Chapter 52
Chapter Fifty-Two
Aury
I snag Siobhan on Saturday morning while the other two are gone so I can take her out for tea and pastries.
“Omega Gardening Club is done for the year,” she says, pouting out her cute lower lip. I lean in to nip it, and she rolls her eyes while trying not to smile.
“Too cold?”
“Yeah,” she sighs. “Vee closed the community garden yesterday, Sage just texted the group. Won’t be back open again until the spring.”
“Maybe you can all get together at the coffee shop or something instead.”
She shrugs. “Maybe. I guess I could text them and see what they’re all up to.”
We order our tea lattes and a platter of sweet snacks, and I contemplate how to bring up the topic that’s been on my mind.
Siobhan relaxes into her seat, a beam of sun highlighting her pale blonde hair through the window.
There’s a young golden-yellow maple tree right outside, enhancing the glowing effect she has going for her.
She looks like an angel, my personal salvation, and I’m so incredibly thankful to be here with her.
“Siobhan,” I say, leaning forward. Then I decide I’m not close enough, so I slip into the chair next to hers instead of being across the table.
“Aury,” she replies with a questioning smile.
“I’ve been thinking about the future, Our future.
I know you don’t prescribe to all the traditions of courting, but I’ve been thinking a lot more these last couple weeks about pack life.
” I take her hand in mine and turn my body fully towards her.
Her blue eyes are wide and fixed on me, lips slightly parted with what I hope is eager anticipation and not apprehension.
“You were worried before about me as a beta, and whether I’d want to be in a pack. ”
She nods, and I shake my head while taking in a deep, slow breath. I smile, and her lips curve up in response.
“I think I want that. No, I know I want that.”
Her smile grows, and relief loosens my shoulders. “Thinking back on that full moon debacle. It made me realize how well we all work together.”
“I was thinking about that, too,” she murmurs.
She glances down at the table, tracing the edge of the pastry box with her eyes.
“I loved how you all let me be in charge of everything. That I didn’t have to worry about being held back or told no.
I always thought having a pack would limit me, but…
” She looks back up, staring directly into my eyes. “None of you did that.”
Her brows pinch together, confusion flitting across her face like she still doesn’t understand how it’s possible.
“Moonbeam, that’s what pack is. For us, at least. You’re our shining star, and we’re the moons orbiting around you.”
She laughs, “I don’t think that’s how space works.”
I shrug. “I don’t care. It’s how we work.”
Her expression softens, turning thoughtful, and she twists her lips to the side as her eyes trail over the pastry box again.
“I’d like all four of us to be a pack,” she says, and my heart leaps with joy.
“But I don’t know how to go about bringing that up with the alphas.
You’re easier to talk to, and I feel like we’ve been on the same page this whole time.
They’re hard to read though, and with the complication of already having a bond with Jayce…
” she trails off, then looks up at me with wide blue eyes.
“Leave it to me, Moonbeam.” I give her a reassuring smile, and to my delight she nods with quiet acceptance.
We move on to other topics, chatting about how she’s going to handle the spotlight that this strange turn of events with Helen brought about. She has a few content ideas already that we brainstorm further on, and I’m again reminded of how clever her entrepreneurial brain is.
“You amaze me,” I say, leaning forward to kiss her nose. Her amethyst septum ring glints at me as I pull back.
She giggles and tips her face up for a real kiss, which I’m happy to oblige.
When our tea is gone and the pastries nothing but crumbs, we finally stand and I walk us back to my car.
The air is crisp and smells like crushed leaves, with Siobhan’s earthy chai drifting on the wind.
I pull my phone out and fall a couple steps behind her so I can text the alphas.
Me: Project tea and tarot is a go