Page 86 of Alpha Theo

“Never,” Gray grins. He sweeps an arm around her waist, pulls her in and plants a kiss on her lips. “Duty calls, babe. We can make plans to go see them another time.”

I’m glad that Fallon and Gray are so happy together, but their constant PDA is like rubbing salt in my fresh wounds. I want something like that so badly- and it feels so out of reach right now given the circumstances.

We pile in the Jeep, dropping Gray off at the complex. Then I take the passenger seat and Fallon starts driving toward Summervale. As I buckle my seatbelt, I think of the first time Theo picked me up in this Jeep to bring me back to Summervale. I smile thinking of how he pulled up with aGreen Daysong playing, how he drove like a maniac, how he watched me as I danced to an 80’s song. It was just a few weeks ago, but it feels like so much time has passed.

Then there was our trip to Denver. I remember being so irritated when I saw him behind the wheel of the Jeep, and then he had me turn on my music, DJ the trip. Teased and joked with me the whole way. That Denver trip was when he first started to win me over.

He picked me up in the Jeep for our anti-date, too- took me to the ski resort and talked me into getting on the lift. Gave me butterflies.

They’re good memories, but they feel different now that I know he’s my mate. I feel like I need to analyze every interaction we’ve ever had, try to pick them apart to determine if we really could be compatible or if I was just blinded by his charming smile and my schoolgirl crush. Measure the risk, evaluate every angle. I can’t help myself- it’s just what I do.

“I don’t want Mom and Dad to know,” I mumble, staring out the window at the blur of green trees. “Not yet.”

Fallon blows out a breath. “Are you sure? They could have good advice…”

“I’m sure.” I turn to look at my sister as she drives. “You know how they are. They’ll get all excited, and if it doesn’t work out…”

Fallon rolls her eyes. “You don’t want to disappoint them.” She glances over at me. “You do realize that we’re not in high school anymore, right? You don’t have to keep playing the role of the perfect daughter.”

“I’m not,” I scowl. “I just don’t want the pressure, alright? I want to figure this out on my own.”

She nods. “Fine. I won’t say anything.”

We ride in silence for a few minutes before Fallon speaks up again.

“So when are you gonna talk to him?”

I heave a sigh. “I don’t need pressure from you either, Fallon.”

“What?” she laughs, feigning innocence. “I’m not pressuring, I’m just curious.”

“There’s just a lot for me to think about.” I stare out the window, resting my chin on my palm.

“You mean a lot for you to over-think about.”

“Yeah,” I grumble.

A pause settles between us before Fallon chuckles again, side-eyeing me. “I still can’t believe you got on amotorcycle.”

I turn to her, my lips spreading into a grin. “Right? I mean I’ll probably never do it again, but before he started driving like a crazy person it was actually kinda…”

“Fun?” Fallon asks, finishing my sentence for me.

I nod. “Yeah.” I bite my lip, considering. “It was a rush.”

That night ended so badly that I’ve never actually thought about how much I was enjoying the ride before things went south. It felt good to wrap my arms around Theo, ride behind him with the wind in my hair. I didn’t hate it.

Fallon grins, side-eyeing me again. “My sister the adrenaline junkie. Who woulda thought?”

I laugh, slapping her arm with the back of my hand. “Whatever.”

“Hey, it’s not a bad thing that you’re coming out of your shell a little bit.” Fallon shrugs. “About time you let loose and had some fun.” She waggles her eyebrows.

I roll my eyes. “You sound like Theo.”

Now that I think about it, the two of them are more alike than I ever realized. Both reckless, impulsive, hot-headed, short-sighted. Maybe that’s why the two of them have always butted heads.

The radio is playing on a low volume, and I perk up when I hear the song change.

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