A Confession
Sienna
“Sienna, hey, how are you?” Seth asks, a smile on his face. “You look… amazing.”
“Hi, I’m good, thanks. How are you? What are you doing here?” I ask, trying not to sound rude. I instantly sense a piercing gaze on me and know instantly it’s Jayce.
“What am I doing here?” Seth laughs. “I got a VIP invitation.”
“Oh, I see.”
“Sienna, look what I have! Go away, Seth,” Kaden pouts, displeased by the soon-to-be Beta.
“What do you have?” I ask Kaden, as a conversation from earlier enters my mind.
“I brought the dress that will get Jayce so worked up,” Heaven says with a confident smirk as she unzips the back, holding a slinky, sexy dress.
“Good, and I also brought something to the table that will get Jayce super worked up,” Allie says with a small smile.
“What have you done?” I ask, narrowing my eyes at their plan-making.
“You don’t worry about my VIP gift; you just focus on getting dressed up. We’re frankly fed up with him being a dickhead.”
“Exactly my point, so dress to kill,” Heaven says, holding out the dress.
So he was Allie’s surprise… Oh, Allie, I can already sense Jayce’s irritation. He just needs time. I know he loves me.
“I caught a ladybird,” Kaden says, opening his hand.
“That is so pretty,” I say, ruffling his curls, hoping Seth goes away. “Look at the colour, too – yellow.”
Kaden smiles before he runs off. “I’m going to go show Heaven.”
Jayce has ignored me for the last few days, ever since he walked out of the gym that day. I’ve seen him fleetingly a few times, but he’s done his best to avoid me.
And yet he keeps his walls down, just enough for him to mentally remain close. And I know why, just in case I have another nightmare about the dome. I haven’t so far, but that could be because I haven’t slept well, unable to sleep, my mind consumed by Jayce and the restlessness that has taken over.
Gods, am I trying to give him space, but it’s so hard. So when Heaven picked out my dress and told me this is the one for tonight, I went with it. It’s not like I had anything picked out anyway, and I was going to be myself, and I do dress well.
“I wanted you to know I’ll be taking the position of Beta soon.”
I look up at Seth, not expecting that. “Really?”
I sense that Jayce is no longer looking in my direction, but I keep my attention trained on Seth.
“Yeah, the Alpha thinks I’m ready.” He shoves his hands in his pockets and smiles at me, his eyes dropping to the mark on my neck. “I am happy for you, Sienna; congratulations.”
“Thanks,” I say, smiling at him. “And congrats on your upcoming rank; I’m sure you will be an incredible Beta.”
“Thanks, I won’t disappoint those who have faith in me.” He looks at his shoes before glancing back up at me and smiling. Not the smile of a boy trying to win me over, but the smile of a man mature enough to behave like one.
“Ahren’s right. I think you are ready.”
His eyes widen slightly before he chuckles. “Yeah? Thanks. I have a lot to measure up to, that’s for certain.”
“Well, we’ll all be rooting for you.”
“And I’ll be rooting for you, too,” he says before he steps back. “See you around.”
I nod as he backs away slowly before he turns and walks away.
I look around the garden, spotting Allie shooing the kids away from the dessert table, an expression of pure disgust on her face. Scaring them isn’t working as Phoenix physically pushes her while grabbing another cake pop.
Mama and Dad are dancing, and from the way Mama’s blushing, I’m glad I can’t hear what Dad is saying.
Heaven is nowhere to be seen; Enrique is holding one of his pups whilst Grandpa Al holds the other, a huge grin on his face as he stands beside Enrique, for once, not criticising his son-in-law.
Both of them just look far too big to be holding the tiny babies. I can’t help but giggle at that. Look at him, becoming a grandfather.
As if sensing me watching, Grandpa Al looks up and motions me over with a jerk of his head. I walk over to them and look down at the two cuties. They really are such adorable babies!
“I was saying to Enrique they look more like us Rossis than him,” Grandpa Al says, pointing at Leandro’s nose.
I raise an eyebrow. “I think they look like Enrique,” I say cheekily. Enrique smirks.
“See? I told you so.”
Grandpa Al frowns. “You’re supposed to be on my side,” he grunts, placing his arm around my shoulder and kissing the top of my head.
“I always am, but I have to be honest,” I whisper, making Enrique snicker.
“Well, either way, they are some cute little fuckers,” Grandpa Al says proudly as he looks between the twins and then down at me sharply. His eyes find my mark, and for a moment, he stares at it before a deep frown settles on his face as if just remembering Jayce. “Where is he?”
He doesn’t need to say who he’s talking about.
“Around,” I say.
He’s about to say something else, no doubt to complain about Jayce, when Aunty Kiara calls him.
I take the chance to slip away, walking through the crowd, exchanging small talk and greetings with anyone I pass.
Several of our friends and acquaintances from the Academy are here, like Shahira, Charlotte, and Artemis, but despite the huge number of guests, two people are notably missing: Theo and Dante.
“I’ll see you later,” I say to Artemis and Brock, deciding to get myself a drink. It’s quite warm tonight. I weave my way through the crowd in the direction of the drink table, only to see Dad standing there with Jayce.
“… your father was saying you want to step up,” Dad’s saying. He’s holding a drink in his hand, whilst Jayce, whose back is to me, has one hand in his pocket.
My breath hitches as I look him over. He looks as sexy as ever, his jeans hugging his thighs, his shirt is fitted nicely, pulled taut over his biceps. Both men turn to look at me, and I walk over to them, not knowing what to do with my hands, feeling so self-conscious under Jayce’s gaze.
Dad smiles at me as I reach them, preparing myself for Jayce to excuse himself.
“What are you two talking about?” I ask.
“I was just asking Jayce about his future plans,” Dad says, placing his arm around me and looking at Jayce.
Jayce nods. “That’s the plan, once things are sorted with the dome. That’s the priority right now.” His gaze flicks to mine; for a moment he holds my gaze, his eyes once again dipping to my plunging neckline before he turns towards the drink table and picks up a glass, downing half of it in one go.
I smile slightly. “Do you mean you want to take the title of Alpha?” I ask. Will he ignore me in front of Dad? I’m at least hoping he doesn’t.
“That’s the plan. I’m old enough, and I think I know the next few steps I want to take in life,” he replies to me. For a moment, I almost think he means me from the way his voice softened, but that’s wishful thinking.
“That’s good to know; you’ll make a great Alpha, and I think that would be great for Uncle Liam, too. You’re also turning twenty-one tomorrow,” I answer.
Twenty-one already.
My stomach somersaults as I remember the last birthday we celebrated together – mine. It’s the how that makes my core clench with desire.
“Well, I’ll let you both enjoy the evening. I will see you both soon,” Dad says as he kisses my forehead before patting Jayce on the shoulder and leaving us both standing there.
“Want a drink?” Jayce asks.
“Oh, yes, that’s actually why I came over here,” I admit, blushing lightly.
He reaches for a cherry mocktail, and I smile. My favourite.
“Thanks,” I say when he holds it out to me.
“Anytime,” he murmurs, looking away.
Were the girls right? That the dress and Seth would get to him?
Well, if it got him talking to me, then that’s all that matters, even if I do wish it wasn’t just because of that.
I take a sip of my drink when Jayce speaks again.
“It’s pretty loud; want to get out of here for a bit?
” he asks, his voice low as he downs the rest of his drink before placing the empty glass onto the table beside him.
Then he turns towards me and holds his hand out.
My eyes widen, and his gaze narrows faintly. “I need to talk to you, nothing more.”
I blush, shaking my head. “I know!” I say, but the seriousness in his voice makes my stomach tighten. After days of avoiding me, after all the mixed signals and tension, he wants to talk, and that terrifies me.
“Sure,” I say softly, accepting his hand.
The second his fingers close around mine, sparks dance through me, the mate bond sending tingles through every part of me. He squeezes my hand gently, and that tiny gesture sends a flurry of butterflies through me.
It’s the small things like this that consume me entirely, these precious little moments.
He leads me away from the drinks table, weaving us through the crowd and around the side of the huge marquee.
Leaving the music and laughter behind us the further we walk down the side of the mansion.
One wall of the mansion is lit by small lights, and on the other side, the wall is lined with a bed of flowers, with small lights spread amongst the flowers.
I look at the back of his head, my chest tightening. Gods, I’ve missed him so much. These last few days had been so hard, but I had told myself I would give him time, that I would just be myself and fight for him. And by that, I have to stay strong.
“Is everything ok?” I ask once we’re far enough away that no one will overhear us.
“Yeah,” he says quietly. “It is.”
Yet despite his words, there’s tension in his voice and jaw. His shoulders are tight beneath his shirt, and when he finally slows his pace, releasing my hand to walk beside me instead, I can see conflict in his eyes.
“Ok, it’s just… You ignored me for days,” I say softly, not wanting to push him away again.
Jayce exhales slowly, glancing down at the gravel path beneath our feet.
“Yeah. I know.” He turns his head, raking his fingers through his hair. “What happened that day... It shouldn’t have.”
I come to an abrupt stop and turn, staring up at him with confusion.