Chapter 12
TWELVE
VANDER
There were about three steps between the bathroom door and the spare bedroom. Apparently, that was still enough space for Juniper to accost me. I’d woken early to try to have a quiet, undisturbed morning, but from her expression that was not going to happen.
“That’s my towel,” she said in a furious whisper, arms folded as she eyed the towel slung around my hips. Huh. That’s why it had been on its own little shelf in the linen closet. But it had also been the only one that was a comfortable size.
“That’s real great, sweetheart,” I replied, keeping my voice low. Didn’t want Jhin waking up and sticking his nose in.
“Stop using it.”
“You that desperate to see me naked again?” I asked, and her face flushed.
“God, you are such a pain in the ass.”
“You didn’t seem to mind at the time.” I shot her a smile. The redness on her face turned splotchy.
“Fucking irrelevant, ” she snapped. “Just grab another one, okay?”
“Not going to happen,” I said, folding my arms. “I’ve already dried myself with it. I’m literally using it for two more feet.”
“It’s the principle ,” she sniffed, a haughty expression crossing her face. I scowled. I absolutely hated that face. I hated how much I wanted to see it while she was sitting primly on her bed, clad in nothing but spiked heels. How long could she keep it before it cracked? Before she was gasping beneath me, her nails clawing into my back?
“This is not my fucking fault,” I hissed. “If you want me to not touch your stuff, I actually have to know it’s yours. Maybe you could, I don’t know, act like a normal omega and scent mark your shit?”
For a second, she was stunned into silence. She looked like I’d slapped her, and then she actually snarled at me.
“I’m trying to be a good host.”
“Really. By leaving your items unmarked and then harassing people when they use them?”
“Stop it.”
“Stop what?”
“Being a dick . You know why I can’t do that.”
“God, Juniper, we’ve all already fucked you. You don’t have to worry about keeping our minds chaste.”
“I’m not talking about that , asshole. You guys already have to deal with my fucked-up scent enough.” Her redness was now surrounding her nose, and she blinked a bit.
I stared at her, wondering if this was some kind of joke.
“What are you talking about?” I said. Instead of continuing her angry tirade, she seemed to shrink a bit. Her eyes were looking a little wet, and her breathing was becoming more erratic.
What the fuck? I wasn’t used to arguing with people who had fucking crying in their arsenal. How on earth was I supposed to win now?
“I know it’s not supposed to smell like this,” she said, wrinkling her nose. “I didn’t get to develop into a normal omega . I fucked it up, okay? I fucked up my scent and now I smell sour all the time, and you don’t have to be such a dick about it.”
I squinted at her, trying to process what she was saying.
“Wait. You think I’m being a dick by telling you to scent mark things? Because you think your scent is bad?”
“Obviously,” she said in a thick voice. She sniffed, and then her lip trembled. I ran my fingers through my hair. Part of me was demanding I apologise immediately . That she’d probably feel really nice if I hugged her right now. And it would definitely be the best feeling in the world if I was the reason she cheered up again.
This must be some omega witchcraft or something. I liked it a lot better when we were ready to tear each other’s throats out.
“I don’t think your scent is bad,” I said, not quite keeping the annoyance out of my voice. “None of us think that. Don’t you think you would have noticed if we didn’t like it, I don’t know, when we were with you for the entirety of your heat?”
“There were a lot of pheromones,” she said, her voice hard. At least she didn’t seem to be right on the verge of tears anymore.
“Okay,” I said, exasperated. “I’ll prove it to you. If you’ll let me get some clothes on?”
She sniffed again and stepped aside. I went into the room and got dressed. The rest of the pack were still sleeping, but I’d made enough noise that they’d probably wake up. I met Juniper in the kitchen and grabbed some tea towels from the linen cupboard.
“Scent mark these,” I said, holding them out to her. Her eyes darted to mine and then back to the tea towels.
“Fine,” she huffed, taking them and bringing them to her neck. She hesitated for a second, as if she wasn’t quite sure what to do, but then figured out how to rub her scent onto them. Sour cherries and spice flooded me as she held them back out. Really? She thought this smelled bad? I held her eyes, keeping my face neutral as I took them. I went to the kitchen and placed them casually around the space, one on the table, one tucked into the fridge door and another on top of the coffeemaker.
“That’s your plan?” She gave me a funny look. I rolled my eyes and nodded for her to follow me to the balcony.
The bedroom door opened, and Adrian crossed to the bathroom. I waited until the door shut, leaving us alone once again, before leading her to the balcony.
There. The perfect spot, right in front of the double wicker chair by the glass doors. I crouched, shouldering the old blanket that had been left outside.
“Come here,” I said, indicating the space in front of me.
“What? Why?"
I tugged her down so she was kneeling in front of me, and she gave an affronted squeak as I leaned over her. One of my arms wrapped around her, and the other dragged the blanket to cover us both. She gave a little huff as I pushed us both so we were peering through the hole in the back of the chair. We had a decent view of the kitchen from here.
“This is ridiculous,” she hissed, trying to wiggle free.
“Just wait and watch,” I said, settling into my pseudo-hug. She felt very nice beneath me, but that wasn’t the point. Jhin was the first to appear in the kitchen, hair combed and in his day clothes already. He went to open the fridge door, and froze as he saw the cloth there.
“See? He’s not reacting like it’s fucked up, ” I said as Jhin picked it up. We both watched as his throat bobbed. He carefully walked it over to the nest room.
“He’s just being polite,” she said.
“With no one else around?” I asked. Jhin was taking a long time to decide when he was going to put it down. I nudged Juniper as Adrian came into the kitchen next, going straight for the coffee maker. Ez followed him, giving a big yawn and scratching his head.
Adrian picked up the tea towel on the coffeemaker, still looking half-asleep, and moved it to the side. He turned and blinked at it, a little confused, then picked it up again, bringing it right up to his face. He dropped it in surprise, his face going red.
“See?” she hissed.
“Look at his face,” I said, annoyance tinging my voice. “He’s all flustered. Not disgusted.”
Ez came over and Adrian snatched the towel back up, looking panicked. We couldn’t hear what they were saying from out here, but judging by the expression on Ez’s face, they were all equally confused and intrigued.
I stifled a laugh when Ez made a grab for the towel in Adrian’s hand, but he held it up high, out of Ez’s reach. Short little fucker.
They scuffled for a moment, before Jhin turned around and plucked the towel out of Adrian’s hands. He then took both towels back to Juniper and Kit’s room and laid them on the floor beside the door.
My eyes darted to the third tea towel on the kitchen table at the same time Ez noticed it, and while Adrian and Jhin were both distracted, he casually walked over and stuffed it into the back pocket of his trousers.
“See?” I said, satisfied.
“Maybe he just likes tea towels,” she said doubtfully.
“No, it’s because you smell nice , Juniper, and he’s completely shameless.” I shrugged, pulling myself onto the wicker chair and taking the blanket off. Juniper looked mildly worried, standing up with her arms folded as she stared inside through the sliding glass door. None of them were paying attention to us.
She looked at me, eyes narrowing.
“Well? Did you have fun?" she asked. I shrugged again, leaning back.
“‘Course. I love proving stubborn little omegas wrong,” I said, shooting her a grin. As if I’d tell her the truth.
She rolled her eyes and stomped back inside.
JUNIPER
I came back in and grabbed some more coffee before sitting down on the love seat. Vander joined Adrian in the kitchen, chatting while they made scrambled eggs. I tried not to look at him, or the tea towels now by our bedroom door. I was very annoyed at him for potentially proving me wrong.
I glanced at Ez again, who still had his stolen trophy in his pocket. I’d just… never even considered that someone might like my scent. Kit never complained, but he smelled so sweet I figured it neutralized mine.
Jhin had settled on the couch with his own cup and a piece of toast, and I could see he’d started a crossword on his phone. Ez came up behind him and started massaging his shoulders.
“Listen, Jhinny-boy?—”
“I’m not giving you pack lead, Ezra,” Jhin said, sipping his coffee.
“Come on! Just for one day!” Ex whined.
“No.”
“Dammit.” Ez started to move away.
“Stay,” Jhin commanded, waving his hand at Ez. “Finish what you started.”
“Ugh, fine ,” Ez said, returning to his massage. “If I do a good job, will you give it to me?”
“No,” Jhin said. “As I have told you many times.”
“One day, dude.” Ez shot me a wink.
Jhin caught my eye and shook his head slowly, the amusement dancing in his eyes and making me smile.
I finished my coffee and pulled my laptop onto my lap, nervously waiting until Jhin dismissed Ez before I opened it.
“Um, Jhin?” I asked, looking up. “Could I pick your brain about something? It’s an email.”
“Of course,” he said, standing up smoothly and coming around behind me. He leaned in close enough that I could feel the warmth of his skin.
I did my best to ignore the distracting scent of blackberries and sage as he read through the email. God, it had been torture when Vander trapped me under that stupid blanket. I kept almost missing what he was saying, too distracted by the scent of morning frost all around me.
“Hm,” Jhin said.
“So, I think I know what it means, but…?” I trailed off.
“They want to give you money. Well, they want to give the Safe House money. However, sometimes these kinds of things come with a lot of strings attached.” He frowned. “I haven’t heard of the Aisha foundation.”
“It’s new!” I said, proudly. “It’s run by Vex Eden!”
He looked at me blankly.
“Like, the omega of the Crimson Fury pack?”
“I’m not familiar with them,” he said.
“They’re mega movie stars,” I said. “Kit loves them. He has their poster up in our room.”
Jhin’s face went uncharacteristically dark for a second, his eyes flicking murderously toward the nest.
“Anyway, so Vex,” I said quickly. “She’s a legend! A gold pack omega from the Gritch who secured a princess bond with the hottest, most unobtainable—” Jhin’s eyes darkened again for a moment and I switched gears. “Point is, if she wants to help, I think this could be a really good offer.”
“I don’t mean to dampen your excitement,” said Jhin. “But you should be prepared. The offer may have conditions that may require you to change things or remove you from the decision-making process. You should go to this meeting and hear them out, but listen carefully.”
I shook my head. “But this is Vex Eden. If anyone understands what my omegas need, it’s her.”
“Sorry, Juniper, but that may not be the case. Someone on behalf of Ms. Eden’s foundation has offered to support you, and there’s no guarantee that she’s had any direct involvement at all.”
“Oh. I see,” I said, deflating a bit. I glanced back up at his face, suddenly a lot more nervous. “If I go, would you come with me and help me with all that conditional stuff? I don’t want to mess this up. It’s on the seventeenth.”
He gave me his small smile.
“It would be my honor.”
I turned back to my laptop, replying to the email. I kept refreshing the inbox, just in case, and got a reply pretty fast.
Thank you for confirming! Yes, we can accommodate one additional person. For anyone who attends, I will need their full name as it appears on their ID, so they can be issued a guest pass.
With a flutter of nerves in my stomach, I wrote out our full names and hit send.
* * *
I grabbed some cereal and seated myself on the bar stool. Ez invited himself to sit next to me, leaning in close as if telling me a secret.
“Hey, girl. So listen, I’m trying to come up with good date ideas for you and Kit.”
I looked at him.
“Ez, we—” I gestured between us. “—are not dating.”
“Sure,” he said. “So, do you and Kit like Polo’s?”
I sighed.
“What is that, a food place?” I asked, taking another bite of cereal. Both his hands slammed down on the table, making me jump.
“What?” His eyes were wide. “You’ve never been to Polo’s Bowling?! It’s like one of the only fun things to do around here!”
I fixed him with a cool stare.
“I don’t know if you’re aware ,” I said. “But it’s not really fun going out places when you have to always be watching your back.”
My grumpy glares seemed to be losing their effectiveness because he just cocked his head, confused.
“But you surely can’t face a kidnapping attempt every time you go out.”
“Oh, you’re right. I never thought about that. Wow, Ez, you’ve changed my life.”
He’d caught enough of my sarcasm that he hesitated. I sighed.
“Look, I’d rather stay home. Every other time I go to the grocery store, I have people thinking they’re being subtle creeping around after me, trying to get close enough to smell me better. Thinking they have a right to talk to me or touch me.”
“You could go out with Kit?" he suggested.
I leaned in closer. “Imagine, Ez, that you’re out with Kit. You’re not an alpha, so people aren’t intimidated by you. Now some creep comes along and starts following Kit, keeps grabbing items off the shelf right next to him, accidentally brushing past him each time? Would you shrug that off and try and enjoy yourself?”
“No, I’d fucking punch them,” he said seriously.
“Exactly. Not really a fun day out after that, is it?”
“There are scent dampers," he said.
“They cost money,” I threw back. “It’s easier and cheaper to stay home.”
“But you’ve got us now, Juniper!” he said, his expression brightening. “Like you said, we’re alphas, so we intimidate people. We could go anywhere and you wouldn’t have to worry. Come on, what’s one place you really want to go?”
“The New Oxford Aquarium,” Kit interrupted, sitting down beside me on a stool. I glared at him for giving away my secret. Traitor .
“Oh shit, that’s perfect then!” Ez sat back, as though it was decided.
“Well, tickets are kind of expensive. Plus, it’s closed today,” I said nervously. “It’s always closed on Tuesdays. I mean, that’s a weird day to be closed, right?”
“We’d love to take you though,” Adrian called from the couch. “For imposing on you here and all the stress we’re causing you.”
“Are you talking about the toilet seat?” Ez asked, looking guilty. I hadn't been paying attention when I went to the bathroom this morning, and had almost fallen in. “I swear, that was just cuz I was half asleep.”
I stared at my mug, thinking. My dad had taken me to the aquarium once when I was a kid. I’d loved it. Honestly, most of my nest preferences were based on the cosiness of the dimly lit rooms, the large, illuminated tanks with flashes of bright colors as the fishes swam about in their own quiet world. It was all the way on the other side of New Oxford, though, and I’d never been able to justify the price of the entrance fee. But if they were offering…
“Fine,” I said, trying to remain neutral.
“Jhin!” Ez called, and Jhin poked his head out of the bathroom; he was in the middle of brushing his teeth.
“We’re taking them to the aquarium,” Ez told him proudly.
Jhin ducked back and I heard him spit. He didn’t look impressed as his head appeared again.
“Right now?” he asked.
“No, like, sometime this week?” Ez said.
“And you interrupted me to tell me because…?”
“I dunno. I’m really excited.” Ez was bouncing in his seat, grinning wildly.
“Very exciting,” Jhin said, giving him an indulgent nod. “Well done.”
“Thanks, bro.”
“Don’t call me that,” Jhin muttered, ducking back into the bathroom.
“I’m gonna run out of things to call him,” Ez said. “He’s banned, dude, bro, mate, homie, and dad.”
I snorted.
“You called him dad?” Kit asked.
“Only when he’s being a dad,” Ez replied.
“You should probably just call him Jhin,” Adrian said, throwing a pillow at him.
“What if I went more formal?” Ez proposed, tapping his chin. “Think he’d like Mr. Pack Lead, Sir? Or maybe the Grand Lord Alpha?”
“You should definitely call him that,” Vander said from the love seat, a smirk twitching on his face.
KIT
I beamed as I managed a perfectly neat part in Juni’s hair, twisting the soft strands in my fingers as I gave her two French braids.
“Thanks,” she said, standing and pecking my cheek.
I smiled back at her, my heart swelling. Her golden eyes were bright against her black hair and dark clothes, and she didn’t even blink as she stepped back out of our room.
I was letting myself hope that this might work. She’d never let any alphas see her eyes before this. She was acting like herself , even around them. She’d pretty much agreed to go on a date with us, so that established them seeing her even after they stopped staying with us.
“You ready?" she called, poking her head back in the room. I was off to the Safe House to drop off some groceries and supplies. The pack was getting ready to leave too, to check on their apartment.
“You okay if I come along today?” she asked. “Want to check in with Luna.”
“Oh, yeah. Of course,” I said, trying not to let my nerves into my voice. Why did she want to come along? I glanced at her as I pulled on my boots. Was she evaluating me? Was she planning to ask Luna how the move went?
Emery was unlocking the store as we came down the stairs.
“Oh, is this your new pack?" she asked, sounding delighted as she approached to give us hugs. “I can’t believe you haven’t introduced me yet!”
“Hey everyone, this is Emery, our landlady,” I said. “And Emery, this is Jhin, Ez, Adrian and Vander.”
“Lovely to meet you,” said Jhin, offering his hand. Emery clucked and pulled him into a hug.
“Oh, I am so pleased for these two,” she said with a beam. “You boys are incredibly lucky to have met them, I hope you know that.”
“Indeed,” Jhin said, nodding. Juniper was looking a little concerned, but she didn’t correct Emery. Emery let him go and went to hug Ez next.
“I’ll drive,” interjected Vander, snatching the keys from Adrian and escaping into the van. Adrian was blushing as Emery swept him up, too.
“Invite me to your wedding!” she called, as Jhin opened the van door. My face went as red as Adrian’s.
“We met them last week!” I said.
“I can see it dear. It’s in your auras. You’ll all be very happy together,” Emery said, turning back to me.
“Is she a seer?” Ez asked under his breath, his eyes wide. Some people could visualize the auras of alphas and omegas, but they were easily identified by their white hair and distinct eyes; one white and one red.
“No?” I gave him a funny look.
“What?” he asked. “She‘s got white hair! She could be wearing contacts, too!”
I rolled my eyes as he kissed my cheek and hopped into the minivan.
“See you later! I’ll miss you guys!” he said cheerily. Then Jhin pulled the door closed, and the engine started.
Emery waved Juniper and me back over as the pack drove off to their apartment.
“Kit, thank you for your help the other day. It would have taken me hours to pot all those plants by myself. Did you give any more thought to my offer?”
“Oh, thank you, Emery, but I’m good,” I assured her.
“Well, if you change your mind, let me know.” With a final smile, Emery turned and stepped through the door.
“What offer?” Juniper asked when she was gone.
“Mo handed in his two weeks. She offered me his job in the store,” I said as we started walking toward the car. Juniper’s eyebrows rose.
“That’s great, Kit! You love helping out in there,” she said, seeming relieved. “You should take it!”
I scuffed my shoe on the ground, my heart sinking. I honestly would have really liked to work with Emery in the Glass Berry. She was nice, and it was the kind of work I’d be doing that I couldn’t really mess up, like potting plants or arranging displays. But I’d said no because I’d thought Juniper needed me at the Safe House.
“I mean, I already have a job, though,” I said. “With you.”
There was a pause, and Juniper looked a little uncomfortable.
“Wouldn’t you rather have, like, a proper job?” she asked slowly, and I could hear the unease in her voice. “You wouldn’t have to live in the Safe House for a week every month. And I know you hate having to carry the gun around.”
“Yeah, but we need people to host,” I replied. Didn’t we? It wasn’t easy finding people who’d work the strange schedule we had.
“Don’t worry about us, Kit. We’ll be fine if you go. You should really take the job with Emery!”
I shrugged, my throat feeling a bit tight.
“Yeah, okay. I’ll think about it,” I replied, but I couldn’t shake the disappointment weighing on my shoulders.
We reached the car and climbed inside without another word. I felt tense as we started to drive to the Safe House.
Shit.
She’d kept on making excuses as to why I couldn’t help her with the admin stuff, and now this?
Why did she want to get rid of me?