror coated her face. “I would never, Alpha AJ. Promise.”
“Good. You make him happy,” I sighed. Alpha AJ. That was some southern shit right there. But her fried chicken? I could demolish an entire platter of that.
Jonas gave the disc to Grif, and they started back up again. Sometimes I played with them, but my knee hurt today.
“I’m the newcomer. Tell me what you want me to do, and I’ll do it. I’m not here to make trouble,” she assured me.
Verity wasn’t like any lady alpha I’d ever met. I understood why Grif liked her so much.
Also, she was smart, driven, educated, beautiful, and smelled amazing. Fucking shit I was in trouble.
“As long as you don’t pretend I’m not here, it’s fine. Which you weren’t doing. Grif is his own person. He can go on dates with you, fuck you, be with you in public, whatever he wants. I want to spend time with him, too. We’ll get it figured out. You do love him, right, and aren’t out to use him?” I prodded. Because I had to ask.
“I genuinely care for him. But I’m going to take my time and I won’t intrude on your plans. Talk to me? I’m not always very observant when I’m busy with my research. I’ll talk to you, too. We’ll make this work.” She looked so hopeful.
Yeah, she did want something. Love and acceptance.
I shot her a measured look as Dean jumped on Jonas’ back to steal the disc. “As soon as our pack paperwork is approved, I’m going to court him. When we have a pack contract, I’m going to mate him.”
Grif rolled his eyes and ruffled Dean’s hair.
“Aww.” Her hands went to her chest. “I love love.”
Grif plopped between us. “How’s it going?”
“Great.” She put her arm around him and laid her head on his shoulder.
The three of us talked for a bit while Dean and Jonas climbed the gigantic tree next to them. Several children joined in. Laughter echoed through the park. Grif gave the kids a wistful look.
I know Boo-Boo. One day.
An alarm beeped and she glanced at her phone, silencing it. “Sorry, but I have to collect Mercy. I’ll see you tomorrow?” She stood, then leaned in and gave Grif a little kiss. “So lovely to meet you, AJ.”
She hugged Dean and Jonas, who’d hopped down from the tree, and set off, giving Grif a big wave and a goofy smile.
“So? Isn’t she great?” Grif’s look was expectant as he leaned into me.
“I’m still deciding. She has an awful lot going on.” Like the whole teen sister who was a pro athlete and getting a PhD in plant genetics, where she was probably developing pharmaceuticals that would change the world.
He squeezed my hand. “Please give her a chance.”
I squeezed his hand back. Maybe I would. Because I felt that sense of pack I had when I’d met Jonas and Dean.
Though my alpha was a lot more curious about what she’d taste like than he’d been with those two. Hmmm.
We’d see.