Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
Riley
Brooks: Hey everyone, I’m adding Sage to the group chat. Saw her on her walk today and gave her the gift.
Sage has been added to the chat
I suck in a breath when I see the notifications popping up on my phone.
“Ay!” I scramble out of Vee’s arms, interrupting the movie we were watching so I can reply, giddy with excitement.
Riley: Sage! You’re here! Hi, I missed you
Okay. So maybe that was a touch over the top. I glance at Neveah to see her smirking. I huff and roll my eyes, then flop back onto the couch by her side.
“What? It’s true,” I grumble.
“I know, love,” she says, scratching her nails along my scalp and then pulling me back into her arms. I relax into her, holding my phone so we can both see it.
“You should say something, too,” I murmur, angling my head so I can see her expression. She contemplates it, then squeezes my arm.
“You’re right,” she says, leaning to the side to snag her phone from the end table.
Neveah: Welcome, Sage. I can’t wait to meet you in person, but thank you for agreeing to chat with us until we can make that happen.
I snort when I see her message.
“You’re so formal,” I tease.
She tugs on my hair, a pretend warning to watch my mouth.
Sage: Hi. Thank you for inviting me and I am sorry for taking so long to get back to you. I did not have my phone for a couple days.
Neveah tenses behind me, and I look up at her in question, only for her to visibly force herself to relax.
“What is it?”
“Hopefully nothing, I just don’t like the sound of her not having her phone accessible if she needs it.”
Yeah, that tracks. Neveah is big on independence and safety and whatnot.
Brooks: We’re happy you’re here to chat with us, Petal. Should we do some get to know each other questions?
Riley: Hell yeah. I’ll start. What’s everyone’s go-to sing-along song?
Neveah sighs, but she’s already typing. I know what her answer will be, but I’m curious what Brooks and Sage will say.
Neveah: All the Stars by Kendrick and SZA
Riley: Okay, that’s your public answer. Now tell them your real answer.
Vee snorts and I grin up at her.
Neveah: Fine. Kate Bush - Running Up That Hill…
Brooks: Haha. Hmm, I’m not normally a sing-along guy. But I do like anything by The Beatles
Sage: I am sorry. I do not listen to much music so I do not know the answer to this question. What is yours Riley
I tilt my head when I read her message.
“I wonder why she talks like that.”
“Like what?” Neveah asks.
“Formal, like you kinda, but not? She doesn’t use any conjunctions or whatever. ‘I am’ and ‘do not’ — why doesn’t she say I’m and don’t?”
“Hmm,” Neveah says. “Maybe we should let her pick the next question.”
Riley: Soda Pop from Kpop Demon Hunters, hands down. I can do the dance too, I’ll show you sometime if you want [winky emoji]
Riley: You want to pick the next question, Sage?
Sage: Okay. Um. What is your favorite food
Brooks: I’m a simple guy. I love a sandwich.
Sage: What do you like on your sandwich
Brooks: Anything and everything. Meat, cheese, veggies, mayo. All the toppings, I’m not picky. What about you, Petal?
Riley: Impossible to pick. I love candy, and pastries. And coffee. Does that count? Obviously it’s a drink, but I think it counts.
Sage: It counts.
Riley: I knew you were my favorite, Sage!
Neveah: I don’t have a strong preference on food. I do tend to enjoy a savory breakfast, though. I also love a good burrito.
Brooks: I notice you haven’t answered your own question, Sage
Sage: I do not really have a favorite food. If I had to pick maybe apples or grapes.
Neveah and I exchange a look. This is feeling more and more off, and knowing I’m not alone in that feeling only makes it worse.
I sit up and turn sideways on the couch to face my alpha.
“Okay, so.” I hold up my fingers, ticking off each point as I say them. “Maybe the talking thing is a cute quirk, or maybe she doesn’t know how to use a phone since Brooks had to give her one. She doesn’t listen to music. And her favorite food is apples or grapes?”
Neveah shakes her head, concern creasing her face. Then she pulls her phone out and starts tapping at it.
I lean forward to see she’s closed the group chat and opened a new one with Brooks.
Is it just me, or is something not right?
It’s not just you.
Neveah sighs and closes her eyes for a moment. I reach out to squeeze her arm and she gives me a soft, sad smile.
Can you make it back to the farm tomorrow? I think we should talk, figure out how we’re going to move forward.
Anytime after 10am I can be there. I don’t want to miss her walk.
Show up whenever is convenient for you. We’ll be here.
With that sorted, she clicks back to the group chat to say goodnight to Sage. I follow with a goodnight message as well, and so does Brooks.
Sage: Good night. Thank you all for welcoming me. Please be patient if I do not reply right away.
The next day, we spend as much time messaging with Sage as we can.
I ask when we can come down to take her out to eat, or if she can come to the lavender farm again, but she says she doesn’t know and leaves it at that.
I’m disappointed, but Neveah filled me in on what Brooks told her about Sage’s situation, so I’m more worried than anything.
I don’t like the thought of her being alone with those alphas.
Brooks shows up shortly before closing, so we all sit down for dinner together.
“What are you thinking?” Neveah asks, getting right to the point.
“Geesh, let a guy relax first, boss,” I say.
She shoots me a quelling look, but her lips twitch at my sass. I’ll likely get to pay for my snark later. Vee gives the best punishments, so I give her a cheeky grin in return.
Brooks’ eyes dart between us, a look of surprised curiosity as he takes in our brand of flirting. I wonder if he likes sass, too?
Neveah clears her throat, and we all refocus on the task at hand: rescuing our omega.
“I talked to her again on her walk today, tried to gauge how safe it might be for her to sneak out again if another opportunity comes up. I’d like to get her away from there permanently, though.”
“Why not tell her that?” I ask.
Neveah is already shaking her head, though Brooks answers.
“She’s skittish. I think that would scare her away more than anything. Stick with the devil you know, or whatever that phrase is. Sage may not like where she’s at, but she’s learned to survive and bear it. She has no idea what life with us would be like.”
“Which is why we need to show her,” Neveah says.
“What did she say?” I ask Brooks. “About another date?”
“She said she checked her brother’s calendar and they have a party tomorrow night, then another baseball game Saturday afternoon. She doesn’t know how long they’ll be gone tomorrow, but said maybe we could video chat or meet up for a little bit.”
“We can go to her, no problem,” I cut in, and both alphas smile at me in agreement.
I breathe a sigh of relief, happy to have a plan for moving forward. I sneak my phone out of my pocket while Brooks and Neveah keep chatting, finalizing the details. I open up a new chat and message Sage.
I hear I might get to see you again tomorrow
I hope so. I would like that. I do not know when they will leave or get back though.
That’s okay, we can be flexible.
Are you sure you want to deal with this?
I don’t know what you mean by “this” or “deal with” but if you’re referring to courting you, hell yeah. I want to court the fuck out of you, babe.
Oh. Okay. Thank you.
Thank you? I snort. She’s so freaking cute.
I just wanted to be sure I was not inconveniencing anyone.
Now I’m scowling, because seriously, what are those alphas saying to her that she thinks so little of herself?
Put it out of your mind. None of us do anything we don’t want to. And believe me, Sage. We want to spend time with you in any way we can.
“What’s that look for?” Neveah asks, catching me frowning at my phone.
“She thinks she’s an inconvenience.”
Brooks leans back in his chair with a sigh. “Yeah, I’ve gotten that too. We’ll work on it.”
Damn right we will.