Page 208 of Psycho Beasts

Xerxes stayed silent. He seemed to be reeling from the alphas’ admission that they viewed him as their omega.

Aran stood and said she was going to bed.

As she walked by, she muttered something under her breath about attending our funerals.

In her absence, the flames in the fireplace cracked and popped louder, reaching new heights.

Like her presence had been stifling them.

My gut twisted as, once again, a sense of déjà vu washed over me.

Like something was so obvious, but it was just outside my fingertips.

The men formulated the specifics of the plan, how we would treat Xerxes, and what toys we should use.

How we should interact with the people in the club to convince them we belonged there.

Xerxes warned about how dark the beast realm could be and how people expected violence.

Ascher gave tips. Apparently, he had his own experience with BDSM.

Cobra and Jax strategized the quickest way to kill the wolves.

The room spun around me.

“I’m scared,” I blurted out before I could stop myself.

My face burned with embarrassment as I picked at the threads of the blanket draped across my lap.

No one laughed.

Callused, tattooed fingers twined around mine.

Ascher leaned over the edge of the couch and held my hand, his amber eyes burning with sincerity. “Me too, Princess.”

His openness made me want to be honest.

My voice cracked. “It still scares me, but I wish I would have been allowed to form a pack with you guys.”

The only sound was the cracking of logs in the fire.

The silence was heavy.

Ascher’s hand tightened around mine. “Every day, I feel like shit for turning everyone over to the fae queen. Everything is my fault. Now Aran’s falling apart, and we can’t be with you without risking your life. I ruin everything.”

I squeezed his hand back as I struggled to find the appropriate words.

“But then I wouldn’t be your omega,” Xerxes said quietly from across the room, “and I’d still be hiding from myself and following the orders of a madwoman.”

Ascher stared across the room at Xerxes, like he’d just taken a weight off his shoulders.

Intensity swirled among us.

Secrets begetting more secrets, as if they longed for company.

Jax spoke quietly, “I’m scared every day that I’m going to fail my sisters and all of you. I’ve been alone for so many years, and now I have so much to lose. It feels like I’m just waiting for everything to be taken from me. Now that there’re so many reasons to fight, I don’t think I’m as strong as I thought I was.”

A log popped in the fire.

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