Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
OLIVIA
“You’re here!”
The minute my older brother, Henry, opens the door to his home, he scoops me up in a hug and spins me around and around.
It makes me feel like a little girl again, and the giggle that tumbles out of my mouth is childlike and free.
Nothing I did was ever good enough for my mom, and while my dads could be affectionate, they were also distracted by work.
Henry was my safe space. Well, Henry and Sawyer.
“I’ve missed you,” I tell Henry, my voice catching a bit when I realize how much that’s true.
Henry’s brow pinches as he sets me down, his familiar hazel eyes crinkling in the corners. Brushing a strand of chestnut hair away from his face, he says, “I should have visited you in London. I’m sorry.”
When I first told Henry I’d gotten the job in London, he was so excited and proud.
But he and his pack had also just mated their omega, Verity, and I knew all Henry’s promises that he’d come and stay for a week or two were ones he shouldn’t be making.
The biological pull to be near your mate is far too strong during that first year.
“Don’t be sorry,” I say with an understanding smile. “You were silly to think you could leave Verity so soon after mating her.”
“Silly.” Henry shakes his head and grins. “Yeah, I suppose I was. I don’t like that you’re always alone.”
Before I can open my mouth to reassure my brother that I’m not always alone, not anymore at least, he tugs me through the foyer and deeper into his house.
It’s a massive estate—all of Henry’s packmates come from families who are as well-off as our parents or even more so, and their packhouse reflects the wealth they’re accustomed to.
Every room is larger than it needs to be, every fixture and feature obviously expensive, but somehow they’ve still managed to make it feel homey.
That’s likely Verity’s influence. She’s one of the warmest people I’ve ever met, and I’m thankful for Henry’s sake that he found someone who appeases our mother but doesn’t act anything like her.
“Look who I found,” Henry calls as he drags me into the massive, immaculate kitchen in the center of their home.
Five sets of eyes swing my way and, even though I know all of Henry’s packmates and Verity well enough and they are nothing but kind to me, I can’t help comparing the twinge of discomfort I feel from being the center of attention here compared to the thrill of having all my guys’ attention.
I never thought I’d enjoy being the center of attention.
Never thought it would even be an option.
But with Sawyer’s pack, I find I crave it.
Verity lets out a happy little squeal, her deep umber eyes lighting up as they meet mine.
She pushes out of Aiden’s hold and practically runs across the kitchen, elbows my brother out of the way, and wraps me up in a tight hug.
I brace myself, because I’m still getting used to all of the scents, and not only have I never smelled Verity’s, but she’s never smelled mine.
She knows I’m no threat to her pack, but omegas can be . . . funny about other omegas.
Except, her scent doesn’t bother me at all. It’s light and floral—Jasmine and spring rain—and I relax.
“Oh,” she says. “You’ve stopped blocking your scent.
” As she pulls back to study me, Verity’s full lips curve into a warm smile.
She tucks an errant strand of raven-black hair behind her ear, drawing my attention to the claiming marks that decorate her warm sienna skin.
Her next words are quiet and spoken like a confidante. “Is there a reason for that?”
I’m certain the warm flush of my skin gives me away, but luckily, my sister-in-law catches the way my eyes flit to Henry.
“You know what? We’ll get coffee soon, and you can tell me all about it then.” She gives my arms a little squeeze before turning me around and giving me a light push into Trace’s arms.
The large alpha grins as he hugs me. “Welcome home, little Wellington.”
Then I’m passed to William, Nathaniel, and Aiden, who all repeat the process.
If not for the guys and their constant touches and affection, I’d likely feel overwhelmed by the amount of hugs I’m getting tonight.
It’s been so long since someone hugged me.
That’s kind of sad if I think about it for too long.
Instead, I get lost in the warm chaos of the moment as the pack works together to finish dinner and get it on the table.
They move around each other with practiced, comfortable ease, and I find my mind wandering to Sawyer, Liam, and the twins.
Could we ever look like this to outsiders? Harmonious, happy, and settled?
I hope so.
Guilt quickly chases my dreams, skittering across my skin. What would Henry think?
“Okay,” my brother says, clapping his hands as he surveys the chaos. “Let’s sit down and eat.”
I settle in between Henry and Verity, and everyone passes dishes around.
Plates are filled, wine is poured, and I sip it between bites as I observe this family Henry has created for himself.
I don’t know any of them as well as I knew Sawyer before leaving for London, but I spent enough time around them in the months leading up to my year abroad that I don’t feel the customary awkwardness that always accompanies large social gatherings with people I don’t know.
They met Verity about a month before I left.
“They can be overwhelming,” the omega says conspiratorially as she leans toward me. “But you get used to the chaos.”
Humming, I smile. “Chaos can be fun.”
“Really? Because I seem to remember you favoring order and predictability.”
I had. I do, usually. But Sawyer, Liam, Wilder, and Hayes have shown me that unpredictability and spontaneity have their advantages. “Sometimes evolution is inevitable.”
Verity’s eyes sparkle. “And is there a catalyst for this evolution?”
I shove a bite of steak into my mouth and shrug. Verity’s laughter is warm and knowing, and it has Henry glancing up from a text on his phone.
“What’s so funny, you two?”
“Nothing,” I squeak out. That only makes Verity laugh harder. Can Henry see the way my pulse thrums in my neck, how I’m having trouble sitting still? I hate keeping secrets, and this is a big one. But it’s not only mine to tell.
“So, Liv, I want to hear all about London,” Aiden says, saving me from having to change the subject myself.
Sawyer and I haven’t discussed telling Henry about us.
It’s not that we’re keeping things between us a secret, but Henry is Sawyer’s oldest friend, and I don’t always pick up on the finer nuances of social cues.
The last thing I want is to blurt out that my brother’s best friend has had his fingers inside me. I doubt that would go over well.
Relieved to change the direction of the conversation, I tell Henry’s pack all about London as dinner winds down and everyone finishes their plates.
They ask about my flat, my research, and question whether the food is as bad as people say.
In my opinion? It is. Outside of pub food. London excels at pub food.
“So what you’re saying is that I shouldn’t order pizza in London,” William says with a little shudder.
I giggle and nod. “Yes.”
“And you actually enjoyed black pudding?” Nathaniel’s nose scrunches at the thought of a food where blood is one of the defining ingredients.
“I wouldn’t eat it every day.” I shrug. “But it wasn’t bad. And, really, why is eating something with blood more taboo than eating muscles that have blood in them?”
Henry and his pack chuckle at that.
“Very logical, Liv,” Henry says, reaching up and ruffling my hair.
I squint at him and swat his hand away, setting off another round of laughter around the table.
“Hen?” A deep voice carries through the house, making my brother turn toward the front door.
It’s a familiar voice. One that makes my heart skip.
Which is very inconvenient, seeing as I’m sitting next to my brother, and my scent is no longer suppressed.
Luckily, Henry doesn’t seem to notice the way my scent sweetens. But Verity does.
“In here,” Henry calls, oblivious to my growing panic.
“Hey, man. Sorry to interrupt. You don’t have to get up. I can just grab the saw out of the garage, I know where it . . .” Sawyer’s eyes widen when he finally notices me. “Liv.”
Verity looks between Sawyer and me, and I am very grateful that she seems like a girl’s girl, because she clearly sees far more than the rest of her pack.
“Hi,” I squeak, giving the man who gave me my first non-self-induced orgasm an awkward finger wave. It makes Sawyer’s lips twitch as he fights to keep his face neutral.
“Oh, yeah, I didn’t tell you Liv was home, did I?” Henry winces. “Liv’s home.”
Sawyer chuckles at that, far more adept at subterfuge than I am, because he’s already regained his footing and looks as if all of this is totally normal. Nothing to see here.
I highly doubt I’m pulling this off even half as well.
“I, uh, actually ran into Liv the other day.”
My brother cocks his head to the side. “You did? When?”
“Mother Dearest forced me to go on a blind date with some pack she wanted to set me up with,” I answered for him. “Sawyer happened to be at the same restaurant and had the misfortune of witnessing the train wreck in action.”
“When did Mom have time to set you up? You’ve barely been home a month,” he mutters, irritation clearly written across his face.
Sawyer scoffs. “It was the day she flew in.”
Henry curses at that, no stranger to our mother’s machinations where I’m concerned, and no stranger to how much I dislike it.
“Sawyer, we were just about to have dessert,” Verity says. “Why don’t you sit down and join us?”
Oh, she definitely suspects something because she gives me a little wink.
“I don’t want to intrude,” Sawyer hedges, rubbing the back of his neck.