Chapter Twenty-Nine – Jess
Turns out, Darius really is that good. He got my aunt to sign everything necessary, including the paper that gave her a time limit.
She has two weeks to move out of that house—and Alabaster Security is giving her a detail to make sure she doesn’t try any funny business, like taking everything that’s not nailed down.
I don’t think she would stoop to that level, but you never know. Sometimes people surprise you in the worst ways.
When it’s all said and done, I don’t even have to be checked out by a doctor to confirm that I haven’t matched with anyone. The threat of taking my aunt to court and dragging her name through the mud—basically, what would be social suicide for someone like her—was enough to get her to stand down.
I didn’t see her when she left that conference room, but I can imagine she was ticked off beyond belief.
Good.
While everything gets going, I’m taken to an apartment downtown, where the guys and I crash while we wait for my aunt to permanently vacate my home. The guys talk about inviting their parents over, but I tell them I’m not quite ready yet to re-meet the Thompsons or Rourke’s mom.
It’ll come in time. I’m… almost there. I think I want to be at home when I meet them. I want to create new, better memories for that house.
I hope their parents will approve. I’ll be pretty devastated if they don’t, but honestly, while the Dryers name used to mean something, it doesn’t mean so much anymore. I might as well be a random omega they plucked off the streets.
The guys do invite over Pax and Raeka a week and a half later. While the guys talk to Pax in the living room, I get to talk to Raeka alone on the balcony. Like I need a friend or something. Psh. How ridiculous.
What’s even more ridiculous is that Raeka was in my class. I remember her. She had loving parents who are still very much alive, even to this day. That must be nice.
Her blond hair is pulled back into a low ponytail, and she wears loose jeans and a baggy shirt that hangs off her slender frame unevenly. Not the epitome of fashion. “So,” she starts as the breeze gently blows around us, “I think the guys want us to be friends.”
“Yeah,” I mutter, gazing out at the city around us. The balcony’s railing is made of thick glass, so sitting where we are, the view is uninterrupted. “You’re probably right.”
“Do you remember me at all from school?”
“Bits and pieces. Honestly, I think I blocked out a lot from those years.” I pick at the hem of my shirt. “They weren’t exactly great times for me.” That puts it lightly. Those were some of the worst years of my life.
She takes it with a grain of salt. “I get it.” She decides to change the subject, apparently, to the guys inside: “Your mates seem nice. Rourke and Pax go way back. Pax doesn’t really have friends. Rourke might just be the only one.”
I smile softly when I think about the men inside. “They’re not my mates yet.”
“Oh, come on. Yes, they totally are.”
“I mean, it’s not official yet or anything. We’re waiting until I move back home before we take the next steps.” Turning my eyes to the sky, I let out a long sigh. “I didn’t think I’d ever end up here.”
“You mean with mates? Or getting everything you wanted?”
I don’t know how much she knows about my situation.
It sounds like Pax filled her in, so I don’t have to go over everything all over again.
Honestly, I’m ready to leave all that crap behind me.
“Both,” I say. “Looking forward to the future is not something I ever did. The present always sucked so much, I used to figure the future would suck just as much, if not more.”
Raeka leans back in her chair. “I get what you mean. Maybe not to the same extent, but… I get it. I made it through my first heat alone.” The moment she says that, I give her an incredulous look, to which she just laughs. “Yeah, I know, I know. I’m crazy.”
Mad respect for this girl. I had it in my head that I could do it, but when the time came… and the guys were right there, I was so, so weak.
“My parents were pushing me to a match, to any match. They really wanted me to find my forever. That’s when Gideon came into the picture.
Our match wasn’t supposed to be for real and Pax was only brought in to make me feel safe in that house.
I was supposed to be for Colter, his nephew.
Things just spiraled from there. We formed a new pack, and honestly?
Now that I have them in my life, I wouldn’t have it any other way. ”
Though our situations aren’t exactly the same, it’s good to hear that new packs can form and be healthy. I say, “I wasn’t expecting anything like this to happen. It still doesn’t feel real. It’s like I’m in a dream, and I’m afraid to wake up.”
She gives me a smile. “Trust me, it’ll only get better from here. Those guys in there? It’s obvious they care deeply about you. The way they look at you… it’s real, and I bet they’re each dying to make it official with you.”
We talk for a while longer. The guys order pizza. We play some silly board games to pass the time. It’s… a very normal evening, considering, and I actually catch myself having fun. Grinning, laughing, teaming up with Raeka to try to beat the guys. It’s a good time.
When it comes time for Pax and Raeka to leave, she leaves her number and asks for mine. In case I ever feel like hanging out again, she says, but no pressure.
It’s all such a normal thing.
When they leave, the guys and I sit on the couch together, and Rourke is the first to ask, “Well? How was it? It wasn’t that bad, was it? You looked like you had fun.” Asher and Mason sit around me, waiting to hear my thoughts on the subject.
When Rourke first told me his plan to invite Pax and Raeka over, I wasn’t all too thrilled, but now that they were gone… I have to admit it wasn’t as bad as I thought it’d be. It was actually kind of fun.
I wouldn’t say Raeka and I are best friends or anything, but I wouldn’t mind seeing her again.
“I did,” I say, and Rourke smirks at me, Mr. Know It All. “It was fun. Don’t let it go to your head.” I playfully shove him, and the action comes so easily to me it’s almost unbelievable to look back and think about where I was a month or so ago.
This is my forever. This is my pack, even if it’s not official yet, and you know what? I wouldn’t change a darn thing.