Page 102 of Alpha Theo

“We can tell people we’re dating, if you’re sure that’s what you want.”

He snaps his head to look at me, his grin matching mine. “Yeah? I mean, yeah, that’s what I want.”

I nod, and I can feel my cheeks heating in a blush. “Me too.”

I reach forward to turn the volume up again as the second chorus starts playing, and I sing along louder, losing myself in the song. My heart feels so full, like it could burst.

~

The whole ride to Denver is great. We chat and joke and laugh and sing and every moment with Theo feels so natural, like we’ve been together for ages instead of just a few weeks. I’m almost sad when the road trip ends and we arrive at the gate of the neighborhood on the outskirts of Denver that belongs to their pack.

When we pull into the driveway of the packhouse, we’re greeted once again by two burly bouncer types who escort us inside. They bring us straight to the guest rooms we stayed in last time, depositing our belongings before walking us back to the foyer where Alpha Cole and his sister are waiting to receive us.

“Nice to see you two again,” Cole booms as he strides across the foyer. He shakes Theo’s hand first, then mine. “You remember my sister, Astrid?”

“Of course,” Theo smiles, and my wolf is immediately on high alert. I remember the way Theo looked at Astrid the last time he was here.

Astrid looks from Theo to me, grinning. She’s gorgeous- petite, suntanned skin, dark eyes and light brown curls. Curves in all the right places. I feel that ugly jealousy inside of me rising up again.

“So glad you’re both here,” Astrid breathes, and her voice is so light and smooth, almost like a song. “Brooke, wanna head to the hive with me while the guys talk pack business?”

“Uh, sure,” I mumble, flicking a nervous glance at Theo beside me and adjusting my backpack on my shoulders. Even though I met several of the Denver IT team last time I was here, they’re still strangers. Theo’s my comfort zone right now, and it never occurred to me that we wouldn’t be sticking together.

“C’mon,” Astrid coos, coming up beside me and linking her arm with mine.

Theo gives me a little nod and begrudgingly, I begin to walk away with Astrid, allowing her to lead me to the door and out of the packhouse. Once we’re outside, she unwinds her arm from mine, smoothing her bouncing curls.

“So how was your trip?” Astrid asks as we make our way down the front walk. The hive isn’t far from the packhouse, and when we hit the end of the driveway, I can already see the large building down the street from our vantage point.

“Good,” I breathe.

“Hit much traffic?”

I shake my head. “No, hardly any.”

I know she’s making an effort at polite conversation, but I despise small talk. I’m a little socially awkward as it is, so I suck at it.

“Okay, I have to ask,” Astrid gushes, skidding to a stop and touching my arm. “You and Theo. Are you…?”

She doesn’t finish her sentence, but I know what she’s insinuating. I nod quickly. “Yeah. We’re dating.”

It feels strange to say it out loud for the first time. Strange, but satisfying. A polite way of saying ‘he’s mine, back off’.

Astrid’s lips spread into a wide grin. “I knew it!”

I’m taken aback by her reaction. She seems almost excited, which doesn’t really track with how she behaved toward Theo the last time we were here. It was like she was undressing him with her eyes.

She must read the confusion in my face because she lets out a light laugh that’s carried away on the breeze. “Sorry, I suppose you don’t know me very well yet,” she says.

I’m still confused. I furrow my brow, tilting my head, trying to decipher the meaning behind her words.

Astrid takes my hand in hers. “I’m an intuitive,” she admits. “Sometimes I just know things and I can’t explain why or how I know them. It’s a family trait, my grandmother was the same way. And when I met you two last time you were here, I had a feeling there was something between you. And now it’s even stronger… you’re bonded, aren’t you?”

My jaw goes slack, stunned by Astrid’s admission. I’ve heard that some shifters possess special abilities, but I’ve never actually met one that did. It’s absolutely fascinating. I blink at her, staring as if I’m seeing her for the first time.

“Oh gosh, now I’ve freaked you out, haven’t I?” she asks, her lovely dark eyes glittering as she relinquishes her grasp on my hand.

“No,” I sputter, laughing uncomfortably. “You just caught me off guard, I guess. It’s still really new and we’ve been keeping it quiet.”

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